Agoura’s Stelle Again Sets Mark in 2-A 100 Backstroke

Once, apparently, was not enough for Agoura High’s Jason Stelle.

Not content with breaking his own Southern Section 2-A Division record in the 100-yard backstroke in Friday’s qualifying heats, the junior shattered the mark again in Saturday’s 2-A finals held at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach.

Stelle swam a blistering 50.87 to break his day-old record of 51.26. In the process, he turned in the second-fastest time recorded in a Southern Section championship meet. Only Steve Barnicoat with a time of 50.68 for Mission Viejo in the 1984 4-A meet has swum faster.

Stelle had said Friday that he hoped to break the 51-second mark for the first time. Agoura Coach Mike Mulligan was not a doubter.

“He’s just awesome,” Mulligan said. “He always shoots for the moon and gets it.”

Stelle nearly doubled as a Southern Section champion, taking second in a highly competitive 200 individual medley. His time of 1:53.26 earned him All-American status but was a shade behind Shuichi Matsumoto of Laguna Hills, who turned in a 1:53.15.

Stelle’s near double-win was duplicated by another area swimmer during the 3-A finals. Sprinter Evy Wild of Hart took won the 50 free, swimming a personal best 24.38 (bettering her previous best of 24.39), then just missed in the 100 free as Meredith Booker (52.25) of Beverly Hills squeaked past Wild (52.81).

But one title is still cause for a Wild celebration. Like Stelle, she is a junior. “There’s no strategy in the 50,” Wild said after the race. “You just go all out.”

Wild’s swimming was, for all practical purposes, the bright spot on an otherwise blank canvas for Valley 3-A schools. Crespi’s Rusty King and Burbank’s Casey Grigg placed third in the 100 butterfly (51.35) and 200 individual medley (1:57.27), respectively.

The 2-A story was somewhat better, with Stelle’s heroics leading the Agoura boys to a fifth-place finish (69 points).

Harvard finished sixth and won a Southern Section championship in the 200 medley relay. The team of Ryan Crosbie, Jon Paul, Mike Chang and Robin Lee swam a 1:41.57 to score 32 of the team’s 64 points. Defending 100 butterfly champion Chang later took third in that event (51.22).

In the girls’ meet, Jenny Bissel of Agoura turned in third-place finishes in the 200 individual medley (2:12.64) and the 100 butterfly (59.96) to pace Agoura to a ninth-place team finish (45 points).