Movers And Lakers
A courageous diver and two talented sisters helped the West Bloomfield girls swimming squad
achieve its best season in team history.
STEVE STEIN STAFF WRITER
Above:
Julie Golding
ulie Golding's back was
killing her. The West
Bloomfield High School div-
er thought her senior sea-
son and four-year prep career
were over.
But she was needed. The Lak-
ers had an opportunity to win
their first girls swimming league
championship in team history if
they could capture the Oakland
Activities Association Division II
meet they were hosting in a few
days, so Golding decided to bite
her lip and give it a try.
"I was in tremendous pain dur-
ing the meet," she said. "I really
hurt my back on my fifth (of
eight) dive. After that dive, I went
right to the locker room and sat
under hot water. I was so happy
after I finished my last dive."
Golding's amazing fourth-place
finish helped West Bloomfield
outscore second-place Bloomfield
j
Hills Lahser 381-336.5 and cap-
ture the six-team meet.
Her mission was accom-
plished, and this time her season
really was over. Golding sat out
the diving regionals and the Class
A state meet and is continuing to
undergo treatment.
"I can't say how much I admire
Julie's courage," . said West
Bloomfield coach Bob Crosby.
"She went through all that at the
league meet for the team.
"We trailed Lahser by two
points after the 50 freestyle, the
event before diving. After we fin-
ished second, third, fourth and
sixth in diving, we were in front
of Lahser by 28 points and we
never trailed again."
Because of her dedication,
Golding was named Laker of the
Year. She was the Laker Diver of
the Year the three previous
seasons.
tinue her education at
Indiana University,
she's involved in
Left:
many extra-curricular
Stacey and
Melissa Axner. activities at West
Bloomfield.
She's a member of the Senior
Choir and she's performed in the
vaudeville show. She's also
played major roles in the school's
conflict resolution program, in
which students settle disputes in-
volving their peers, and Project
Shine, where upperclassmen
work with lowerclassmen who
need motivation.
Winning the league champi-
onship wasn't the only historic
accomplishment recorded this fall
by the West Bloomfield girls
After qualifying for the Class swimming team, which was
A state meet as a sophomore and founded in 1974.
The Lakers also went unde-
junior and finishing second in the
Metro Suburban Activities Asso- feated (10-0) in dual meets and
ciation and Oakland County knocked off perennial state pow-
meets last year, Golding was er Birmingham Groves for the
looking forward to an outstand- first time.
West Bloomfield sank Groves
ing senior campaign.
But her troublesome back, 104-81 in its first meet. In the fi-
which she originally hurt during nal Class A poll, Groves was
her junior season, bothered her ranked No. 3 and West Bloom-
the entire fall. Golding "slipped" field checked in at No. 10.
Another crucial victory for the
to fourth in both the county and
Lakers was their 98-88 win over
league meets.
"If the team wasn't doing so Lahser. At the time, West Bloom-
well and I didn't get so much sup- field was unranked and Lahser
port from the other girls and all was No. 9 in Class A.
"I thought we'd have a good
the parents, I never would have
made it halfway through the sea- shot at winning our division, but
son," Golding said. "I also felt a not necessarily go undefeated. It
responsibility to the team because was just a great season," said
Crosby, who has been coaching
I was a captain."
Golding, 17, isn't one to shirk the Lakers since 1980.
Besides Golding, sisters Melis-
responsibility. A 3.6 grade-point
average student who will con- sa and Stacey Axner and sopho-
more Julia Music also did their
best to ensure West Bloomfield's
perfect year.
Melissa, 14, a freshman, qual-
ified for the state meet in the 50,
100 and 200 freestyle and 100
backstroke, and she overcame a
101-degree fever to come through
with victories in the 50 and 100
freestyle in the league meet in
25.53 and 54.99.
Besides being the league
meet's only individual double-
winner, Melissa joined Stacey on
the Lakers' victorious 400
freestyle relay squad, which was
timed in 3:46.60.
Earlier in the season, Melis-
sa won the 200 freestyle in the
county meet in 1:57.88.
Melissa wasn't happy with her
performances in the 100 and 200
freestyle in the state meet, but
she hopes to turn that disap-
pointment into a learning expe-
rience.
"There seemed to be a lot of
pressure at the state meet,"
Melissa said. "In my meets for the
Michigan Stingrays (her club
team), I feel like Pm mainly com-
peting for myself. In high school,
you're representing your team."
Crosby is confident Melissa
will make better showings at fu-
ture state meets.
"Melissa is a blue-chipper and
she swam like one this season,"
he said. "She was very depend-
able."
Stacey, 16, is a junior. She had
a fine state meet, dropping her
time in the 500 freestyle to
5:20.73 from her qualifying clock-
ing of 5:27.30. She was seeded
30th and she finished 13th.
The 500 is a new event for
Stacey, who also competes for the
Stingrays. Last year, she swam
the 100 backstroke in the state
meet.
Music, -a sophomore, compet-
ed in the 200 and 500 freestyle
this fall for the Lakers. In the
league meet, she was fifth in the
200 in 2:06.17 and seventh in the
500 in 5:37.85. In the victory over
Groves, she captured the 500 in
5:51.52.
Both Axner sisters and Music
competed for the Detroit team in
the Jewish Community Centers
North American Maccabi Youth
Games in Cleveland this past
summer.
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