KUA Swimmers Impressive against Eaglebrook
KUA swimmers turned in a slew of impressive performances Saturday in a
hard-fought meet against an excellent and much-larger squad from the
Eaglebrook School in Deerfield, Mass.
KUA swimmers turned in a slew of impressive performances Saturday in a
hard-fought meet against an excellent and much-larger squad from the
Eaglebrook School in Deerfield, Mass. Eaglebrook is a team of
high-quality male swimmers that has not lost a swim meet in more than
8 years.
Senior Caitlin Michaels led the Wildcats by crushing her competitors in both the 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard backstroke, pulling out to early leads in both races and never looking back. Sophomore Amelia Good won the 200 individual medley, coming from behind halfway through the race with a strong breaststroke leg and finishing more than a body length ahead. Ryo Nimura followed Amelia with a strong forth place finish. In the 100 breaststroke, Amelia battled head to head with Eaglebrook's most talented swimmer, ultimately finishing second in a very tight race. Jonathan Morse swam a great 50 backstroke, winning that event.
Sophomore Anne Loftus had very fast second place swims in both the both 100 and 200 freestyle races. In the 100 race, Anne swam a lifetime best, cracking the 1 minute barrier. In the 200 she stalked the leader, closing rapidly to a thundering "KU-KU" chant and was touched out by fingernail. Freshman Mollie Hoopes took a strong lead in the 50 breast as teammates cheered wildly, only to see an Eaglebrook opponent close the gap for a narrow victory. Mollie also took second in the 100 yard individual medley event. Sophomore Will Murphy churned hard through the 50 free, despite losing a contact lens partway through, finishing just two-tenths of a second behind. Frosh Harold Kim turned in an excellent silver- medal performance in the 50 fly. "That was awesome," teammate Good said, giving him a high five. Harold, ever humble, flashed a shy grin.
In their first season of competitive swimming, seniors Tom Timpone and Holly McLaughlin and junior John Galvin continuing to swim very competitive races, challenging swimmers with many years of experience and training. Tom provided the meets most enlightening moment, mounting the starting blocks for the 100 breaststroke seconds before the starter pulled the trigger .... then asking, as he was taking the starting position, "What stroke am I swimming and how far do I swim?" In spite of this entertaining (at least to his teammates) uncertainty, Tom rallied with an excellent race -- using the appropriate stroke.
The relay races were perhaps the day's most interesting events, as much for KUA's displays of creativity as for the strong swimming. Using a mix of male and female swimmers, KUA provided a strong challenge to Eaglebrook's best talent. In the day's closest race, the 200-yard freestyle relay, Loftus, Good, Michaels and Morse swam hard, taking second place by 0.07 seconds. The KUA team of Murphy, Kim, Timpone and Galvin also broke the two-minute barrier to take third.
In the 200 yard medley relay, an event in which each swimmer does a different stroke (in a specific order) Hoopes, Good, Michaels and Loftus finished in a hard fought second place. Due to a coaching miscommunication, a second KUA 200 medley relay team (McLaughlin, Nimura, Timpone, Murphy) challenged the conventional stroke order and the Eaglebrook swim officials' understanding of the event. In the 400 yard freestyle event, Murphy, Galvin, Nimura and Morse closed the meet in excellent fashion.
The KUA swimmers and coaches would to thank their devoted van driver and cheerleader, Mary "Mario Andretti" Exton, for two fun trips.
Back
Senior Caitlin Michaels led the Wildcats by crushing her competitors in both the 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard backstroke, pulling out to early leads in both races and never looking back. Sophomore Amelia Good won the 200 individual medley, coming from behind halfway through the race with a strong breaststroke leg and finishing more than a body length ahead. Ryo Nimura followed Amelia with a strong forth place finish. In the 100 breaststroke, Amelia battled head to head with Eaglebrook's most talented swimmer, ultimately finishing second in a very tight race. Jonathan Morse swam a great 50 backstroke, winning that event.
Sophomore Anne Loftus had very fast second place swims in both the both 100 and 200 freestyle races. In the 100 race, Anne swam a lifetime best, cracking the 1 minute barrier. In the 200 she stalked the leader, closing rapidly to a thundering "KU-KU" chant and was touched out by fingernail. Freshman Mollie Hoopes took a strong lead in the 50 breast as teammates cheered wildly, only to see an Eaglebrook opponent close the gap for a narrow victory. Mollie also took second in the 100 yard individual medley event. Sophomore Will Murphy churned hard through the 50 free, despite losing a contact lens partway through, finishing just two-tenths of a second behind. Frosh Harold Kim turned in an excellent silver- medal performance in the 50 fly. "That was awesome," teammate Good said, giving him a high five. Harold, ever humble, flashed a shy grin.
In their first season of competitive swimming, seniors Tom Timpone and Holly McLaughlin and junior John Galvin continuing to swim very competitive races, challenging swimmers with many years of experience and training. Tom provided the meets most enlightening moment, mounting the starting blocks for the 100 breaststroke seconds before the starter pulled the trigger .... then asking, as he was taking the starting position, "What stroke am I swimming and how far do I swim?" In spite of this entertaining (at least to his teammates) uncertainty, Tom rallied with an excellent race -- using the appropriate stroke.
The relay races were perhaps the day's most interesting events, as much for KUA's displays of creativity as for the strong swimming. Using a mix of male and female swimmers, KUA provided a strong challenge to Eaglebrook's best talent. In the day's closest race, the 200-yard freestyle relay, Loftus, Good, Michaels and Morse swam hard, taking second place by 0.07 seconds. The KUA team of Murphy, Kim, Timpone and Galvin also broke the two-minute barrier to take third.
In the 200 yard medley relay, an event in which each swimmer does a different stroke (in a specific order) Hoopes, Good, Michaels and Loftus finished in a hard fought second place. Due to a coaching miscommunication, a second KUA 200 medley relay team (McLaughlin, Nimura, Timpone, Murphy) challenged the conventional stroke order and the Eaglebrook swim officials' understanding of the event. In the 400 yard freestyle event, Murphy, Galvin, Nimura and Morse closed the meet in excellent fashion.
The KUA swimmers and coaches would to thank their devoted van driver and cheerleader, Mary "Mario Andretti" Exton, for two fun trips.
