Girls Winter Swimming & Diving Sectional Championships: Concord-Carlisle makes it three; Franklin, Minnechaug also golden

Concord-Carlisle High School added to its recent sectional championship dominance as the Patriots captured their third consecutive North title held Saturday, February 8 at MIT's Zegiser Center.

After being denied a year earlier, Franklin High School made it a pair of South championship victories in three years at MIT. And in the Central/West championship at Springfield College, which was moved up a day because of weather, Minnechaug Regional led a Western Mass. parade of teams to the top of the scoring list. 

North

Concord-Carlisle put forth a dominant performance in extending its grasp on the sectional championship. The Patriots won four events and placed in the top three in three others, compiling 338.5 points to easily cruise past Dual County League rival and runner-up Weston High School (259.5).

Junior Bea Turrettini secured two of the individual victories for Concord-Carlisle, winning the 200-yard freestyle (1 minute, 56.73 seconds) and the 500 free (5:07.72). Senior Maisey O'Donnell grabbed gold in the 1-meter diving (484.20), and Elisabeth Reiling was first in the 100 butterfly (58.29).

Reiling also took third in the 50 free (24.94) and was part of the third-place 200 medley relay team (1:53.98) with juniors Phoebe Renyi and Sarah Fortier, and senior Reese Phillips. The Patriots also took second in the 200 free relay (1:41.81) behind Turrettini, senior Allison Lu, junior Hana Baldini and Phillips.

Weston's runner-up finish was sparked by an individual win from junior Kate Krueger (200 free, 2:10.90).

Led by junior Lucia Antonucci, who won the 100 breaststroke (1:09.57),  Mystic Valley Charter School was third as a team (241 points). Antonucci also helped the Eagles win the 200 free relay (1:41.28) with junior Isabella Cirame, senior Lana Santos Albuquerque and junior Britney Nayiga, and the 200 medley relay of senior Sydney Cao, Nayiga, junior Isabelle Pennachio, and Santos Albuquerque also won gold (1:51.01). 

Lincoln-Sudbury Regional senior Joslin Halsey was a double winner in the 50 free (24.21) and 100 free (52.17), and helped the Warriors' 400 free relay (3:41.53) to first with freshman Defne Russo, senior Bella Newbern and sophomore Maya Particelli. L-S was fourth as a team (232), and Wayland High School took fifth (173.5).

Results     

South

Franklin got back to the top of the podium, where the Panthers stood for the first time as a program in 2023. The Panthers rode two individual victories to a team total of 229, and used their depth to easily outpace runner-up Dover-Sherborn High School (173.5) and third-place finisher Attleboro High School (173).

It took until the final three events for Franklin to take home a first, but senior Harikalal Birali won the 100 backstroke (59.17) and then two events later the Panthers finished things off with gold in the 400 freestyle relay (3:43.87) with Birali, fellow seniors Kseniya Baghdasaryan and Taylor O'Neil, and sophomore Ava Pecora. Franklin also was second in the 200 medley relay (1:53.8) and got thirds from Baghdasaryan in the 100 butterfly (59.21) and O'Neil in the 100 free (55.12).

Attleboro senior Zuri Ferguson was the individual star of the day, winning the 200 individual medley (2:06.98) and 500 freestyle (5:09.12), and also leading the Bombardiers to a pair of winning relay performances. Attleboro took the 200 medley relay with Ferguson leading junior Ava Dougherty, sophomore Samantha Provost and senior Caroline Lynch-Bartek. The same foursome shuffled the order to win the 200 free relay (1:42.54).

Dover-Sherborn was second in the 200 free relay (1:43.94) with freshman Dakota Callahan, junior Kate Dawley, freshman Raina Wu and junior Nora Olson, and also got a third from freshman Norah Yang in the 100 breaststroke (1:11.1).

New Bedford sophomore Serenity Coleman and Sharon junior Feining Huang also were double winners. Coleman took the 50 free (24.63) and 100 free (54.12), while Huang prevailed in the 100 fly (55.87) and 200 free (1:53.29).

Results     

Central/West

Minnechaug won a tight battle with Longmeadow High School and captured the championship trophy at Springfield College's Linkletter Natatorium. The Falcons finished with 289 points, just ahead of Longmeadow's runner-up total of 277.

Senior Gabby Harding was the spark for the winning Falcons, finishing first in the 50 free (24.75) and also helping set the tone in the first event with a win in the 200 medley relay along with sophomore Chelsea Ortega and seniors Alayna Lucas and Claire Pouliot. Harding later added a second place in the 100 free (54.38), while Ortega secured a second in the 100 backstroke (1:02.42) and a third in the 200 individual medley (2:17.49).

Adding to the Falcons' point total were runner-up finishes in the 200 free relay and 400 free relay.

Junior Lilah Doherty had a strong showing in Longmeadow's push, winning the 200 free (1:53.82) and 100 butterfly (56.73). Doherty also helped the Lancers to a pair of relay victories - the 200 free relay (1:40.19) with sophomores Izabella Strebel and Emillia Szyluk and senior Maria DiPetrio, and the 400 free relay (3:41.62) with Strebel, Szyluk and senior Julianna Quinlan.

Northampton High School senior Amalia Guerra was a double winner in the 200 IM (2:10.94) and 100 backstroke (57.54).

Amherst Regional was third overall with 183 points, led by senior Bette Sherr-Garcia's win in the 1-meter diving (401.30), followed by Westfield High School (178) and Algonquin Regional (122).

Results