Highland freshman excels at state diving

Highland freshman Elisabeth Lutzko finished 10th at the Division I state diving championships last week at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton. Lutzko recorded a score of 409.45 in the final round. New Albany freshman Samantha Petroff won with a 480.45.

Lutzko scored 188.55 in the preliminary round, the 13th-best mark and among the top 20 that advanced to the semifinals. She posted a 295.55 in the semifinals, ninth-best at that stage, before her final dives moved her to 10th overall. Lutzko and Petroff were the only freshmen in the field. Of the top 10 finishers, only three will graduate.

Lutzko’s performance earned seven team points for Highland, which placed 43rd among teams that scored at least one point. Upper Arlington won the team title with 310 points.

State swimming

In the pool, Highland’s quartet of sophomore Braden Studd, junior Aaron Moore and freshmen Zachary Onopko and Jack Clark finished 22nd in the 200-yard medley relay. Seeded 22nd, the group moved up one spot in the final standings with a time of 1:39.93, just over a second off its qualifying mark.

Clark, a three-event qualifier, led the Hornets with a 24th-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle in 4:49.88, the second-fastest time among freshmen. He also placed 30th in the 200 freestyle in 1:46.60, again second among ninth graders.

Onopko finished 29th in the 100 butterfly in 52.26, about a half-second off his district time. Moore placed 30th in the 500 freestyle in 4:51.21.

Medina senior Brady Ryba finished 17th in Division I in the 200 individual medley with a time of 1:55.48, just missing the “B” final. He added a 21st-place finish in the 100 backstroke in 52.57. Bees sophomore Manny Heming placed 31st in the 500 freestyle in 4:53.84 after entering as the 32nd seed.

Columbus St. Charles won the boys team title with 348.5 points, ahead of Cincinnati St. Xavier with 311.

Gymnastics

Medina and Buckeye finished fourth and fifth, respectively, on the first of two days of Northeast District competition Feb. 28 at Hudson. Medina scored 137.125, just ahead of Buckeye’s 135.350. Only the top three teams advanced to the state meet March 7-8 at Hilliard Bradley High School.

Both schools will have individual qualifiers. Medina’s Anna Schork placed third in the all-around, third on the uneven bars, tied for sixth on floor exercise and eighth on balance beam to earn a state berth.

Buckeye’s Neveah Sejka finished fifth on bars and tied for seventh on floor, qualifying in multiple events after placing just two-tenths of a point behind Schork in the all-around.

Highland will be represented by Ally Gryskiewicz, who placed fifth on balance beam with a 9.2 on the second day of competition. The top six from Day 2 advanced. Gryskiewicz narrowly missed qualifying on floor, placing 11th.