SWIMMING : Salcedo and Ramirez Head for City Finals

Bell High School swimmer Helen Salcedo has always raced in the breaststroke or the individual medley, but at Wednesday’s City Section swimming preliminaries the senior took a different plunge.

Salcedo, who finished second to Granada Hills’ Kristine Quance in the 100-meter breaststroke and the 200-meter individual medley in last year’s finals, dropped the medley at this year’s prelims and added the 100-meter butterfly.

She only qualified for the event a week earlier, but her time of 1:02.04 at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach gave her the top seed for this Wednesday’s finals.

“I never really swam the butterfly, but I decided that since this is my last year, I’d do something I liked,” Salcedo said. “I saw the times from last year and I knew I could do that.”

Salcedo will still get a showdown with Quance on Wednesday. Salcedo swam a 1:06.91 in the breaststroke, which was topped only by Quance’s 1:03.26 in a different heat.

Salcedo qualified for another final, the 400-meter freestyle relay, along with teammates Patty Gonzalez, Julie Gonzalez and Laura Perez.

Huntington Park’s Pete Ramirez had a day that almost rivaled Salcedo’s. The senior took fourth in the 100-meter backstroke and sixth in the 200-meter individual medley, earning spots in the finals in both events.

“It was a little bit better than I thought I would do,” said Ramirez, who only qualified for the consolation finals in both events last year. “This year, I worked harder, put a lot of heart into it.”

He said he was happy with his efforts, but he expects to do better in the finals, especially in the backstroke.

“I want to drop at least two more seconds (off my time) by next week,” Ramirez said.

Roosevelt’s Luis Loya qualified for the 100-meter butterfly finals, finishing third in 57.95.

The junior won the frosh-soph 50-meter butterfly at last year’s finals and has moved up in classes nicely.

“I’m real proud of him. He has a good chance to win it,” Roosevelt Coach Gregory Goodworth said. “I just wanted him to qualify for the finals. I wasn’t worried about him going fast or slow.”

Loya also led Roosevelt’s 200-meter freestyle relay team to a spot in Wednesday’s finals. The team, made up of Loya, Robert Vargas, Noe Gallegos and Joe Martinez squeaked by Van Nuys by .41 of a second to finish sixth.

Bell’s Perez earned berths in the consolation finals in the 50-meter freestyle and the 100-meter backstroke.

Roosevelt’s Joseph Martinez (100-meter breaststroke) and Garfield’s Diane Jardon (100-meter freestyle) also earned consolation bids.