It’s kind of a formality, these Delta Valley Conference swimming championships.

Davis High’s girls and boys teams have been dominant over the years, regardless of which league the Blue Devils are asked to grace.

For much of the last decade, it’s been the DVC and, like veteran Blue Devil girls coach Doug Wright recalls, before that: “We’ve won league since, well … It has been 20-plus years.”

So, when the league meet opens Thursday with trials and the finals finally splash down on Friday at Arroyo Pool in Davis, is there any competition for DHS?

Both Wright and Devil boys coach Tracy Stapleton point to Franklin as having some good swimmers, but expect business as usual come 1 p.m. both days.

“I expect everyone to swim smart and to make the finals,” Wright says. “We have a total of 36 girls … 23 varsity and 13 frosh/soph that started the season.

“Remarkably, we have 36 total entered in the trials of league. My goal is (to have) all of them swimming in the finals on Friday.”

Meanwhile, Stapleton says his memory doesn’t reach back far enough to remember that last time a Davis boys team didn’t win a league crown.

“We are looking for quality performances for those athletes already qualified for sections,” Stapleton explains. “We are hoping to get more athletes section-qualifying times. This is especially the case for younger, JV swimmers.”

DHS girls to watch this week, according to Wright, will be seniors Keelia Houston (100 butterfly and 500 freestyle), Hannah Levien (50 free and 100 breaststroke), Michelle Greenough (200 free and 100 breast) and Jane Chen (100 fly and 100 backstroke) with a pool full of talented juniors and sophomores — like Beverly Nguyen, Christine Chu, Tara Halsted and Rachel Johnson — ready to splash into prominence.

Stapleton’s crew includes The Sprint Dart Wade Allen (50 and 100 free), Marc Blumberg (200 free and 100 fly), Matt Whittle (100 individual medley and 500 free), Paul Dailey (breaststroke), Adam Raabe (200 and 500 free), Scott Perry (200 and 500 free) and Cameron Franke (50 free and 100 breast).

While most schools — especially those in DVC these days — would covet a league crown, it’s clear that for Davis teams, this conference meeting is merely a warm-up for the big prize.

At Tokay High, on May 12 and 14, the Sac-Joaquin Section meet will be the real test for the Blue Devils.

Last year the girls, who have won 16 section swim titles, finished second to St. Francis. The boys — with nine Sac-Joaquin crowns — were looking up at Jesuit and Granite Bay.

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DHS senior Kellia Houston swims the butterfly in a relay during a meet earlier this season. The Blue Devils will host the DVC championship meet on Thursday and Friday at Arroyo Pool. Wayne Tilcock/Enterprise file photo

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