The Austin girls' swimming and diving team carried the momentum it had built at the preliminaries over to the Section 1A finals Friday night, but it just wasn't enough to take down the defending champs.

Red Wing stood strong against the hard-charging Packers and won the Section 1A swim meet with a total team score of 412 points.

Red Wing edged out Austin in each of the three relay events, including one that would have required a photo finish. Class A's top-ranked Wingers managed to win the 200-yard freestyle relay by just one-hundredth of a second that proved to be the difference between setting a new pool record and second place in the event. At 1:40.00, the Wingers broke their previous record of 1:40.68 set in last year's section finals. Austin was second in a school-record 1:40.01.

"It was kind of disappointing, but that was the best time they have ever swam it," said AHS senior Meghan Walsh. "It's hard to be disappointed when they swim like that."

Altogether the Packers will swim in six individual events and all three relays at state, qualifying eight swimmers and a diver.

Red Wing also set the section record in the final event, the 400 freestyle relay. The Packer foursome of Amanda Martin, Walsh, Lindsay Lukes and Stacy Bjorlie placed second with a team-best time.

"We were really happy with our race," said Bjorlie, who is one of three Packers to advance to state in four events. "We dropped time and that's not something you can do every time."

The individual swimmers for Austin were fantastic. Bjorlie took home the gold in the 200- and 100-yard freestyle, setting the school record and winning the 100 in a time of 53.78.

Lauren Goettsch set the building on fire with her explosive swim to the finish in the 50-yard freestyle event. She nearly set the pool record, just missing it by seven hundredths, but broke the school record set by Bjorlie at the Big Nine Meet two weekends ago.

"This is my strongest event," Goettsch said. "This year will also be the first year that I'll compete in the 100 in sections."

And compete she did, finishing the 100-yard freestyle in fourth place with a personal-best time.

Lukes, a freshman, also won her ticket to state by qualifying third in the 100-yard freestyle with a personal-record, and she was fourth in the 200 free.

Walsh will also take the trip to Minneapolis with her third-place finish in the 100 butterfly. The senior will have one more shot at the state title before her brilliant high school career comes to an end.

Nicole Novak just made the time-standard qualification in the butterfly to earn her first trip to state. Last year she went with the team as an alternate, but never had the opportunity to swim.

Austin will also have a representative in the diving event. Danielle Chapek finished second behind Mankato East's Holly Schlingmann for the third straight year.

Austin kicked off the meet with a third-place finish in the 200 medley relay, helping Cassie Srock record her first state berth. Srock swam the breaststroke leg of the race, joined by Elizabeth Goskesen, Walsh and Goettsch for the foursome's best time.

The Packers will have another shot at redemption against Red Wing in the Class A state tournament that starts with Chapek in the diving preliminaries at noon Nov. 14 at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center in Minneapolis. Swimming preliminaries start Friday at noon with the swimming and diving finals Saturday at noon.

Team standings

1. Red Wing 412, 2. AUSTIN 373.5, 3. Northfield 331, 4. Mankato West 290.5, 5. St. Peter 214, 6. Farmington 198, 7. Albert Lea 153, 8. Mankato East/Loyola 131, 9. Waseca 54.

Individual

(State qualifiers / Austin placewinners)

200 medley relay -- 1. Red Wing 1:53.98, 2. Northfield 1:54.30, 3. Austin (Elizabeth Goskesen, Cassie Srock, Meghan Walsh, Lauren Goettsch) 1:55.02, 4. St. Peter 1:55.97, 5. Mankato West 1:56.21, 6. Farmington 1:56.60; 200 freestyle -- 1. Stacy Bjorlie (AUS) 1:59.12, 2. Sarah Holmsten (RW) 2:00.29, 3. Jessica Kelly (RW) 2:01.27, 4. Lindsay Lukes (AUS) 2:01.55 / 9. Chrissy Srock (AUS) 2:08.62; 200 individual medley -- 1. Kaitlin Degner (SP) 2:15.39, 2. Kerry Brodziak (N) 2:16.81, 3. Jenna Smith (N) 2:17.52, 4. Tara Murnane (RW) 2:19.90 / 6. Walsh (AUS) 2:21.93, 7. Goskesen (AUS) 2:32.59, 8. Nicole Novak (AUS) 2:34.42; 50 freestyle -- 1. Goettsch (AUS) 24.55, 1. Beth Kiczula (RW) 24.55, 3. Katie Mettling (RW) 24.57, 4. Catie Hake (RW) 25.25, 5. Samantha Cole (ALB) 25.46, 6. Maggie Perrott (N) 25.48 / 9. Amanda Martin (AUS) 26.49.

Diving -- 1. Holly Schlingmann (ME) 404.65, 2. Danielle Chapek (AUS) 367.50 / 10. Jori Baldus (AUS) 243.90, 12. Shannon Doyle (AUS) 221.65, 14. Allison Hackensmith (AUS) 214.45; 100 butterfly -- 1. Kiczula (RW) 58.64, 2. Smith (N) 1:00.35, 3. Walsh (AUS) 1:01.24, 4. Degner (N) 1:01.25, 5. Yoshi Ludwig (SP) 1:01.01, 6. Novak (AUS) 1:03.65 / 16. Ca.Srock (AUS) 1:10.05; 100 freestyle -- 1. Bjorlie (AUS) 53.78, 2. Mettling (RW) 54.82, 3. Lukes (AUS) 55.08, 4. Goettsch (AUS) 55.32, 5. Perrott (N) 55.43, 6. Kelly (RW) 55.67, 7. Brodziak (N) 56.39, 8. Hake (RW) 56.53 / 16. Martin (AUS) 58.38; 500 freestyle -- 1. Holmsten (RW) 5:25.50, 2. Caitlin Clements-Green (N) 5:29.90, 3. Gina Covert (MW) 5:33.80 / 7. Ch.Srock (AUS) 5:56.49, 13. Michelle Zrucky (AUS) 6:01.41, 16. Nicole Peterson (AUS) 6:08.14.

200 freestyle relay -- 1. Red Wing 1:40.00*, 2. Austin (Lukes, Martin, Goettsch, Bjorlie) 1:40.01, 3. Northfield 1:42.57, 4. St. Peter 1:42.83, 5. Mankato West 1:43.24; 100 backstroke -- 1. Laura Hanson (F) 1:01.03, 2. Clements-Green (N) 1:02.32 / 3. Goskesen (AUS) 1:05.20, 10. Briana Walsh (AUS) 1:09.02, 14. Kali Temperly (AUS) 1:10.16, 15. Janine Davis (AUS) 1:10.32; 100 breaststroke -- 1. Samarah Robinson (MW) 1:11.89, 2. Marissa Merchant (F) 1:12.43 / 10. Ca.Srock (AUS) 1:16.80; 400 freestyle relay -- 1. Red Wing 3:38.17*, 2. Austin (Martin, Walsh, Lukes, Bjorlie) 3:42.36, 3. Northfield 3:45.99, 4. Mankato West 3:49.02.

* – Section 1A meet record