THORNTON >> Monarch’s Gavin Keogh and Ethan DiFronzo took turns making their way to the top of the awards podium at the Class 4A state swim meet Saturday. They shared the spot, too.

Neither senior came into the sport’s pinnacle night with an individual state title to their name — they’d won the 5A 400-yard freestyle relay two seasons ago — and yet nobody was better. The class CEOs (Coyote Executive Officers) won three of the four events they each swam at Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center, leading Monarch to its first team title in boys swimming.

“Coming into this meet, we knew it was going to be tough,” DiFronzo said. “And (Gavin and I) knew we had to do our part. But it was going to come down to the rest of the depth on our team, and that prevailed.”

Individually, Keogh, named 4A’s swimmer of the year, broke the state record in the 100-yard backstroke and also won the 200 freestyle. DiFronzo added wins the 50 and 100 freestyle. Together, along with Tobin Howe and Isaac Skillern, they set the 4A record in the 200 medley relay to open the meet before closing with a second-place finish in the 400 free relay.

Count ’em up: With 108 qualifying times, 29 swimmers, five wins and 10 top-five finishes, the Coyotes, in their first season since moving from 5A to 4A, edged Mullen in what turned out to be a tight two-team race, 409.50-402. Third-place Evergreen had 254.

“Our depth was important. Our swimming up from (Friday’s) prelims was super important,” said Monarch coach Amber Austin, who was named 4A’s coach of the year. “And then I have to shout out all the other teams. We were needing them to take points away from Mullen.” Adding, “it was a collaborative effort for us to do this.”

Keogh set the tone. After being a part of the 200 medley relay win, the North Carolina State commit had an immediate turnaround for the 200 freestyle, but he didn’t show it. His first individual gold at the state meet came after he’d been so close the past three years in 5A, where he finished as a solo runner-up twice.

In celebration of his time (1:37.47), he slapped the pool water. A mix of joy and relief, supplemented by the fact he woke up Saturday morning feeling under the weather, his emotions poured.

“Pumped to feel good again,” he said of it. And not long later, he followed up with the state record in the 100 backstroke, where his time of 46.54 seconds eclipsed Regis Jesuit’s Hennessey Stuart’s 46.81 from 2014.

“To come here and win it, and do what I needed to do, and be with Monarch,” Keogh said, “that’s all I could ask for, just being a part of this amazing team we have.”

DiFronzo, a Norte Dame commit, won the 50 free in 20.50, and the 100 free in 45.29. Howe was second in the breaststroke, and he (200 IM), Skillern (100 butterfly) and Casey Halloran (diving) had fifth-place finishes. Matthew Martino was sixth in dive, and Everett Skillern was eighth in the fly.

Silver Creek finished sixth (211). James Story was 0.39 seconds behind DiFronzo in the 100 freestyle, finishing second, and he was a few spots behind Keogh in the 200 free, placing fourth. Rider Neeb was third in dive, Chayakorn Ngampatipatpong was fourth in the 100 breaststroke, and the Raptors took fourth in the 400 free relay.

Broomfield was 20th. Rhys Gibson, in his best of four top-16 finishes, was in the lane next to Keogh in the 100 backstroke, where he finished fifth.

Longmont was 28th, led by Caleb Phelan’s 13th-place finish in the backstroke.