D1 down the stretch

While Madison East and Madison Memorial took the weekend off from competition, Hartland-Arrowhead was busy dominating the field at the Highlander Invitational at Mequon-Homestead's pool. H-A won 8 of 11 events at the meet to win in a romp (405 points) over runner-up Waukesha South/Mukwonago (264) and third-place Middleton (228.5). Leading the way for H-A was freshman Haley Pietila (100/200 free victories) and sophomore Emma Goral, who continues to rack up impressive times a year after winning the D1 state title in the 100 fly. With its win, H-A moved up to second in the latest WISCA (state coaches association) poll, behind East and ahead of Memorial. H-A will certainly be the favorite in their tough Waukesha South/Mukwonago sectional Nov. 8; they are a very balanced team, with the real possibility of qualifying swimmers for state in each of the eight individual events, along with all three relays and at least one diver.