Waubonsie Valley on the way up

Updated: September 13, 2011 7:04PM

Waubonsie Valley is a team on the upswing. The Warriors finished fourth at the Neuqua Valley Invite last Saturday but there were some encouraging signs throughout the day.

Foremost was sophomore Maddie Hunt who won the 50 freestyle by making the state cut and finished third in the 100 backstroke.

“Maddie trained really hard over the summer and that’s helped so far,” said Waubonsie Valley coach Katie Peterson.

Hunt was also a member of the 200 medley relay team that finished second to Neuqua Valley, which won all three relays.

The medley relay team represents a great deal of Peterson’s optimism for the future, because Hunt’s teammates were sophomores Molly Devine and Melina Moussetis and freshman Alexa Steffl.

“We have a lot of good swimmers on this team,” said Hunt. “I’m excited about the season.”

Metea Valley coach Lenny DePasquale knows he has a greater talent pool to choose from this year, because he has given his great breaststroker Megan Sellers the green light to concentrate on going for the state title in that event.

“In the past we’ve needed Megan to take more responsibility in the relays and the other strokes,” said DePasquale. “We’re a bigger program now so she can specialize more. She’s focusing on her breaststroke, on her stroke technique and strategy, and she wants to be No. 1. We know she has the talent and the drive to do it.”

Sellers finished fourth at state in her first two years (she was a freshman at Waubonsie Valley) and last year she moved up to third

DePasquale was also impressed by the work of freshman Katelyn Deters, who swam a best-ever 26.79 50 free on the 200 freestyle “B” relay team. That performance was comparable to the time turned in by the juniors and seniors on the Warriors “A” team, meaning that Deters is now in the mix for one of the top spots on the relays. Deters also swam on the A team in the 400 free relay.

Is the key to Gia Dalesandro’s success the fact that she’s a natural talent or that she’s a hard worker?

The answer is: Both.

“Gia has a feel for the water,” said Neuqua Valley coach Brandon King. “It’s her environment. She knows exactly what she needs to do, under the water and on top. She doesn’t even look like she’s trying. And she’s a perfectionist in practice.”

“Gia not only has the most natural talent I’ve ever seen, but she’s also the hardest worker,” said teammate Maggie Maxstadt. “I can’t say enough how much I look up to her. She sets a great example for our team.”

As a freshman, Kelly Lehane, then a student at Rosary which finished third in the state tournament, qualified for state in the 100 backstroke.

She missed the Top 12 by less than a second, but this year, after transferring of Naperville Central, Lehane sees scoring at state as a real possibility.

“I’m training hard and trying to build up my endurance,” Lehane said. “And I have the benefit of the experience at state. So this year I know what to expect.”

Lehane is also appreciative of the outstanding coaching she’s received at both Rosary under Bill Schalz and at Naperville Central under Sue Welker.

“Both coaching staffs really work you hard,” said Lehane. “Rosary is smaller so you have a so many more teammates at Naperville Central. Both coaches emphasize weight-training but we’re really emphasizing weights at Central so I’m a little sore at this point in the season. With so many more people on the squad you have to make sure to take advantage of your individual time with the coaches and go that extra mile to stick out. But, I think things are going well here. Sue (Welker) and her staff have been really great working with me. I’m really excited to see what happens at the end of the season.”

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