INVER GROVE HEIGHTS &045; As always this time of year, there were some near-misses for the Albert Lea High School boys’ swimming and diving team. But more often than not, the Tigers were on target.

The ALHS boys turned in a very strong performance in the Section 1A meet that concluded Saturday at Inver Grove Heights, finishing third as a team while advancing all three relays and six individuals in eight events to state.

&uot;We really expect a lot out of these kids, and we got a lot out of them,&uot; said coach Jon Schmitz. &uot;We had some excellent races. But we feel we’ve got better swims left in us.&uot;

St. Thomas Academy, the No. 1 rated Class A team in the state, won with 465 points, followed by No. 3 rated Simley with 309. The Tigers had 265 points, followed in the top five by Mankato West with 186 and Red Wing 178. Thirteen teams scored points.

While Schmitz said not everything went as hoped for the Tigers, most things they expected to happen did happen.

&uot;We’d like to get everyone through and have an absolutely perfect meet, but it’s tough to do in this section,&uot; he said. &uot;All the guys expected to score at state made it through, and that’s big.&uot;

The Tigers’ top relay finish was second, by the 200-yard medley foursome of Ethan Berg, Ben Schreiber, Josh Elwood and Ben Matheson, who clocked 1:40.03. Berg, Colton Jensen, Schreiber and Mitch Johnson combined for third in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:24.71. Johnson, Jensen, Matheson and Elwood were fourth in the 200 freestyle relay with a time of 1:32.38.

Johnson and Berg both qualified in two individual events. Johnson was second in the section in the 200 freestyle in 1:48.25 and also second in the 100 free in 48.92 seconds. Berg took third in the 100 butterfly in 56.25, fourth in the 100 backstroke in 57.64.

The other state qualifiers, with section place and time: Matheson, sixth, 100 butterfly, 57.34; Elwood, 10th, 100 butterfly, 57.93; Schreiber, second, 100 breaststroke, 1:02.66; and Jensen, seventh, 100 freestyle, 50.87.

Other top-16 places: Jensen, eighth, 200 free, 1:54.41; Matheson, seventh, 200 IM, 2:09.45; Schreiber, eighth, 200 IM, 2:10.94; Elwood, 13th, 200 IM, 2:15.82; Ryan Lowe, 14th, 50 free, 24.38; Chris Jackson, fifth, 100 breast, 1:06.45.

The state meet is Friday and Saturday at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center in Minneapolis.

&uot;We’re excited about state,&uot; said Schmitz, whose squad had an undefeated dual-meet season and won the Big Nine championship. &uot;We’d like to see these guys get some all-state honors to really top off their season.&uot;