Racing in the final dual meet of the season for Andover Girls Swimming & Diving against its archrival Phillips Exeter Academy, Allyson Ty ’18 broke the 20 year old Andover pool record for the 100-Yard Backstroke. Allyson Ty finished with a time of 58.32, eclipsing the old mark of 59.01 by an impressive margin.
“I was a little nervous to swim the event because I knew that my time was close to the record, so there was some pressure. But my teammates were all so encouraging, and I felt very determined to swim hard and get it,” said Allyson Ty.
Andover defeated Exeter with the impressive score of 108-78.
“There was definitely of lot of added motivation to this meet against our school rival, especially since it was our last home and dual meet of the season. The stands were crowded with parents, faculty, and students cheering us on. The added support got us more enthusiastic to race,” said Kathleen Ty ’19.
Andover started off the meet strong with a win in the 200-Yard Medley relay. The team, which consisted of Emma Donchi ’18, Allyson Ty, Elizabeth Tran ’19, and Jackie Rossi ’20 finished in a final time of 1:53.86.
In the 200-Yard Freestyle, Co-Captain Katherine Sweetser ’17 won with a time of 1:59.15.
“The team did a great job fighting for every point, even as the meet progressed,” said Sweetser. “The final races can get more tiring but the girls just kept pushing like we train to do.”
Andover displayed its depth in the 200-Yard Individual Medley, with Tran and Donchi claiming both first and second place with times of 2:13.18 and 2:17.40, respectively.
The team continued to collect first place finishes against Exeter with wins from Allyson Ty in the 50-Yard Freestyle, racing a time of 24.71, and a win from Sweetser in the 100-Yard Butterfly with a time of 1:00.58.
Andover also secured a podium sweep in the 1-Meter Dive, with Reece Pelletier ’20, Ora Cullen ’19, and Claire Davis ’20 claiming the top three spots with scores of 246.80, 217.00, and 208.20, respectively.
Andover also earned places in the last two events of the meet. In 100-Yard Breastroke, Kathleen Ty and Lindi Schroeder ’20 finished second and third with times of 1:12.61 and 1:16.64, respectively, while in 400-Yard Freestyle Relay, Jess Gearan ’18, Sweetser, Tran, and Allyson Ty finished in 3:44.05, earning them a second place finish.
According to Amy Xia ’19, the atmosphere of the pool allowed both Andover and Exeter athletes to perform at their best.
“From the beginning of the meet to the end, everyone was on their feet cheering and screaming for each other,” said Xia.
Andover will now travel to Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa. on Saturday to compete in the Eastern Championships. The following week, it will compete at the New England Championships at Hotchkiss.
Sweetser said, “To prepare for championships we are starting to taper, decreasing yardage in practice and focusing on the quality of our swimming. The goal is to be rested and ready to swim as fast as possible at the meet so that we can perform our bests.”
“We all had really solid swims this weekend, which adds confidence and even more excitement going into our championship season,” said Gearan.
Editor’s Note: Amy Xia is an Illustration Editor for The Phillipian.
