Gazette MVP: Brunswick's Lillian Giacomazza always met the occasion

Lillian Giacomazza and the rest of the Brunswick girls swimming and diving team were determined to make sure last season's success wasn't a flash in the pan. Behind Giacomazza's leadership in the pool, that mission was a smashing success. Not only did Brunswick meet the standards, the Blue Devils soared past them. Giacomazza was one of two four-event state qualifiers for Brunswick and Medina County, finishing 26th in the 50-yard freestyle (24.69) and 30th in the 100 butterfly (59.50) while anchoring the Blue Devils to second-team All-Ohio in the 200 medley relay and 200 free relay. Brunswick qualified all three relays for a second straight season, but upped the ante this year by qualifying for the "B" finals in two. For her efforts, Giacomazza is the Gazette MVP. "I'm most proud of how not just mine but the whole team's effort really showed this year," Giacomazza said. "We all worked so hard this year. The practices were really tough. We all came together to prove to everyone that we can have a great season again after losing all of our seniors after last year." Giacomazza clocked the county's top times in the 50 free (24.25) and 100 fly (58.12) and was among the leaders in nearly every other event, including second in the 100 free (54.24) to Wadsworth's Hailey Otradovec (54.07). What really stood out was Giacomazza's ability to step up at the biggest meets. The junior won the 50 free (24.54), 100 fly (58.43), 200 medley relay (1:50.46) and 400 free relay (3:43.37) to lead Brunswick to a Greater Cleveland Conference championship repeat. The Blue Devils also repeated as Northwest District champions, with Giacomazza leading the victorious 200 medley relay (1:48.54) and 200 free relay (1:38.59). "She just really had a dominant season through the regular season," Brunswick coach Mike Milliken said. "That was something we thought she could do, but what stood out was the consistency throughout every dual meet, the conference championship and invitationals. She was consistently fast and that big time anchor on the relays for us. "She didn't get beaten very often during the regular season." That success translated big time to the district meet. Giacomazza finished fourth in the 100 fly last season, missing automatically qualifying for state by one spot, but reached state in both of her individual events this winter. "After last season, I missed state by one, I really wanted to focus on everything I didn't work on the season before," she said. "I really tried to think about everything I could do better. I listened to my coach and I applied everything as much as I could to make the improvements that I needed to make." Giacomazza's abilities to analyze her performance and turn coaching critiques into positive outputs were keys to overcoming the memories and nerves of her previous district performance. "One of the things (Milliken) always tells me is I actually listen to him, so that makes him happy," Giacomazza said. "Whenever he tells me to work on something, the next time we do it I apply what he said. He can tell I'm really thinking about what to work on." The opportunity to see that hard work turn into progress and dropped times is what Giacomazza feels is unique to the sport. "I love that you can see the hard work paying off," she said. "You can slowly see the changes and how it's paying off if someone is working hard." With one more season left, Giacomazza won't let off the gas. While she was happy her and her teammates qualified for the "B" finals for the 200 medley and 200 free relay, the 16th-place finish — last in the "B" final — was not quite up to what she thought her and her teammates were capable of achieving. "We didn't perform as well as we wanted to, but I'm still proud of how far we came from last year, not getting any relays into the finals to getting both our 200 relays into the finals," Giacomazza said. "It was a great accomplishment." Not one to draw attention to herself, Giacomazza carries a quiet confidence and leads through the example of hard work. What stands out the most is the effort she puts in to see her and her teammates succeed in the relays. "She's never too high or too low," Milliken said. "She's a lot of fun to be around and a lot of fun to coach. I know her teammates feel the same way. When she's at practice she lifts the mood. She's very pleasant person to be around." Giacomazza credited her teammates for being able to lift her up and motivate her due to the special bond at Brunswick. "I love our team," Giacomazza said. "Having a team that's so close both boys and girls makes the sport more fun. We go out to eat every single day and find time to hang out outside of practice." Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com.