Breck/Blake sets up a run at record for consecutive boys swimming state titles

Breck/Blake positioned itself Friday for a record-setting finish in the Class 1A boys swimming state meet.

Seven-time reigning champion Breck/Blake, a cooperative of two Twin Cities private schools, made a dominant showing in the preliminaries at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center and will be hard pressed not to win its state-record eighth consecutive title.

Rochester won seven consecutive titles from 1953-59, when there was only one class.

The Class 1A finals will begin at noon Saturday, followed by Class 2A at 6 p.m.

Junior Henry Webb (1 minute, 36.94 seconds) and senior Josiah March (1:41.56) posted the fastest times in the 200-yard freestyle. Webb’s time broke the Class 1A record of 1:38.00 set by former teammate Charlie Egeland in 2022. March also qualified second in the 500 freestyle.

Senior Andrew Colgan swam the fastest time in the 200 individual medley at 1:51.25, and in the 100 breaststroke by more than three seconds at 53.77.

Breck/Blake had the fastest time in all three relays.

Hutchinson senior Conner Hogan is the top seed in the 50 and 100 freestyle events with times of 20.26 and 44.61. A Wisconsin recruit, he bettered Webb in the 100 by more than a second.

The team title will come down to Lake Conference powers Minnetonka and Edina, each strong in the prelims. The Skippers are ranked No. 1 by the coaches association, followed closely by the Hornets.

Minnetonka junior Evan Witte had the best time in the 200 individual medley, 1:49.48, and in the 100 freestyle in 44.45.

Junior teammate Daniel Shelstad and Edina senior Rohan D’Souza Larson shared the fastest time in the 50 freestyle at 20.77 seconds. The Skippers also had the quickest 200 and 400 freestyle relay teams.

Edina junior Jiarui Xue and senior Mark Jacobi-Krohn went 1-2 in the 500 freestyle with times of 4:32.47 and 4:32.94.

Sophomore Micah Davis of team TCRB (St. Cloud Tech, St. Cloud Cathedral, Rocori, Becker) was the fastest swimmer in two events: the 100 butterfly in 48.25 and the 200 freestyle in 1:38.79.

Rosemount junior diver Lucas Gerten positioned himself to win again. The two-time defending champion opened a lead of more than 30 points with a score of 357.90 in the preliminaries.