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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Advertisement Email Story to a Friend February 15, 2004 Ashland boys send head coach out with a splash Grizzlies end Roseburg’s 13-year reign in SOC boys, but the Indians still gain their 14th straight girls crown By TIM TROWER Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Neil Foley figures he retired about three times already as a youth swim coach. This time, he insists, it’s final, and that might explain the lavish send-off the Ashland High coach received at the Southern Oregon Conference district meet Saturday, courtesy of his boys team. The Grizzlies ended Roseburg’s 13-year championship reign, scoring 358 points to the runner-up Indians’ 175 at the Southern Oregon University pool. Star sprinter Arron Nelson, who set personal bests in winning the 50- and 100-yard freestyles, admitted the team title was something special. "Especially since Neil is leaving," said the senior. "What a year for him. He’s going through some tough times, and he really deserves this." Advertisement In fact, Saturday might have been Foley’s last hurrah, even though the state meet is Friday and Saturday in Corvallis. A victim of heart disease, Foley slipped at home and hit his head three weeks ago, causing extensive bleeding in his skull because of blood-thinning medication. He’s since been off work as a Medford middle school teacher, and the prospect of a weekend trip might be too taxing. Foley has coached at various levels since 1967, including in Southern California, Australia and Alaska. After arriving in the Rogue Valley in 1988, he coached high school swimmers under the Southern Oregon Swimming Association umbrella into the early 1990s, then took over the Grizzlies in 1995-96. The tradition at district is to throw the winning coach into the pool. Given his health, Foley directed his troops to toss in assistant Lara Bishop. His status, he said, didn’t dictate his team’s performance. "I thought we were going to win it anyway," Foley said of the title, Ashland’s first since 1990, the year before Roseburg’s run began. "But I think the kids are happy. I don’t think they did a super-human job for me, but they did a super-human job." Nearly all of his boy and girl swimmers set lifetime bests Saturday. "They’re all wonderful," said Foley. "It kills me that I’m not going to come back, but it’s time to step down." Nelson was just one of many Grizzlies to step up, sharing the individual spotlight with record-setting Kathryn Thompson of the Roseburg girls and two- event winners Tolga Tokman of the North Medford boys and Nancy Hawley of the South Medford girls. The winners in each event advance to state. Others could make it in as wild cards, which will be determined in the next couple days. Thompson was a part of four district records. She set individual marks in the 200 individual medley (2:09.92) and the 100 backstroke (57.54) and helped the 200 medley relay (1:52.07) and the 200 free relay (1:41.37) set marks. Roseburg breezed to its 14th straight girls title with 330.5 points, well ahead of runner-up Ashland’s 188. Nelson came up short in his bid for the district record in the 50 free, but he blew away the field with a time of 21.79 seconds, bettering the PR he set a year ago at district of 22.05. Ashland’s Curtis Taylor set the record of 21.34 in 1990. "I felt kind of sloppy with my arms," said Nelson, who attributed the technical flaw to trying to go so fast. "I didn’t feel fluid. But when I looked up and saw ‘21,’ I was a little stoked because I’ve never seen it before. I was a little ticked, too, because it wasn’t the record." Nelson’s other PR was 48.72 in the 100 free, better than the 48.99 he had at district last year. He had hoped to dip into the 47s but likes his position in the 50 and 100 frees heading into state. "At state, if I’m able to swim close to 47, I might be able to get state titles in both events," said Nelson, who is the top returning placer in the 50 free from last year’s state meet. Caleb Salmond was the only other individual Grizzly winner, blazing to a time of 59.11 in the 100 back. But Ashland won all three relays by wide margins and had a host of other swimmers finish anywhere from second to sixth in the finals for major points. North’s Tokman was a substantial favorite in the 500 freestyle and didn’t disappoint with a fast time of 5:22.89, his best in high school competition. But it was in the 100 butterfly that he made an impressive surge to claim the title, overtaking Marcus Moravek of Klamath Union. Moravek had been the faster of the two most of the year and led going into the final turn. But Tokman came on strong, winning with a personal-best 57.36 to Moravek’s 58.84. "I just wanted to stay with him for the first 75 yards, then give it all I’ve got for the last 25," said Tokman. "I knew I had another gear in me. It was just a really good race for both of us." Crater added an individual boy winner in Nicholas Janssen, who eschews club swimming, unlike many of his rivals, and competes only during the high school season. He won the 200 free in 1:58.85, his first time under 2 minutes. "It’s just awesome, the best moment I’ve ever felt in my life," he said. "Now I’ll go to state and get worked, but that’s OK. I’ve swam for four years, and it’s nice to kick out something meaningful like this." Thompson wasn’t the lone story on the girls side. Hawley and fellow sophomore and rival Katherine O’Neil of Roseburg swam to a dead heat in the 50 free, sharing the title with times of 25.42. Both advance to state. "I don’t think I’ve ever done that before," Hawley said of tying. She had hoped to swim 24-something, "but when I saw it (her time), I was happy with it." She’ll also go to state in the 500 free, which she won in 5:39.03. Ashland had two girls winners in Michelle Smith and Ashley Roda. Smith, a senior, will return to state in the 100 free, which she went in as a sophomore. She clocked 57.58, beating out runner-up Roda (58.46). "The first 50 was going smooth," said Smith. "But going back on the third lap, it started to hurt. The third 25 (yards) is where your legs start to go. The fourth is where it really hurts." But she persevered and was rewarded with a PR and a bouquet of roses from her father, Chuck, who explained that his daughter swam for years and had never got flowers after a race, so the time was right. Roda, meanwhile, was not left out of the winner’s circle. She held off Madison Swinn of Roseburg in the 200 free, winning with a time of 2:05.01. SOC District Meet BOYS TEAM SCORES — Ashland 358, Roseburg 175, South Medford 174, North Medford 132, Klamath Union 130, Crater 130, Grants Pass 67, Eagle Point 64. 200 MEDLEY RELAY — 1, Ashland (Caleb Salmond, Travis Bishop, Geoff Berteau, Nathan Jessop) 1:47.81; 2, Roseburg 1:51.53; 3, Klamath Union 1:56.35; 4, Crater 1:56.76; 5, North Medford 1:59.11; 6, Grants Pass 2:01.03; 7, Eagle Point 2:07.04; 8, South Medford 2:08.81. 200 FREESTYLE — 1, Nicholas Janssen, Cra, 1:58.85; 2, Ben Dawson, Ash, 2:01.85; 3, Ben Beecher, SM, 2:01.94; 4, Brandon Fennell, NM, 2:05.13; 5, Drew Snyder, KU, 2:05.46; 6, Alex Grimaldi, Ash, 2:07.54. 200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY — 1, Garrett Shields, Ros, 2:06.22; 2, Travis Bishop, Ash, 2:09.54; 3, Geoff Berteau, Ash, 2:17.82; 4, Ryan Daven, Ros, 2:21.89; 5, Michael Heckert, Cra, 2:23.25; 6, Nick Benedetti, Ash, 2:26.86. 50 FREESTYLE — 1, Arron Nelson, Ash, 21.79; 2, Nathan Jessop, Ash, 23.31; 3, Scott Goings, SM, 23.38; 4, Dan Johnson, GP, 23.75; 5, Patirck Orr, Ros, 24.38; 6, Andrew DelCarlo, Ash, 24.89. 100 BUTTERFLY — 1, Tolga Tokman, NM, 57.36; 2, Marcus Moravek, KU, 58.84; 3, Geoff Berteau, Ash, 1:02.04; 4, Kyle Humphrey, Ash, 1:03.42; 5, Neils Goossens, SM, 1:05.19; 6, Nick Benedetti, Ash,1:10.70. 100 FREESTYLE — 1, Arron Nelson, Ash, 48.72; 2, Scott Goings, SM, 51.76; 3, Dan Johnson, GP, 53.86; 4, Cameron Guthrie, SM, 56.07; 5, John Harris, Ash, 56.25; 6, Chad Moser, Cra, 57.03. 500 FREESTYLE — 1, Tolga Tokman, NM, 5:22.89; 2, Ben Dawson, Ash, 5:32.75; 3, Nicholas Janssen, Cra, 5:35.29; 4, Ben Beechler, SM, 5:35.46; 5, David Delli Gatti, SM, 5:37.44; 6, Kyle Humphrey, Ash, 5:44.76. 200 FREESTYLE RELAY — 1, Ashland (Ben Dawson, Andrew DelCarlo, Nathan Jessop, Arron Nelson) 1:35.05; 2, South Medford 1:38.17; 3, Roseburg 1:38.87; 4, Grants Pass 1:46.20; 5, North Medford 1:49.07; 6, Eagle Point 1:50.23; 7, Klamath Union 1:50.81; 8, Crater 1:53.77. 100 BACKSTROKE — 1, Caleb Salmond, Ash, 59.11; 2, Michael Heckert, 1:01.98; 3, Nathan Jessop, Ash, 1:04.10; 4, Ryan Daven, Ros,1:04.39; 5, Brandon Fennell, NM, 1:08.62; 6, John Harris, Ash, 1:09.70. 100 BREASTSTROKE — 1, Garrett Shields, Ros,1:04.91; 2, Travis Bishop, Ash, 1:07.94; 3, Marcus Moravek, KU, 1:08.86; 4, Andrew DelCarlo, Ash, 1:10.17; 5, Neils Goossens, SM, 1:10.62; 6, Paul Pandozzi, KU, 1:12.47. 400 FREE RELAY — 1, Ashland (Ben Dawson, Geoff Berteau, Travis Bishop, Arron Nelson) 3:33.89; 2, South Medford 3:43.17; 3, North Medford 3:48.72; 4, Klamath Union 3:49.40; 5, Crater 3:52.03; 6, Roseburg 3:53.44; 7, Eagle Point 4:55.27; 8, Grants Pass no show. GIRLS TEAM SCORES — Roseburg 330.5, Ashland 188, North Medford 179, Grants Pass 171, Crater 122, South Medford 119.5, Eagle Point 67, Klamath Union 45. 200 MEDLEY RELAY — 1, Roseburg (Kathryn Thompson, Cassie O’Neill, Jennifer Saylor, Katherine O’Neil) 1:52.07 (district record; old mark 1:52.86, Roseburg, 2001); 2, Crater 2:02.29; 3, Grants Pass 2:03.58; 4, Ashland 2:10.61; 5, North Medford 2:10.65; 6, South Medford 2:11.41; 7, Eagle Point 2:17.36; 8, Klamath Union 2:18.33. 200 FREESTYLE — 1, Ashley Roda, Ash, 2:05.01; 2, Madison Swinn, Ros, 2:06.72; 3, Melissa Gilmore, NM, 2:10.22; 4, Grace DeBell, Ros, 2:15.03; 5, Shannon McDoughna, GP, 2:17.30; 6, Katy Lawson, NM, 2:23.76. 200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY — 1, Kathryn Thompson, Ros, 2:09.92 (district record, old mark 2:10.05, 2002); 2, Jessica Wafer, R, 2:18.76; 3, Elise Boldt, NM, 2:25.33; 4, Ashlee Rutter, Cra, 2:26.49; 5, Nichole Fox, SM, 2:30.56; 6, Jessie Bright, Ash, 2:34.62. 50 FREESTYLE — 1, (tie) Nancy Hawley, SM, and Katherine O’Neil, Ros, 25.42; 3, Jessica Wafer, Ros, 26.06; 4, Michelle Smith, Ash, 26.50; 5, Christina Cobb, GP, 27.12; 6, Chesney MaHan, GP, 27.67. 100 BUTTERFLY — 1, Jennifer Saylor, Ros, 1:00.57; 2, Cassie O’Neill, Ros, 1:03.25; 3, Madison Swinn, Ros, 1:04.01; 4, Stephanie Cendejas, NM, 1:08.99; 5, Nichole Fox, SM, 1:09.47; 6, Makenzie Wood, Cra, 1:11.76. 100 FREESTYLE — 1, Michelle Smith, Ash, 57.58; 2, Ashley Roda, Ash, 58.46; 3, Christina Cobb, GP, 59.07; 4, Lakin Rigby, NM, 1:00.69; 5, Kelsey Heider, EP, 1:01.37; 6, Chanel Janssen, Cra, 1:03.06. 500 FREESTYLE — 1, Nancy Hawley, SM, 5:39.03; 2, Melissa Gilmore, NM, 5:43.46; 3, Ashlee Rutter, Cra, 5:52.08; 4, Shandra Tronnes, Ros, 5:52.70; 5, Faye Walker, Ash, 6:09.98; 6, Shannon McDoughna, GP, 6:16.79. 200 FREESTYLE RELAY — 1, Roseburg (Katherine O’Neil, Jennifer Saylor, Kathryn Thompson, Jessica Wafer) 1:41.37 (district record, old mark 1:42.38, Roseburg, 1999); 2, Ashland 1:50.42; 3, South Medford 1:50.96; 4, Grants Pass 1:56.34; 5, Crater 2:01.42; 6, Klamath Union 2:07.33; 7, Eagle Point 2:10.30; 8, North Medford disqualified. 100 BACKSTROKE — 1, Kathryn Thompson, Ros, 57.54 (district record, old mark 58.29, 2002); 2, Jennifer Saylor, Ros, 58.85; 3, Stephanie Cendejas, NM, 1:07.96; 4, Hillary Burrelle, NM, 1:08.01; 5, Britian Kane, GP,1:08.40; 6, Grace DeBell, Ros, 1:12.75. 100 BREASTSTROKE — 1, Cassie O’Neill, Ros, 1:08.80; 2, Elise Boldt, NM, 1:14.71; 3, Rachel Heck, GP, 1:15.08; 4, Jamie Austin, Ros, 1:20.63; 5, Sara Flinn, NM, 1:23.38; 6, Jessie Bright, disqualified. 400 FREE RELAY — 1, Roseburg (Katherine O’Neil, Madison Swinn, Shandra Tronnes, Jessica Wafer) 3:50.35; 2, North Medford 4:02.87; 3, Grants Pass 4:04.08; 4, Ashland 4:04.83; 5, Crater 4:18.44; 6, Eagle Point 4:27.40; 7, South Medford 4:30.98; 8, Klamath Union 4:33.87. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers Southern Oregon Loans California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Pharmacy Advertisement s