PIAA swimming: Knoch’s Adrian Lavorini snags first state medal in 200 IM
Swimming this late in the high school season is nothing new for Knoch’s Adrian Lavorini.
The senior had qualified for the PIAA Swimming and Diving Championships meet the last three years and swam individually in the Class 2A 200 individual medley, 500-yard freestyle and 100 breaststroke a combined five times at Bucknell University’s Kinney Natatorium.
But he was still without a top-eight finish and a medal ... until Friday.
His time of 1 minute, 54.78 seconds in the 200 IM placed him third in the state. The effort was one-hundredth of a second from his personal-best finish, set last month at the WPIAL meet.
Lavorini had placed 10th in the state in the event the last two years.
“I’m not focused on it being my last trip here, being a senior. I don’t get sentimental about things like that,” Lavorini said. “But it felt good standing on that podium. Just being bigger and stronger helped me a lot this year.”
In Friday morning’s prelims, Lavorini was fourth at 1:55.06. The top eight out of 32 swimmers guarantee themselves a spot in the championship heat later in the day.
“We’ve been practicing in the afternoon, and that’s what my body is used to. I got up (Friday) at 5:50 a.m. My body was tight, and you just don’t feel like you’re gonna go out and swim fast. So I felt pretty good about the time I had.”
Northgate’s Sam Cavanaugh won the IM state title with a time of 1:49.23. Knoch junior Jacob Ruediger finished 12th in the same event at 2:00.0.
Lavorini teamed with Brady Bleicher, Aedan Smith and McCale Buser to place 13th in the 200 medley relay (1:40.70).
Lavorini will swim individually in the 100 breaststroke (seeded sixth) Saturday and will man a leg of Knoch’s 400 freestyle relay.
Freeport junior Isaac Barton was runner-up in the para 50 and 100 freestyles with efforts of 26.00 and 56.85, respectively. Lower Merion’s Simeon Kohler placed first in both events.
