Ripon girls repeat as Valley Oak League swim champions

With what few resources he has, Ripon High aquatics coach Erik Zador is building a swim dynasty.

The girls added another pillar on Thursday, defending their Valley Oak League title with a 111-54 victory over Manteca. The girls have won the last three regular-season league championships, including the last two outright.

In a sport that places more emphasis on individual success than team triumph, Zador said the VOL streak still matters.

“It’s great for the high school,” said Zador, who guided the Ripon boys water polo team to its first Sac-Joaquin Section banner in the fall. “It’s great for a lot of these high school swimmers that come out for the first time and get to be a part of something like that. They’ve all contributed.”

Befitting their dominance, the Indians swept every race on Thursday, including double-event winners Mallory Brubaker (500 freestyle, 200 freestyle), Elizabeth Wenner (100 backstroke, 100 butterfly) and Hannah Sweet (200 individual medley, 100 breaststroke).

Chloe Winter (100 freestyle) and Maddie Hawes (50 freestyle) also contributed individual victories for Ripon which will try to add to its trophy haul at the Valley Oak League Championships on April 30 at Oakdale High.

So what has allowed a small-school program like Ripon to have success against schools with larger enrollments?

Talent and tutelage, Zador said.

A majority of his swimmers were raised in the Ripon Sea Lion recreational program.

“We have a great foundation from swim lessons to Ripon Sea Lions to year-round and high school swimming,” Zador said. “We have a small town and swimming is now becoming a big part of Ripon.

“We have a great source of kids coming up through the ranks. We have a lot of younger kids coming in, on the girls side especially. It starts with that.”

This story was originally published April 22, 2016 at 12:50 PM with the headline "Ripon girls repeat as Valley Oak League swim champions."