Boys swimming: Coronado pulls out narrow win in Desert Region

Even when he was handed the first-place trophy, Stump wasn’t sure the Cougars had won, so he double-checked with the scorer’s table.

The results were accurate.

The Cougars finished with 452 points to claim the title. Green Valley finished second with 444 points, and Bishop Gorman finished third with 284 points.

“We misread the results,” Stump said. “They had the results posted after event 21, and we were up six. But those scores didn’t include the 100 (yard) breaststroke, which we outscored them on. So, we thought going into the relay that we were up six, they win the relay, we get second, then it’s a tie, but I just didn’t read the scores and I was wrong.

“I’ll take it.”

Junior Jared Miao proved to be difference maker as he won the 100 breaststroke with a time of 58.24 seconds. His teammate Spencer Wilkinson finished second with a time of 1:00.47. It was Miao’s first individual region title.

Miao had a big night for the Cougars. He also joined Jalen Tsuchiyama-Sando, MacIsaac Armstrong and Michael Luna on the 200 freestyle relay team that finished first with a time of 1:27.75, and teamed with Daniel Nikoloff, Wilkinson and Luna to win the 200-medley relay in 1:38.57.

“All my friends here, they really wanted this all throughout the season, and I’m really happy to be a part of that,” Miao said. “I can work on my last 50 yards of the 100 breast because I usually die off there, but if I can do that, I think I have a good shot (at winning a state title).”

Luna also finished first in the 100 freestyle for the Cougars with a time of 47.05.

Green Valley’s Alesandro Ongaro finished first in the 200 freestyle (1:41.11) and the 100 butterfly (51.73). Ongaro, Matas Maksimaitis, Mason Romantic and Gabriel Weber finished first in the 400 freestyle relay.

Mountain Region

Palo Verde made it look easy in the Mountain Region championships.

The Panthers won all but four events, posting a team score of 596 points to claim the title. Shadow Ridge was second with 235 points, and Centennial finished third with 232 points.

Tyler Edlefsen, the defending Class 4A state champion in the 200 individual medley, won the region title in that event in 1:50.34. He also won the 100 breaststroke in 57.44 seconds.

Edlefsen also was on the winning 200 medley and 200 freestyle relay teams. The 200 medley team of Trajan Houston, Edlefsen, Thomas Miller and Colby Clinton finished in 1:39.10, and the 200 freestyle team of Ren Prescott, Edlefsen, Devin Bauman and Joseph Gutierrez finished in 1:29.36.

“Tyler’s trying to repeat as a state championship in breaststroke,” Palo Verde head coach Brent Gonzalez said. “Joseph, being a senior, this is the first time being in high school, so he’s excited about that. My boys in the 50 and 100 free stepped up. They did it to get to state. That’s what they’re doing. Relays, overall are good. … Overall I’m happy. They swam great for this meet.”

Prescott won the 50 freestyle in 22.39 seconds. Gutierrez won the 200 freestyle in 1:41.55.

Palo Verde’s 400 freestyle team of Prescott, Ethan Houck, Brooks Blackert and Gutierrez finished first in 3:20.24.