The Centier Bank Performers of the Week are South Bend Saint Joseph sophomore swimmer Mary Cate Pruitt, Northridge sophomore swimmer Elsa Fretz, and Hobart sophomore swimmer Emma Wright.
In Saturday’s IHSAA state swimming finals held at the IUPUI Natatorium in Indianapolis, Pruitt became the program’s first girl swimmer to claim a state championship by winning the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:49.42 and helped the Indians to a sixth-place finish with 149 points. She also finished third in the 200 freestyle (1:49) and was part of the 400 free relay which finished third (3:27.69) and the 200 medley relay which placed sixth (1:45.22).
Fretz helped the Raiders to a fifth-place finish with 163 points by winning the 50 freestyle with a time of 22.86. She also earned a second-place finish in the 100 free (50.12) and was part of the fourth-place 200 free relay (1:34.74) and 400 free relay (3:27.78) teams.
Wright became the first Brickies’ swimmer to capture a state championship by earning the 100 freestyle prize with a time of 49.95. Carmel earned its 33rd consecutive state title with 413 points.
Special recognition also goes out to the Crown Point girls’ basketball team, which captured the Class 4A LaPorte regional championship with a 54-47 overtime win over No. 2 and previously unbeaten Penn. Fresh off their first regional crown since 1997, the No. 4 Bulldogs (28-0) advance to meet No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern (25-1) in Saturday’s LaPorte semistate championship. It also marks the most wins for Crown Point in either boys’ or girls’ basketball.
The Centier Bank Performer of the Week is open to any male-female student athlete who participates in any IHSAA sanctioned sport and whose school is in the Centier Bank geographic area.