In what was arguably the most competitive Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference championship meet in recent memory, the Greenwich High School girls swimming and diving team held its own.
During Thursday’s meet held at the Greenwich High School pool, Big Red finished fifth overall with 257 points. They beat out Wilton, as the Warriors took sixth with 246 points.
“I thought we swam really well,” Greenwich High School head coach Lorraine Hokayem said. “This is a nice prep meet for us coming up to LLs and Opens. We’ve been swimming really consistently, so I am excited for what’s to come.”
The overall winner was a surprise, as New Canaan claimed FCIAC gold with 314 points and easily beat FCIAC favorite Darien High School, who took second with 285 points.
Grabbing the bronze was Ridgefield, as the Tigers netted 278 points. Not to be outdone was Staples, as the ended the day fourth overall with 271 points.
Several Greenwich High swimmers had standout performances during FCIACs. Leading the way was Samantha Scott. In the 100-yard freestyle, the GHS freshman ended the day fourth overall with a time of 53.25 seconds and missed out on third by mere inches, as Staples’ Kenzie Healy touched the wall with a time of 53.15.
“We did really well today, especially since we haven’t been getting ready for this meet like other teams did,” Scott said. “I think our performance was strong. I did pretty good and I got best times in both events. We’re going to get ready for States now and get our new suits. I am excited for that and I think we can cut a lot of time and do really well.”
Greenwich’s best performances for the team took place before the FCIAC swimming finals happened. A day earlier, the Cards competed in the FCIAC diving championships at Westhill High School and scored big points for Big Red.
Sophomore Kate Russack took home the silver medal, posting 396.90 points. No one was catching Westhill/Stamford’s Rachel Burston, as the senior won the diving portion of FCIACs in a landslide with 505.00 points.
In addition to Russack, Big Red had three more finishers in the top 15. Freshman Annabelle Pollack was sixth on the day with 379.65 points, while fellow freshman Maddie Muldoon took home seventh overall with 373.10 points. In 11th place was another GHS freshman, Emily Murphy, as she grabbed 369.30 points.
“Diving has been on top the entire season,” Hokayem said. “We are so proud of them and they have been very consistent. They are mentally strong this year and it’s a young team, so we are really proud of what they are doing.”
Competing in the 100-yard backstroke, Scott pulled away from her New Canaan foe and finished the event seventh overall with a time of 59.45.
Not to be outdone was Kelly Montesi, who took home two sixth place spots during FCIACs. During the 100-yard butterfly event, Montesi was in a three-way battle with Norwalk’s Olivia Fassett and Darien’s Maggie Orem down the stretch.
In the end it was Fassett who took fifth with a time of 59.52. Montesi’s time of 59.79 beat out Orem, who took eighth with a time of 59.97.
Competing in the 200-individual medley, Montesi touched the wall with a time of 2:12.23 and just edged out teammate Brooke Collins, who finished the event seventh overall with a time of 2:12.30.
“I think we did really well,” Collins said. “It’s a hard meet for us because we don’t wear the suits and don’t rest like other teams do. We save that for States, but overall we did really well. Every team here seemed like they were in it to win it, but we did pretty well. I am proud of this team.”
Collins also registered another top 10 finish on the day. In the 100-yard breaststroke, the senior touched the wall eighth overall and posted a time of 1:10.87.
“These meets keep on getting faster every year, so it’s harder every year,” Collins said. “But I about the same that I did last year, so I am proud of my performance.”
In addition to Collins, sophomore Lilly Clisham cracked the top 10. While competing in the 200-yard freestyle, she ended the event with a time of 1:59.46, which was good enough for eighth on the day.
Teammate Emily Werner, a freshman, also competed in the 200-free and finished 13th overall. Her time of 1:59.71 just beat out Westhill’s Dominika Brice, who touched the wall with a time of 1:59.73.
In addition to her performance in the 200-yard freestyle event, Werner also competed in the longest event of the day, the 500-yard freestyle, and finished 16th overall with a time of 5:35.60.
Faring five spots better was GHS teammate Sophia Jahan, a sophomore, as she took home 11th overall with a time of 5:19.43.
Two more Lady Cardinals ended FCIACs with a top 10 time and both competed in the quickest event of the night, the 50-yard freestyle.
Sophomore Louisa Bjerke ended the night ninth overall with a time of 25.49, while teammate and fellow sophomore Taylor Schinto wasn’t far behind, touching the wall 10th overall with a time of 25.53.
“We wanted to swim strong races and be on our times,” Hokayem said. “I think we are all very excited of where we are at. It’s obvious that we are looking forward for the state meets.”
Bjerke also battled the best in the 100-yard freestyle and finished the event 13th overall with a time of 56.43, beating out Westhill’s Sarah Bennett’s time of 56.76. Sophomore Julia Merrill also competed in the 100-yard free and took home 11th place on the day with a time of 55.77.
In addition to the duo of Bjerke and Schinto, Greenwich had two more competitors in the 50-yard freestyle event. Merrill ended the night 14th overall with a time of 25.67, while teammate and sophomore Ainsleigh Winget grabbed 12th overall with a time of 25.58.
Winget also advanced to the FCIAC finals in the 100-yard backstroke and finished 16th overall with a time of 1:03.31.
Competing in the 100-yard breaststroke, senior Riley Ennis touched the wall with a time of 1:13.68, which was good enough for 16th place. Not to be outdone was her sister, Kate Ennis, as the sophomore finished 16th in the 200-individual medley with a time of 2:21.29.
“I think the FCIAC has some of the fastest swimmers and the best diving in the state,” Hokayem said. “It’s always an exciting meet. It was very close this year and there were a lot of teams in it, which made it exciting. It’s great to get to see everyone here and we get to see them in a couple of weeks at Opens.”
