Canfield's 200, 400 relays set at state tournament in Canton

They are the first Cardinal relay teams to qualify since 2003.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CANFIELD -- Just after last year's district meet, Canfield swimmer Eric Davis was sitting at his home computer with his mom when he got an e-mail from his coach, Andrea Linnelli.
"It said, 'Unfortunately, no one made it to state this year,' " said Davis, now a sophomore. "It was really disappointing because we had expected to make it and then we didn't."
That wasn't the worst part. The worst part was, they finished 25th state-wide. The top 24 qualify.
"It was really tough seeing people right in front of us go," said Jordan Graham, now a sophomore. "I felt really bad for the seniors."
The only bright spot was that Davis and Graham had three years left.
And, because Canfield has such a strong group of underclassmen, the Cardinals knew they had a good chance of making it to Canton this season.
"Since the season started in November, this has been our main goal," sophomore James Hunter said.
And last weekend, they reached it. Twice.
Same four on both
Davis, Graham, Hunter and freshman Ryan King qualified for the state meet in the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays, becoming the first Canfield relay teams to qualify for the state meet since 2003.
"It's really cool," Hunter said. "It should be a lot of fun and I think it's going to be a good experience."
Added Graham, "I get excited when I think about it because we all have two more years as sophomore."
Then, pointing to Ryan King, Graham added, "And they get this guy for three more years."
King, a freshman, moved to Canfield this summer from Warren. His oldest brother, Nate, was a five-time All-American at Harding and holds the school record in the 200 IM at Ohio State. Nate King was a multiple state-qualifier at Harding and is now a freshman with the Buckeyes.
"They were really good and I wanted to be good, too," Ryan King said. "I'd also like to make it to state next year [in an individual event]."
By the way, there's also a younger sister, Emily.
"And she's really good," Linnelli said.
Coach missed district
Linnelli, whose daughter Meghan swims at Notre Dame, missed last weekend's district meet to watch the Big East Championships. Her two assistants, C.J. Moser (a former state qualifier at Canfield) and Dan Swanson filled in.
"I have two great assistant coaches and they've done a wonderful job," she said. "The kids swam well and we're really excited for them.
"They had this goal set before the season. They wanted it and they did it."
All four Cardinals had to beat out tough competition at the district meet, but they also have to deal with competition on their own team.
Two juniors, Dave Braman (400 free relay) and Travis Kneen (200 free) are serving as alternates and could just as easily be on the relays.
"They're all strong swimmers and they're tough competitors," Linnelli said. "If for some reason one of them ended up going in, they're still going to be strong. We're lucky to have six guys that close."
Don't have own pool
And, unlike many of the swimmers in Canton this weekend, Canfield doesn't have the luxury of its own pool.
The Cardinals drive to the Salem Community Center every day (their Saturday swim time, for instance, is 6:25 a.m. to 8:25) to work out.
They even had T-shirts printed up that read, "Imagine if we had a pool ..."
"It's pretty good for a team like us to come all this way," Hunter said. "Next year, we're going for a higher seed and a better finish."
scalzo@vindy.com