Penn's Christianson chasing history going into IHSAA girls swimming state finals

MISHAWAKA — It’s all been building to this for Lily Christianson.

Not that the regular season, conference and sectional wins didn’t matter to her, but when you’re a three-time state champion, those victories are expected to pile up. As well as records, which Christianson set plenty of the last three months.

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All of the accomplishments have been nice. Now, it’s about ending her career the right way.

The Penn senior will wear the black and gold swim cap one last time at the IHSAA state finals this weekend, which begin with prelim races Friday and championship swims Saturday. Christianson enters as the defending state champion in the 100-yard freestyle and a two-time winner in the 50-yard freestyle in 2021 and 2022.

“That’s all I’ve been dreaming about this whole year: go out there and get some more state titles,” Christianson said. “I have three already. I’ve gone first and second in both of my events the last three years. I’d like to go one-one this year.”

Christianson has used this season as almost a warmup for state. If Penn was competing at an event, it was likely Christianson was going to be a four-time winner. That was the case at last week’s sectional as well, winning individually in the 50 and 100 while anchoring 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relay teams.

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Going into state this weekend, she’s seeded second in both the 50 and 100 and third in both the 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relays. The top-three teams in the medley relay are separated by less than a second, while she’s 0.42 seconds behind Wawasee’s Julie Mishler and 0.23 seconds behind Center Grove’s Lara Phipps in the 50 and 100 freestyle races, respectively.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility for Christianson to win more than one event this weekend. If she does, she’ll be joining some elite company.

Only three girls swimmers from the South Bend area have won more state titles than Christianson. Elkhart Central’s Lindsay Benko won 11 titles from 1991-94 before becoming a two-time Olympic gold medalist. South Bend Clay’s Jeanne Proteau won five championships across the 1974 and 1975 seasons, and Penn’s Bethany Galat was also a five-time state winner between 2012-14.

Two others — Shawn McCluskey (South Bend Jackson/Riley, 1974, 76-77) and Mary Catherine Pruitt (Saint Joseph, 2019-21) — are tied with Christianson with three titles. That’s why earning at least one more gold medal moves Christianson higher into the conversation of the best swimmers to come from the area.

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Her coach already thinks she belongs there.

“If there is a Mount Rushmore of this area for swimming, the first three people that come to mind for me are Lindsay Benko, Bethany Galat and Lily Christianson,” Penn coach Jess Preston said. “She’s a special swimmer. You can never replace her. The things that Bethany did for our program continue to help us today, and Lily will be the same way.”

It’s a bittersweet week for Christianson, knowing this will be her last time competing for Penn. She’s been committed collegiately to NC State for more than a year, so the only focus for her this season has been on her high school team. That all ends Saturday afternoon, regardless of how Christianson performs inside the IU Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI in Indianapolis.

“To leave this atmosphere that I’ve met so many people and have had great relationships with will definitely be hard,” Christianson said. “It’s hard thinking about it, but at the same time, I get excited because I know I still have this opportunity to leave my mark at Penn.”

It could be a special weekend for the Penn program as a whole. To be second place at state is to win it, essentially, given Carmel has actually won 37-straight state championships. Their dominance is unmatched in the country, and the gap between the Greyhounds and everyone else seemingly widens every year.

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Second place, though, is there for the taking for the Kingsmen. Christianson leads the way, but several others are seeded highly in their events. Notably, Kaia Podlin is fourth in the 50-yard freestyle and Alayna Riggins fourth in the 100-yard butterfly. Should the Kingsmen perform to their potential this weekend, they could finish runner-up for the first time since 2013.

“I think there’s probably 3-5 teams that are all feeling the same we are where there’s a legitimate shot for us to get second place,” Preston said.

The waiting is finally over for Christianson. She has eight races left in her high school career. She hopes the final four bring her home some hardware.

“I’m really ready for state,” Christianson said. “I’m excited. It’s my senior year. I have nothing to hold back on, and this team is probably one of the best teams Penn High School has had. I’m so happy that I’m part of it.”

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Christianson could join area's elite with another girls swimming state title