Sauk Prairie swimmers cruise past Watertown

Melani Guentherman decided to experiment a bit last Tuesday. Guentherman, Sauk Prairie’s girls swimming coach, mixed up her lineup against host Watertown on Sept. 1. What Guentherman found is her 2020 Eagles have both talent and depth and can be successful with multiple lineups this fall. Sauk Prairie defeated the Goslings, 131-39. The Eagles won every race, had the top two finishers in nine of the 11 events and cruised to an easy victory. “We swam a very different lineup at this meet with a lot of races within our team,” Guentherman said. “In all relay events, our ‘A’ and ‘B’ relays were balanced so they could race each other.   “I was very impressed by the way the girls raced, especially in the relays. They all stepped up and raced really well.” Boy, did they ever. Sauk Prairie had the top two finishers in all three relays. In the 200-yard medley relay, Kassandra Miller, Trinity Doerre, Grace Orr and Emily VadeHay finished first, while the quartet of Carly Coy, Lauryn Drager, Amelia Hunter and Ashley Pape was second. The foursome of Savannah Acker, Orr, Kailey Baker and Doerre won the 200-yard freestyle relay, while the team of Cora Dunnum, Jade Babcock, VandeHey and Riley Talmage was second. And the quartet of Hunter, Dunnum, Talmage and Drager won the 400-yard freestyle, while the group of Acker, Miller, Ashley Pape and Coy were second. Acker won the 200-yard freestyle, while Dunnum was second and Talmage was third. Acker also won the 100-yard butterfly and Orr was second. Miller won the 200-yard IM, while Drager was second. Hunter, Pape and VandeHey went 1-2-3 in the 50-yard freestyle. Dunnum won the 100-yard freestyle and Allyson Saladis was third. Talmage won the 500-yard freestyle, while Hunter and VandeHey were second and third, respectively. Miller won the 100-yard backstroke and Pape was third. And Doerre won the 100-yard backstroke, while Drager was second and Coy was third. In all, it was a terrific meet for the Eagles. “It is hard to choose a swimmer or two who impressed me, as so many were outstanding,” Guentherman said. “Savannah Acker is very talented and incredibly versatile and came up with two more individual wins.  Cora Dunnum has bounced back great after battling an injury last season. She is consistently swimming very well and racing hard. Amelia Hunter has improved from last year and is showcasing her versatility in multiple events. Trinity Doerre, a new junior on the team, won the 100 breast.” • On deck: The Eagles were at Baraboo Tuesday, then are at Beaver Dam on Sept. 15.   SAUK PRAIRIE 131,  WATERTOWN 39 200 medley relay — Watertown (Woerishofer, Braatz, Hernandez, Schwantes), 1:55.77. 200 freestyle – Acker, SP, 2:38.62. 200 individual medley — Miller, SP, 3:31.27. 50 freestyle — Hunter, SP, 26.53. 100 butterfly — Acker, SP, 1:03.69. 100 freestyle — Dunnum, SP, 57.96. 500 freestyle — Otto, W, 7:51.03. 200 freestyle relay — Sauk Prairie (Acker, Orr, Baker, Doerre), 1:54.40. 100 backstroke — Miller, SP, 1:10.26. 100 breaststroke — Doerre, SP, 1:17.29. 400 freestyle relay — Sauk Prairie (Hunter, Dunnum, Talmage, Drager), 3:59.65. At Watertown.