Above the Fold Media, For the Leader
Above the Fold Media Shawano Community High School senior Griffin Rades swims a leg in the 200-yard medley relay Friday at the WIAA Division 2 state meet in Madison. Rades competed in four events as the Hawks finished in 22nd place.
Above the Fold Media Shawano Community High School senior Nathan Kane swims a leg in the 200-yard medley relay Friday at the WIAA Division 2 state meet in Madison. The Hawks placed 14th, about two seconds from a top-10 finish.
The Shawano Community High School seniors had a proper sendoff Friday.
In their final meet for the Hawks swim team, Griffin Rades and Tyler Buerman re-entered their names into the school’s record book, joining Chase Lhotka and Jeffrey Green to improve on the 200-yard freestyle relay mark they set just weeks earlier.
The quartet finished the event at the WIAA Division 2 state finals Friday with a time of 1 minute, 34.56 seconds to place 13th. Their time was 0.13 seconds better than the one earlier this month that broke a school record that was in place for over a decade.
The event win went to Monona Grove (1:25.91), as did many others. The Silver Eagles won six swim events and had Division 2’s top diver to finish with 381 points and the state title. Ashwaubenon (232) was second. Grafton (208), Edgewood (174) and Cedarburg (169) completed the top five. The Hawks were 22nd in the team standings with 21 points.
Shawano coach Jeff Easter said the Hawks’ 200 freestyle relay team in particular was determined to post another school record time in the days of preparation leading to the final.
“We did a lot of work this week to get better, and one of our goals was to break the school record,” he said. “We thought we could improve on it.”
In the 200 medley relay, also won by Monona Grove (1:33.82), the Hawks placed 14th and about two seconds from a top-10 finish. Rades, Nathan Kane, James Krueger and Green finished in 1:45.65.
Rades again qualified for the 200 IM and though he improved on his time from last season, the finishing position dropped. His time of 2:03.5 was nearly two seconds better than his 2016 time (2:05.07), but he finished 14th this season in comparison to 12th last year.
The same scenario played out in the 100 breaststroke, which Rades also qualified for last year. He was 13th this year at 1:02.8, but was 11th in the 2016 final with a time of 1:03.64.
Easter said Rades had value beyond improved times at the state final. “He’s the only one who’s been to the state final before,” Easter said. “That was really cool for the other swimmers (to set school mark with Rades). He’d been hoping for a good finals time.”
Easter and the Hawks will need to move on in 2017 without Rades, Buerman and Kane – the team’s three senior state qualifiers.
“Griffin is a big loss, along with a few other seniors who swam well for us,” Easter said. “But we have guys who are good and others who are coming up so it won’t be a rebuild. We have plenty to work with.”