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M/CLOUDY Temp: 42 °F Wind: WNW at 3 mph Monday, March 3, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend February 8, 2003 Ashland�s Arron Nelson cruises to victory in the 100-meter freestyle at Friday�s Southern Oregon Conference district meet. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Area swimmers make splash in prelims Tokman, Nelson, Loeffler lead the charge into today’s championship finals with state placings on the line By TIM TROWER Mail Tribune ASHLAND — It’s not surprising that Tolga Tokman broke water. He’s a swimmer. But when he broke new ground in the pool, that was a feat. Tokman, of North Medford High, eclipsed the one-minute barrier in the preliminaries of the 100-yard backstroke for the first time Friday in the Southern Oregon Conference meet at Southern Oregon University. It wasn’t by much — his time of 59.99 seconds was one-one hundredth of a second faster than his previous best — but it seemed to him as if he’d traversed a wide chasm. "It feels awesome," said Tokman, who was part of a strong local contingent to make it into today’s finals. "Like in the 100 free, I used to try to break a minute, and it took forever. This (back) is a different stroke, and it’s much harder. I’m real proud of myself. I hope I can do better tomorrow." The finals begin at noon today. The winners in each event qualify for state in two weeks, as do those who meet state-qualifying standards. Remaining lane openings will be filled by the next-fastest district times from around the state. In addition to the 100 back, in which Tokman’s time was second overall to the 59.72 of Grants Pass senior Scott Daniels, who swam in a different heat, the Black Tornado freshman advanced with the best time in the 500 freestyle. His time of 5:21.66 was nine seconds off his personal best, which he expects to better today. Other top area performances were by Ashland’s Arron Nelson and Michelle Smith, South Medford’s Lynea Loeffler and Eagle Point’s John Cooper, who each advanced in two individual events with among the most competitive marks. Tokman wasn’t pushed in either of his events. "I could go harder," he said, "because I really didn’t have anyone next to me." Thinking about today’s 100 back finals and the matchup with Daniels, he added, "That will be a race right there. I want to go as far under a minute as I can, like 58 or so, with him pushing me." In his 500 free heat, Tokman finished nine seconds faster than second-place Ben Dawson of Ashland, a freshman who in turn was five seconds faster than third place. "I was cruising," said Tokman. Similarly, Nelson will have a battle on his hands in the 50 and 100 frees, where both his prelim times were behind those of Grants Pass’ Raphael Amoroso. Amoroso went 22.58 to Nelson’s 22.72 in the shorter race and 49.07 to Nelson’s 50.97 in the 100. "That’s the fastest I’ve ever seen him swim," said Nelson, a junior who competed at state last year on a relay team. "The last time, he went 52, so this was pretty good." Nelson, going at about 95 percent, hadn’t tailored his training so as to peak this weekend, which is referred to as tapering. Didn’t matter. "I felt strong today," he said, "really strong. I wasn’t nervous at all. I’ve been looking forward to this day and tomorrow for the last two months." Loeffler, too, had to swim by herself and missed her goal by three seconds, finishing the 500 free in 5:41.05, the No. 2 mark. Roseburg’s Annie Embertson went 5:40.45. A year ago, Loeffler, now a senior, qualified for state in the event with a finals time of 5:29.17 — about 15 seconds better than Embertson. She has designs on going that low again today. "I’ve been training for a 5:30 in practice," said Loeffler. "I have a rock I’m going to put behind my block. It has the splits on it, and they add up to 5:30." Assuming she reaches her goal today, she’ll take the rock outside, set it free, then find another. "Then I’ll write a faster one for state," she said. In the 200 free, Loeffler’s time of 2:08.75 was fourth, just behind third-place Erin Kulmac of North Medford (2:08.70) and not far off leader Embertson (2:08.00). Smith, a junior, posted the fastest time in the girls 100 free (58.29) and the No. 3 time in the 50 free (26.66). South Medford freshman Nancy Hawley was second in the latter (26.50). Cooper, a senior, was the lone entrant to go under two minutes in the boys 200 free, clocking 1:59.43. Dawson was third in 2:00.36. Cooper also turned in the fourth-best time in the 50 free, 24.13. Kulmac was second in the 100 butterfly with a 1:06.30. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S