Girls Swimming: Maine East gains experience at conference meet

Updated: November 8, 2011 8:26PM

During Saturday’s CSL North Meet in Deerfield, it took many of Maine East’s young swimmers time to get into the flow.

But once they did, the Blue Demons turned in a solid performance.

“We came into the meet a little overwhelmed with the atmosphere,” said first-year East head coach Peter Przekota. “(CSL North rivals) Deerfield and Glenbrook North have some really fast girls. I wouldn’t say our girls were intimidated, but they’re just not as fast as (those other teams).”

During the first break in the action, Przekota gathered his team for a meeting. He spoke about the importance of concentrating on individual performance instead on opponents, and not becoming stressed about times.

“We regrouped and took a deep breath,” Przekota said. “We have a real young team and (many) had never been in this type of situation before. We told them, ‘Let the race come to you. Don’t worry about your times until after the race. Reflect on it after the race. (Before the race) visualize your goal, and go for it.’ ”

The Blue Demons seemed to settle down, and time drops followed. Maine East (51 points) finished last in the six-team meet, but for a sophomore-laden team that features just two seniors and three juniors, the 2011 season is mostly about gaining experience.

Maine East will have another learning experience Saturday when it competes in the Glenbrook South Sectional — arguably the toughest sectional in the state — with diving set for 9 a.m. and swimming at 1 p.m.

For the Demons, the focus again will be on time drops, setting some sophomore records and building for the future. Przekota said the event also will give his youngsters a chance to observe top-heat swimmers from schools like New Trier and Glenbrook South, athletes his Maine East swimmers should look to emulate.

“They see what these girls do and see the condition they’re in,” Przekota said. “The girls know that to get there, to be a good swimmer, it’s not a three-month season. You have to commit to being in the water almost year-round. The girls want to get better. We’ll see what we’ll do in the offseason. There has been a lot of talking going on (about offseason training). We’ll see what kind of follow-through there is.”

All signs point to a strong offseason. Przekota, who also coaches East’s boys teams, said he has been pleased with the level of commitment shown by his girls this season.

“The girls saw the guys had some really good results, and they have bought into what we’re doing,” the coach said. “This group had never done doubles before, but we’ve been coming in during the mornings and lifting and doing dry-land work. Anything we’ve thrown at them, they’ve never complained.”

Conference recap

At the CSL North Meet, Maine East junior diver Kathy Kolodziejski finished sixth with 316.55 points. She’ll enter sectionals looking to earn a trip to the IHSA State Meet.

In addition, Blue Demons sophomore Isabelle Trier finished 10th in the backstroke (1:10.27) and 14th in the 100 freestyle (1:05.64), dropping time in both. Trier is a few seconds off the school’s sophomore record (1:06.8) in the backstroke.

Junior Christine Lam took 11th in the 100 butterfly (1:09.52). Classmate Eliza Mazgaj placed 11th (6:23.10) in the 500 free, and sophomore Sandra Kietlinska finished 12th (6:27.25).

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