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Thursday, February 14, 2008

Sandia Park Diver Earns Silver Medal for Performance at Championships

By Harold Smith
Mountain View Telegraph
    Sandia Park's Jennifer Wylie earned the silver medal at the Albuquerque Public Schools All-City Girls Diving Championships at the Sandia Pool on Friday.
    Wylie, a 5-foot-5 Manzano High junior, scored 342.70 points in the 11-dive competition off the 1-meter board. She had placed fourth as a sophomore and was sixth her freshman year.
    "I'm really happy," Wylie said. "I've come a long way. It's exciting."
    Wylie got her highest marks from a three-judge panel in her first and sixth dives. Cards marked 61/2, 51/2 and 61/2 were flashed after her first dive, rated 1.3 in degree of difficulty.
    For her sixth try, the judges gave her a trio of 61/2s on a 1.7 DD attempt of a reverse-dive pike. In addition, she got a big cheer after she earned three 6s on a back-somersault tuck in her fourth dive, a 2.0 DD.
    "She did really well," said Brian Hesch, the APS East diving coach who mentors divers from the city's east side. "But I do think she needs to either move the fulcrum up or ride the board better (to continue to improve)."
    One of Wylie's few shortcomings was her comparative lack of air off the board. She and Eldorado's Kaitlan Walker were the cream of the crop in an eight-diver field, but Walker was a bit better, scoring 385.85 points for the gold medal.
    "I do think I need to work on my board work to up my height," said Wylie, who also competed in the 50-yard freestyle for the Monarchs in the city swimming meet at the West Mesa Aquatic Center on Saturday. "I have been working hard in practice. If not this year, hopefully next year, I can medal (place in the top three in diving) at state."
    Walker is the daughter of Dulce Walker, an optometrist who said her office has been in Edgewood for 13 years.
    "I think I was second last year," said Kaitlan Walker, a 5-3 junior from Albuquerque. "I had wanted (to win it) a lot last year. I'd been working hard this year to get it."
   
Manzano swimming
    Lady Monarch Marissa Campbell won two individual events for the fourth straight year at the 12-team city meet, now also classified as the District 4/1A-5A Championships.
    Campbell, an Albuquerque resident, won the 200-yard freestyle in 2 minutes, 1.87 seconds, and the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:09.82.
    "It's my last year, my last city meet," said Campbell, a senior. "But I did well so I'm feeling good about it."
    With Saturday's victories, Campbell has earned a city title in all eight individual swimming events over the course of her prep career, Manzano coach Tammy Wilson said. Campbell also swam legs for the Monarchs' second-place 200 free and bronze-medal 200 medley relay squads this year.
    Campbell seemed most pleased with her win in the breast. She was pushed by La Cueva's Gaby Mackiw, who was second at 1:10.77
    "It's not my event," Campbell said. "But I felt awesome out there. I felt strong. It was good to have some competition out there against me. It helped me."
    As a team, Manzano placed sixth with 255 points, including those earned in diving. La Cueva was first with 5291/2.
    Sanne van Swol took fifth in the 200 individual medley (2:25.90) and the 100 butterfly (1:07.05) for the Monarchs. An East Mountain High student, van Swol is allowed to swim for the Manzano as EMHS, a charter school, doesn't have a swimming program.
    Monarch Hannah Mercier of Sandia Park was sixth in the 100 free (58.30) and 10th in the 100 breast (1:17.76). East Mountain's Megan Baker, who also swims for Manzano, got a personal record in the 500 free with a clocking of 6:12.94 for ninth place.
    "I really love it," said Baker, a 5-7 junior from Cedar Crest.
   
Manzano wrestling
    The Monarchs defeated Highland 66-6 and Eldorado 37-27 in District 5-5A duals, both held at EHS on Saturday.
    Manzano's duals record improved to 9-2 overall, 2-0 in district.
    The Monarchs, fresh off their City Tournament co-championship on Feb. 2, also defeated Class 4A's Del Norte and Albuquerque Academy on the road, respectively on Feb. 6 and 7. Manzano coach Dan Sparago said on Monday that his team blanked Academy 77-0.
    Sparago said he couldn't recall the DNHS score.
    "But it was by something like 20 points," Sparago said.
    The Monarchs can secure a district crown with wins against Los Lunas and Rio Grande at Rio's gym on Saturday.
    "We could win, and we might not, too," Sparago said. "Both of those teams are scrappy. They will wrestle you to the very end."
   
Moriarty wrestling
    The Pintos (14-3), who have been idle since Feb. 2, will host the District 5-4A Duals Tournament this weekend.