LAKE ORION >> Farmington Hills Mercy’s swimmers weren’t even born when the school’s previous streak of consecutive Oakland County meet wins began.

Saturday was continued evidence of 2022’s aberration, though, as the Marlins’ current bunch proved to be as talented as those who came before when they lapped the competition by over 100 points for yet another first-place finish.

In the past two decades, only Adams has been able to knock Mercy off its perch when the Highlanders defeated the Marlins by 28 points several seasons ago, though they were right back on top last year to start another wave of dominance.

So it’s back to business as usual, and when you dominate like the Marlins do — they finished with 363 points, 120 ahead of runners-up Huron Valley United — setting some different markers is required.

Mercy coach Mike Venos said that executing what’s practiced was an initial goal, but second to that is having a good time, even if doing so seems like treading water when you win with the frequency that his program does.

“If you couldn’t tell, we were joking around,” Venos said. “These girls know how to swim relaxed. One of the things that we tell them all the time is with the tradition of Mercy, people look at us. We don’t have to worry about anybody else, so let’s just take care of what we need to take care of. We call it ‘swimming in our own lane.’ When you can do that, good things are gonna happen.”

Returning all but a few from last year’s group that won not only the county meet but the Division 2 state title, Mercy racked up the medals, including four that came from first-place finishes.

A newcomer, freshman Ella Hafner, finished ahead of junior teammate Violet Schwartz to win the 200 freestyle (1:55.97), and Hafner also grabbed first in the 500 freestyle (5:11.71).

Hafner was joined by sophomores Avery Tack and Campbell Shore, along with senior Mackenzie Conway for the Marlins team that took first in the 200 freestyle relay (1:36.31). To cap the day off, the team of Tack, Shore, Hafner and sophomore Leah Groves outpaced the competition in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 3:32.01.

Even when Mercy wasn’t topping the proverbial podium, events like the 200 IM where Tack, Shore and Hafner all ended in the top-five were proof of excellence.

“Our focus (for the season) is definitely league or states, but I think what makes this meet so special is the really high energy from our teammates,” said Mercy senior Katie Schwab, who took third in the 100 butterfly. “It’s that encouragement, and having such good competitors to help push us in the pool. This is definitely one of the meets where a lot of good things happen and there’s a lot of fast times, but it’s all because of our training and the support of our teammates.”

When asked how winning the county meet can breed confidence for the remainder of the season, fellow Marlins senior Lauren Smith said, “We always just swim for the people who swam before us, swim for the ‘M’ on our cap. We just want to make sure we’re putting our best foot forward. That’s all we can do.”

Added Schwab, “I think it’s good place to have kind of that championship mentality, but at the same time, it’s more fun. We don’t try to worry too much, because this is just another opportunity to show our training instead of worrying too much about the other stuff.”

For the second year in a row, Huron Valley United came in second, though more comfortably than in 2023 when it was only 16 points ahead of West Bloomfield. This time, the gap between second and third — Seaholm and West Bloomfield tied for that honor — was 52 points. The Maples and Lakers finished with 191.

Huron Valley United’s all-senior quartet of Elle Dameworth, Brooke Stec, Mya Hutchinson and Coral Hebert came second to Mercy in the 200 free relay, while the program also nabbed a bronze finish in the 400 free relay.

“This year, it met expectations,” Huron Valley United coach James Schuler said. “Last year, we ended up being the runners-up a little bit by surprise, so we came into the meet this time knowing we had the ability to do it again, and it was a great meet all the way through. Friday night, our divers were really awesome, so coming into swimming in first place, we knew we couldn’t beat Mercy, but it gave us a really good shot to be runners-up again.

“Our seniors, they’ve been a building block of our program the last four years, and they put us in a position where we could be one of the top teams in Oakland County. And then we’re hoping to carry our success on to be one of the top teams at the state finals in November.”

Individually, the talents of West Bloomfield junior Elizabeth Eichbrecht were on display yet again. She paired with Bryn Cusack, Piper Smith and Jessica Conkey to win the 200 medley relay (1:47.66) to begin Saturday’s festivities, but that was just the start.

Eichbrecht, who already has multiple state championships and OAA records to her name, scooped another feat by finishing the 200 IM in 2:02.92, beating the record set by Waterford United’s Miranda Tucker in 2013 by a tenth of a second. She also took first in the 100 butterfly with a mark of 55.07.

The assessment from Eichbrecht of her performance in the record-breaking event was drenched in humility. “I mean, yeah, my best time’s a 2:01, but it was still pretty much a good time,” she said. “(This meet) was just to see where I’m at. We’re just kind of going and obviously my main focus is states, so just trying to see what we can do. (I was just aiming) to swim my best, keep improving.”

In other first-place finishes Saturday, Bloomfield Hills sophomore Bailey Robinson won both the 50 (23.71) and the 100 (50.94) free, Country Day sophomore Quinn Norlander took the 100 backstroke (56.89), and Rochester Adams senior Sadie Rogers led the way in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.74). Also, Oxford senior Tristan Krajcarski was the winner of Friday’s diving event.

TEAM SCORES: 1. Farmington Hills Mercy, 363. 2. Huron Valley United, 243. 3. (tie) Birmingham Seaholm/West Bloomfield, 191. 5. Rochester, 151. 5. Bloomfield Hills, 112. 7. Novi, 108. 8. Berkley, 106. 9. Rochester Adams, 104. 10. Lake Orion, 96. 11. South Lyon, 92. 12. Birmingham Groves, 90. 13. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 86. 14. South Lyon East, 69. 15. Detroit Country Day, 67. 16. Walled Lake Northern, 59. 17. Royal Oak, 46. 18. Farmington, 45. 19. Stoney Creek, 23. 20. North Farmington, 22. 21. Oxford, 20. 22. Troy, 14. 23. Madison Heights Lamphere, 12. 24. Birmingham Marian, 10. 25. Pontiad Notre Dame Prep, 3. 26. Troy Athens, 2.

200 MEDLEY RELAY: 1. West Bloomfield (Bryn Cusack, Piper Smith, Elizabeth Eichbrecht, Jessica Conkey), 1:47.66. 2. Rochester, 1:49.36. 3. Birmingham Seaholm, 1:50.30. 4. Farmington Hills Mercy, 1:51.07. 5. Rochester Adams, 1:51.60. 6. South Lyon East, 1:52.69. 7. Birmingham Groves, 1:52.73. 8. Huron Valley United, 1:52.92. 9. Berkley, 1:53.00. 10. Detroit Country Day, 1:53.11.

200 FREESTYLE: 1. Ella Hafner, Farmington Hills Mercy, 1:55.97. 2. Violet Schwartz, Farmington Hills Mercy, 1:56.74. 3. Mya Hutchinson, Huron Valley United, 1:57.65. 4. Abby Stanley, Birmingham Seaholm, 1:58.03. 5. Gianna Perazza, Lake Orion, 1:58.90. 6. Noelle Schneider, Birmingham Seaholm, 1:58.95. 7. Vanessa Mchale, Novi, 1:59.03. 8. Skyler Jansen, Birmingham Seaholm, 1:59.43. 9. Julie Castro Vela, Rochester, 1:59.78. 10. Annabelle Thompson, Huron Valley United, 1:59.91.

200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY: 1. Elizabeth Eichbrecht, West Bloomfield, 2:02.92. 2. Sadie Rogers, Rochester Adams, 2:06.44. 3. Avery Tack, Farmington Hills Mercy, 2:07.98. 4. Campbell Shore, Farmington Hills Mercy, 2:10.68. 5. Clare Hafner, Farmington Hills Mercy, 2:12.02. 6. Kassidy Collins, Royal Oak, 2:12.03. 7. Annika Cho, Farmington, 2:12.21. 8. Quinn Norlander, Detroit Country Day, 2:12.31. 9. Mia Mracna, Berkley, 2:12.41. 10. Hailey Garvey, South Lyon, 2:13.87.

50 FREESTYLE: 1. Bailey Robinson, Bloomfield Hills, 23.71. 2. Elle Damesworth, Huron Valley United, 23.90. 3. Emma Klotz, South Lyon, 24.01. 4. Maddie Collins, Berkley, 24.33. 5. Leah Graves, Farmington Hills Mercy, 24.42. 6. Taylor Robinson, Rochester, 24.57. 7. Mackenzie Conway, Farmington Hills Mercy, 24.72. 8. Coral Hebert, Huron Valley United, 24.73. 9. Peyton Wasielewski, South Lyon East, 25.04. 10. Sydney Visser, Farmington, 25.14.

1-METER DIVING: 1. Tristan Krajcarski, Oxford, 401.65. 2. Lola Beer, Huron Valley United, 345.65. 3. Kennedy Foote, Huron Valley United, 318.95. 4. Jamie VIncent, West Bloomfield, 312.05. 5. Leah Huntoon, Huron Valley United, 294.35. 6. Taelyn Friese, Novi, 293.75. 7. Lilly Decapite, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 283.25. 8. Mia Mason, South Lyon, 283.05. 9. Sara Vartanian, Novi, 281.80. 10. Sophia D’Orazio, Farmington Hills Mercy, 279.25.

100 BUTTERFLY: 1. Elizabeth Eichbrecht, West Bloomfield, 55.07. 2. Emma Klotz, South Lyon, 57.00. 3. Katie Schwab, Farmington Hills Mercy, 57.91. 4. Bryn Cusack, West Bloomfield, 58.69. 5. Violet Schwartz, Farmington Hills Mercy, 58.76. 6. Kailey Bachmann, Bloomfield Hills, 58.90. 7. Maddie Collins, Berkley, 59.00. 8. Sydney Vanhowe, Rochester, 59.17. 9. Maddie Dicks, North Farmington, 59.39. 10. Avery Malanowski, Stoney Creek, 59.61.

100 FREESTYLE: 1. Bailey Robinson, Bloomfield Hills, 50.94. 2. Leah Greaves, Farmington Hills Mercy, 52.44. 3. Elle Dameworth, Huron Valley United, 52.45. 4. Campbell Shore, Farmington Hills Mercy, 52.56. 5. Annabelle Thompson, Huron Valley United, 54.20. 6. Briana Hernandez, Lake Orion, 51.54. 7. Abby Stanley, Birmingham Seaholm, 54.86. 8. Avery Anderson, Birmingham Seaholm, 54.89. 9. Maeve Goymerac, Stoney Creek, 55.10. 10. Kelsey Milz, Madison Heights Lamphere, 55.26.

500 FREESTYLE: 1. Ella Hafner, Farmingotn Hills Mercy, 5:11.71. 2. Mya Hutchinson, Huron Valley United, 5:13.24. 3. Skyler Jansen, Birmingham Sehaolm, 5:15.27. 4. Jordan Laba, Rochester Adams, 5:16.87. 5. Julie Castro Vela, Rochester, 5:18.76. 6. Molly Zuska, Walled Lake Northern, 5:19.16. 7. Sydney Meyer, Farmington Hills Mercy, 5:20.16. 8. Alexandra Moga, West Bloomfield, 5:20.62. 9. Ashley Gilme, Birmingham Groves, 5:21.57. 10. Josie Behnke, Walled Lake Northern, 5:21.68.

200 FREESTYLE RELAY: 1. Farmington Hills Mercy (Campbell Shore, Mackenzie Conway, Ella Hafner, Avery Tack), 1:36.31. 2. Huron Valley United, 1:38.27. 3. Rochester, 1:40.55. 4. Berkley, 1:42.30. 5. Lake Orion, 1:42.39. 6. South Lyon, 1:42.49. 7. South Lyon East, 1:42.58. 8. Detroit Country Day, 1:43.56. 9. Birmingham Groves, 1:43.60. Troy, 1:44.64.

100 BACKSTROKE: 1. Quinn Norlander, Detroit Country Day, 56.89. 2. Avery Anderson, Birmingham Seaholm, 57.93. 3. Bryn Cusack, West Bloomfield, 58.08. 4. Hazel Strain, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 58.23. 5. Annika Cho, Farmington, 59.28. 6. Kailey Bachmann, Bloomfield Hills, 59.82. 7. Taylor Robinson, Rochester, 1:00.2. 8. Karina Urm, Novi, 1:00.47. 9. Peyton Wasielewski, South Lyon East, 1:00.51. 10. Leah Isaksen, Birmingham Seaholm, 1:01.00.

100 BREASTSTROKE: 1. Sadie Rogers, Rochester Adams, 1:04.74. 2. Mia Mracna, Berkley, 1:05.71. 3. Avery Tack, Farmington Hills Mercy, 1:05.79. 4. Kassidy Collins, Royal Oak, 1:07.43. 5. Gabi Rapetti, Rochester, 1:07.90. 6. Piper Smith, West Bloomfield, 1:08.53. 7. Valentina Cavaliere, Birmingham Seaholm, 1:08.75. 8. (tie) Clare Hafner, Farmington Hills Mercy, 1:08.82. 8. (tie) Hailey Garvey, South Lyon, 1:08.82. 8. (tie) Ally O’Brien, Birmingham Groves, 1:08.82.

400 FREESTYLE RELAY: 1. Farmington Hills Mercy (Leah Greaves, Campbell Shore, Ella Hafner, Avery Tack), 3:32.01. 2. West Bloomfield, 3:35.18. Huron Valley United, 3:35.28. 4. Birmingham Seaholm, 3:40.47. 5. Lake Orion, 3:43.15. 6. Bloomfield Hills, 3:43.35. 7. Novi, 3:45.30. 8. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 3:45.40. 9. Rochester Adams, 3:45.41. 10. Royal Oak, 3:47.36.