Toughened by final-relay, dual-meet wins over Columbia Prep and Convent of the Sacred Heart, School of the Holy Child brought a record of 4-1-1 into the Western New England Prep School Swimming Championships February 22 and the New England Prep School Championships the following weekend.
By Mitch Silver
Toughened by final-relay, dual-meet wins over Columbia Prep and Convent of the Sacred Heart, School of the Holy Child brought a record of 4-1-1 into the Western New England Prep School Swimming Championships February 22 and the New England Prep School Championships the following weekend.
Division III Holy Child was the runner-up at Westerns, and then went on to place fourth out of 14 teams at the big New England Championship, only 12 points from the podium.
The Class of 2018 — in other words, eight graders — weren’t awed by the competition. Hannah Cleary’s ninth place in the 200 Individual Medley and fifth in the 100 Breaststroke, Alexandra DeStaebler’s ninth in the 200 Freestyle and sixth place in the 500, and Victoria Gaffney’s tenth place in the 100 Butterfly and ninth in the 500 Freestyle contributed heavily to the team’s point total.
Their big sisters — all right, the freshman — weren’t slackers either. Season bests from Samantha Drew (eighth place in the 200 Individual Medley and seventh in the 100 Butterfly), Emma Michelini (fifteenth in the 100 Backstroke), Julia Gaffney and Catherine McSorley pushed Holy Child ahead. Michelini’s impressive swim chopped eight seconds (!) off her best and qualified for the finals. Gaffney came down by more than five seconds in the 100 Freestyle, and more than ten in the 100 Breast, while McSorley was the first alternate in the 100 Backstroke.
Working up by class, sophomore Riley Mulin, was the team’s high-point heroine with fifth-place finishes in the 200 and 100 Freestyle. Caitlin Panarella achieved personal bests in the 50 and 100 Freestyle. Junior Jaela Salala competed in the 50 Freestyle and Relay Events.
As for the seniors, Maeve Potter, Sabrina Liquorie, Kristyn Rooney, Kyra Williams, and Sarah Magarelli completed their Holy Child swimming careers with outstanding performances. Team co-Captain Potter finished fifth in the 100 Backstroke and fifteenth in the 200 Individual Medley. Fellow co-Captain Liquorie had strong performance in the 200 and 500 Freestyles. Rooney was eighth in the 50 Freestyle and tenth in the 100 Freestyle; Williams placed 13th in the 100 Breaststroke, and Sarah Magarelli competed in the 50 Freestyle and Relay Events.
Though his charges didn’t set foot on the New England victory stand, their across-the-board strength along with regular-season dual-meet victories over Good Council and Horace Mann has Coach Art Tiedemann looking confidently toward the future. “I could rant and rave endlessly about this team! Although it will be difficult seeing our five seniors leave the team, we have a strong foundation of younger swimmers that will continue to improve and succeed.”
— Photos by ryesportsphotos.com
