Emily O’Neill Freehold High School senior swimmer Emily O’Neill will be defending her NJSIAA state championship in the 100-yard backstroke this weekend.
O’Neill heads into the meet at the Gloucester County Institute of Technology in Sewell with a lot of confidence. In successfully defending her Shore Conference title on Feb. 6, O’Neill gave her state title defense an added boost by breaking the meet record.
Her time of 56.67 smashed the previous mark of 57.28 that was held by Rumson- Fair Haven Regional High School’s Paige Ramsey since 2005.
“It (setting the meet record) was so exciting,” O’Neill said.
In winning the Triple Crown last season (county, conference and state titles), the only thing missing from O’Neill’s résumé was a meet record. She came close to setting a record at last season’s Shore Conference meet and she acknowledged that she wanted it this time around.
“I was going for the record,” she said. “I knew I had to go under 28 (seconds for the first 50 yards) to get the record. I pushed hard and carried it through. When I saw I was in the lead, I gave it all I had.”
O’Neill touched the wall in the Ocean County YMCA pool in Toms River in 56.67, smashing the previous meet record and lifting her confidence for this weekend’s state championships.
“I’m really confident about the states,” she said. “The time is the best I’ve had in the last year. I’m swimming a lot better than I was last year.”
It is now two down and one to go for O’Neill, who will be competing for the University of Louisville next season. Her goal heading into this season was to defend all three championships she won in 2010. With the Monmouth County and Shore Conference meets now behind her, all that remains is the state championship.
O’Neill, who also swims for the YMCA of Western Monmouth County, said she does not mind the long break between championship races.
“I’m still training,” she said. “It’s nice to get a break.”
In addition to her repeat win in the backstroke, O’Neill finished third in the 100 butterfly (1:00.61) at the conference championships.
O’Neill has qualified in three events at the state meet: the 100 backstroke, the 100 butterfly and the 50 freestyle. She said she will likely swim the freestyle and the backstroke.
The state meet will begin March 5 with the preliminary rounds and conclude March 6 with the championship finals.
Marlboro High School senior Lisa Zhang will not be competing at the state championships because commitments to her club team will prevent that, but the Mustangs’ standout found a nice way to end her scholastic career. At the recent Shore Conference Championships, Zhang won the 200 individual medley (2:09.42) and the 100 butterfly (57.79). That double victory left her 8-8 in her Shore Conference Championships career. Zhang doubled at the conference meet throughout her four years, never losing a final.
“I said, ‘This is my last high school meet and I want to leave an impression,’ ” she said.
That she did, going out on top. During her four-year reign, Zhang won conference titles in three different events — the IM, butterfly and backstroke.
Ironically, it was in Zhang’s best event, the IM, where her win streak almost ended. Her rival from this season, Freehold Township High School’s Stephanie Ross, gave her all she could handle as both swimmers dipped under 2:10, with Zhang clocking her best time of the year, 2:09.42, and Ross right behind at 2:09.61.
Zhang excels at the IM because her two strongest strokes, the butterfly and the backstroke, are up first in the race that features four swimming strokes. That allows her to build a sizeable lead when it is time for the breaststroke and freestyle, which are her weaker strokes. She is seldom challenged over the last half of the race.
Not so this time. Zhang’s lead after the first two strokes was slim over Ross, whose better events are the breaststroke and freestyle.