SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION I SWIMMING FINALS : O.C. Teams Might Dominate Girls’ Meet

One will be up for grabs while the other’s a sure thing. At least that’s how the Southern Section Division I girls’ and boys’ swimming finals, to be held Friday night at Long Beach Belmont Plaza, appear on paper.

The girls’ meet could be an Orange County sweep, with the county’s top-ranked team, Fountain Valley, battling No. 2 El Toro and No. 3 Irvine. For the boys, defending champion Mission Viejo is expected to easily repeat.

Coach Debbi Kelly’s Fountain Valley girls’ team includes some of the county’s top swimmers: Kristi Rietzel and Chrissy Motschman in the butterfly, Grace Wang and Vinessa Tjoa in the freestyle, Shelly Olivadoti in the breaststroke and Kristy Tjoa in the individual medley.

Fountain Valley won the CIF Swimming Relays and the Foothill Swim Games this season.

In individual events, races to watch include a rematch between Sea View League rivals Wendy O’Brien of Irvine and Melissa Schutz of Newport Harbor in the 50 freestyle, an event won by Schutz at last week’s league finals in a meet-record 24.12 seconds. In the 100 freestyle, O’Brien has defeated El Toro’s Katie Lowes three times this season. In the 200 free, Lowes will be up against El Dorado’s Nancy Jo, who has the county’s fastest time.

Perhaps the best race will be the 100 breaststroke, which will feature two of the nation’s best high school swimmers: Santa Ana Valley’s Amber Wines, who has the county’s fastest time this season, and freshman Jessamyn Miller from Mater Dei. They met earlier this year at the Senior Nationals in Minneapolis, where Wines finished fourth and Miller 16th.

The butterfly could be anybody’s race. Capistrano Valley’s Cathy Carone, who won last year in 57.81, is expected to be challenged by Motschman, Miller and Rietzel.

The Mission Viejo boys are led by Polish junior Bart Kizierowski, who will probably swim the 50 freestyle and the backstroke. Mission Viejo has turned in the county’s fastest time in all three relay events, and have other top swimmers in Goh Phuangthong in the 500 freestyle, Karl Hyross in the backstroke, Ahmad Filsoof in the freestyle and Austin Guzman the butterfly..

There probably won’t be any record-breaking performance in the individual events like the one turned in last year by Woodbridge’s Derya Buyukuncu, who set a national record in the backstroke and a Southern Section record in the 50 freestyle, but Santa Margarita sophomore Philippe Demers could be one of a few double winners, in the 100 freestyle and the butterfly.

Steve Ronson of Irvine has the county’s fastest time in the breaststroke this season, but El Toro’s Terry Dougherty and Woodbridge’s Sean Moore are capable of challenging.

Laguna Hills should dominate the boys’ and girls’ competition Saturday night in the Division II finals.

Mark Kwok, a senior who was last year’s Division III swimmer of the meet, stands a good chance of repeating his double-win performance in the individual medley and the butterfly. Teammate Preston Hammontree should also be a top finisher in the 500 freestyle.

For the girls, Gianna Johnson, who won last year’s Division II 200 freestyle, has the fourth-fastest time in the backstroke (59.75), but is capable of going faster.

There will be little Orange County presence in the Division III finals Saturday afternoon, but one swimmer to watch will be Kennedy’s Tim Martin. He has the county’s second-fastest time in the 500 freestyle (4:37.43).