HOLLAND – Diving has been big in the Holland area for decades, mirroring the sensational swimming.
But the state championship performances on Saturday, March 14, gave the area a stunning first as two divers claimed state championships.
Several divers have claimed state championships over the years, but never two in the same year.
Charlie DeHaan won the Division 3 state title with a score or 537.60, leading the the Maroons to second place as a team.
“To win, the weight is lifted off my shoulders. It took diving to the best of my ability. I just tried to be the best I could be,” DeHaan said. “I hit the water and I felt an arch in my back. I swam up and saw my friends cheering and saw the scoreboard. A whole wave of relief shot all over me.”
DeHaan committed to Northwestern University earlier this school year and he continues to build toward a Big Ten level.
“I loved the atmosphere there and see all the athletes having fun but pushing each other. There was a calm, coolness to it,” DeHaan said. “Great campus, the academics are of course fantastic. I am honored that I was offered a spot to build the legacy they are going to leave.”
DeWitt’s Carson Reynolds was second with 452.75, followed by Hamilton’s duo of Brodie Brown (386.55) and Jayden Bierschbach (374.15). Hamilton coach Aaron Paskvan was named Diving Coach of the Year.
That follows up Hamilton’s Josi Popma winning the D3 girls title in the fall.
DeHaan followed the footsteps of teammate Parker Schut, who won the title last year.
“It is great. Last year, I wanted to go 1-2, but we went 1-3. This year, it felt great to continue what Parker left here but continue to pass that on,” he said.
Holland Christian coach Diane Riemersma said that is his biggest strength.
“He is so mentally tough and stays in the moment. Nothing rattles him, and the mentor he was to our two younger divers was very fun to see,” she said.
Meanwhile, in Division 1, West Ottawa’s Isaac Kamara-Hagemeyer won the diving state title with a score of 464.60, the first boys championship for the Panthers in diving.
The Panthers had four divers make the D1 state finals, led by coach Dani VanderZwaag, who herself was a state champion for West Ottawa.
Holland Christian swims to relay title, second place
The Maroons closed the meet with a state championship in the 400 free relay.
Andrew Bengelink, Miles Stock, Greg Flermoen and Jake Shoemaker won the event in 3:08.77.
“The guys put a lot of hard work in and it is great to see a season end like this,” Holland Christian coach Blake Assink said. “The relay was the cherry on top. As a first-year coach, I can’t ask for anything more, winning conference, second in the state, ending with a state title in the 4×1.”
Holland Christian took second as a team with 214 points, trailing just Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood (261). East Grand Rapids was third (196), followed by Spring Lake (165) and DeWitt (141). Hamilton finished 11th with 76 points.
The Maroons finished second in the 200 medley relay with Flermoen, Josiah DeVries, Stock and Shoemaker getting to the wall in 1:34.83, just behind Cranbrook Kingswood (1:33.13).
“It was a really big day,” Shoemaker said. “We love to win things as a team. It was a great day to win that relay.”
Shoemaker finished second in the 200 freestyle (1:40.55) behind Cranbrook Kingswood’s AJ Farner (1:39.12).
Shoemaker also took second in the 100 free with a swim of 45.75, just three hundredths of a second behind Detroit Country Day’s Jack Higgins.
Flermoen was third in the 100 butterfly (50.86), while Stock was seventh (52.37). Flermoen also was third in the 100 backstroke (50.48).
Stock took 10th in the 200 IM (2:01.73) and DeVries was 15th (2:04.05). DeVries took 12th in the 100 breast (1:01.86).
Holland Christian’s Andrew Bengelink took 12th in the 50 free (22.11) and 12th in the 100 free (48.84).
Bengelink, Charlie DeVries, Zeke Zwiep and Josiah DeVries took ninth in the 200 free relay (1:29.37).
Hamilton’s Jake Langeland, Zach Bain, Brett Vandenberg and Cillian Slater took 11th in the 200 medley relay (1:41.90).
Langeland finished seventh in the 100 free (48.63) 10th in the 200 free (1:47.67). Slater was 15th in the 100 free (49.37).
Langeland, Reece Nykamp, Slater and Vandenberg took 11th in the 400 free relay (3:18.05).
Holland’s Jonathan Ross, Luke Arendshorst, Nazario Estrada and Aiden Lambers took 14th in the 200 medley relay (1:44.83).
Farner also won the 100 breaststroke (53.83). Otsego’s Liam Smith won the 200 IM (1:47.38) and 100 butterfly (47.80). Connor Fish won the 50 and 100 free para swims. Higgins won the 50 free (20.79). Adrian’s Kade Opsal won the 100 back (49.20).
Zeeland, West Ottawa shine in Division 1
Zeeland finished seventh at the Division 1 state finals with 125. Ann Arbor Pioneer won the event with 283. West Ottawa finished 11th (72).
Zeeland’s Andrew Pyle, Andrew Skaggs, Gibson Meyering and Branton Posthumus took second in the 200 medley relay (1:32.56), finishing behind Northville (1:31.84).
Skaggs took second in the 100 breaststroke (54.59), just nine hundredths of a second behind Saline’s Issac Adanin.
Meyering took fifth in the 100 back (51.29) and seventh in the 100 butterfly (50.44).
Posthumus took eighth in the 50 free (21.66). Brady Vroegindewey took 14th in the 500 free (4:48.39).
Posthumus, Pyle, Hudson Kosten and Meyering took seventh in the 400 free relay (3:09.17). Posthumus, Skaggs, Kosten and Vroegindewey took 12th in the 200 free relay (1:27.06).
West Ottawa’s Luke Catton finished sixth in the 100 free (46.18) and 11th in the 200 free (1:42.69).
West Ottawa’s Grady Armstrong took ninth in the 500 free (4:41.29).
Armstrong, Catton, Noah Williams and Grant Milobinski took ninth in the 400 free relay (3:09.35). Armstrong, Grant Milowbinski, Simon Prins and Caton took 14th in the 200 free relay (1:27.49).
Northville’s Brady Stenson won the 200 free (1:37.17). Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Edward Zhang won the 200 IM in 1:47.11 and Charles Knoepp won the 500 free (4:24.00). Jenison’s Caleb Storey won the 50 free (20.34) and the 100 free (44.64). Grandville’s Oliver Ottenwess won the 100 fly (49.02). Milford’s Samuel Campbell won the 100 back (47.95).
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Divers take center stage with two state titles, Holland Christian takes second as team
Reporting by Dan D’Addona, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
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