IN THE SPOTLIGHT
LA’s Shannon Kearney poses after taking second in state in the 100 backstroke. PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE PFOERTNER
Minutes after the final race of her high school swimming career, Loyola Academy senior Shannon Kearney’s fun-loving, goofy side surfaced last weekend.
The Rambler, a Deerfield resident, had just received her second-place medal in the 100-yard backstroke at the state swimming and diving meet at New Trier.
“I’m now a ‘swammer’ [at LA],” Kearney said with the contagious smile she wears nearly every minute of every waking hour.
The swammer swam fast in Winnetka on Nov. 17-18.
Record-setting fast.
Kearney’s time of 54.46 in the 100 backstroke preliminaries on Nov. 17 set a school record. She then re-broke it the next day, clocking a state runner-up time of 53.9 — after leading (by three one-hundredths of a second) eventual champion Grace Ariola (pool-record 53.29) of Normal Community High School at the halfway point of the race.
Kearney’s time was also faster than the previous pool-record holder (Downers Grove North’s Gabby Sims) in the event. Sims had sped to a 53.93 in the 100 back at the 2013 state finals.
Kearney’s 53.9 ranks fifth all-time (tied with former Glenbrook South star Olivia Smoliga) in 100 backstroke swims at the state meet. Smoliga’s times of 51.43 (2012 state finals) and 51.84 (’12 state prelims) rank 1-2.
“I’m so happy with second place … ecstatic about it,” said the North Carolina State-bound swimmer, who touched third in the event with a 55.42 at state last fall. “No way did I ever think I’d swim a 53. My coach [Mike Hengelmann] told me, ‘Give it your all today; it’s your final race for our program.’
“Coach likes to say, ‘Push through the pain,’ and I felt that in those final 25 yards. All I’m thinking during that final lap is, ‘Go, go, go.’ ”
Kearney went to the state meet three years ago — as a spectator. She hadn’t made LA’s state series team in 2014 because it was loaded with standout backstrokers, including Maria Jardeleza and Jamie Kolar.
That squad captured the first state championship in program history.
“Shannon,” Hengelmann said, “got better every year. I’m so happy for her. What a great kid. So much fun to coach, with nonstop energy and a super work ethic; she’d stay after practice to work some more, and she turned into a great leader for us.
“Shannon,” he added, “was the life of the party, always, wherever she happened to be. At meets, the one usually dancing and laughing in between races was Shannon. But not today [at state finals, Nov. 18]. She was serious and focused, a little more zoned in today.”
The consolation finals in the 50 free also featured Kearney at state last weekend. A competitive Irish dancer for 12 years (more years than the length of her career as a competitive swimmer) and the sister of seven-time state medalist and 2016 LA graduate Christopher Kearney, she placed 10th with a personal-best time of 23.66; she had qualified for a berth in the 50-free heat with a 23.71.
Kearney — an integral member of the Ramblers’ state runner-up squad last season — came oh-so-close to advancing to the final day in two relays at state last weekend. LA’s 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle crew each placed 13th in the prelim session on Nov. 17; only the top 12 in each event get to compete on the next day.
Kearney, freshman Allison Mulvey and seniors Margaret Guanci and Cassidy Coughlin collaborated for a 1:46.61 in the 200 medley relay; Kearney, Coughlin, Guanci and sophomore Chloe Brown combined for a 1:36.9 in the 200 free relay.
“Going into high school, I was just a decent swimmer,” Kearney claimed. “I feel so blessed to have been a part of a program that won two state trophies in four years. I remember swimming a 56 [in the 100 back, in an offseason meet] in March of my freshman year, and I remember being motivated, from that point on, to improve that time. I liked to work at it; I liked working with our JV team to get in some extra practice time.”
She then lauded Hengelmann for guiding her — and for putting up with her lighthearted ways on deck.
“He’s the best,” Kearney said.
Hengelmann sees oodles of time drops in Kearney’s future.
“North Carolina State has a great sprint program,” the coach said. “Shannon has those fast-twitch muscles, that explosiveness. Look at how much she improved in the 50 free [a 23.66 at state, after going 24.3 in the preseason]. Look at what she did [25.1 backstroke split] as the lead-off leg on our medley relay [at the Glenbrook South Sectional on Nov. 11].
“She has not plateaued as a swimmer, by any stretch,” Hengelmann added. “She’ll continue to improve each season in college, just like she did for us.”
Notable: Ramblers junior Emily Rourke finished 11th (383.45 points) in diving at the state swimming and diving meet at New Trier last weekend. She had qualified for state with a ninth-place score of 376 at the Glenbrook South Sectional on Nov. 11. … LA, with an entrant in only three events in the finals session on Nov. 18, finished 23rd (18 points) in the team standings at state.
Loyola Academy’s Shannon Kearney gets off to a fast start in the 100-yard backstroke final. She ended up with runner-up honors. PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE PFOERTNER
LA’s Shannon Kearney battles to a second-place finish in the state 100 back. PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE PFOERTNER