VALPARAISO — Andrew Alders knew it was going to be a good day when Chesterton's 200-yard medley relay team turned Valparaiso’s new pool into their personal playground on Saturday afternoon.

The senior helped the Trojans broke its own year-old sectional record in the opening race of the Valparaiso Sectional, going 1 minute, 32.64 seconds.

Alders also added a sectional record in the 100 breaststroke (55.86) and sophomore Alejandro Kincaid added a record time in the 100 backstroke (49.49). Chesterton won its 25th sectional with 530 points. Valparaiso (402) and Wheeler (269) finished second and third, respectively.

“It’s awesome to start the meet that way,” Alders said. “After that (start), everyone is really fired up for the rest of the day.”

Chesterton took a cautious approach to Saturday’s sectional meet as coach Mat Pavlovich rearranged his lineup in some spots and kept some of his swimmers unshaved in the hopes of having another gear for the state meet in Indianapolis next weekend. The Trojans dominated, winning 10 of 12 events and finished 1-2-3 in six events.

“This played out exactly the way we were shooting for,” Pavlovich said. “The goal was to get a lot of guys down to state, and we were able to do that. We feel real excited with how things went. It was a strong performance, but we didn’t want to put all of our eggs in this basket.”

Alders didn’t swim in either the 200 or 400 free relays in the back half of the meet, but the senior has the opportunity to do so next weekend, depending on how Pavlovich shuffles the lineup. Instead, Alders cruised to victory in the 100 freestyle (46.17) to go along with his win in the 100 breast.

“This was really cool with how the records were falling today,” Alders said. “Our (medley relay) is going to be dangerous. We’re setting some milestones right now and we’ve got more to come. We’re feeling really confident right now.”

Kincaid was part of the 200 medley relay team to start the meet and then he came back to win the 100 fly (51.11) and set the sectional record in the 100 back. The sophomore delivered what Pavlovich called “the most surprising swim of the meet” in the back. Kincaid used strong turns and impressive swims underwater to pull away from the field.

“I grew up watching (former Chesterton and Michigan star) Aaron Whitaker swim, and I always watched his underwater (technique),” Kincaid said. “Ever since I was little, I tried to practice how he swam.”

Long-distance swimmer Gabriel Eschbach added a pair of individual titles, winning the 200 free (1:43.55) and 500 free (4:39.62). The Chesterton sophomore barely missed the state cut for the 500 free last year. While winning the two distance races was a highlight, Eschbach also turned into a sprinter for the 200 free relay and helped lift the Trojans to victory in 1:26.18.

“It hurt (sprinting), but I had a lot of fun,” Eschbach said. “I just don’t think about (the pain) and then I complain to my parents about it after.”

Schwartz dominates diving

Valparaiso senior Jack Schwartz capped off his career at home with his third sectional diving title. Schwartz scored 510.80 points, finishing well ahead of Hobart sophomore Ethan Ferba (382.85). Schwartz and Ferba will advance to Tuesday’s Mishawaka Diving regionals along with Michigan City’s Josiah Miller and Knox junior Devan Himes.

“I’m really happy with how everything went for me today,” Schwartz said. “The main thing is just making sure you make it to Tuesday. Winning is icing on the cake.”

Valparaiso junior Zachary Juhl won the 50 free (21.52) and added a state-cut time in the 100 free (46.93).

“We’ve all worked hard for the last five months to get in the position that we’re all in now,” Schwartz said.

Gallery: Boys swimming sectional at Valparaiso