Warren swimmer Mason Francis, left, celebrates his two state titles with his father, Mike Francis, poolside at last week’s Ohio High School State Meet. (Photo provided)

CANTON, Ohio – Four words explain why Warren senior Mason Francis won two individual titles in convincing fashion at Friday’s Ohio High School State Swim Meet.

“Hard work pays off.”

At C.T. Branin Natatorium, Francis successfully defended his Division II titles in both 0the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle, and was named MVP by the Ohio High School Swim Coaches Association.

Francis set a D-II state record while winning the 100 free in a time of 43.55 seconds after having taken gold in the 50 free in a time of 19.71, which was a mere one-tenth of a second off the current state record.

“Everything went smooth at state,” Francis said. “The prelims went well and that boosted my confidence that’s for sure. When I got to the finals, that’s the most confident I’ve ever felt. It was just the perfect meet.

Warren senior Mason Francis receives a hug while atop the podium after winning the 100 freestyle during Friday’s Ohio High School State Swim Meet at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio.Francis successfully defended his titles in both the 50 free and 100 free. (Photo provided)

“My previous best times in the 100 were two seconds from the state record and I thought there was absolutely no way, that it was out of reach. After the race, I was so emotional when I got out of the water. I’ve done so much work this year, what a way to end it.”

Just as impressive – Francis’ results in the just two individual events placed Warren 15th in the team standings among the 64 schools which scored.

Francis competed in front of a large contingent of family of friends estimated at around 30 people, including his parents Xandra and Mike Francis. Mason touched on all the support his mother has provided along the way as well as the coaching from his father, who spent his third season working with his son.

“A lot of people came up to support me – Wow! It was really cool to see,” Francis said. “About half that many people came up last year and I thought that was a lot.

“That night in the 100 was probably the loudest I ever heard. The state meet is the most energy filled room I have been in, and that was the loudest ever. It was amazing.”

Francis crushed it in both finals. River Valley’s Levi Priddy (45.27) finished runner-up in the 100 free, while Worthington Christian’s Austin Hickok (20.45) took second in the 50 free.

“There was no doubt I was going to win a state championship – I was going to do it,” Francis said. “I basically won the 100 free by two seconds. That swim was the best feeling ever. I had never felt so smooth, so powerful ever. I don’t know how to explain it. The way I was moving through the water was completely different.

“In that last 25, I took one breath and didn’t even get to take in air. I left nothing behind and I’m glad I can say that.”

One of Francis’ buddies had to chase him down to relay the information of the MVP award. He closes out his high school career with six state medals, including four individual titles. According to Swimcloud rankings, he went from No. 8 in the state among high school swimmers to No. 2.

“He did fantastic,” said his father, who was on the pool deck as his coach for both races. Mike Francis also had the honor of awarding his son the medal for the 100 free. “He was first off the block and never looked back. He was in the lead the whole time. His underwater were good. When he left the block there was no doubt.

“As far as the MVP honor, it’s an award-performance based. Nobody was even close to him. He blew them away. His performances were so dominating, and he only did two swims.”

After basically taking no time off since the week after last year’s state championships and training an entire calendar year leading up to this year’s state event, Francis gave himself the weekend off before resuming his training regiment.

Eventually, he will be joining the Ohio State University swim program in the fall for his freshman year.

“The year before, I thought I world hard – this year, I worked my a** off,” Mason Francis said. “At one point, I wasn’t sure if it would get me where I wanted it to go. It pushed me further than I thought. I look back and it was worth it.

“Hard work pays off.”