In a closely-contested finale to the 2014 regular season, Katonah Swim and Dive team (“KSDT”) battled against cross-county Division I rival Yorktown on July 22nd, and suffered its 4th straight loss of the season, falling 270-258. KSDT finishes the season at 1-4, ensuring a tie with Yorktown and waiting on the result of the Briarcliff Manor-Birchwood meet on July 24th to determine who will drop down to Division II next year.
Going into the freestyle relays, KSDT was down by only 5 points. First place finishes, worth 8 points, could leap KSDT into first place. But KSDT managed just one first-place finish, despite the 15 & under boys relay swimming fast to break a team record.
KSDT started off the meet keeping the score close in the dive event. Inez Nix won the 13 & under contest, and finished 3rd in the 18 & under, with her sister Elodie Nix grabbing second place honors. For the boys, Matt Dunworth and Pat Kelly finished 1-2 respectively and KSDT was down only 3 points headed into the swim events.
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Backstroke was strong for KSDT, taking 8 of the 10 heats. The 8 & under duo of Michael O’Donnell and Luke Spieler finished 1-2, as did Sam Sweeney and Brian Crane in the 14 & under. Jessica Crane (8 & under), Scott Esposito (10 & under), Kevin Crane and Hailey Ivey (14 & under), Kerry Kelly and Michael Baudinet (18 & under) all secured victories in their heats. Baudinet’s 1st place finish guaranteed his undefeated season in backstroke. Teammates adding points for Katonah were Lily O’Shaughnessy (8 & under), Samantha Spieler and Jeremy Kramer (10 & under), Lily Buckley (12 & under), Brian Crane (14 & under) and Greg Markert (18 & under).
No score was announced, and Katonah knew that breaststroke wins had been hard to come by. KSDT started with a first-place finish for 8 & under Lily O’Shaughnessy, but only claimed two more wins by Zach Boies (14 & under) and Kaz Sampson (18 & under.) Elizabeth Gaza (8 & under), Samantha Spieler and Jeremy Kramer (10 & under), Linn Carbaugh and Kevin Crane (12 & under), Hailey Ivey and Jack Buckley (14 & under) and Mary Helen Baudinet (18 & under) contributed to KSDT’s total. After the breaststroke event, KSDT trailed by 11 points.
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Butterfly saw Katonah split with Yorktown, led by first place finishers Elizabeth Gaza, Claire Gaza, Zach Boies, Kerry Kelly and Michael Baudinet. Kelly and Baudinet both secured an undefeated butterfly season with their wins.
“Everyone cheered just a little bit louder when Kerry and Michael were swimming,” said head swim coach Jessica Frank. “This is Michael’s last season as an 18 and under, so it’s a great way to finish up his summer swim career. And Kerry is just getting started as a 15-year old. She’s already a record holder and has 3 more years to swim!”
Other KSDT swimmers adding points in butterfly were Jessica Crane, Rowan Pedraza, Michael O’Donnell, Allison Altholz, Kieran Brown, Scott Esposito, Lily Buckley, Evan Calves, Maya Luongo, Sam Sweeney, Jack Buckley, Lauren Wolter and Greg Markert.
Hoping for some 1-2 finishes in freestyle to either close the gap or take the lead, Katonah won 6 of the 10 freestyle events. Jessica Crane, Lily O’Shaughnessy and Elizabeth Gaza swept for the 8 & under girls, as did Kieran Brown, Scott Esposito and Cody Siegel for the 10 & under boys. Michael O’Donnell, Kevin Crane, triple-winner Zach Boies and Kerry Kelly rounded out the first place honors. With her win, Kerry Kelly notched her second undefeated stroke for the season. Everyone then got to their feet in anticipation of a great match –up between Baudinet and Yorktown’s Marcel Legros. And the swimmers didn’t disappoint! With wild cheering from both teams, the 18 & under boys’ race went to the wire, with Yorktown’s Legros touching out Baudinet by 3/10ths of a second. In a spontaneous display of sportsmanship, the two competitors hugged it out in the pool to the delight of the parents and coaches.
Other point contributors for KSDT in freestyle were Claire Gaza and Samantha Spieler (10 & under), Lily Buckley, Linn Carbaugh and Thomas Gaza (12 & under), Hailey Ivey and Sam Sweeney (14 & under) and Lauren Wolter (18 & under).
Katonah was only down by 5 points headed into the relays, where first place finishes could easily bridge that gap. But both 11 & under relays for KSDT could only grab second place, earning just 4 points to Yorktown’s 10 for finishing first and third. The 15 &under girls stepped up knowing they had to take first for any chance, but they also finished in second place. The boys wrapped up the meet and the season with a record-breaking win. Sam Sweeney, Jack Buckley, Zach Boies and Kaz Sampson jumped into the KSDT record book with their winning relay.
Up next are “Counties” and the Divisional Championships hosted by Yorktown.
Triple winners:
Zach Boies: breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle
Kerry Kelly: backstroke, butterfly (undefeated), freestyle (undefeated)
Double winners:
Michael Baudinet: backstroke (undefeated), butterfly (undefeated)
Jessica Crane: backstroke, freestyle
Kevin Crane: backstroke, freestyle
Michael O’Donnell: backstroke, freestyle
Single winners:
Kieran Brown: freestyle
Scott Esposito: backstroke
Elizabeth Gaza: butterfly
Claire Gaza: butterfly
Hailey Ivey: backstroke
Lily O’Shaughnessy: breaststroke
Kaz Sampson: breaststroke
Sam Sweeney: backstroke
