'STOGA SWIM AND DIVE
Conestoga vs Penncrest - January 17, 2020
The scoreboard at Penncrest positions the Away Mens and Women’s scores above each other, with the Home scores in line to the left. For most of the meet, the only drama seemed to be watching the Conestoga boys and girls totals leap frog each other as they routed another Central League foe. But there was some unexpected excitement towards the end provided primarily from the boys in the pool.
Even without a few of their strongest swimmers and divers, the girls started out strong easily going 1-2 in the 200 Medley Relay, with Natalie McGlaughlin, Audrey Laganelli, Sarah Park, and Keira Haas forming the Gold group. Madi Ritzenhaler, Naomi Furman, Claire Newhall, and Delaney Burns teamed up for Silver.
Keira Haas, Lauren Verelli, and Sarah Park were in a tight battle through 50 in the 200 Free, before Haas used a strong second half for the win. Park took 2nd and Verelli 4th. Then Laganelli and Allison Yuan battled for most of the 200 IM, with Laganelli using a dominant freestyle lap to finish first. Teammate Elle Wenstrup completed the sweep.
Penncrest showed some life in a very competitive 50 Free, but Kalie Whitaker got the touchout for gold with Ava Collins taking 3rd and Olivia Braswell 4th. Then on to the boards, where Tanna Styer earned her first medal of the year taking 3rd.
Stoga had a chance for a sweep in the 100 Fly, with Burns cruising to the win and Ritzenhaler earning an easy second. But Newhall was touched out for 3rd. The race was for silver in the 100 Free after Louise Hay turned a slight lead at 50 into a body length win. In the 3 way touch for 2/3/4., Penncrest took the silver with Whitaker and Totoro getting edged to 3rd and 4th.
It was a Stoga sweep all the way in the grueling 500, with Ayala Miller taking control at the hallway point and cruising to gold, followed by Ella O’Shea and Verrelli. Then another sweep in the 200 Free Relay, with Yuan taking the baton from Joyce Fung and building a large lead for Laganelli and Lucy Wydeven to close out. Verelli, Totoro, Park and O’Shea took second.
The 100 Back had McLaughlin and Hay battling stroke for stroke before McGlaughlin used a strong final 25 to win, with Anna Bakker coming in 3rd. Naomi Furman then dominated the 100 Breast, winning easily with Totoro taking second.
In the 400 Free Relay, the race was on for second after Keira Haas built a big lead for teammates Collin, Miller and Ritsenhaler who cruised to the win. Keira Wiley and Samantha Verelli battled teammates Oliva Braswell and Joyce Fung, before McLaughlin took over from Verelli and handed off a body length lead to Ella OShea to extend for second.
FINAL SCORE: Conestoga 101.5. Penncrest 73.5
The boys were equally dominant from the jump, literally, as Jack Hughes blasted off the blocks in the 200 Medley to take a lead that Raymond Welgosh, Gary Wang, and Stephen Graver never relinquished. James Johnson, Ishau Jiang, Noel Park, and John Yu took second. Park came right back in the 200 Free, using a fast start and a strong 2nd 100 to take gold. Aiden Brown kept pace for the first 100 before fading to second, with Jack Reinhart winning a tight battle for 3rd.
Mantas Sevelis used a strong butterfly leg to win the 200 IM, with Derek Fung and Brennan Stigal fighting it out for 2nd. Fung took control in the breast stroke to earn silver. There was lots of excitement in the 50 Free - a Stoga touchout resulting in Matthew Pawlaw, Yash Ray, and James Hughes going 1-2-3.
Penncrest’s Kieran Clark put on a show on the boards, topping 300 in a dazzlkng display of dives. Patrick Hoey for Stoga earned silver. Then back to the Stoga sweeps, with Graver cruising to the win in the 100 Fly. Aspen Malstrom easily distanced himself for 2nd, and Stigall taking 3rd. Then another 3 way Stoga battle in the 100 Free, with Wang earning the touch over Pawlow and Whitaker.
The drama in the 500 Free wasn’t completely in the pool. It was Luke Nagel versus the scoreboard, specifically the pool record. Out fast and quickly outdistancing his competitors, Nagel powered to a pool record 4:48:05! Congrats Luke! Aidan Brown and Jack Semmer finished 2-3 for Stoga.
Semmer then proved that he hadn’t worked hard enough in the 500 Free, having enough energy to nearly match Ray in the opening leg of the 200 Free Relay. Ray’s teammates Manion and the Hughes brothers earned the win, with Semmer’s squad of Sevelis Pawlow, and Park taking silver.
It was sweeps down the stretch in the 100 Back, with Ryan McDonough using a strong final turn to outpace Orsul;ak and Malstron, before Dennis Koh easily won the 100 Breast over Reinhart and Henry Kovan.
Then Nagel was back hunting milestones in the 400 Free relay, handing a big lead to Welgosh and Wang who continued the pace. The three then watched as Graver hit the water, peeking up at the time frequently to track progress versus the pool record. Graver brought it home, stopping the clock at 3:18:65 and more work for the Penncrest decorators. The previous record had stood since the 1990s! Congrats boys! Christopher Ivory, James Manion, John Yu and Miles Whitaker earned silver.
FINAL SCORE: Conestoga 102 Penncrest 69