WEBSTER —- Mira Keller entered looking to go out on top and win a state championship in her final race of her career at Niagara Wheatfield.
But Nyack’s Cornelia Fox had other plans, especially in the event that made Keller the first Falcon to win a state championship in girls swimming one year ago.
With a time of 2 minutes, 2.81 seconds, Keller had a second-place finish against Fox (2:00.94) in the 200-yard individual medley event to headline the greater Niagara region’s performance at the 47th girls swimming state championships, which concluded Saturday at the Webster Aquatic Center.
A University of Minnesota commit, Keller then placed fourth in the 100 free with a time of 51.72, just missing the podium by .62 seconds and being outswam by Fox again (50.35). Keller had finished second at states in the same event one year ago with a time of 51.59, losing to Fox by only .26 seconds.
Teammate and fellow senior Ava Pauly, meanwhile, placed 12th overall in the 100 breast with a time of 1:06.92. A University of Buffalo commit, Pauly, who also returned to Webster for one last shot at an individual state title, later placed 25th overall with a time of 54.37.
The youngest of the three returnees from one year ago, Lockport freshman Leah Gaskill placed 10th overall in the 50 free with a time of 24.28. Gaskill also placed 33rd overall after Friday’s prelims in the 100 free (56.20). Then, along with younger sister and seventh grader Ellie and sophomores Maddie Martino and Sam Call, Gaskill competed for the Lions’ 200 medley relay team that placed 15th with a time of 1:51.78.
North Tonawanda sophomore Meredith Roberts placed fifth overall in the state with a time of 1:04.98 in the 100 breaststroke. Roberts also swam 22nd overall in the 200 IM with a time of 2:11.47, the same event she had won at the Section VI Class B championship on Oct. 27 at Sweet Home High School.
After winning the event at the state qualifier and having the fastest time out of Section VI swimmers, Starpoint sophomore Kylie Kwoka finished 16th overall in the 500 free with a time of 5:16.69. Kwoka also placed 18th overall in the 200 free with a time of 1:58.32.
Lewiston-Porter sophomore Sydney Jokic placed 26th overall in the 100 backstroke with a time of 59.93.
In the 1-meter diving championships held Friday, Niagara Falls sophomore Tori Franke placed 16th overall with a score of 418.75 points. Grand Island freshman Kayla Rajewski did not have the qualified score to reach the finals but finished 28th with 183.60 points.