After a rollercoaster of a season with various wins and narrow losses, the Andover Girls’ Swim and Dive team placed fourth at the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (Nepsac) Championship meet. Andover’s final record for the season stood at 5-2.
Emma Donchi ’18 said, “Everyone at Nepsacs was both nervous and excited, and you could feel it in the atmosphere at the meet. Because it was the last meet of the season, everyone was focused on swimming their best, but also on having fun and making it a meet to remember.”
Andover came into the meet focused and prepared, and was able to place high in group events.
In the 200-Yard Medley Relay, the team of Emma Donchi ’18, Allyson Ty ’18, Elizabeth Tran ’19, and Jackie Rossi ’20 placed fourth with a time of 1:50.90. The group of Rossi, Amy Xia ’19, Co-Captain Katherine Sweetser ’17, and Jess Gearan ’18 finished in 1:41.00 in the 200-Yard Freestyle Relay, enough to secure sixth place. In the 400-Yard Freestyle relay, Tran, Sweetser, Gearan, and Allyson Ty finished in sixth with a time of 3:36.23.
Sweetser said, “Performance at championship meets is always about mindset and the girls definitely went into the meet focused and ready to go. Over the course of the season the team always maintained a positive mindset and atmosphere, so it was second nature by the time New England’s came around.”
Andover also performed at a high level in the individual events. Allyson Ty led the way with a fifth place finish in the 100-Yard Freestyle with a time of 52.98. In the 200-Yard Freestyle, Sweetser placed eighth with a time of 1:56.84. In the 500-Yard Freestyle, Tran secured fourth place and a personal best time of 5:07.90.
In the 100-Yard Butterfly, Sweetser placed fifth with a time of 58.85. In the 100-Yard Backstroke, Donchi placed seventh with at time of 58.78 and Anna Lang ’19 placed twelfth with a time of 1:00.30. In the 100-Yard Backstroke, Allyson Ty placed fifth with a time of 1:06.90 and Kathleen Ty ’19 placed thirteenth with a time 1:11.43. In the 200-Yard Individual Medley Tran placed fifth with a time of 2:11.04 and Donchi placed eighth with a time of 2:13.94. At the Diving Championships, Reese Pelletier ’20 placed seventh with a time of 363.50.
After a successful season, the team is eager to get back to work and start a new season next winter.
Co-Captain Gwyneth Wei ’17 said, “I think this season went really well overall. The team really bonded together and worked to encourage and support each other. It was a really positive and helpful atmosphere to work in. Everyone dropped times and made personal or seasonal bests and it was really exciting to watch the team grow. I couldn’t be prouder of the team this season.”
