The state girls swim and dive meet got underway Thursday with diving preliminaries in both classes.

The Class A and Class 2A swimming preliminaries will take place on Friday on the University of Minnesota campus, with swimming and diving finals slated to take place Saturday at the same site.

Class A activities begin at 12 p.m. each day, with Class 2A to follow at 6 p.m.

Here are a few things to watch for this weekend:

CLASS A

Visitation reigns?: The Blazers take aim at their 11th straight state championship, led by Katie Miller, who is a heavy favorite in both the 200- and 500-yard freestyle races. Fellow senior Maggie Farley is also a legitimate threat in the 50-yard freestyle, as well as the 100-yard butterfly.

But, as always, the Blazers’ biggest strengths lie within their depth and relay competitiveness. Visitation is expected to contend across the board in relay races.

Other Class A swimmers from the East Metro to watch are Mounds Park Academy-St. Croix’s Alaina Biebl, Mahtomedi’s Abigail Wright, Como Park’s Aleia Lueck and Visitation’s Merry Miller.

CLASS 2A

Raptors roar?: East Ridge sophomore Logan Havermann is the favorite to win not only the 200-yard individual medley, but also the 100-yard breaststroke as she leads an East Ridge team that also touts a couple of competitive relay teams and could fare quite well in the team competition.

Other Class 2A swimmers from the East Metro to watch are Apple Valley’s Greta Marcott, Mounds View’s Ellie Bina, East Ridge’s Jette Hadicke and Stillwater’s Claire Christianson.