SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior Ava Chavez won the 200-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly with school records in each, while sophomore Erica Jaffe snared individual championships in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke, leading St. Francis to its first Delta League team title since 2015. The Troubadours scored 619 total points, 19 ahead of defending-champion Davis, and more than the third- through fifth-place teams combined at the championship meet, concluded at American River College Friday. 

Pleasant Grove finished third with 232 points, followed by Cosumnes Oaks (161), Franklin (150), Sheldon (85) and Elk Grove (72) in the team scoring.

Chavez' winning 200 free time of one minute, 48.02 seconds surpassed her own former SF benchmark of 1:48.37, set at last year's state championship. She also defeated her nearest competitor, Davis' Ava Portello (1:50.52) by almost three seconds. In fact, the Cal-bound senior held a 1:19.50 to 1:22.12 going into the final 50 yards of the race. Chavez defended her title in the event, having swam a winning 1:50.07 one year earlier.

Chavez followed with a 54.24 in the 100 fly, more than two seconds faster than runner-up Makena Leacox (56.36) of Davis, and two tenths of a second ahead of her old SF record of 54.44, set one week earlier at the Catholic Challenge meet in Atherton.

Jaffe led a 1-2 Troubie finish in each of her two victories. She touched home in 2:03.46 to capture the IM, with Mering close behind at 2:04.33. Jaffe later claimed the 100 back in dominating fashion with a 55.33, exactly two seconds ahead of the runner-up Mering.

Jaffe, Mering, Chavez and UC Davis-bound senior Maddy Ching also formed the 400 free relay that clinched the victory. St. Francis led by 25 points going into the finale, ensuring the Troubies the title as long as they were not disqualified. As such, head coach Brian Nabeta had all three of his varsity relays exchange conservatively, even at the cost of some final times. After all, St. Francis had disqualified a relay at the 2022 Sac-Joaquin Section trials, and had done so as recently as the Catholic Challenge on April 15. The 400 free relay finished second (3:27.31), with Chavez posting a 50.24 split in the anchor leg.

All varsity event champions will earn All-Delta League honors for their performances. In addition to the four SF individual titles, the Troubies won the meet in part because of depth. They advanced four swimmers to the championship finals in the 50 free, 100 fly, 100 free, 500 free and 100 back.

St. Francis also won a total of six junior varsity races. Sophomore Alexis DeAngelis took part in three, winning the IM (2:21.99) and 100 breaststroke (1:12.49) before joining Piper Brostrom, Olivia Charles and Abigail Benavidez in the first-place 400 free relay (3:57.73). Brostrom had previously dominated the 100 back (1:05.82), while Benavidez was also a member of a winning 200 free relay (1:50.22) with Gabriella McHugh, Sydney Glenn and Milena Bonnici. McHugh anchored that short relay after winning the 50 free at 27.12.

This is the ninth all-time league title for St. Francis, which had claimed eight straight from 2008 to 2015. The Troubies head to the Sac-Joaquin Section Championships, hosted at the Elk Grove Aquatics Center on May 3 and 5. Meet time is 10 a.m.

St. Francis finished second in the Division I field last year, but will compete as a D-II program at this year's section meet. The Troubies last won a CIFSJS title in 2011, seven years before the meet split into divisions.

2023 DELTA LEAGUE SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS
American River College (Sacramento, Calif.)
Girls' events only • Winners plus SFHS finishers listed • All events are finals

TEAM SCORING (VARSITY) - 1. St. Francis, 619; 2. Davis, 600; 3. Pleasant Grove, 232; 4. Cosumnes Oaks, 161; 5. Franklin, 150; 6. Sheldon, 85; 7. Elk Grove, 72.

200 MEDLEY RELAY JV - 1. Davis (Burns, Choi, Yang, Shinstock), 1:59.77... 2. St. Francis (DeAngelis, Haag, P. Brostrom, McHugh), 2:02.44.

200 MEDLEY RELAY VARSITY - 1. Davis (Kos, Bennetts, Biello, Leacox), 1:43.39... 2. St. Francis (Jaffe, Frederiksen, Larson, Holliday), 1:46.50.

200 FREE JV - 1. Emily Shinstock, Davis, 2:08.56... 2. Abigail Benavidez, 2:12.15; 4. Miranda Ferguson, 2:26.85.

200 FREE VARSITY - 1. Ava Chavez, St. Francis, 1:48.02... 5. Isabelle Schmid, 1:57.61; 6. Megan Gawlick, 1:58.81; 9. Teaghan Brostrom, 2:02.72.

200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY JV - 1. Alexis DeAngelis, SF, 2:21.99... 4. Olivia Charles, 2:34.29.

200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY VARSITY - 1. Erica Jaffe, SF, 2:03.46... 2. Grace Mering, 2:04.33; 5. Marissa Recio, 2:11.58; 11. Rachael Madden, 2:22.49.

50 FREESTYLE JV - 1. Gabriella McHugh, SF, 27.12... 3. Sydney Glenn, 28.42; 5. Rose Haag, 28.92; 13. Neta Tovar, 36.15.

50 FREESTYLE VARSITY - 1. Sara Kos, Davis, 24.53... 2. Maddy Ching, 24.74; 3. Emmy Asperger, 24.95; 5. LK Holliday, 25.35; 6. Bianca Ignacio, 26.12.

100 BUTTERFLY JV - 1. Emmy Burns, Davis, 1:04.64... 2. Piper Brostrom, 1:07.76; 3. Olivia Charles, 1:11.00.

100 BUTTERFLY VARSITY - 1. Ava Chavez, SF, 54.24... 4. Maddy Ching, 56.70; 5. Jordyn Larson, 57.75; 6. Makenna Frederiksen, 59.22.

100 FREESTYLE JV - 1. Emily Shinstock, Davis, 57.64... 2. Sydney Glenn, 1:02.65; 7. Neta Tovar, 1:23.53.

100 FREESTYLE VARSITY - 1. Sarah Bennetts, Davis, 49.74... 2. Mia Hill, 53.95; 3. Isabelle Schmid, 54.65; 5. Emmy Asperger, 55.82; 6. Greta Laborde Lagrave, 56.36.

500 FREESTYLE JV - 1. Wenqi Yang, Davis, 5:49.13... 2. Abigail Benavidez, 5:51.92; 3. Miranda Ferguson, 6:23.88.

500 FREESTYLE VARSITY - 1. Ella Ackerman, Davis, 5:00.14... 3. Marissa Recio, 5:06.03; 5. Jordyn Larson, 5:09.55; 6. Megan Gawlick, 5:13.14; 8. Teaghan Brostrom, 5:25.75.

200 FREE RELAY JV - 1. St. Francis (McHugh, Glenn, Benavidez, Bonnici), 1:50.22.

200 FREE RELAY VARSITY - 1. Davis (Leacox, Paquette, Ackerman, Portello), 1:37.33... 2. St. Francis (Chavez, M. Ching, Hill, Holliday), 1:37.72.

100 BACKSTROKE JV - 1. Piper Brostrom, St. Francis, 1:05.82... 3. Milena Bonnici, 1:07.73.

100 BACKSTROKE VARSITY - 1. Erica Jaffe, SF, 55.33... 2. Grace Mering, 57.33; 6. Greta Laborde Lagrave, 1:01.93; 7. Bianca Ignacio, 1:02.72.

100 BREASTSTROKE JV - 1. Alexis DeAngelis, SF, 1:12.49... 3. Milena Bonnici, 1:18.02; 4. Gabriella McHugh, 1:19.33; 6. Rose Haag, 1:22.45.

100 BREASTSTROKE VARSITY - 1. Sarah Bennetts, Davis, 1:01.16... 4. Makenna Frederiksen, 1:07.74; 6. Mia Hill, 1:08.38; 9. Gabriella Ching, 1:10.44; 11. Rachael Madden, 1:13.03.

400 FREE RELAY JV - 1. St. Francis (DeAngelis, P. Brostrom, Charles, Benavidez), 3:57.73.

400 FREE RELAY VARSITY - 1. Davis (Bennetts, Biello, Kos, Portello), 3:25.15... 2. St. Francis (Jaffe, M. Ching, Mering, Chavez), 3:27.31.

1-METER DIVING JV FINAL (APR. 19) - 1. Farah Fox, SF, 263.45... 2. Sam Powers, 126.16.

1-METER DIVING VARSITY FINAL (APR. 19) - 1. Sinclair Yadao, SF, 397.05... 3. Paige Vicente,, 340.55; 5. Jaiden Jackson, 268.00; 6. Maya Hamilton, 252.80.