JDHS sweeps Region V swim and dive team titles
- Klas Stolpe
- Nov 2
- 10 min read
Crimson Bears girls earn individual medals
By Klas Stolpe
Juneau Independent
The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé swim team’s 4x50 yard medley relay teams set the stage for a Crimson Bears sweep of the team titles Saturday to open the 2025 Southeast Region V Swim and Dive Championships at Ketchikan’s Gateway Aquatic Center.
“It was awesome to see both teams come out on top,” JDHS coach Carole Triem said. “Both the girls and the boys started off the meet with huge wins in the medley relay.”
The JDHS girls blazed to a 1 minute and 50.89 second win as senior Valerie Peimann led off with a 27.72 backstroke time, junior Kennedy Miller followed with a 32.38 breaststroke, junior Amy Liddle a 26.01 butterfly and junior Lily Francis brought home a 24.78 freestyle.
Following in their wake the JDHS boys swam a fast medley as sophomore Liam Kiessling hit a 24.39 back, junior Josh Edwards a 28.71 breast, freshman Levi Phelps went 24.35 in the fly and junior Kaden Aldrich brought home a 21.71 free for 1:39.16, just in front of Sitka’s 1:40.90 swum by Elliott Galanin (27.66 back), Zach Martens (28.18 breast), Tommy McCarthy (23.20 fly) and Corin Colliver (21.86 free).
Both the Crimson Bears and Wolves were out-touched at the wall by Ketchikan, but JDHS was awarded the win and Sitka second as Kayhi received a disqualification for leaving the starting blocks early. That DQ would come back to haunt the Kings as they fell three points short in the boys team standings to the Crimson Bears, 149-146, with Sitka totaling 115 for third.
Kiessling won the JD boys' only individual title as he hit 53.47 in the 100 back to edge Kayhi senior Gavin Harold in 54.84. JD senior Clive Mateo was third in 1:03.59.
“The highlights on the boys' side included Liam Kiessling, who clocked a huge win in the 100 backstroke with a best time,” coach Triem said. “Kaden Aldrich was on fire this weekend, especially with his starts, and he was able to get second in the 50 freestyle and third in the 100 freestyle, and led off the 400 freestyle relay.”
The magic, however, was in the strokes of the JDHS girls as they swept two race podiums and totaled 11 first-place finishes in the 12 events for 261 points. The next closest total was Petersburg with 67 and Kayhi 60.
Peimann notched first in the 100 free in 53.90 with Francis second in 55.04, senior Deedee Mills third in 55.68 and junior Kaelyn Szefler fifth in 56.85
In the 200 free freshmen Cora Soboleff and Annabelle Woodruff, and junior Maddox Rasmussen went one, two, three with 2:02.22, 2:05.37 and 2:06.20, respectively, and freshman Brook Taintor placed sixth with 2:11.68.
“One of my favorite moments of the meet was the girls' 200 freestyle where JDHS swept the podium,” coach Triem said. “Freshman Cora Soboleff earned the first state berth of her high school career, and she was followed closely by Annabelle Woodruff and Maddox Rasmussen, who both clocked massive best times.”
Peimann would add a win in the 100 breast in 1:06.83 with PSG sophomore Lexie Tow second in 1:07.80. JD’s Miller was third in 1:10.42, junior Riley Soboleff fifth in 1:14.17 and sophomore Mae Crocker seventh in 1:21.44.
“For the seniors, Valerie Peimann wrapped up an amazing Region V career with double wins in the 100 free and 100 breaststroke and Deedee Mills made the podium in both of her individual events,” Triem said.
Liddle would add a first place in the 200 individual medley with 2:13.91 with JD junior Avery Smith second in 2:20.20, R. Soboleff fourth in 2:33.33 and sophomore Delphine Hochstoeger fifth in 2:45.50. Liddle would also win the 100 fly in 57.82 over Sitka’s Taryn Fleming in 59.45. JD’s Woodruff was third in 1:00.98, Miller fourth in 1:02.12 and Smith fifth in 1:02.12
Francis would win the 50 free in 24.91 with JD junior Bailey Fisher second in 25.22, freshman Katya Foy fifth in 26.05 and freshman Maddie Manlulu sixth in 26.67.
JD junior Moira Bahn won the girls one-meter diving, totaling 315.10 points, senior Taylor Mesdag earned second with 272.30 and junior Adeline Williams fifth with 229.00.
JD’s C. Soboleff would earn her second title of the day with a 5:27.75 in the grueling 500 free. PSG sophomore Bella Miller was second in 5:33.52. JD’s Rasmussen placed third in 5:42.65, Taintor fifth in 6:03.15 and freshman Hannah Plang seventh in 6:34.15.
The JDHS 4x50 free relay of Mills, Fisher, Foy and Woodruff won in 1:44.13.
Sitka’s Fleming nabbed the only non-JDHS girls title, winning the 100 back in 59.73 with JD’s Mills second in 1:01.46, Foy third in 1:04.23, Szefler fourth in 1:06.16, freshman Maddie Manlulu fifth in 1:10.34 and freshman Mia Calvin sixth in 1:14.63.
Liddle, Francis, Mills and Peimann would wrap up the girls' swim meet competition with a statement 4x100 relay time of 3:50.75.
“The freshmen started off their high school careers with a bang and the seniors made the last one count,” Triem said. “We have unofficial state qualifiers, and Cora Soboleff, Katya Foy, and Annabelle Woodruff look to have made state in two individual events each in their freshmen year. Our freshman distance swimmers really shined, with 20-second time drops from both Henry Thatcher on the boys' side and Brook Taintor on the girls' side.
In the boys' lanes, Petersburg senior Logan Tow won the 200 free in 1:46.99. JD freshman Levi Phelps placed third with 1:53.27, junior Gabe Aldrich fifth in 1:59.27 and junior Chedi Giron eighth in 2:09.36.
Tow would also win the 100 free in 47.69, with Kayhi sophomore Parker Hagan second and JD’s K. Aldrich third in 48.99 and junior Sam Pallenberg eighth in 54.27.
Kayhi’s Harold out-touched Sitka’s Zach Martens 1:59.84 to 2:00.02 for the 200 IM title. JD’s Edwards was third in 2:03.86, Kiessling fourth in 2:04.47 and sophomore Axel Boily seventh in 2:26.08. Martens got a win later in the day as he hit 4:59.87 in the 500 free with Kayhi senior J Robbins chasing in 5:03.84. JD’s Hayes was fourth in 5:25.03, freshman Henry Thatcher sixth in 5:39.20 and Giron seventh in 5:41.65.
In the 50 free Kayhi’s Hagan hit 22.06 to edge JD’s K. Aldrich who went 22.45. JD senior Vincent Hayes was sixth in 24.23 and S. Pallenberg seventh in 24.86.
Kayhi senior Liam Woodward won boys one-meter diving with 377.90 points, JD junior Easton Berger earned second with 317.40 and junior Alex Davis was fourth with 186.40.
Kayhi senior Evan Dash cruised to a 50.80 win in the 100 fly with Sitka’s Tommy McCarthy second in 53.90. JD’s Phelps was third in 56.44 and G. Aldrich fourth in 58.56. Dash also won the 100 breast in 58.89 with JD’s Edwards second in 1:03.08, Boily fifth in 1:12.22, junior Ben Pallenberg sixth in 1:14.71 and Thatcher seventh in 1:18.39.
“On the boys' side, Clive Mateo made the podium in his 100 back with a best time, and Vincent Hayes had huge time drops in both the 50 free and 500 free,” Triem noted.
Sitka’s Tommy McCarthy, James Nellis, Elliott Galanin and Colin Colliver won the 4x50 free relay in 1:30.82. Kayhi’s Woodward, freshman Hunter Eckert, junior Max Meredith and Robbins placed second in 1:35.45, and JD’s S. Pallenberg, freshman Kegan Andrews, Hayes and Mateo were third with 1:37.50.
Kayhi’s Hagan, Harold, Robbins and Dash won the meet’s final swim, hitting 3:16.07 in the 4x100 free relay. Sitka’s McCarthy, Galanin, Martens and Colliver placed second in 3:17.14 and JD’s K. Aldrich, Phelps, Kiessling and Edwards third with 3:19.78.
“The last event of the meet was another one of my favorites,” Triem said. “The boys' 400 freestyle relay dropped two seconds from their best time. They swam next to stacked Ketchikan and Sitka relays and really used that championship energy to their advantage, with the whole team at the end of the lane cheering them on. They'll head into state as the third seed in that event…One thing that made the meet interesting was Sitka stacking their boys’ relays — they had three boys who swam only one individual event each so that they could swim all three relays. This made all the relays really great races and really pushed our boys to some great results.”
The 2025 state championships are next weekend, Nov. 7-8 at Anchorage’s Bartlett High School.
“It's looking like we'll be taking a massive team to state,” Triem said. “Most likely we'll have 20 swimmers qualified for individual events and relays, and five divers. This has really exceeded our hopes and I am so proud of the team.”
REGION V SWIM & DIVE CHAMPIONSHIPS
SATURDAY FINALS
Girls Team Scores:
1) JDHS 261; 2) Petersburg 67; 3) Kayhi 60; 4) Sitka 59; 5) Craig 29; 6) Wrangell 9.
Girls' Individual Results:
200 Medley Relay — 1) Juneau-Douglas 1:50.89; 2) Petersburg 1:57.70; 3) Kayhi 2:13.08; 4) Craig 2:22.17
200 Free — 1) Cora Soboleff (JD) 2:02.22; 2) Annabelle Woodruff (JD) 2:05.37; 3) Maddox Rasmussen (JD) 2:06.20; 4) Mia Turner (Sitka) 2:06.67; 5) Bella Miller (Petersburg) 2:08.85; 6) Brook Taintor (JD) 2:11.68; 7) Olivia Hinde (Petersburg) 2:19.58; 8) Macie Bullock (Kayhi) 2:45.75
200 IM — 1) Amy Liddle (JD) 2:13.91; 2) Avery Smith (JD) 2:20.20; 3) Josephine Jackson (Kayhi) 2:28.87; 4) Riley Soboleff (JD) 2:33.33; 5) Delphine Hochstoeger (JD) 2:45.50; 6) Arabella Nore (Wrangell) 3:09.62
50 Free — 1) Lily Francis (JD) 24.91; 2) Bailey Fisher (JD) 25.22; 3) Lexie Tow (Petersburg) 25.27; 4) Brooklyn Whitethorn (Petersburg) 25.81; 5) Katya Foy (JD) 26.05; 6) Maddie Manlulu (JD) 26.67; 7) Payton McCoy (Craig) 27.98; 8) Evi Rice (Sitka) 28.81
1-meter diving — 1) Moira Bahn (JD) 315.10; 2) Taylor Mesdag (JD) 272.30; 3) Ellie Johnson (Kayhi) 238.45; 4) Lina Merrill (Kayhi) 231.15; 5) Adeline Williams (JD) 229.00
100 Butterfly — 1) Amy Liddle (JD) 57.82; 2) Taryn Fleming (Sitka) 59.45; 3) Annabella Woodruff (JD) 1:00.98; 4) Kennedy Miller (JD) 1:01.12; 5) Avery Smith (JD) 1:02.20; 6) Payton McCoy (Craig) 1:19.85; 7) Arabella Nore (Wrangell) 1:29.27
100 Free — 1) Valerie Peimann (JD) 53.90; 2) Lily Francis (JD) 55.04; 3) Deedee Mills (JD) 55.68; 4) Brooklyn Whitethorn (Petersburg) 56.21; 5) Kaelyn Szefler (JD) 56.85; 6) Piper Bonzo (Kayhi) 1:03.92; 7) Johanna Sanford (Wrangell) 1;06.37; 8) Abigail McCoy (Craig) 1:07.16
500 Free — 1) Cora Soboleff (JD) 5:27.75; 2) Bella Miller (Petersburg) 5:33.52; 3) Maddox Rasmussen (JD) 5:42.65; 4) Mia Turner (Sitka) 5:45.47; 5) Brook Taintor (JD) 6:03.15; 6) Olivia Hinde (Petersburg) 6:19.95; 7) Hannah Plang (JD) 6:34.15; 8) Ella Bullock (Kayhi) 6:45.08
200 Free Relay — 1) Juneau-Douglas 1:44.13; 2) Petersburg 1:47.42; 3) Sitka 1:54.12; 4) Kayhi 1:59.58
100 Back — 1) Taryn Fleming (Sitka) 59.73; 2) Deedee Mills (JD) 1:01.46; 3) Katya Foy (JD) 1:04.23; 4) Kaelyn Szefler (JD) 1:06.16; 5) Maddie Manlulu (JD) 1:10.34; 6) Mia Calvin (Kayhi) 1:14.63; 7) Johanna Sanford (Wrangell) 1:22.11; 8) Delilah Clark (Sitka) 1:24.39
100 Breast — 1) Valerie Peimann (JD) 1:06.83; 2) Lexie Tow (Petersburg) 1:07.80; 3) Kennedy Miller (JD) 1:10.42; 4) Ei Rice (Sitka) 1:12.40; 5) Riley Soboleff (JD) 1:14.17; 6) Josephine Jackson (Kayhi) 1:16.88; 7) Mae Crocker (JD) 1:21.44; 8) Grace Maygren (Craig) 1:23.33
400 Free — 1) Juneau-Douglas 3:50.75; 2) Sitka 4:14.01; 3) Craig 4:34.45; 4) Kayhi 4:51.35
Boys Team Scores:
1) JDHS 149; 2) Kayhi 146; 3) Sitka 115; 4) Craig 33; 5) Petersburg 18; 6) Wrangell 1.
Boys Individual Results:
200 Medley Relay — 1) Juneau-Douglas 1:39.16; 2) Sitka 1:40.90; 3) Craig 2:00.58 — Kayhi DQ
200 Free — 1) Logan Tow (Petersburg) 1:46.99; 2) JP Robbins 1:48.97; 3) Levi Phelps (JD) 1:53.27; 4) Phin Edwards (Sitka) 1:57.88; 5) Gabe Aldrich (JD) 1:59.27; 6) Hunter Eckert (Kayhi) 1:59.63; 7) Wyatt Kirkness (Sitka) 2:04.82; 8) Chedi Giron (JD) 2:09.36
200 IM — 1) Gavin Harold (Kayhi) 1:59.84; 2) Zach Martens (Sitka) 2:00.02; 3) Josh Edwards (JD) 2:03.86; 4) Liam Kiessling (JD) 2:04.47; 5) Nate Duran (Kayhi) 2:20.89; 6) Liam McCoy (Craig) 2:25.53; 7) Axel Boily (JD) 2:26.08; 8) Jake Peterson (Sitka) 2:33.90
50 Free — 1) Parker Hagan (Kayhi) 22.06; 2) Kaden Aldrich (JD) 22.45; 3) Elliott Galanin (Sitka) 23.82; 4) James Nellis (Sitka) 23.91; 5) Liam Woodward (Kayhi) 24.02; 6) Vincent Hayes (JD) 24.23; 7) Sam Pallenberg (JD) 24.86; 8) Joseph Wilson (Craig) 25.49
1-meter diving — 1) Liam Woodward (Kayhi) 377.90; 2) Easton Berger (JD) 317.40; 3) Jett Miller (Kayhi) 228.50; 4) Alex Davis (JD) 186.40
100 Butterfly — 1) Evan Dash (Kayhi) 50.80; 2) Tommy McCarthy (Sitka) 53.90; 3) Levi Phelps (JD) 56.44; 4) Gabe Aldrich (JD) 58.56; 5) Hunter Eckert (Kayhi) 59.04; 6) Nate Duran (Kayhi) 59.12; 7) Joseph Wilson (Craig) 1:01.75; 8) Liam McCoy (Craig) 1:05.31
100 Free — 1) Logan Tow (Petersburg) 47.69; 2) Parker Hagan (Kayhi) 48.04; 3) Kaden Aldrich (JD) 48.99; 4) Corin Colliver (Sitka) 49.60; 6) Isaiah McCoy (Craig) 51.96; 6) James Nellis (Sitka) 52.45; 7) Max Meredith (Kayhi) 54.10; 8) Sam Pallenberg (JD) 54.27
500 Free — 1) Zach Martens (Sitka) 4:59.87; 2) JP Robbins (Kayhi) 5:03.84; 3) Phin Edwards (Sitka) 5:13.87; 4) Vincent Hayes (JD) 5:25.03; 5) Aiden Eldridge (Kayhi) 5:26.25; 6) Henry Thatcher (JD) 5:39.20; 7) Chedi Giron (JD) 5:41.65; 8) Wyatt Kirkness (Sitka) 5:54.96
200 Free Relay — 1) Sitka 1:30.82; 2) Kayhi 1:35.45; 3) Juneau-Douglas 1:37.50
100 Back — 1) Liam Kiessling (JD) 53.47; 2) Gavin Harold (Kayhi) 54.84; 3) Clive Mateo (JD) 1:03.59; 4) Aiden Eldridge (Kayhi) 1:04.88; 5) Odin Emley (Sitka) 1:22.20; 6) Gus Becker (Sitka) 1:23.02
100 Breast — 1) Evan Dash (Kayhi) 58.89; 2) Josh Edwards (JD) 1:03.08; 3) Max Meredith (Kayhi) 1:03.86; 4) Erik Chevalier (Sitka) 1:12.22; 5) Axel Boily (JD) 1:12.38; 6) Ben Pallenberg (JD) 1:14.71; 7) Henry Thatcher (JD) 1:18.39; 8) Andrei Siekawitch (Wrangell) 1:20.47
400 Free Relay — 1) Kayhi 3:16.07; 2) Sitka 3:17.14; 3) Juneau-Douglas 3:19.78; 4) Craig 3:59.12
• Contact Klas Stolpe at klas.stolpe@gmail.com.
