THREE TEAMS TO WATCH
1. Chesterton: Simply put, Chesterton is loaded. The Trojans return their entire roster from last year’s team that finished third at state. Coach Kevin Kinel said this year’s team has the potential to be one of the best — if not the best — in the program’s successful history.
2. Crown Point: The bar has been raised at Crown Point after back-to-back Top 4 finishes in the state meet, despite having only six swimmers compete at state each season. The loss of Aly Tetzloff, now at Auburn, will hurt. Coach Bryon Angerman thinks another Top 10 state finish is within reach.
3. Munster: The Seahorses lost five strong seniors, but they always seem to tap into a wealth of up-and-coming talent to replenish the program. That’ll be the case this year when freshmen join forces with senior Bridey McGinty (freestyle), junior Nicole Wakefield (500-yard freestyle, 100 breaststroke) and junior Margaret Vaitkus (freestyle) to lead the way.
THREE SWIMMERS TO WATCH
1. Crown Point’s Hannah Kukurugya: After finishing third in the 200-yard freestyle and second in the 500 free in last year’s state meet, Kukurugya didn’t take much time off. She spent the summer competing overseas on the junior national team. Kukurugya, a junior, has the ultimate goal of participating in the 2016 Olympics.
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2. Chesterton’s Cameron Klimczak: It’s the same face in a new place as Klimczak transferred from South Central to Chesterton. Last year, Klimczak swam under the coaching of her mother, Gretchen, on a two-girl team at South Central. Now, she has a chance to make an immediate impact on the area’s top team.
3. Lake Central’s Kallie Higgins: Higgins finished 14th in diving (369.8) at last year’s state finals. She said that her goal was the Top 5. Lake Central diving coach Tommy Slivka called last year’s state finals “a freak accident,” so Higgins has plenty of motivation to bounce back entering her junior season.
THREE THINGS TO WATCH
1. The impact new coaches have on their programs: At Highland, Nick Castillo takes the reins from Ryan Harrington, who was promoted to athletic director. Cathy Schuster inherits a young Wheeler team after Adam Klimczak resigned. The Bearcats have six freshmen, two sophomores and one junior. Griffith’s Theresa McLoughlin has been promoted from assistant coach to head coach.
2. The rest of the Duneland Athletic Conference: Chesterton and Crown Point are the teams to beat, but Valparaiso and Lake Central are in the mix. Numbers are up at Michigan City, now in its second season under coach Mel Kovenz. Portage only lost one sectional scorer (sprinter Carlie Parpart), and has the bulk of its team back.
3. The youth of the Northwest Crossroads Conference: Graduation losses were a theme across the NCC. Munster was hit the hardest and lost its best individual, Nikki Smith, now at Notre Dame. Highland lost six seniors, including sectional champion Jackie Smailis. Kankakee Valley is looking to rebuild due to graduation and turnover within the program.
REFRESHER COURSE
Chesterton cracked the Top 3 last year at state for the first time in school history with 164 points. The Trojans finished one point ahead of Crown Point and Zionsville, which tied for fourth.
Brandon Vickrey is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.