2021 MSHSL Girls AA Swim & Dive Championships
- November 18-20, 2021
- University of Minnesota Aquatic Center, Minneapolis, MN
- SCY (25 yards)
- Championship Central
- Results
The Minnetonka High School girls roared to their first MSHSL AA state title since 1976 over the weekend, putting up 381 points to comfortably defeat defending champion Edina (223).
Minnetonka bookended the meet with wins in the 200 medley and 400 free relays, starting things off by clocking 1:42.97 in the medley with Paige Dillon (26.36), Quinci Wheeler (28.66), Annabelle Wentzel (25.33) and Regan Miller (22.62).
The 400 free relay team of Nadia Helm (51.52), Maija Kangas (52.07), Dillon (52.10) and Audrey Soetanto (52.19) finished things off to conclude the meet, recording a time of 3:27.88 to lead runner-up Shakopee (3:28.84). Shakopee’s team had a noteworthy 50.01 anchor from Haley Zelen.
Zelen added an individual win of her own in the 100 free, blasting to a time of 50.54 to lead Minnetonka’s Miller (51.01) and Helm (51.18).
A total of three swimmers swept their individual events: Edina’s Katie McCarthy, Andover’s Grace Rabb and Eden Prairie’s Caroline Larsen.
McCarthy, a junior, topped the 200 free early in the meet in a time of 1:49.18, and followed up midway through the session in the 500 free (4:52.33).
Rabb, a freshman, won the 200 IM by almost four seconds in 2:01.79, and then topped the 100 back in 54.46.
Larsen came close to records in both of her victories, as the sophomore clocked 22.66 in the 50 free to near the AA and all-time Minnesota HS record of 22.54 set by Rachel Wittmer in 2015. (In the Class A championships, Grace Hanson also neared the record in 22.57.)
Larsen then topped the 100 breast field in 1:01.35, less than three tenths off the AA record of 1:01.08 set by Abby Duncan in 2010.
Also winning on the day was Woodbury sophomore Gabby Mauder in the 1-meter diving event and Wayzata junior Claire Reinke in the 100 fly (54.36).
TOP 5 TEAM SCORES
- Minnetonka, 381.0
- Edina, 223.0
- Stillwater, 176.0
- Wayzata, 165.0
- Shakopee, 135.0