Brookfield/Elm Grove Monthly

By Mark Hutchinson Freeman Staff MADISON — For the first time since 2010, Waukesha County's competitors returned home from the WIAA Division 1 state boys swimming and diving meet without a title. Brookfield junior Connor Rumpit did leave with a sil- ver medal, emerging as run- ner-up to Cedarburg senior Nick Plachinski in the 500- yard freestyle. Rumpit fin- ished in 4:39.63. Rumpit also placed seventh in the 200 freestyle (1:44) and competed in the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays. Rumpit's second-place fin- ish in the 500 free marked his first appearance on the state podium. "I've been doing a lot of training since last year," Rumpit said. "I've been try- ing to get in as much work as I possibly can with doubles. My goal was to get to the podium in the 500. "After sectionals, I was the first seed — I was up there with a chance to win it. Obvi- ously, Nick Plachinski just took off. That's OK. I can live with that. He's just a great competitor and a great guy. But I think all of my hard training paid off. I made the podium for the first time, so it was definitely worth it." Rumpit said he benefitted from the presence of sopho- more teammate Ben Atten- berger, who claimed fourth in the 200 individual medley (1:55.22), fifth in the 100 breaststroke (58.34) and swam on Brookfield's 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays. "He's a great guy and a great guy to train with," Rumpit said. "He's always giving his all in practice. Having him there has been great. I think being there in the same lane pushing each other has made a great impact on both of us. He's a great teammate." Attenberger relished his debut on the medal stand and expressed gratitude for having Rumpit as a team- mate as well. "It felt pretty good," Atten- berger said. "Last year, I wasn't even in the top 16, so it was great to be able to be up there. "We all have made a lot of improvement. It's been real- ly nice to have Connor as a teammate to have someone to race in practice every day. It kind of kept me going and motivated. I had to be ready to race him every day." Rumpit hopes he can go out on a high note as a senior in 2016. "I'm really keeping my eye on that top spot," he said. "I know I have to work even harder than ever because there are some tough guys out there. "I'm going to keep putting in the work so hope- fully I can beat them out next year." Madison Memorial cap- tured its fifth consecutive Division 1 state team title, totaling 350.5 points. Madi- son West finished a distant second with 201. Email: mhutchinson@conleynet.com Freeman Brookfield & Elm Grove • Page 7A APRIL 2015 Junior second in 500-yard freestyle Rumpit captures silver BROOKFIELD — The 2015 Wisconsin Football Coaches Association All-Star foot- ball rosters have been set and Waukesha County will be represented by 14 players and one coach. Pewaukee coach Justin Friske will be on the Large School South staff. Catholic Memorial and Muskego will each have three players on the South team, which is the most by any school in the area. Catholic Memorial seniors Sam Gromacki (defensive tackle), Michael Schmidt (defensive end) and Mikey Wurster (linebacker) will represent their school. Muskego will have seniors Ryan Borton (running back), Alex Hauke (defen- sive tackle) and Baili Leszczynski (guard) on the team. Borton was the All- Freeman Player of the Year. Mukwonago will send senior offensive linemen Robert Kraklow and Charlie Younger. Division 2 state runner-up Waukesha West will send senior safety Cody Kujawa, while Division 1 state runnerup Arrowhead has Andy Hessler lineback- er on the South roster. Brookfield Central senior linebacker Mitchell Ahmad will help the South defense, while Brookfield East senior Connor Allen will have all of the kicking and punting duties. The South Small School team will have two repre- sentatives from the area. Brookfield Academy senior Spencer Francis will play defensive back, while Lake Country Lutheran senior Grant Johnson will be at wide receiver. The All-Star games will be played July 18 at Titan Sta- dium at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. — Freeman Staff East's Allen, Central's Ahmad, Academy's Francis to play County players earn spots in WFCA All-Star Game WFCA ALL-STAR GAME WIAA STATE BOYS SWIMMING AND DIVING MEET Mary Langenfeld/Special to The Freeman Brookfield's Benjamin Attenberger swims the 200-yard individual medley at the WIAA Division 1 state swimming and diving meet in Madison. Van Cleave wins gold MADISON — Brookfield Academy High School senior Kevin Van Cleave captured yet another state swimming title. Van Cleave won the 200- yard individual medley in 1 minute, 53.56 seconds in the WIAA Division 2 state meet at the University of Wisconsin Natatorium. It was the fourth state title for Van Cleave, who won the 200 IM and 500 freestyle as a junior and won the 500 free as a sophomore. Van Cleave was second in the 500 free, finishing in 4:38.91 — nearly a second faster than last year's win- ning time. But Monona Grove freshman Ben McDade shaved nine seconds off his sectional time to win the 500 free in 4:37.04. — Freeman Staff Robert F. Borkowski/Special to The Freeman Brookfield Central senior linebacker Mitchell Ahmad was selected to play in the WFCA All-Star Game. Brookfield East's Josh Dempsey, top, wrestles Cedarburg's Tucker Hammer during a 160- pound match in the first round of the WIAA Division 1 state tournament. Dempsey won the match 160 before losing to eventual state runner-up Ben Hakes of Oak Creek in the second round. Dempsey went 1-1 in the consolation bracket and did not medal. Mary Langenfeld/Special to The Freeman East's Dempsey wins first state match

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