THORNTON >> Niwot’s Izzy Fay seems to be in peak form a week before attempting to defend her Class 4A 1-meter diving crown.

During Saturday’s Granite Peaks League Championships at the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center, she won with a score of 543.60, breaking the school record in the process. She took home the state title last year with a 538.30.

This season, she just wants to have fun, no matter what happens.

“Today was a better meet for me, mentally and physically,” she said. “Even though I had a comparable score to state, I felt more comfortable with my dives and I’m happy with how they went. The skills that I incorporated into my dives were staying calm with my approach and hurdle and being patient with my boardwork — something a diver is always working on and has made big impacts on my height.”

Fay said she feels more prepared this season after joining a year-round club and that her confidence has improved in kind. She’s ready for whatever the state meet will bring at the VMAC next Friday and Saturday.

“My mindset heading into state next week is to just stay focused and consistent,” she said. “I am hoping to achieve just having fun and enjoying the sport I love and know how to do.”

Just in the nick of time

Just a hair separated first and second place in the 100-yard breaststroke. Frederick’s Addisyn Murray ended her race in 1 minute, 9.06 seconds to beat out Silver Creek’s Annika Sesselmann, who nabbed a 1:09.10.

“I’ve been really trying to work on my underwaters,” Murray said. “I feel like that was pure luck, because I had two really great girls, (Broomfield’s Izzy Schroeder) and Annika, trying to fight for that same spot I was. It was just really amazing having someone like Annika push me so hard. I couldn’t have done it without her right next to me trying to push me that hard, so I really just want to thank her.”

Schroeder and Fairview’s Sarah Leevan tied for third at 1:10.97.

Murray made a splash in a meet that was filled to the brim with 4A and 5A talent, as evidenced by the final team standings. Broomfield, a 4A team, beat out 5A Legacy by two points to win the team league title, finishing its night with 894.5 points. Frederick placed 11th with a 238.

Murray has qualified for everything at state but the 50 freestyle and 100 backstroke, and says she’ll focus her energy on the 500 free, 100 breast, 200 medley relay and 400 free relay. She hopes to pull from some of the energy that fueled her on Saturday.

“I was like, ‘I’m just going to go into this trying to be loosey-goosey, as my dad always says, and always just try and fight for what you want,’” she said. “If you want that first place, you have to fight for it. Even if it’s to the last millimeter, you have to fight for it.”

Eyes on the prize

Even with a disqualified relay, Centaurus was well in the mix for the top teams in the Granite Peaks League, finishing third with a 717.5.

Brayde Patik, a water polo player by trade, highlighted the level of talent the squad possesses when she won the 100 backstroke, clocking in at 57.82 seconds. The Warriors will have to battle Broomfield for the top spot in 4A next week.

“Going into this meet, we didn’t taper,” Patik explained.

“Most of our girls, we did normal workouts for the week, so we came in here not tapered, and we still did pretty good. This is a good preview because we can see what (Broomfield’s) strengths are and who they’re bringing.”

The Warriors will rest this week ahead of their return to the VMAC. Patik said she plans to compete in backstroke and the 200 freestyle.

“I don’t usually swim that much, but it’s fun to win and drop a couple seconds from yesterday and bring it into today,” she said.

“On Thursday night, I came to practice for 30 minutes, and then I went to water polo. My goal is definitely to podium for both my events that I’m going for. For the team, we want to get to the top. It’s going to be hard, but we have good competition.”

Three’s company

Prior to this season, Silver Creek’s Sesselmann had never qualified for the state meet in more than two events. By night’s end at the GPL meet, she had tipped her cap in the 200 individual medley, the 100 breaststroke and the 200 free, and was just 0.2 seconds off from achieving the feat in the 500 free, the 100 back and the 100 butterfly.

Her turnaround from a rough sophomore campaign is coming into sharper focus with just one week left until she returns for state, as highlighted by her silver-worthy finish in the breaststroke. She entered the meet ranked fourth in 4A in the event and beat that time by 0.72 seconds.

“It’s definitely a lot better than last season,” Sesselmann said.

“I think, actually, last year, I probably had the worst times. I think I gained over five seconds in all my events. But I joined a new club — I joined Flatirons — so that definitely helped a lot. I also just think the energy from my team with the high school, it’s gotten a lot better. Everyone’s cheering, everyone’s here to support. Even those who didn’t make finals, they’re here to support everyone today.”

This year, she finally broke through the coveted 2:20 mark in her IM and the 1:10 barrier in her breaststroke. Her IM stands at 2:16.90 after Saturday, while her breaststroke topped out at 1:09.10. She’s hoping she can PR when the best of the best convene at the VMAC on Feb. 7.

“I’ve been working on my underwater pull-outs for my breaststroke a lot,” she said. “I fixed my glide. I used to glide really, really long. I’ve just worked on faster tempo, faster pace.”