By Sean Griffin on SwimSwam
2025 CIF-SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION 1 CHAMPIONSHIPS
- May 8-10, 2025
- Mt. San Antonio College – Walnut, California
- SCY (25 yards)
- Meet Central
- Psych Sheet
- Results on Meet Mobile: “2025 CIF-SS Division 1”
The 2025 CIF Southern Section Division 1 Swimming & Diving Championship prelims kickedoff on Thursday at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, California.
Santa Margarita, the defending champion on both the boys’ and girls’ sides, looked strong through prelims, with the Northwood boys’ team also looking particularly impressive with their top-end performances.
- The Southern Section of the CIF has four divisions, with Division 1 generally being the biggest and fastest schools and Division 4 generally being the smallest schools.
Girls’ Prelims Highlights
Cal commit Teagan O’Dell, a senior at Santa Margarita, claimed a pair of top seeds on the day in both the 200 IM and 100 back. She kicked things off in the 200 IM, where she clockeda time of 1:54.73, clearing the rest of the field by nearly six seconds as the only swimmer under the two-minute barrier.
O’Dell has been as fast as 1:52.61 in her career, a time she recordedat the Winter Junior Championships in Austin this past December. She currently holds the national high school record in this event thanks to her 1:53.38 from the 2023 CIF Championships.
In the 100 back, she hit the wall with a time of 51.98, signaling that her personal best of 50.70 may be within reach, either in the final or at next weekend’s state championship meet.
Fountain Valley sophomore Alyssa Ton postedtwo 1st–place finishes in the prelims, showcasing her middle-distance talents in the 200 and 500 free. In the 200—the first individual event of the day—she checked in with a time of 1:45.71 before logginga 4:44.54 in the 500.
Like O’Dell, Ton’s best time in the 200 comes from Winter Juniors, where she clockeda time of 1:45.37. Her 500 effort today marked a new lifetime best though, eclipsing her previous standard of 4:45.33 from November’s CA RMDA Kevin Perry Senior Invitational.
Ton is the defending champion in the 200 free, having won the event last year in 1:45.96. The 500, however, is a new addition to her lineup this season, replacing the 100 fly, in which she finished 7th a year ago.
Santa Margarita senior Gracyn Aquino—O’Dell’s current teammate and future one as well, as she’s also committed to Cal—was the only swimmer to break the 23-second barrier in the 50 free, notchinga 22.85. She later ranked 2nd overall in the 100 free prelims with a time of 49.58, trailing only Portola junior Ava DeAnda, who clockeda 49.47 to lead the field. They were the only two swimmers to dip under 50 seconds.
In relay action, Mira Costa secureda spot in lane four for Saturday’s final in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:43.06, with no competitors within two seconds of them. The foursome included Delaney Herr (24.97), Bella Brito (28.51), Andi Taylor (25.43), and Maya Manasfi (24.15).
The free relays were a different story, as Santa Margarita made their presence known by claiming the top seeds in both. In the 200 relay, Chloe Stinson (23.46), Victoria Mori (23.46), Gracyn Aquino (22.35), and Teagan O’Dell (22.47) teamed up for a time of 1:31.74 to hold about a four second cushion over the rest of the teams. In the 400, O’Dell (49.12), Eileen Song (52.17), Valentina Delgado (51.40), and Samantha Cummins (51.99) logged 3:24.68 for about the same lead margin.
Other Top Qualifiers:
- Valencia junior Tori Yamamura checked in with a