Perkins boys aim high at state meet

PERKINS TWP. — Four Perkins senior boys will take to the pool in Canton on Thursday and Friday. Together, they've got a chance to accomplish big things. The Pirates' 200-yard freestyle relay is seeded No. 2 in the state heading into the Division II meet at C.T. Branin Natatorium. Jager Ninke, Jacob Collins, Landon Williams and Jake Savage were district champions and are ready for the big stage. "We're a unit," Williams said. "It takes all of us to swim that relay. It takes all of us to win state. And it takes all of us to get that podium." A year ago, Ninke, Williams and Savage were joined by since-graduated Luke Skavnak and swam to a 15th-place finish in the 200 free. Ninke, Savage, Skavnak and Collins did make did make the podium in the medley relay, finishing eighth. This season, Collins has joined the returning freestyle trio to form a fast quartet. "We've all been swimming for a really long time," Savage said. "We're all in the same grade. We've known each other for a really long time, too. We just click. It's easy to swim with guys that you've known for a really long time." At the sectional meet in Oak Harbor two weeks ago, the Pirates won in 1:32.52. They swam a 1:28.86 at the district meet last Friday at BGSU. They're only seeded behind Huntington Valley University School (1:28.02) in the rankings entering state. "We know that we're the second seed, but we feel that we're the better team," Ninke said. "We can drop more time." These seniors have been swimming together for a long time and building toward this moment. They also enter the state meet with a strong perspective. "It's an amazing opportunity that not many kids get," Williams said. "A chance to fight for a state title or become the best you can your senior year to perform and make memories. Memories are what you're gonna hold on to for a lifetime, not how I swam in this event or this 50. It's about giving it all along the way and the friends you make." These seniors also will swim the 200-yard medley relay, which they enter as the 15th seed. Williams leads off in the backstroke, followed by Ninke in the breaststroke, Collins in the butterfly and Savage in the freestyle. "They just have the ability to mesh together really well on a relay and just feed off of each other really well," Perkins coach Brian Cassidy said. Ninke also heads to state as an individual qualifier. He already has a state runner-up finish as a sophomore in the 100 fly and a third-place medal in the 50 free as a junior. Those are the two swims he'll take part in at state this week, dropping the backstroke from last year to go back to the butterfly. "The 100 butterfly has always been just my basic event, it's always just been natural for me," Ninke said. "It just comes down to aggressiveness really, plain and simple." Ninke has done everything he can to make a run at another strong finish or two. His 50 free time is seeded ninth in a jam-packed field, and the butterfly time is second (49.06) behind Troy Christian's Caleb Reno (48.88). Ninke and Oak Harbor's Austin Sorg (49.36) swam fast at district to prep them for the speed at state. "He's really pushed himself all season long," Cassidy said. "There's not one day where he didn't give me 100% of what he's got that day. He's done great things this season in practice and in meets. We've prepared as well as we could, so hopefully we'll see the benefits of it this week." Ninke is prepared to embrace his last opportunity to swim in the full house at the Ohio state meet, one of the fastest in the country. "Head down, hood up and just plow through it, do my best," Ninke said. Ninke's value to Perkins goes beyond just his own fast times. He has helped his classmates improve themselves, too. "Swimming with Jager is important to us," Savage said. "It helps us all around. It helps us build our minds. It helps us build our bodies, too. When we're swimming with Jager, it's not like we can slow down. We've got to keep up the pace. Swimming with Jager is a big part of our training and it helps us a lot." It'll all culminate in a handful of Perkins swims on Thursday and Friday night. The top 16 from preliminary races advance to Friday's finals, with the top eight times able to compete for podium placement and All-Ohio honors. On paper, the Pirates are in position to be in the conversation. Potentially, they can be right near the top of the picture. "We're looking at the podium thinking, 'That's ours,'" Ninke said. --- Area state swimming qualifiers Clyde Eli Morgan (200 free, 500 free) Margaretta Alayna Biehl (50 free, 100 free) Carson Miller (50 free) Oak Harbor Abby Schiller (diving) Alyse Sorg (200 IM, 100 breast) Austin Sorg (100 fly, 500 free) Nathan Warnke (100 free) Paige Krupp (100 free, 100 back) Skyler Turner (200 IM, 100 breast) Tyler Johansen (500 free) Boys 400 free relay Boys 200 medley relay Girls 200 free relay Girls 400 free relay Girls 200 medley relay Perkins Ella West (200 IM, 100 breaststroke) Jager Ninke (50 free, 100 fly) Tre Leber (diving) Boys 200 free relay Boys 200 medley relay Girls 200 free relay Girls 200 medley relay Port Clinton Alexa Taylor (200 free) Derek Barnhill (500 free) Kami Periat (100 free, 100 back) Girls 200 free relay Girls 400 free relay Sandusky Jayde Gowitzka (Para 50 free, para 100 back) Max Lazzara (100 fly, 100 back) St. Paul Aaron Schaffer (100 breast) Vermilion Cole Rini (100 breast)