Four South Sound athletes win swimming and diving titles, led by Mount Rainier’s Grace Felner

Mount Rainier High School junior Grace Felner had almost all day to think about winning her first individual Class 4A state swimming title.

She had to wait until after 10 p.m. to try for it, but when she finally got her chance, she made the most of it, winning the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1 minute, 2.64 seconds on Saturday evening at King County Aquatic Center.

“I definitely think that there is a lot more room for improvement,” Felner said. “I’m also really proud of myself for getting up for this meet and finishing first and second.”

Earlier, Felner didn’t win the 200 individual medley, but finished as the runner-up to Newport of Bellevue’s Samantha Baron, who swam one of the top times in state history.

It was tough for Felner to be too upset about that, considering she also finished with a personal-best time of 2:02.36 in the event, which was good enough for All-American consideration.

“It was really good,” Felner said. “I swam a personal-best time. I definitely got a little tired during the race, but it’s fine. That’s just more to work on.”

Baron won the race with an automatic All-American time of 2:00.86. Felner stayed with Baron for most of the race, but the Newport junior was able to pull away in the final 50 yards.

“My turns were a little slow, but that just means I have to work on finishing races,” Felner said.

Two more South Sound athletes also notched individual titles in the 4A meet.

Rogers sophomore Heather Hopkins earned the top spot in the 1-meter diving competition, earning the first championship of the evening session for a local athlete. She finished with a winning score of 407 points.

Earlier in the day, in the 2A meet, Fife junior Taylor Bloedorn also won a diving title with 323.2 points.

Several events after Hopkins’ win, Tahoma freshman Hanna Weissman pulled off a stunning win in the 100 back, after entering the finals with the No. 3 seed.

Weissman knocked more than a second off of her time from Friday’s preliminaries, finishing with an All-American consideration time of 55.54, and edging top-seeded Rachel Nguyen of Newport at the wall.

Wiessman also swam legs of Tahoma’s 200 medley relay (third, 1:46.72) and 400 free relay (fourth, 3:36.45). The Bears just missed the podium as a team, finishing fifth with 143 points, while fourth-place Wenatchee secured a spot with 160.5.

But, while Tahoma was on the outside looking in, 4A SPSL and 4A West Central District champion Curtis ended the night with a third-place finish in the team competition.

Vikings junior Molly Hickey boosted the point total with a runner-up finish in the 50 free (23.69) and a third-place finish in the 100 free. Sophomore Leigh Lopez-Silvers contributed with a fourth-place finish in the 200 free (1:52.5).

And both swam legs of the Vikings’ third-place 400 free relay (3:31.05), which earned an All-American consideration time, and their fourth-place 200 medley relay (1:46.72).

Curtis collected 168.5 team points, behind two 4A KingCo powers in team champion Newport (356) and runner-up Skyline (231.5).

“Last year, we got 10th, and that was our first time in the top-10 in like 26 years,” Curtis coach Aaron Hughes said. “The team is coming together as a true team, which is one of the benefits of high school swimming.

“The girls are starting to buy into that, and it’s paying dividends. They are also learning to show up to practice every day and swim the way they want to race at the end of the year.”

In 3A, Gig Harbor freshman Shaye DiMatteo was the top South Sound finisher, placing fourth in the diving competition (362), while Snohomish’s Kayli Kersavage defended her individual title (423.15).

No locals finished near the podium in the team race, which was dominated by 3A KingCo and 3A Metro League teams. Bellevue (272 points) won the team title, ahead of Lakeside of Seattle (259), Lake Washington (255) and Bainbridge (170).

Bloedorn was the only local champion in 2A, topping Bellevue’s Makenna Pittman (310.6) by nearly 13 points. Steilacoom’s Julie Burlingame took fourth at 300.45.

Two Black Hills swimmers also earned top-four finishes. Junior Emma Prybylski took third in the 500 free (5:25.25) and senior Rylee Denney was fourth in the 100 fly (1:00.64).

Highline senior Emily Zacharias had a pair of fourth-place finishes in the 200 IM (2:13.42) and 100 breast (1:08.11). She was the top seed in the medley entering the finals.

North Kitsap became the first West Sound program to win a team title, topping Liberty of Issaquah, 277.5-230. Sammamish (226) and Sehome (178) rounded out the podium spots.