2023 Michigan Upper Peninsula Championship Meet
- February 17-28, 2023
- Marquette, Michigan
- Short Course Yards (25 yards), timed finals
- Meet Results
Michigan High School girls conclude their championship season in November and Michigan High School boys conclude their championship season in March, but in between is the state’s Upper Peninsula Championship meet. Sitting outside of the lower peninsula three-tiered system, U.P. swimmers compete for their own title and hold a co-ed season.
The Upper Peninsula is much less-densely populated than the Lower Peninsula: the region’s entire population is about 300,000, which is about 3% of the population of the Lower Peninsula. Marquette, is the most-populous area of the U.P., and the host of this meet.
Marquette High School used that population to their advantage, dominating both the boys’ and girls’ meets, with the girls winning their second-straight title and the boys’ winning their fourth-straight title.
With the top 12 in each event scored, numbers can be a huge advantage in the U.P. Many events didn’t even have 12 athletes entered.
Girls’ Recap
Top 5:
- Marquette High – 393
- Gladstone High – 156
- Kingsford – 153
- Sault Area High – 146
- Houghton High – 128
The Marquette girls used a relay sweep, seven event wins, and a trio of talented freshmen to dominate the meet – and establish a dynasty that could last for years-to-come.
“Unfortunately, swimming numbers are down across the state,” said Marquette coach Nate McFarren. “We’ve been fortunate enough to maintain strong numbers, and winning every relay separated us from the pack. I think it’s important for all U.P. teams to have more numbers. I thought Gladstone did real well. I think Tom (Desy, the Gladstone coach) does a great job down there.”
The runners-up from Gladstone have only 9 swimmers on their entire roster.
Marquette freshman Logan McFarren won the 200 free in 2:10.49. That was more than seven-seconds ahead of her teammate and classmate Ellie Durand, the runner-up, in 2:17.53.
McFarren also finished 2nd in the 500 free in 6:02.02, behind her teammate Grace Sobczak, who won in 5:35.02. That is a third-straight U.P. title for Sobczak in the 500.
McFarren also swam the anchor leg of the team’s winning 200 free relay (1:50.33) and the third leg of the team’s winning 400 free relay (3:53.07). They won that 400 free relay in 3:53.07 with a quartet that included another freshman, Paige Davis, on the leadoff leg.
Davis got an individual win of her own via a win in the 100 fly in 1:04.52 – six seconds ahead of the field. Another Marquette freshman, Edith Jentoft, finished 3rd.
McFarren’s older brother Liam won three state titles of his own in the boys’ meet.
Sobczak also picked up an individual win in the meet in the 200 IM, touching in 2:23.42. She has finished runner-up in each of the last two seasons, but with defending champion Adelaide McRoberts not competing this year, the door was open for Sobczak’s breakthrough win.
While Marquette did the lion’s share of the winning, the runners-up from Gladstone landed a few big punches too. One came from junior Ava Getzloff, who won the 50 free in 25.83 and 100 back in 1:02.70, both of which are new personal bests. In her first season swimming high school in Michigan, her 26.18 leadoff leg on Gladstone’s runner-up 200 free relay was the fastest of the field, as was her 29.33 backstroke split on their runner-up 200 medley relay.
“Ava (Getzloff) had an outstanding meet, and Mary (Hook) did a great job today,” Gladstone head coach Tom Desy said. “For a small team like ours to take second is pretty awesome. Marquette just has so many more kids than everybody. The girls did an awesome job.”
Hook was the runner-up in the 100 breaststroke and the 200 IM.
Other Winners:
- 3rd place Kingsford High picked up one individual win from junior Nahia Cristobalena in the girls’ 100 fly in 1:12.45.
- Westwood High’s Faith Spiroff won the girls’ diving title, leading a 1-2 with freshman teammate Maggie Harvala.
Boys’ Recap
Top 5:
- Marquette High – 376
- Houghton High – 216
- Kingsford High – 133
- Sault Area High – 132
- Gladstone High – 118
On the boys’ side, Marquette won their fourth-consecutive state title, sending their seniors off with a perfect record.
Among those seniors was Andrew King, who won the 100 back in a new personal best of 57.73, and also swam legs of the winning 200 medley and 400 free relays.
“This was really a great day,” said King, who swam all four years of high school. “This is the first time I got under a minute in the 100 backstroke and under two minutes in 200 freestyle (1:57.90 for 2nd place). I’ve been shooting for those all season. It feels great to swim those times and finish strong and who knows, there’s always a chance I might swim in college. I’m very happy for both of our teams.”
Also among that group of seniors was Liam McFarren, who won the 200 IM in 2:08.18. In total, the McFarren family, along with younger sister Logan, won six U.P. titles on Saturday.
For Liam, that included legs on the 200 medley and 200 free relays.
McFarren was the runner-up in the 100 free in 50.28, two-tenths behind Houghton senior Johannes Myhre (50.07). McFarren won that race last year in an almost-identical time (50.27), but this year was pipped by Myhre: an exchange student from Norway.
“I’ve always lived on the water and since I’ve been a little kid I loved being on the water,” he said. “I started competitive swimming four years ago. I think I had a pretty good backstroke today, and having Liam McFarren on my side really helps. He’s definitely a good swimmer. We’ve gone back and forth all year. I think it was decided after 75 yards. I used all my reserves.”
That win for Myhre came off a back-to-back, where he also won the 200 fly.
The Marquette seniors were the story of the day as the hand off the dynasty to their teammates. Besides McFarren and King, they also picked up an individual win from Maverick Baldwin in the 50 free, where he swam 22.67 to successfully defend his title.
Marquette sophomore diver Evan Balko also picked up a win on 1-meter.
Kingsford also got a trio of wins in the meet. Two came from Joey Lundholm, who won the 200 free in 1:56.85 (beating the aforementioned King) and the 500 free in 5:27.07. Those were his first two U.P. titles.
The other came late in the meet when senior Zane Cahee won the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.47.
Clarification Johannes swam the butterfly & freestyle not the backstroke in the quoted text😉He’s our exchange student. Thanks!
It’s cool the the UP has a separate state championship.
Most places in the UP are far from the LP and the UP is smaller.
57.73 what is the Andrew King time for the hundred yard Backstroke.
clarification: Marquette University is in Wisconsin
Northern Michigan University is in Marquette Michigan
All across the state about 1/2 of the state qualifiers last year were seniors. Most teams seem to have shrunk. One clear example of this effect is the 50 free from last year’s d2 states where the entire a final was seniors.