Meet the Holland Sentinel All-Area Boys Swimming and Diving Team

A look at the Holland Sentinel All-Area Boys Swimming and Diving Team for 2024. It is a big team after the area saw 51 swimmers and divers qualify for state meets.

First Team

Grady Armstrong

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Sophomore

WATER WORKS: Finished 14th at D1 state meet in 500 free.

COACH'S VIEW: "Grady emerged this season as one of the top young swimmers in the area. Not only did he earn his first ever state cuts in the 200 and 500 free but also scored top 16 at the state meet in the 500." - Steve Bowyer

Lee Assink

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Took ninth in the 500 freestyle and 13th in the 200 freestyle and D3 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Lee battled through a season's worth of health challenges and was able to final in both the 200 and 500 and took advantage of both situations. In the 200 he moved from 16th to 13th with a season best 1:48.52, and won the consolation finals of the 500 with a season best 4:53.36. Lee is a fighter and has the intestinal fortitude to attack big races despite any physical challenges he may face." - Todd Smeenge

Nathan Bengelink

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Took 14th in 100 free at D3 state meet and was part of all-state relays.

COACH'S VIEW: "Nathan had a great state meet. He finaled in the 100 and was an integral part of all three of our All State relays. Our three tenths drop in our Medley was due in large part to Nathan's lifetime best split anchor leg." - Todd Smeenge

Emmett Book

SCHOOL: Holland

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Qualified for state meet for fourth time.

COACH'S VIEW: "He qualified for state individually in the 200 IM, the 100 freestyle and the 100 breaststroke. He also worked to successfully qualify both the 200 medley and 400 free relays for state. Emmett is an extremely well rounded athlete. He was able to maintain his strength and speed all the way through the season. Swimming personal best times at the state meet." - Tonya Book

Owen Carlson

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS:

COACH'S VIEW: "Couldn’t be more proud of the career that this young man has had. OK Red Conference Champ in the 200 IM, and finished his career with multiple all conference and all state honors." - Steve Bowyer

Luke Catton

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Sophomore

WATER WORKS: Part of state champion 400 free relay. Took 15th in 200 free and 15th in 500 free at D1 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Luke finishes an impressive sophomore season with all conference and all state honors. Luke scored top 16 in both the 200 and 500 Free at the state meet. He also went an impressive 47 high to lead off our state champion 400 free relay." - Steve Bowyer

Charlie DeHaan

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Freshman

WATER WORKS: Finished seventh in diving at the D3 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Charlie had a spectacular season and his State meet performance was right on par. Throughout the season, Charlie set the freshman six-dive record and freshman 11-dive record. On top of that Charlie had four All American performances and finished his season with an all-state performance at the D3 State meet." - Todd Smeenge

Owen Durham

SCHOOL: Zeeland

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Earned all-state honors in 100 backstroke and 50 free, finishing third in 100 backstroke and seventh in 50 free.

COACH'S VIEW: "Owen has made huge strides in his sprinting this season which includes one of the best starts in the state. What a great way to end a high school career." - Drew Scheerhorn

Joseph Engle

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Part of state champion 400 free relay. Was third in 500 free and fifth in 200 free at D1 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "I have always admired Joe's passion for the sport of swimming. He not only does the work but embraces it. Joe finishes his swimming career as an elite distance swimmer earning multiple all conference and all-state honors." - Steve Bowyer

Ben Greshaw

SCHOOL: Zeeland

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Conference champion in 200 IM and was part of multiple all-state relays.

COACH'S VIEW: "Ben has done great things in the pool and with the team. He's continued to show the team what hard work looks like and has taken that hard work into a great conference and state meet. Capped off by a 1st place finish in the 200IM at conference and a couple of all-state relays at D1 State meet with a 2nd place finish in the medley and a 6th place finish in the 400 free relay." - Drew Scheerhorn

Karsten Husiman

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Finished 11th in the 100 backstroke at D3 state meet and was on all-state relays.

COACH'S VIEW: "Karsten had a phenomenal State meet with four personal bests. Finishing 10th in the 200 IM (2:00.82) and 11th in the 100 back (53.20) and helping out our third-place medley relay and fourth-place 400 free relay with PR splits in both." - Todd Smeenge

Owen Jungblut

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Took 15th in 100 free at D1 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Owen was a key piece of this year's team filling the role of our top sprint freestylers. Scoring at the state meet in the 100 free was a great way to cap off his senior season." - Steve Bowyer

Reese Jungblut

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Part of state champion 400 free relay. Finished 16th in 500 free at D1 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Reese was a staple in our distance lineup over the past several seasons. He also greatly increased his freestyle speed this season. Reese ends his West Ottawa career scoring at the state meet in the 500 free." - Steve Bowyer

Jack Langeland

SCHOOL: Hamilton

GRADE: Sophomore

WATER WORKS: Finished 11th in the 200 free and 12th in the 100 butterfly at D3 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Jack worked his tail off all offseason and into our swim season, and it really showed with his incredible improvement this year. He went from a 2:03 200 free to a 1:47, a 1:02 100 fly to a 54, and also came up huge on two relay swims for us this year. With his work ethic and love for the sport, I know he's only going to continue to get better, and am incredibly excited to see what his future holds." - Matt Oonk

Basilio Ledesma

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Finished fourth in the 100 butterfly and sixth in the 50 free at D3 stat meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Basilio was one of the guys that led this team through the season and the state meet. His 50.02 in the 100 fly is the second fastest ever on this team and helped him to a fourth-place finish in the event. Basilio also finished 6th in the 50 Ffree with a 21.36 which again puts him in the top five ever on this team. Add to that his spectacular swims leading off the 400 free relay (46.28) and his leg of the 200 free relay all equal a great meet to culminate a great season for him." - Todd Smeenge

Carson McIntire

SCHOOL: Hamilton

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Finished sixth in 200 free to break the school record at D3 state meet. Also took 14th in 500 free.

COACH'S VIEW: "Jack worked his tail off all offseason and into our swim season, and it really showed with his incredible improvement this year. He went from a 2:03 200 free to a 1:47, a 1:02 100 fly to a 54, and also came up huge on two relay swims for us this year. With his work ethic and love for the sport, I know he's only going to continue to get better, and am incredibly excited to see what his future holds." - Matt Oonk

Brody Menghini

SCHOOL: West Ottawa

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Part of state champion 400 free relay. Finished 13th in 200 IM and 14th in 100 free at D1 state meet.

COACH'S VIEW: "Brody is an extremely versatile swimmer contributing to our line up in almost every event. Brody finished his West Ottawa career in impressive fashion anchoring our state champion 400 free relay." - Steve Bowyer

Gibson Meyering

SCHOOL: Zeeland

GRADE: Freshman

WATER WORKS: Part of all-state 400 free relay and second scoring relay for Zeeland.

COACH'S VIEW: "Gibson had a freshman year unlike any other on our team. He was immediately put into our A relays and never waivered with his ability to step up for the team. This turned into an individual D1 state cut in the 50 free as well as an all-state finish in the 400 free relay. That's a big accomplishment as a freshman. I can't wait to see what he can do in the future." - Drew Scheerhorn

Jackson Miller

SCHOOL: Hamilton

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Finished 10th at D3 state meet in diving.

COACH'S VIEW: "Another diver with a short career with us, Jackson only hopped on the boards as a varsity athlete for the first last year. A 10th place finish after only two years on the boards is a testament to how great of an athlete Jackson is, how hard he works, and how he came to practice every day looking to get better. We'll miss him greatly come next season." - Matt Oonk

Harper Prutch

SCHOOL: Holland

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Qualified for state in 100 free and 100 backstroke.

COACH'S VIEW: "Harper had a phenomenal season. He was an integral part of swimming the two relays for state. He is our premier backstroker and an excellent team leader. Harper is a joy to coach. He has a great attitude and a happy demeanor." - Tonya Book

Levi Rozema

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Finished third at the D3 state meet in the 100 breaststroke with a school record.

COACH'S VIEW: "With Basilio and Karsten, Levi had a strong season and state meet. Levi had huge swims in the Medley Relay and the 200 IM with PRs in both which allowed him to finish 11th in the IM. But Levi's strongest swim was in the 100 breast where he set a new varsity record (57.72) and finishing third overall." - Todd Smeenge

Parker Schut

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Junior

WATER WORKS: Finished sixth at D3 state meet in diving.

COACH'S VIEW: "Parker lead the way for the Maroons on the board finishing in sixth place. Throughout the season, Parker set the Varsity 11 Dive Record and the junior record for six dives. Also had five All-American performances and finished his season with his all-state performance at the D3 State meet." - Todd Smeenge

Jake Shoemaker

SCHOOL: Holland Christian

GRADE: Freshman

WATER WORKS: Finished seventh at D3 state meet in 100 free and was 12th in 100 backstroke.

COACH'S VIEW: "Jake has been an awesome addition to this team as a freshman. His 48.02 in the 100 free set a freshman record and propelled Jake into the A finals at state where he finished seventh. Jake also finished 12th in the 100 back and was integral relay member leading off the medley relay and anchoring the 400 free relay." - Todd Smeenge

Fischer Sytsema

SCHOOL: Zeeland

GRADE: Senior

WATER WORKS: Was part of several all-state relays and one of the area's top butterflyers.

COACH'S VIEW: "Fischer had a slow build throughout the season which included continued improvement in his sprinting and his fly. This culminated in the third fastest 50 fly split in the medley relay and a top 16 finish in the 200 free relay. Fischer's talent will be missed next season." - Drew Scheerhorn

Second team

Luke Arendshorst, Holland

Brodie Brown, Hamilton

Jackson Busscher, Holland Christian

Ethan Elms, West Ottawa

Willem Evenson, Holland

Alex Figueroa, Zeeland

Jackson Hansen, Hamilton

Christian Huizenga, Holland Christian

Zach Jongekryg, West Ottawa

Hudson Kosten, Zeeland

John Kuiper, West Ottawa

Mason Landes, Zeeland

Owen Lewis, Hamilton

Landen Maatman, Hamilton

Henry Mulder, Holland

Trey Nyboer, Hamilton

Andrew Pyle, Zeeland

Brayden Rynsberger, Holland Christian

Andrew Skaags, Zeeland

Justin Stark, Hamilton

Joseph Stielstra, Holland Christian

Miles Stock, Holland Christian

Brett VandenBerg, Hamilton

Landon Van Ingen, Holland

Spencer White, West Ottawa

Seth Windemuller, Holland Christian

Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Meet the Holland Sentinel All-Area Boys Swimming and Diving Team