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Editor's Note: Sports writer Roger Merriam is compiling a "20 Favorites" series highlighting some of his favorite athletes in a variety of high school/other sports since he started working at the Watertown Public Opinion in December 1984. The series is about northeastern South Dakota athletes, but some played at colleges all over the state and others have moved to other areas.
Of all the "20 Favorites" series stories so far, this one on the Watertown Area Swim Club has probably taken the most time to not only research but also write.
In recent years, the numbers of the Watertown program have grown to some 180 kids or more and that's a large number of swimmers to try to whittle down to a list of 20 or so. Also making it hard is that the swim program is available to swimmers 6-and-under all the way up to college age. Some swim a year or two, others will compete all the way through.
But I still wanted to recognize the Watertown Area Swim Club just as I have all the other Watertown and area athletes in all the other sports so far in the series. My apologies to anybody we've missed, it's just a story to get people talking and remembering about some of the many swimmers who have made their mark on the program since December of 1984.
I need to thank a couple of WASC coaches, without throwing them under a bus, for their assistance with this project. They know who they are.
Again, don't worry about the order until we get down to the last few spots.
Only two stories remain in the series. One of Watetown's high school softball program and then a final story on some other names that were missed or overlooked from previous stories.
Let's get started.
Normally, I take this spot and mention a bunch of athletes that narrowly missed the cut. But as previously discussed, there are so many swimmers for the Dolphins from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s that are also very deserving.
Wonder what these five swimmers have in common. They are all former WASC swimmers who competed this winter for colleges across the Upper Midwest. There are others, who will be mentioned further down the list.
Lauseng is at Nebraska Wesleyan, Ritter at South Dakota State, Cyrus at Southwest Minnesota State, Pickrel at Jamestown (N.D.) and Falak at Minnesota-Morris.
Storm is also swimming at Southwest Minnesota State. Her brother Payton also swam for the Dolphins.
If you look at the close to 100-picture gallery of Watertown swimmers that can be found with the online story (www.thepublicopinon.com), you'll find there's representation from all decades at least in regard to this story. The Watertown swim program will celebrate its 60th year of existence in 2025.
Watertown's swept the South Dakota State Short Course (winter) and Long Course Championships (summer) in 1989, although the first title didn't become official until two months after the meet. The second title was also delayed for a couple of hours after another scoring issue.
I believe these three swimmers were around in the late 1980s and early 1990s and I was told that Austad went to swim at the University of South Dakota. These are just some of the talented swimmers from my early years at the Public Opinion.
If you've followed Watertown High School or just Watertown sports in recent years, you've probably heard of the Zinks (sisters Raeanna and Ellie and brother Kaden) and the Coreys (sisters Tayler, Olivia and Grace and brother Caden). They all spent a few years competing with the Dolphins and Kaden Zink is now swimming at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
The Zinks are the children of WHS tennis coach Ryan Zink and the Coreys are the children of Cam Corey, who is president of the Elite Alliance Volleyball Club. Raenna and Ellie Zink each played many years of varsity tennis and and the three Corey sisters each served as setters for the Arrow volleyball program.
Here are a couple of sets of sisters (Grace and Hannah Stein and Emma and Jessa Polchow) who competed for the Dolphins for much of the 2010s and even into the 2020s.
The Steins were talented swimmers, but did not compete in college. The Polchows each swam at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.
All four swimmers, as well as many others on this list, were members of the WASC's state short-course championship team in 2016.
The two Ohm sisters also were members of the Dolphins' state championship team in 2016 and enjoyed their share of success throughout the 2010s.
Sierra Ohm set a state-meet record in the 17-18 girls' 100-yard backstroke in 2017.
They both went on to swim at Northern State University in Aberdeen.
One thing I quickly learned during my research through the Public Opinion archives is how many great Watertown High School students spent time swimming for the Dolphins.
Granted, some probably didn't swim very long, but many got their start in the pool. That group includes Tim and Stacy Schooley in the 1980s, star WHS golfers Sam Batta and Jake Olson and WHS Hall of Famer Josh Olson. There's also Kaden Rylance, a senior golf and baseball standout for Watertown, who has signed to play college baseball at South Dakota State. The list goes on and on.
Stacy Schooley, another WHS Hall of Famer who was a track standout and went to play college basketball at the University of South Dakota, is still part of a state 8-and-under record-setting relay team from 1989.
Here's something to ponder. Were these just good athletes who were able to have success in swimming or whatever they did? Or did swimming have a lot to do with their success in other sports later on?
20 FAVORITES: Links to the stories highlighting the best northeastern South Dakota athletes since 1984
Stroschein was a four-time state champion for the Dolphins in freestyle and butterfly events who went on to swim for the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits in the late 2000s.
I put the Waites higher on the list because there are three of them (Isabel, Josephine and Roslyn). I'd say there's probably been a Waite swimming for the Dolphins since the early 2010s, if not before.
Josephine and Roslyn are still swimming for the WASC. They followed older sister Isabel, who used up her eligibility a couple of years ago for Augustana University.
Here's another family mix of current and former WASC swimmers. Zavier is now competing at South Dakota State University.
Justine is still a key swimmer for the Dolphins, who finished second recently in the South Dakota State A Short Course Championships for a ninth-straight year.
We're taking another step back into the 1980s (and likely early 1990s) where this brother and sister combination enjoyed plenty of success for the Dolphins.
I found a South Dakota Swimming document online where Andrew held a state record or two. Eli possibly could have some, too but I am not sure. She did go on to compete at South Dakota State.
In many cases, I've kept current athletes off my list of "20 Favorites" as to avoid creating a rift between current athletes. Obviously, in the case of families with older siblings who have graduated, I've made adjustments and then there's Boettcher.
With a few years left to compete for the Dolphins, Boettcher holds a number of overall and state-meet records including an overall 13-14 girls' 800-meter freestyle relay record along with current WASC teammates Lorelai Grund, Lainey Byer and Kyleigh Hansen. The record was set last summer.
Elsie's younger brother Nolan also swims for the Dolphins.
It's not a rock group, just some related WASC swimmers. Katie was a standout swimmer for the Dolphins in the late 1980s and early 1990s and her children Channing, Campbell and Collins DeBoer are following in their mother's footsteps as talented swimmers for the Dolphins.
What I've been told is that Stacey Schooley held records that were broken by Katie Carter and then broken by Molly Manchon, who we will talk about more below. Carter also swam on the 1989 relay team with Schooley that still holds a state record.
I believe it was the mid-to-late 1990s when Gayle Brooks took over as the head coach of the Dolphins and later helped as an assistant into the early 200s.
At least three of her children (Tim, Joshua and Barbara), maybe more, competed for the Dolphins. I'm thinking Barbara was called Barbie, which is part of the reason I remember the Brooks family.
Owen and his brother Clayton are both still swimming for the Dolphins and I don't mean to shortchange Clayton, who's a pretty good swimmer himself.
It's just that his older brother Owen owns a number of overall and state-meet records that he set while competing in the 13-14 boys' division.
One of the overall state records is a relay that included his current WASC teammates Jason Kasparek, Kooper Heiser and Parker Hoftiezer.
I'm not sure of the order, by age, but brothers Chris, Adam, Andy and Marty competed for the Dolphins in the 1980s and 1990s.
Chris, who later swam at the University of South Dakota, and Adam each won seven events in the 1989 state short-course championships to spark the Dolphins to the team title.
Adam later became the first Watertown swimmer to better a national top 16 qualifying time.
If you asked me to answer who is the best Watertown swimmer of all time (at least in my memory), it would be hard for me not to answer Molly Manchon. Now let me explain. She still holds a number of state records that she set for the Dolphins in the mid-2000s in the 8-and-under and 9-10 divisions.
I debated for a couple of years of doing a big feature story on her at the time, but didn't want to put the pressure on such a young athlete by putting her on a pedestal. The Manchons, including her brother Austin (who was a pretty good swimmer, too), moved away shortly after that.
Molly later swam at the University of Wisconsin in the late 2010s.
These guys are connected as the only two head coaches in the history of the Watertown Area Swim Club who have won state championships: Anderson guided the Dolphins to both the short course and long course championships in 1989 and Baechler led the WASC to their short course title in 2016.
Baechler came to Watertown in the early 2010s and is still coaching the Dolphins. Anderson spent a few years guiding the program from the mid-to-late 1980s.
Watertown's state championship teams in 1989 featured Scott Olson, who later went on to swim at the University of North Dakota, and his siblings Kirk, Stacy and Kathy Olson.
All of the Olsons were good swimmers and one of them (Kathy, now Kathy Antoine) has stayed involved with the program to this day. Kathy Antoine has served a couple of stints as the program's head coach and is still involved as an assistant.
Her sons Garrett, Connor and Marshall each also swam for the Dolphins.
I'm pretty sure the Bierschbach family has been heavily involved in the Watertown Area Swim Club for 25 years or more. Dan and Donna Bierschbach and their children Jacob, Will, Thomas and Tricia all have left their mark on the program.
Watertown hosts more home meets than ever these days and Dan and Donna, who will no doubt pass the credit on to many others, are always heavily involved with all details of hosting.
And their kids could really swim. Jacob competed for South Dakota State in the early-to-mid 2010s and Will also swam for the Jacks from the late 2010s to early 2020s. Will set 22 state records during his career, although many have now been broken.
The increase in program numbers, sponsorships, state success and even the work needed to push for the Prairie Lakes Wellness Center's indoor pool can be in many ways attributed to the work of the Bierschbachs.
Jacob Bierschbach is now married to former WASC swimmer Sarah Larson and Will Bierschbach is married to former WASC swimmer Hazel Ohm.
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Series continues with a look at Watertown's top swimmers since 1984
Continue reading...
Of all the "20 Favorites" series stories so far, this one on the Watertown Area Swim Club has probably taken the most time to not only research but also write.
In recent years, the numbers of the Watertown program have grown to some 180 kids or more and that's a large number of swimmers to try to whittle down to a list of 20 or so. Also making it hard is that the swim program is available to swimmers 6-and-under all the way up to college age. Some swim a year or two, others will compete all the way through.
But I still wanted to recognize the Watertown Area Swim Club just as I have all the other Watertown and area athletes in all the other sports so far in the series. My apologies to anybody we've missed, it's just a story to get people talking and remembering about some of the many swimmers who have made their mark on the program since December of 1984.
I need to thank a couple of WASC coaches, without throwing them under a bus, for their assistance with this project. They know who they are.
Again, don't worry about the order until we get down to the last few spots.
Only two stories remain in the series. One of Watetown's high school softball program and then a final story on some other names that were missed or overlooked from previous stories.
Let's get started.
You must be registered for see images attach
20. Others
Normally, I take this spot and mention a bunch of athletes that narrowly missed the cut. But as previously discussed, there are so many swimmers for the Dolphins from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s that are also very deserving.
19. Burke Lauseng, Ross Ritter, Madi Cyrus, Madelynne Storm, Emma Pickrel & Alayna Falak
Wonder what these five swimmers have in common. They are all former WASC swimmers who competed this winter for colleges across the Upper Midwest. There are others, who will be mentioned further down the list.
Lauseng is at Nebraska Wesleyan, Ritter at South Dakota State, Cyrus at Southwest Minnesota State, Pickrel at Jamestown (N.D.) and Falak at Minnesota-Morris.
Storm is also swimming at Southwest Minnesota State. Her brother Payton also swam for the Dolphins.
18. Jeff Austad, Chris Rick and Kyle Lalim
If you look at the close to 100-picture gallery of Watertown swimmers that can be found with the online story (www.thepublicopinon.com), you'll find there's representation from all decades at least in regard to this story. The Watertown swim program will celebrate its 60th year of existence in 2025.
Watertown's swept the South Dakota State Short Course (winter) and Long Course Championships (summer) in 1989, although the first title didn't become official until two months after the meet. The second title was also delayed for a couple of hours after another scoring issue.
I believe these three swimmers were around in the late 1980s and early 1990s and I was told that Austad went to swim at the University of South Dakota. These are just some of the talented swimmers from my early years at the Public Opinion.
You must be registered for see images attach
17. Zinks and Coreys
If you've followed Watertown High School or just Watertown sports in recent years, you've probably heard of the Zinks (sisters Raeanna and Ellie and brother Kaden) and the Coreys (sisters Tayler, Olivia and Grace and brother Caden). They all spent a few years competing with the Dolphins and Kaden Zink is now swimming at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
The Zinks are the children of WHS tennis coach Ryan Zink and the Coreys are the children of Cam Corey, who is president of the Elite Alliance Volleyball Club. Raenna and Ellie Zink each played many years of varsity tennis and and the three Corey sisters each served as setters for the Arrow volleyball program.
16. Steins & Polchows
Here are a couple of sets of sisters (Grace and Hannah Stein and Emma and Jessa Polchow) who competed for the Dolphins for much of the 2010s and even into the 2020s.
The Steins were talented swimmers, but did not compete in college. The Polchows each swam at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.
All four swimmers, as well as many others on this list, were members of the WASC's state short-course championship team in 2016.
15. Hazel & Sierra Ohm
The two Ohm sisters also were members of the Dolphins' state championship team in 2016 and enjoyed their share of success throughout the 2010s.
Sierra Ohm set a state-meet record in the 17-18 girls' 100-yard backstroke in 2017.
They both went on to swim at Northern State University in Aberdeen.
You must be registered for see images attach
14. So many great Watertown athletes
One thing I quickly learned during my research through the Public Opinion archives is how many great Watertown High School students spent time swimming for the Dolphins.
Granted, some probably didn't swim very long, but many got their start in the pool. That group includes Tim and Stacy Schooley in the 1980s, star WHS golfers Sam Batta and Jake Olson and WHS Hall of Famer Josh Olson. There's also Kaden Rylance, a senior golf and baseball standout for Watertown, who has signed to play college baseball at South Dakota State. The list goes on and on.
Stacy Schooley, another WHS Hall of Famer who was a track standout and went to play college basketball at the University of South Dakota, is still part of a state 8-and-under record-setting relay team from 1989.
Here's something to ponder. Were these just good athletes who were able to have success in swimming or whatever they did? Or did swimming have a lot to do with their success in other sports later on?
20 FAVORITES: Links to the stories highlighting the best northeastern South Dakota athletes since 1984
13. Lindsay Stroschein
Stroschein was a four-time state champion for the Dolphins in freestyle and butterfly events who went on to swim for the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits in the late 2000s.
12. The Waite Sisters
I put the Waites higher on the list because there are three of them (Isabel, Josephine and Roslyn). I'd say there's probably been a Waite swimming for the Dolphins since the early 2010s, if not before.
Josephine and Roslyn are still swimming for the WASC. They followed older sister Isabel, who used up her eligibility a couple of years ago for Augustana University.
11. Zavier & Justine Kranz
Here's another family mix of current and former WASC swimmers. Zavier is now competing at South Dakota State University.
Justine is still a key swimmer for the Dolphins, who finished second recently in the South Dakota State A Short Course Championships for a ninth-straight year.
You must be registered for see images attach
10. Andrew & Eli Wicks
We're taking another step back into the 1980s (and likely early 1990s) where this brother and sister combination enjoyed plenty of success for the Dolphins.
I found a South Dakota Swimming document online where Andrew held a state record or two. Eli possibly could have some, too but I am not sure. She did go on to compete at South Dakota State.
9. Elsie Boettcher
In many cases, I've kept current athletes off my list of "20 Favorites" as to avoid creating a rift between current athletes. Obviously, in the case of families with older siblings who have graduated, I've made adjustments and then there's Boettcher.
With a few years left to compete for the Dolphins, Boettcher holds a number of overall and state-meet records including an overall 13-14 girls' 800-meter freestyle relay record along with current WASC teammates Lorelai Grund, Lainey Byer and Kyleigh Hansen. The record was set last summer.
Elsie's younger brother Nolan also swims for the Dolphins.
8. Katie Carter and the DeBoers
It's not a rock group, just some related WASC swimmers. Katie was a standout swimmer for the Dolphins in the late 1980s and early 1990s and her children Channing, Campbell and Collins DeBoer are following in their mother's footsteps as talented swimmers for the Dolphins.
What I've been told is that Stacey Schooley held records that were broken by Katie Carter and then broken by Molly Manchon, who we will talk about more below. Carter also swam on the 1989 relay team with Schooley that still holds a state record.
7. The Brooks Family
I believe it was the mid-to-late 1990s when Gayle Brooks took over as the head coach of the Dolphins and later helped as an assistant into the early 200s.
At least three of her children (Tim, Joshua and Barbara), maybe more, competed for the Dolphins. I'm thinking Barbara was called Barbie, which is part of the reason I remember the Brooks family.
You must be registered for see images attach
6. Owen Muller
Owen and his brother Clayton are both still swimming for the Dolphins and I don't mean to shortchange Clayton, who's a pretty good swimmer himself.
It's just that his older brother Owen owns a number of overall and state-meet records that he set while competing in the 13-14 boys' division.
One of the overall state records is a relay that included his current WASC teammates Jason Kasparek, Kooper Heiser and Parker Hoftiezer.
5. The Stemwedels
I'm not sure of the order, by age, but brothers Chris, Adam, Andy and Marty competed for the Dolphins in the 1980s and 1990s.
Chris, who later swam at the University of South Dakota, and Adam each won seven events in the 1989 state short-course championships to spark the Dolphins to the team title.
Adam later became the first Watertown swimmer to better a national top 16 qualifying time.
You must be registered for see images attach
4. Molly & Austin Manchon
If you asked me to answer who is the best Watertown swimmer of all time (at least in my memory), it would be hard for me not to answer Molly Manchon. Now let me explain. She still holds a number of state records that she set for the Dolphins in the mid-2000s in the 8-and-under and 9-10 divisions.
I debated for a couple of years of doing a big feature story on her at the time, but didn't want to put the pressure on such a young athlete by putting her on a pedestal. The Manchons, including her brother Austin (who was a pretty good swimmer, too), moved away shortly after that.
Molly later swam at the University of Wisconsin in the late 2010s.
3. Steve Anderson & Chuck Baechler
These guys are connected as the only two head coaches in the history of the Watertown Area Swim Club who have won state championships: Anderson guided the Dolphins to both the short course and long course championships in 1989 and Baechler led the WASC to their short course title in 2016.
Baechler came to Watertown in the early 2010s and is still coaching the Dolphins. Anderson spent a few years guiding the program from the mid-to-late 1980s.
You must be registered for see images attach
2. The Olsons
Watertown's state championship teams in 1989 featured Scott Olson, who later went on to swim at the University of North Dakota, and his siblings Kirk, Stacy and Kathy Olson.
All of the Olsons were good swimmers and one of them (Kathy, now Kathy Antoine) has stayed involved with the program to this day. Kathy Antoine has served a couple of stints as the program's head coach and is still involved as an assistant.
Her sons Garrett, Connor and Marshall each also swam for the Dolphins.
1. The Bierschbachs
I'm pretty sure the Bierschbach family has been heavily involved in the Watertown Area Swim Club for 25 years or more. Dan and Donna Bierschbach and their children Jacob, Will, Thomas and Tricia all have left their mark on the program.
Watertown hosts more home meets than ever these days and Dan and Donna, who will no doubt pass the credit on to many others, are always heavily involved with all details of hosting.
And their kids could really swim. Jacob competed for South Dakota State in the early-to-mid 2010s and Will also swam for the Jacks from the late 2010s to early 2020s. Will set 22 state records during his career, although many have now been broken.
The increase in program numbers, sponsorships, state success and even the work needed to push for the Prairie Lakes Wellness Center's indoor pool can be in many ways attributed to the work of the Bierschbachs.
Jacob Bierschbach is now married to former WASC swimmer Sarah Larson and Will Bierschbach is married to former WASC swimmer Hazel Ohm.
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Series continues with a look at Watertown's top swimmers since 1984
Continue reading...
