The Bears just completed an outstanding season with their
impressive showing at the CT State Championships. Details by age group follow:
The BEAR 10/under girls were led by 9 year old Hannah
Scobee, who placed in 5 individual events.
Hannah was 14th in the 100 back and 200 IM, 13th in the 200 free, 10th in
the 100 fly, just missing a Zone cut, and 5th in the 400 free.
Randi Katz, also 9, placed in 3 individual events including 15th in the
100 fly, 13th in the 50 fly, and 10th in the 400 free.
Maire Casey, only 8 years old, placed 10th in the 100 breast and 9th in
the 400 free. The three girls
teamed with Meg Casey to place 13th in the 200 free relay, 8th in the 200 medley
relay, 7th in the 400 free relay, and 6th in the 400 medley relay.
Alex Pascal finished in 2nd place for high point in the
10/under boys category, and placed in the top 3 in all of his events.
Alex was 3rd in the 50 fly and 100 breast, 2nd in the 400 Free and 200
IM, and was State Champion in the 50 breast and 100 fly.
Alex went on to swim 6 events at the Eastern Zone Championships in
Pittsburgh.
11/12's
The 11/12 girls were led by 11 year old Katie Gardocki, who
won 3 individual events on her way to winning the distance high point
championship. Katie was also 2nd
for the overall high point award. Katie
finished 4th in the 100 fly, 3rd in the 200 fly, 2nd in the 200 IM, and was
State Champion in the 200 free, 400 free, and 200 back.
Her times in the 200 back and 200 fly were National Top 16 reportable
times. Katie also qualified for the
Eastern Zone Championships, where she was a finalist.
Melanie Pascal had an outstanding season, and finaled in
every event she swam at States. Melanie
finished 8th in the 200 IM, 5th in the 50 fly, 3rd in the 100 and 200 back, and
was State Champion in the 200 fly. Melanie's
times in the 200 back and 200 fly were National Top 16 reportable times.
Melanie went on to compete in the Eastern Zone Championships and also
made finals.
Hannah Gotwals had a strong season and finished 12th in the
50 free, 11th in the 100 fly, and 6th in the 200 fly. Katie, Melanie, and Hannah teamed up with Chloe Scobee for
the freestyle relays and Jessica Allan for the medley relays.
The 200 free relay finished 8th, the 400 free relay finished 5th, while
the 200 medley finished 5th and the 400 medley finished 4th.
Katie also competed on our Senior Women's 800 freestyle "B"
relay which finished 7th.
13/14's
The BEAR 13/14 girls won the team championship for their
age group. It was a team effort,
with three of the girls winning individual titles, while teaming up with two
others to win both medley relays. Natalie
Mazzetta was the 13/14 girls high point winner with 5th place finishes in the
200 and 1500 free, 4th in the 800 free, 3rd in the 200 fly, 2nd in the 200 IM,
and a 1st place finish in the 400 IM. Becca
Levine finished in 12th in the 50 and 100 free, 5th in the 200 IM, and was State
Champion in both the 100 and 200 meter butterfly events.
Kelby Zimmerman finished 12th in the 200 IM, 6th in the 400 IM, and was
State Champion in both the 100 and 200 meter breaststroke.
Kelby qualified for Sectionals in both breaststroke events and qualified
for Junior Nationals in the 100 breast with a time of 1:16.39, which was just
.03 off of the CT record. Kelby
went on to win three medals at Zones. Sara
Gardocki finished in 14th place in the 400 free, 12th in the 400 IM, 11th in the
200 free, 7th in the 800 free, and 6th in both the 200 fly and 1500 free.
Natalie, Becca, and Kelby teamed with Jill Santer in the 200 meter relays
and with Sara in the 400 meter relays. The
200 free relay finished 3rd, the 400 free relay finished 2nd, and the BEARS won
both medley relays. Natalie and
Becca also competed on our "A" 800 freestyle relay which finished 4th,
while Sara swam on the "B" relay which finished 7th.
13 year old Kurt Murphy finished a strong season with 12th
place finishes in the 100 fly and 200 IM, a 6th place finish in the 400 IM, and
5th place finishes in both the 100 and 200 meter breaststrokes.
Andy Levine aged up only 3 weeks prior to the meet but still contributed
a 16th place finish in the 400 IM, a 13th place finish in the 800 free, and a
10th place finish in the 200 breast.
15/18's
Our 15/18 girls finished in 2nd place as a team in their
age group. The girls were led by
Johannah Kos, who finished in 2nd for individual high point. Johannah finished in 10th in the 200 breast, 7th in the 100
fly, 2nd in the 100 back, and won the 200 back, 200 IM, and 400 IM.
Johannah's times in both backstroke and both IM events qualified her for
Sectionals. Lauren Bedard had a
strong meet, finishing in 16th in the 200 free, 3rd in the 400 IM, 2nd in both
the 200 IM and 100 breast, and 1st in the 200 breast.
Lauren's time in the 200 breast was a Sectional qualifying time, and just
missed the Junior National qualifying time.
Lauren went on to final in the 200 breast at Zones.
Kellen O'Gara contributed to the team effort with an 11th place finish in
the 100 fly, and a 3rd place finish in the 200 fly.
Maura Pepin finished in 15th in the 800 free and swam in all relays.
The 200 free relay finished 6th, the 400 free relay finished 5th, and
both medley relays finished in 4th place. Our
Senior women's 800 freestyle relays finished in 4th and 7th.
The BEAR 15/18 boys also finished in 2nd as a team.
Spencer Hartmann finished in 2nd for high point with a 4th place finish
in the 200 free, a 3rd place finish in the 400 free, 2nd place in the 100 fly,
and 1st place finishes in the 200 fly, 800 free, and 1500 free.
Spencer's times in the 800 and 1500 freestyles were Sectional qualifying
times. Spencer went on to compete
at the Eastern Zone Championships. John
Weaver finished his rookie season with the BEARS in fine style, finishing 8th in
the 200 IM, 5th in the 100 fly and 400 IM, 3rd in the 100 breast, and 2nd in the
200 breast. John went on to swim in
Pittsburgh at the Eastern Zone Championships.
Ben Levine finished 14th in the 100 free, 11th in the 400 free, 9th in
the 100 fly, 4th in the 400 IM, and 3rd in the 200 back and 200 IM.
Ben went on to have a great Zone Championship meet, making finals in 4
events, including his 4th place finish in the 200 back, and was Connecticut's
top scoring 13/over male swimmer. Spencer,
John, and Ben teamed with 13 year old Kurt Murphy to swim the 18/under relays at
States, and finished in 4th place in the 400 free relay, 3rd place in the 200
and 800 free relays, and 2nd place in both the 200 and 400 medley relays.