Local swimmers made a massive splash at the CIF-Southern Section Swimming Championships, bringing home six individual titles and one relay championship over three days of competition at Mt. San Antonio College.
The standout performances started with Oak Park junior Ingrum, who captured the 200-yard freestyle title in 1:39.55 and helped his team to a relay victory. Even as an individual competitor, Ingrum felt the support of his teammates pushing him forward. "Even though swimming is an individual sport, the team aspect definitively comes through," he said. "It helps knowing it's not just you out there. You've got people on the sidelines who believe in you."
Oak Park finished seventh as a team, with Ingrum also earning an automatic All-American time in the 500 free. "It was an awesome day," said Oak Park coach Calley Prezanno.
The Division 4 finals kicked things off Thursday, May 7, followed by Division 2 and 3 finals on Friday, May 8, and Division 1 finals on Saturday, May 9. Two local stars who will soon be teammates at UC San Diego defended their section titles with record-breaking swims.
Newbury Park senior Megan Wang dominated the Division 2 girls 100-yard backstroke, winning in 52.86 seconds—a personal best, school record, and meet record. "She went in fully trusting her training and delivered an incredible performance," said Newbury Park coach Sebastian Ayala.
Agoura senior Sofija Gelev proved her consistency by defending her Division 3 titles in the girls 50 freestyle (23.62) and girls 100 free (51.08), the latter a school record. "She's a phenomenal swimmer," said Agoura coach Jason Rosenthal. "To go back to back is amazing."
Oak Park senior Elliott Drottar made his mark in the Division 3 boys 100 free, winning the title in a school-record 45.86. "Started out fast and came back faster," Drottar said. "Finished at the wall and I was glad it was the best time."
The relay magic continued for Oak Park as the team of Ingrum, Trey Williams, Mason Espin, and Drottar won the boys 4x100 free relay in 3:10.38. "That team has been working at it since last year," said Ingrum. "It's been great seeing Trey and Mason grow and develop into the swimmers they are today."
Nordhoff junior F rounded out the local champions, adding to an unforgettable weekend that showcased the depth of talent in Ventura County swimming.