Hershey junior David Nolan in the running for high school swimmer of the year; Little guy alive and well in Kentucky.
David Nolan
Photo by Greg Fastrich
Nolan won the 200-yard individual medley in a meteoric 1:43.43, easily erasing the previous standard of 1:44.55 set by Kyle Whitaker of Chesterton (Ind.) just last month.
In addition he swam a 21.82 leg on the state-champion 200-yard medley relay team which set a national public school record of 1:30.27. His teammates were Kyle Ruddle (26.58), Sean Greer (21.40) and Jeffrey Young (20.47). The previous record was 1:31.22 by St. Xavier (Cincinnati, Ohio) in 2000. The independent and overall national record remains at 1:29.79 by Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.) from 2009.
Adding frosting to the cake, the Hershey hurricane set a state record of 43.27 while winning the 100-yard freestyle. He wasn’t far off the national record of 43.05.
"He cut three seconds off his best time (in the 200 IM)," Jason Marsteller, managing editor of Swimming World Magazine, said. "I’d put him in the mix for High School Swimmer of the Year. We’ll pick it in either August or September.”
Hershey coach Greg Fastrich noted, “That (the 200 IM record) was his goal at the state all year. Did I expect it? Not exactly, but he just popped a good swim. There’s actually room for a lot of improvement – a lot of little things he needs to clear up to get better.
“He’d always had the talent. I’d say last year he came into his own as far as work ethic and effort. Last fall he swam for the USA World Youth Team which competed in the European Grand Prix Series. He swam the 200-meter IM in 2:02.19 in Seattle (Wash.) to qualify for the USA team. His time was second only to Michael Phelps’ record for ages 15-16.”
Fastrich said that colleges such as Arizona, Florida and Texas are recruiting Nolan, but “His goal is to get to Stanford.”
Wilkerson ends at 3,724
Hannah Wilkerson set three state tournament records, but she couldn’t keep eventual champion Harrisburg (Harrisburg, Mo.) from eliminating Miller (Miller, Mo.), 71-60, in Missouri’s Class 2 state semifinals. The 5-foot-8 Missouri State signee set records with 43 points, 18 field goals and 41 field goal attempts.
Wilkerson then scored 40 as Miller won the third-place game, 78-69, over Canton, to break a 29-year-old record (72) with 83 points in back-to-back tourney contests. She finished her brilliant career with a state-record 3,724 points.
* Central Dauphin (Harrisburg, Pa.) senior Alyssa Thomas exploded for 40 points and 20 rebounds during a 75-68 victory over Wyncote Cheltenham in Pennsylvania’s Class AAAA quarterfinals. The 6-1 standout has signed with the University of Maryland.
* Klarissa Bell, a 5-11 senior headed for Michigan State University, has been named Michigan’s Miss Basketball by the state’s Basketball Coaches Association. She scored 14 points as East Lansing (East Lansing, Mich.) (27-1) defeated Detroit Renaissance, 65-54, to win the Class A state championship and finished as East Lansing’s career scoring leader.
* Natasha Howard, a 6-3 senior from Waite (Toledo, Ohio), has been named Ohio’s Miss Basketball by the Associated Press. The Florida State University signee starred with 23 points, 14 rebounds, eight steals and four blocks, but couldn’t keep Waite from losing the Division I state title game, 49-47, to Canton McKinley
* Detroit Country Day (Beverly Hills, Mich.) routed Kingsford, 71-31, in the Class B state semifinals to give coach Frank Orlando a state-record 600th victory. He also holds the Michigan record with 10 state titles, but he was denied No. 11 due to a 51-43 loss to Grand Rapids Catholic Central in the championship game.
* Rich Olson is retiring as head coach at Lincoln Northeast (Lincoln, Neb.). In 26 years, he compiled a 427-182 record with four state titles and three second-place finishes.
* Jeff Sink of Brea Olinda (Brea, Calif.) has been named the Russell Athletic National High School Girls Coach of the Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. Sink has compiled a 16-year record of 690-143 record with four state titles in California and two in Alaska.
Small school rules Kentucky
The “little guy” is alive and well in Kentucky, which is the largest state remaining without a class system in basketball. Though there is a small-school tournament in the middle of the season, every school has a shot to win the big prize at the end of the year.
Last week Shelby Valley (Pikeville, Ky.) – with an enrollment of 589 students – shocked Louisville Ballard, 73-61, to capture the state title before a crowd of 15,048 at the University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena. Senior point guard Elisha Justice earned MVP honors by scoring 17 points and committing just four turnovers under extreme defensive pressure while playing all 32 minutes.
* Park Tudor (Indianapolis, Ind.) outlasted Forest Park, 47-45, in four overtimes during the Class 2A semistate. Sophomore point guard Yogi Ferrell, who scored 24 points, finally ended the marathon on a 12-foot jump shot with six seconds to play.
* Nine-game loser Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) beat Chicago Whitney Young by a decisive 51-36 margin to win its third Class 4A state title in the last five years. Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose, who starred on two of those state champions, sent the Wolverines on their way with an inspirational pep talk.
* T.J. McConnell, a 6-0 senior guard, scored 41 points to lead Chartiers Valley (Bridgeville, Pa.) to an 80-59 victory over Imperial West Allegheny.
* Mike Doherty has resigned as boys basketball coach at Oregon City (Oregon City, Ore.). The 73-year-old Doherty is Oregon’s winningest coach with an 825-364 record at seven schools in 48 years. He told the Oregonian that one of the main factors was pressure from existing in the same school with the state’s premier girls basketball program. He cited “stress” in such areas as fundraising and said he still wants to coach somewhere.
Gilmore slams four homers
Dani Gilmore slammed four home runs and drove in nine runs as El Camino Real (Woodland Hills, Calif.) ripped Sylmar, 19-2. The junior center fielder was just one home run short of the national softball record - which was set in 1977 - and is tied with 12 others for No. 2.
The 5-7 slugger, who is hitting .433, has made a commitment to Oregon State University. She was the California Freshman of the Year when she belted 14 home runs and as a sophomore made the All-State underclass team.
* Basic (Henderson, Nev.) right-hander Lacey Romo walked the first batter against Las Vegas Clark, then retired the next 21 for a near-perfect game and a 5-0 victory. Earlier in the season she did fire two perfect games for her undefeated team.
* Emily Weiman struck out all 15 batters as Archbishop Spalding (Severn, Md.) routed Huntingtown Calverton, 20-0, in five innings. She also went 3-for-3 with a home run and double.
* West Monroe (West Monroe, La.) defeated Shreveport Byrd, 8-2, to hand Amy Daigle her 300th career coaching victory.
Taillon hit hard
Despite throwing 94 to 98 miles per hour, 6-7 senior Jamison Taillon – the nation’s No. 1 high school baseball prospect - gave up 11 runs in five innings as The Woodlands (The Woodlands, Texas) lost to neighboring College Park, 14-11. The game, which also featured winning pitcher John Simms, drew an estimated 25 pro scouts, according to David Rawnsley of Crosschecker.com.
* Desert Ridge (Mesa, Ariz.) has one of the nation’s best 1-2 power punches. Senior Travis Flores made a name for himself by winning the prestigious International Power Showcase and he already has seven home runs this spring. However, 6-2, 215-pound senior first baseman Taylor Kaczmarek is batting a lofty .500 with nine home runs – three in one game.
* Paul Paez struck out the final 12 batters as Bishop Amat (La Puente, Calif.) handcuffed perennial power Chatsworth, 7-1.
*An all-star baseball team from Yamanashi, Japan, will play a series of games from Aug. 12-18 in Iowa. Last year an Iowa team played six games in Japan as part of an exchange series which started in 1994.
* The Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) baseball team will travel to the Dominican Republic on spring break. The players will practice and conduct clinics, in addition to helping at an orphanage and providing food for a village.
* Former Major League pitcher Steve Trout is the new head baseball coach at Moloka’i (Hoolehua, Hawaii).
Villalonga named top wrestler
Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.) senior Chris Villalonga defeated Josh Kindig (Schuylkill Haven Blue Mountain, Pa.), 6-2, to win the 140-pound championship and earn Most Outstanding Wrestler honors for the USA team during the annual Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic in Pittsburgh (Pa.). The USA won nine of the 13 weight classes for a 30-13 victory over the Pennsylvania All-Stars.
Villalonga, who is a Cornell University recruit, has a 40-0 record and is the consensus No. 1-ranked 140-pounder in the USA. He has a career record of 145-3, winning his last 133 matches.
Pennsylvania’s Most Outstanding Wrestler was Josh Dziewa (Council Rock South), who defeated Ryan Nieman (Bullock Creek, Midland, Mich.), 14-5.
* The New Jersey All-Stars won nine of 12 matches to defeat Pennsylvania, 28-12, in the 30th annual Easton (Pa.) Lions Classic. Outstanding Wrestler honors went to Chris Burdge (Kittatinny, Newton, N.J.), who edged Mark Hartenstine (Easton, Pa.), 8-5, in a hotly-contested match at 140 pounds.
* The 21st annual National Wrestling Championships, sponsored by the National High School Coaches Association, will be held this week from Tuesday through Sunday at the Virginia Beach (Va.) Convention Center. There will be entries from 47 states and two European countries. Last year’s field included 2,628 entries from 49 states.
Female football coach in 1943
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Natalie Randolph, recently hired by Coolidge (Washington, District of Columbia), is not the first female to coach a boys football team. The newspaper reported that in 1943 Pauline Rugh Smith coached Bell Township, which now is part of the Kiski Area school district in Pennsylvania. Though her team was winless, she was credited with keeping the program alive during the World War II era.
* Ronnie Cottrell, former assistant at Florida State and Alabama, has been hired as head football coach at Godby (Tallahassee, Fla.).
Menlo is tennis champ
Menlo (Atherton, Calif.) defeated University (Irvine, Calif.), 5-3, to win the championship during the 11th annual National High School All-American Tennis Tournament in Newport Beach (Calif.).
Saratoga (Calif.) took third with a 6-2 victory over R.J. Reynolds (Winston-Salem, N.C.). Consolation honors went to Corona del Mar (Newport Beach, Calif.) in games (44-43) after it had tied the Beacon School (New York, N.Y.), 4-4, in matches.
Director Tim Mang told MaxPreps that he considers this the (unofficial) national championship.
"This is the tourney in the United States," Mang said. "All the top teams in the United States are invited and most of them come every year.”
* The Walton (Marietta, Ga.) girls tennis team has won its last 120 matches and six consecutive Class AAAAA state titles.
Punahou is volleyball champ
The Punahou (Honolulu, Hawaii) boys volleyball team defeated Loyola (Los Angeles, Calif.), 19-25, 26-24, 15-12, to win the prestigious Best of the West Invitational in Poway (Calif.). Punahou is off to a 12-0 start, with seven victories coming in the power-packed tournament.
Punahou senior Taylor Crabb, a Long Beach State recruit, was named MVP. The 6-2 outside hitter had 29 kills, 11 aces, 13 digs and five blocks during four matches on the final day. Crabb, who has a 40-inch vertical leap, was coming off a severe ankle tear and played at only “about 75 percent,” according to coach Rick Tune.
