In girls swimming, the Ballard Beavers had a lot to be proud of as they swam to 13th at the State Meet, while earning several post season honors.

Last year the Beavers were in 42ndplace.

"To improve29 spots in one season is absolutely remarkable," said Head Coach Carlos Palacian who was named KingCo League Coach of the Year at Districts two weeks ago.

"It's a coaches vote. I'm proud to have been thought of. It's a reflection of the team and the rest of the coaching staff," said Palacian. The assistant coaches are David Dawson and Leo Jaeger.

The coaching award recognizes the steady progress that Ballard has made in Palacian's three years leading the team.

"He's a good coach and he deserves it. The team is way better than last year. He has brought the program a long way since, I've been here. We did real well, a lot of people dropped times," said Senior Robyn Kaperak.

Both Robin Kaperak and Linnea Scott were named to the District First team. Ballard was given the KingCo team Sportsmanship Award. Jenna Gregor, Erika Frederick and Elena Zavala all made the Scholastic All District team.

Palacian said he is proud of the academic award earned by the three swimmers. "They are not here to swim. They are here to study. The girls got recognized for their hard work," he said.

"It has been a magical season. The team has come of age, is behaving like a team and believes in itself," said Palacian.

At the State Meet, held at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Inglemoor was first at State, followed by Garfield second and Kamiak third.

Ballad's 200 medley relay was 23rd. Linnea Scott was ninth in the 200 IM and broke a school record with a time of 2:11.89. Robyn Kaperak came in fifth in the 50 free and was 11th in the 100 free.

Heather Stevens was 19th in the 50 free and 22nd in the 100 free. Briana Meyer was ninth in the 100 fly and set a school record with a time of 1:00.69. The 200 free relay team was 16th and set a Beaver record at 3:45.78.

"The performance of the nine individuals that competed at the State championship just put the icing on a wonderful season, and it was truly a reflection of the teamwork, spirit and effort that all our girls contributed this season," said Palacian.

"They swam and dove together with a single purpose, to improve and help each other get better. This is the way a team should be like and I am extremely lucky and proud to be their coach," said Palacian.

The Beavers prepared for the challenges of the State Meet with a strong showing at Districts the week before against other talented KingCo teams.

Kaperak who was seeded first in the 50 free, won that event with a time of 24.84. It was a state qualifying performance and broke a new school record. Kaperak, then placed second in the 100 free at 54.93. That was another state qualifying time and another Ballard High record.

Scott earned a trip to state in the 200 IM when she came in third in the race with a time of 2:13.65. Scott was seeded first at Districts in the 200 IM and has worked to get to the post season. "It has been a lot of fun. I got better, my swimming is pretty good," she said.

Although Stevens was seventh in the 50 free, she swam a tough race and her time of 25.59 that qualified her for state.

In the 100 fly, Briana Meyer sprinted to a 1:00.3 time to set a Beaver school record and ensure a trip to state. Meyer had the energy to then enter the long 500 free and was fourth. Her 5:14.26 time qualified her for state.

Scott was third in the 500 free with a 5:14.16 time and it's also good for state.

Ballard had been racking up points at meets all season long in the relay teams. The 400 free was seventh. and their time of 3:51.70 advanced them to state.

The 200 medley relay finished in eighth place with a 1:59.68 race. The team had already qualified for state during a regular season meet.

Diver Marit Mork did not make it out of the first round of competition. She did however swim well later in the 100 fly.

Mork has had an outstanding year in diving, despite only being in the sport for the second year. She was added to the District meet when not enough divers qualified.

"It's real delight. She has worked very hard. The last couple of weeks she has come a long way. She is relaxed and confident," said Dawson, the team's diving coach.

Amanda Takahashi was 11th in the 100 free (58.74) and Jennifer Jaeger was ninth (58.30.) Kaperak's 56.15 was just .15 seconds short of a state time.

This is by far the best team Ballard has had since leaving Metro in 2002 and entering the mighty KingCo league which has highly competitive swimming teams both in the city and on the eastside.

Two of the Ballard wins came against Redmond and Bothell. Bothell has been a tough matchup for Ballard in the past. This year the Beavers prevailed in the pool.

"They were shocked we beat them. We beat some good schools," said Palacian.

Kaperak has seen the program grow. "It's going real well. We are a lot better than last year," she said.

"I'm really excited. I'm swimming harder, swimming more over the summer than last. I'm more prepared, I have improved my times a lot this year," said Kaperak.