Who to watch at the 2023 Southwest Ohio Swimming and Diving Classic
The 39th edition of the Southwest Ohio Swimming and Diving Classic will feature over 100 schools, 2,450 swimmers and 150 divers at 11 preliminary sites, making it the largest invitational of its kind in the United States, according to event organizers.
Just over a month until the OHSAA swimming and diving state tournaments, the Southwest Classic is sure to feature multiple athletes and teams that will bring home state championships from Canton.
Classic prelims begin on Saturday, Jan. 14, and the event ends on Sunday, Jan. 15, with diving finals at 11 a.m. at West Clermont and swimming finals at 6:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at St. Xavier.
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The Bombers will attempt to win the event for the 39th time in the event’s 39th meet while St. Ursula Academy will look to repeat for the girls.
Standing in the way of a Bomber repeat could be Beavercreek, the defending Division I state champions who snapped St. Xavier’s 13-year title run last season. Mason, Sycamore and Kings, which finished 3-4-5 in last year’s Classic, were also top 10 placers at state in Division I. Indian Hill, which finished in sixth at last season’s Classic, finished in fifth at Division II state while Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy, which tied for 10th in the Classic, finished in eighth in the Division II state meet.
St. Ursula followed last season’s Classic win with a third-place finish at state while Walnut Hills (second in the Classic) finished ninth at state. Four local schools in Division II also finished in the top 10 at state, including CHCA in third and Seven Hills a position below.
Knowing the top-level teams ready for competition, here are some of the swimmers and divers to watch for the Classic and beyond.
Gibson Holmes, Indian Hill
Indian Hill swimmer Gibson Holmes started winning state titles as a freshman and is now a state record-holding swimmer with five state championships to his name. Holmes won a pair of state titles last season, the 200-yard individual medley and 100-yard butterfly, setting state records in both events. Holmes will be the only returning swimmer to the 2023 Classic who holds a state tournament record.
Logan Ottke, CHCA
Ottke was barely edged in the 100-yard breaststroke in last year’s Classic, but he responded with a top prelim time and a state championship in the Division II meet, helping CHCA to a top 10 finish in the finals.
Thackston, McMullan, St. Xavier
Now a junior, McMullan was the only Bomber to claim an individual state title in last year’s Division I tournament. McMullan won the 500-yard freestyle in the 2022 Classic by just over a 10th of a second, but then claimed the state championship in the event by nearly five seconds over returning teammate Alex Ingram.
Addie Robillard, St. Ursula
Just a freshman last season, Robillard didn’t have to wait long to find a podium finish. After finishing as a state runner-up in the 200-yard individual medley, Robillard swam the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:01.44, jumping from fourth in the prelims to the gold.
Gavin Hang, St. Xavier
Gavin Hang’s second-place finish in the Southwest Classic gave way to a state appearance that saw him leading the field after the preliminary rounds. The then-junior finished with a final score of 471.10, good for third in Division I. Moeller’s James Wolf also finished in 12th overall at state.
Langley Petersen, Mason
With crowded competition in the one-meter dive, Langley Petersen found herself right in the middle of the competition. In last year’s Classic, Peterson finished in fifth behind multiple eventual state champions and state runner-up finishers. Petersen herself was the Division I sixth-place finisher as a junior in 2022.
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