Ruling the pool: Moses Lake knocks off Southridge

Chiefs 110, Suns 72

MOSES LAKE - No offense to the rest of the Columbia Basin League, but the Moses Lake Chiefs swimming and diving team has its sights on just one opponent.

The Chiefs, who improved to 3-0 in league matches Thursday with 110-72 victory over the Southridge Suns, believe they're one of the top two teams in the CBL. The question on everyone's minds is this: Can Moses Lake challenge perennial power Wenatchee for the league title?

"We expect to be undefeated this year," Chiefs head coach Tony St. Onge said. "The big contest will be October 9 against Wenatchee. That will be for the league championship."

Moses Lake has two other CBL matches on tap still, including next Tuesday's contest with the Davis Pirates in Yakima. But the Panthers, who finished sixth at last year's 4A state meet, are wearing the bull's-eye already.

"They're probably one of the top dual teams in the whole state," St. Onge said of Wenatchee. "It will be a long shot for us this year. We're swimming well but they're at a whole other level. For every top kid we've got, they've got three."

Still, Moses Lake has to feel good about its chances. The team had already qualified 12 swimmers and two divers for the Oct. 26-27 district meet in Ellensburg, and it added two more Thursday with Dani Ordway qualifying in the 500-yard freestyle and Sydnee Jones making time in the 100 freestyle. Ordway's time of 7 minutes, 29.92 seconds was good for fourth place, while Jones took sixth in 1:09.88.

"We're starting to fill out that district squad, which normally rounds out at 16 to 20 people," St. Onge said. "You get that kind of stuff done in September, it's a big help."

The Chiefs got off to a strong start Thursay behind their 200-yard medley relay squad. Megan Schuh, Cari Cortez, Stephanie McFarland and Catherine Polito finished in 1:59.51, well ahead of Southridge's top team.

Hannah Grigg and Reilly Hourigan swept the top two positions in the 200-yard freestyle, with Grigg winning in 2:11.20 and Hourigan second in 2:15.44. Polito dominated the 200-yard individual medley, winning in 2:18.16. Teammates Cortez (2:30.42) and Elaura Grant (2:45.81) helped the Chiefs earn the top three spots in the event.

McFarland won the 50-yard freestyle (27:17), with teammate Kim Kardong second (29.51). Grigg was an easy winner in the 100-yard butterfly, coasting in at 1:04.65, with Moses Lake's Ana Costa the runner-up in 1:11.09.

Schuh defeated her nearest competitor in the 500-yard freestyle by more than 25 seconds, winning in 6:00.21. The 200-yard freestyle relay foursome of Polito, Hourigan, Schuh and McFarland won their event in 1:44.97, a mark that automatically qualified them for November's 4A state meet at Federal Way.

Kardong took the 100-yard breaststroke title in 1:20.66. The Chiefs obliterated the Suns in the 400 freestyle relay - the No. 1 team of Schuh, Grigg, McFarland and Polito won in 3:52.03, and the No. 2 team of Kardong, Jessica Massart, Costa and Hourigan placed second in 4:18.02.

McFarland and Hourigan, the team's captains, are responsible for a lot of the success. St. Onge credits them for leading grueling practice sessions - such as a recent 7,000-yard outing - and stressing the importance of visualization and relaxation techniques.

"Both of them are top students," St. Onge said of his captains. "As far as their leadership goals, they're outstanding. They're the type of kids that make it easy for coaches to coach."

While the Chiefs graduated several quality seniors a year ago, they aren't struggling to replace the departed. Again, St. Onge, traces that back to leadership.

"I've always said as the seniors go, the team goes," he said. "Everyone expected us to be down a bit this year. We don't necessarily have a whole lot more people coming back, but they've really stepped it up from years past."