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MUSCATINE, Iowa – A year after finishing 26th at the state swim meet with 14 points, coach Judd Anderson hopes for better.

If his Muskies can improve a little from their qualifying times and marks, they might just do so.

“We hope to improve a little on times,” Anderson said. “It will be a little difficult because we did very well on Saturday. Of course, if we didn’t, we wouldn’t be at the state meet.”

Two of the six qualifiers will be very busy this weekend as senior Sarah Martin and junior Hannah Eichelberger will be competing in four events. Martin will dive on Friday and swim on all three relays while Eichelberger swims all three relays and goes solo in the 50 freestyle in 25.16 seconds.

“Hannah swims four and Sarah and Jennifer (Littlejohn) three,” Anderson said. “Everyone else is in one or two which should make us fresher, but you also have to sit and wait to swim. We’re hoping to do a little better; score a few more points than last year. It’s not OK to (just) be there. We want to improve on the past. It’s going to take a lot of effort.”

The best seed time for the Muskies was Eichelberger in the 50 free. She will swim out of lane four in the second of three heats in that event after missing the school record in the event by half of a second.

“We were tapered for districts, so we’re not shooting for the stars,” Eichelberger said. “We’re going to do the best we can, but we’re not going for state titles or anything like that.”

Jennifer Littlejohn will swim in two of the three relays and also made the field in the breaststroke. Laura Ewalt is on the 200 medley and 200 free relay teams. Haley Bartelt and Arianna Calderon are the remaining members of the 400 free relay.

Anderson said he put Eichelberger and Martin on all three relays to maximize his team’s potential for scoring points at the meet.

“From a team standpoint, we want to get more points,” Anderson said. “This is a better program for rest, breaks and recovery. We’re not a year-round group (for swimming) — in some ways it helps us because they are fresher swimming only 12-13 weeks of the season.”

As for Martin, Anderson said he wishes his senior had qualified at least one more time in the diving competition to get a feel for it at state.

“It’s a lot more iffy,” Anderson said. “Comparing scores in the state is not real valid because judging varies throughout the state. It will take a few good dives on her part, a few bad dives on the others part; she could move up.

“It will take perseverance. It would have been nice if she had made it as a sophomore or a junior. There’s a lot of time between 36 divers to wait for your dive. You can zone out.”

Anderson said it will be up to Martin’s aunt, diving coach Vicki Beckey, to stay alert.

“She has to remained focused on the next dive,” Anderson said. “Unfortunately, you can’t duplicate something like this in dual or invitational meets.”

MHS state swimming & diving qualifiers

Diving – Sarah Martin, 15th diver; 308.65

200 medley relay – Hannah Eichelberger, Jennifer Littlejohn, Sarah Martin, Laura Ewalt; heat two, lane 7; 1:55.79

50 freestyle – Hannah Eichelberger, heat two, lane 4; 25.16

200 freestyle relay – Hannah Eichelberger, Jennifer Littlejohn, Sarah Martin, Laura Ewalt; heat two, lane 2; 1:43.66

100 breaststroke – Jennifer Littlejohn, heat one, lane 8; 1:12.34

400 freestyle relay – Hannah Eichelberger, Haley Bartelt, Arianna Calderon, Sarah Martin; heat two, lane 8, 3:50.33