As noted by a commentator last week, Edgewood toppled DeForest last Thursday night at DeForest's pool 90.5-79.5. The outcome may come as something of a surprise -- DeForest, after all, has won three straight D2 titles -- but maybe shouldn't be considered a huge upset.
After all, Edgewood returned a strong nucleus of swimmers that finished 5th last year at the D2 state meet (albiet nearly 100 points behind DeForest). The Crusaders brought in a deep and talented freshman class last year, and those swimmers now have a season of experience to draw on. And Edgewood appears to have one of those difference-makers that make them dangerous in a dual meet, and that's sprinter Kelsey Richards. Now a senior, Richards had a terrific state meet last Novemeber and appears ready to stamp herself as one of the state's top D2 sprinters. Against DeForest, she won both the 50 and 100 frees, and anchored the team's winning 200 and 400 free relays (Richards' winning time in the 50 free -- 25.3 -- is pretty sharp this early in the season; by comparison, she went 24.72 to finish 4th last year at state).) High school swimming is tilted toward sprinting, and a swimmer who can dominate the sprints and anchor two winning relays can rack up a lot of points for a team.
Richards' effort was augmented by Edgewood's Healy sisters, with Margaret winning the 100 fly and Sarah winning the 500 free. Emma Green, one of those top freshman from last year, won the 200 IM and contributed legs on the 200 and 400 free relays.
It's hard to make too much out of one early-season meet -- DeForest in particular is known for moving its swimmers around in different events during the season before settling on a lineup for the conference/sectional/state meet run. But look for these two teams -- the top two finishers from the Baraboo sectional last year -- to tangle some more as the season progresses.
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