Fact: The Saline High School boys swimming and diving team is undefeated and performing like a state championship contender.

Fact: This past fall, the Saline girls brought home the school’s first swimming state championship.

Fact: Before this school year, the two programs had just one top-five state finish between them.

Which begs the question: Is there something in the water in Saline?

Well, technically, yes. Lots and lots of swimmers, in all age ranges.

“I think what you’re seeing right now is a culmination of the (swimming) programs being out there,” said Saline girls and boys varsity coach Todd Brunty.

The programs Brunty speaks of include the many summer country club teams, the Saline Stingrays club teams and the USA swim program. Not to mention, the Saline High School boys and girls squads.

“We are kind of reaching our full maturity in our programs,” continued Brunty. “When you get this wave of talent … well, you saw it with the girls team. Everything’s starting to hit on all cylinders.”

The Saline girls finished fourth in the state in 2008 and before that were in the top 10 only once, a ninth-place finish in 2004. The boys' sixth-place finish last year was its best ever. They were ninth in 2007 and 2008.

One swimmer who has witnessed Saline’s steady incline is Jake Englemeir, a senior captain who ventured into swimming as a 3-year-old. Englemeir credits much of Saline’s current success to those initial years when he and his fellow swimmers were first shown the ropes -- or perhaps more fittingly, strokes.

“That really helped set the tone, so that when we got to high school, we already knew a bunch of people that were here,” said Englemeir, who swims the 200-yard freestyle and 100 butterfly. “Swimming together, knowing each other and training together let us know what we were capable of.”

Side that with Saline’s work ethic, which Brunty noted is at its peak for both boys and girls since he took over three years ago, and the Hornets’ sudden-rise-to-the-top puzzle begins piecing together.

The biggest piece was added this past fall, when the Saline girls claimed the program’s first state title on Nov. 21 at the Division 1 state meet in Holland.

“That was awesome,” said Englemeir. “My whole life, I’ve seen Pioneer girls win state meet after state meet, and to finally see Saline win one was pretty sweet.”

In addition, “it opened (the boys) eyes to the possibilities. It gave them belief,” Brunty said.

That ‘belief’ clearly hasn’t hurt.

In their first seven meets, the Hornets have yet to lose to any opponent. That includes a run of wins at the Northville Quad, where Saline won by an average of 75 points against its three opponents. Most recently, Saline trumped the likes of Southeastern Conference foes Pioneer and Monroe.

Oh, and it was the Hornets first time defeating the reigning state champion Pioneers.

“I’ve been waiting three years for this,” Englemeir said after the win. “(The win) is something special.”

Helping lead the Hornets against Pioneer, and all season, has been freshman phenom Adam Whitener, who is among the state's best in the 100 and 200 yard freestyles. Whitener is one of 15 Saline freshmen who make up nearly half the team.

“It’s exciting,” said Connor Concoran, also a senior captain, who swims the 500 freestyle and 200 freestyle. “We have young people that we can depend on. It brings a lot more of a team drive at meets.”

“It helps motivate the upperclassmen, too,” added Englemeir. “They don’t want to get beat by the freshman all the time, so they step up and swim faster. No one wants to lose to the freshmen.”

The upperclassmen’s guidance doesn’t go unnoticed either.

“They’ve been helping us a lot and pushing us in practice,” said Whitener. “It’s great to see this legacy and be a part of it this year.”

With a flourishing freshmen group, a reigning state-champion coach, and steady production throughout the lineup, the Saline boys can’t help but think about mirroring the girls success and securing their very own first state title.

“It is a big motivation for us to win state,” said Concoran. “Saline doesn’t have that many state championships, so that’d be a really big thing if we got two in one year from the same sport.”

Two state swimming titles in one school season for two programs only 13 years old.

Fact: It could happen.

“If you would’ve gone back and told me that could happen four years ago,” said Englemeir, “I’d say, ‘There’s no way that that’s going to happen.’

"I don’t know if I’d have words to describe what that would mean to us.”

Kaleb Roedel is a sports writer for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734)623-2562, e-mailed at kalebroedel@annarbor.com or followed on Twitter @KalebisReal.