State Champs

OK so here are my picks.  Rosary looks like a solid favorite to repeat and win their fouth title in a row. With Pak, Hare, Sykstus, Burke, Devine and Launer returning and possible new freshman, number 4 looks like almost a sure thing.  New Trier looks to be a little closer second than the last couple of years. They have  a bunch of returnees, the Marchuk girls, Scott, Conklin, divers (they always seem to have divers), Good, Costley, James, Wu and Hayward and maybe a freshman or two.  That is a big bunch of returning qualifiers but not as many returning scorers as Rosary.  The next 4 or 5 teams are jammed in pretty tight, Loyola, Evanston, Hinsdale, Peoria ND, Lyons, St Charles North all could figure in the trophy hunt at least the last trophy. What about freshman?   For the boys it looks to be New Trier.  With Gagne, Grodecki, Kileen, Sacks, Smith, Snyder, Staab and von Moltke, NT returns the most. But if this year proved anything it's that a solid team with the desire to win can beat anybody. Neuqua looks to be the solid team (Cicchini, Cordes, Jager, Mordach, Vechioloa and Wagner) that could win it all in 2011, with Naperville North (Bessler, Butz, Eiken and Henderson), Loyola (Jovanovic, Manhard, Nash, Pasquesi and Rahill)  and Naperville Central (Depew, Howenstine, van Deventer, Weeks and Wood) in a tight race for third.  NT's other advantage is the ability to fill holes.  NT has a couple guys returning that didn't make their state team that had times fast enough to score at state.  Not sure any other team can say that at this point.  Anybody know about incoming freshman?  Looking at the Age Group state meet it is difficult if not impossible to tell who is coming into to which Naperville school.  NT had some very good swims but they came from guys who are freshman this year. Malone, NT soph next year, looks to be a guy who will be tough to keep out of the state lineup in multple events next year.