SPORTSINK.COM PHOTO

At the Canton Christmas Invitational, Twinsburg's girls 400-yard freestyle relay team, from left: senior Taylor Ulisse, sophomore Elizabeth Schafer, senior Amanda Vargo, senior Lexi Ristaino.

CANTON, Ohio – C.T. Branin Natatorium is the site of the OHSAA state swimming and diving championships.

To compete at this storied venue is a memory high school swimmers will treasure for a lifetime.

And although many of the 600 swimmers who competed Saturday morning and evening in the 8th Annual Canton City Schools Christmas Swimming & Diving Invitational will be back for the state meet in 2012, many will not.

“It’s really exciting to be here competing in this atmosphere,” Green boys and girls coach Mike Lazor said.  “You get to swim at the state pool.”

The meet director is Sam Seiple of Canton McKinley and proceeds from the meet benefit Canton Calvary Mission.

“Sam puts on a great invitational,” Lazor said.  “There are teams (78 total to be exact) from all over the place, competitive teams, top teams in the state. It’s great competition.”

No Summit County swim program fared better than Firestone and its Magnificent Seven of junior Mark Belanger, senior Daniel Sokolov, junior Katie Miller, sophomore Natalie O’Brien, senior Emily O’Brien, senior Jill Stoneburg and senior Alyssa Athmer.

The Falcons qualified for the championship heat in 10 events and had two finalists in the girls 100-yard freestyle.

Miller, a defending state champion in 200 IM, won first place in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.99) and the 100 butterfly (55.26). She won the breaststroke by almost three seconds and the butterfly by more than three ticks.

Natalie O’Brien (5th, 55.43) and Stoneburg (7th, 56.33) gave coach Cindy Virdo two finalists in the 100 freestyle.

Firestone’s 200 medley relay (1:50.43) took second and the 400 free relay (3:36.04) placed third.

On the boys side, Belanger was second in the 100 backstroke (53.39) and third in the 200 freestyle (1:46.09).

Copley had five swimmers – freshman Madison Myers, freshman Brenda Prifti, junior Cooper Comstock, senior Chris Lane, and senior Henry Signore – compete during Saturday evening’s finals.

Myers was second in the 200 IM (2:08.78) and third in the 100 breaststroke (1:08.91).

Copley’s showing was at the center of an impressive day for the Suburban League. SL swimmers placed in the top four seven times in six events.

“You come to these big meets and the kids drop their times because of the competition level,” Copley boys and girls coach Ed Burnsed said. “They call it competitive swimming for a reason. People like to race. And when you get to this level, if you have somebody beside you, you go faster. Having somebody beside you who is fast is very important.”

Revere senior Maggie Harris was second in the 50 freestyle (25.24) and fourth in the 100 free (54.98).

Wadsworth senior Mike Pavlak ranked third in both the 100 breaststroke (1:01.14) and the 200 IM (1:59.54).

Coaches acknowledge that seeing an opponent’s seed time on a sheet paper is one thing, swimming in the lane next to such a high-caliber opponent is another matter.

“You see (a time) on swimmeet.com, or you see it in the paper, or SportsInk.com or wherever,” Lazor said. “Then you actually get to see them and swim side-by-side with them and great things happen.”

RESULTS

Girls

50 free- 2. Maggie Harris (Revere) 25.24, 4. Ellie Surratt (Wadsworth) 25.51.

100 free- 4. Harris (Revere) 54.98, 5. Natalie O'Brien (Firestone) 55.43, 7. Jillian Stoneburg (Firestone) 56.33, 13. Surratt (Wadsworth).

200 free- 7. Emily O'Brien (Firestone) 1:58.23.

500 free- 11. Alex Poitinger (Revere) 5:26.55.

100 backstroke- 9. E. O'Brien (Firestone) 1:01.49

100 breaststroke- 1. Katie Miller (Firestone) 1:04.99, 3. Madison Myers (Copley) 1:08.91.

100 butterly- 1. Miller (Firestone) 55.26, 11. Emma Gresser (Revere) 1:01.02.

200 IM- 2. Myers (Copley) 2:08.78, 5. N. O'Brien (Firestone) 2:14.09, 8. Gresser (Revere) 2:17.92.

400 free relay- 3. Firestone (Miller, N. O'Brien, E. O'Brien, Stoneburg) 3:36.04.

200 med relay- 2. Firestone (Miller, Alyssa Athmer, E. O'Brien, N. O'Brien) 1:50.43.

Boys

50 free- 16. Logan Rogers (Hoban) 23.28.

100 free- 19. Graham Burnell (CVCA) 50.17.

200 free- 3. Mark Belanger (Firestone)1:46.09, 15. Daniel Sokolov (Firestone) 1:53.10.

100 backstroke- 2. Belanger (Firestone) 53.39, 18. Cooper Comstock (Copley) 58.51.

100 breaststroke- 3. Mike Pavlak (Wadsworth) 1:01.14, 9. Chris Lane (Copley) 1:02.80.

100 butterfly- 8. Sokolov (Firestone) 54.71, 10. Burnell (CVCA) 55.29

200 IM- 3. Pavlak (Wadsworth) 1:59.54, 18. Henry Signore (Copley) 2:07.82.

1-meter diving- 2. Steve Schillero (Akron Garfield) 443.60, 12. Ty Talley (Brunswick) 361.45.