CHS boys swimmers eyeing Davenport crown
By Jay Turner
Junior Sean Mitchell has qualified for states in the 50 freestyle and 100 fly. (Mike Barucci photo)
Just days removed from their first loss of the season, the deep and talented CHS boys swim team jumped right back into the pool and into the win column with a 109-61 team victory at Oliver Ames on Friday.
The Bulldogs, who set a new program record last season with a 6-2 mark, are now 5-1-1 heading into action this week. They currently sit in first place in the Davenport Division, boasting a 3-0-1 record in league competition after Friday’s win over the Tigers.
As for the Bulldogs lone defeat — a 99-71 loss to Sharon last Wednesday — it was technically counted as a nonleague meet and it came on a day that the squad was considerably undermanned.
Still, the Canton boys turned in some strong individual performances, led by junior standout Sebastian Melendez, who picked up victories in the 500 freestyle and 100 breaststroke. Other winners against Sharon included Owen Guerini in the 50 free, and the 200 and 400 free relay teams featuring Guerini, Sean Mitchell, Melendez, and Diego Ferstler.
Back at full strength in the OA meet, the boys team cruised to a victory at Massasoit Community College. Melendez and Guerini won multiple events, and the Bulldogs took first, second and third in the 200IM behind Melendez, Jimmy Hamrock and Justin Diep. Mitchell won the 100 breaststroke, and Ferstler placed second in both the 50 and 100 free. Canton also won three relay events: the 200 medley (Melendez, Dan Nadeau, Matt Gilmore, Mitchell), 200 free (Nadeau, Guerini, Gilmore, Ferstler), and 400 free (Guerini, Mitchell, Ferstler, Melendez).
Head coach Cheryl Cavanaugh said the boys are once again built for success this season with a combination of top-end talent and promising young swimmers. “We have swimmers like Sebastian, who we can count on for first place every time he gets in the pool,” she said. “But there are a lot of other kids, freshmen who are just learning the ropes, who have really stepped up. They’re consistently dropping their times, and they’re really working hard and their spirit is really good.”
On the girls side, Cavanaugh said the team is not quite as deep, but they have made great strides over the course of the season.
Last week, for instance, they battled back to score an 86-84 win over Sharon, clinching the meet with a first-place performance in the 200 free relay (Tiffany Ha, Kelsey Irons, Kaitlin McCarthy, Maddie Nourse). The Bulldogs also had some impressive individual performances, led by Ha in the 100 free and 100 backstroke and Nourse in the 50 free and 100 fly.
On Friday, the girls nearly pulled off another big comeback, but they fell just short in the end, losing to OA 86.5-83.5.
“It came down to the last relay (400 free), but we ended up taking second and third,” Cavanaugh said. “We were missing some key swimmers, but the other girls just stepped up and they had great times. They did a fabulous job.”
Individual winners for Canton included Ha in the 100 free and 100 breaststroke and Dasol Lee in the 200 free. The girls also won the 200 free relay behind Lee, Nourse, Emily Pham and Ha.
After a rematch at Sharon this Tuesday, both the boys and girls squads are due to host Milford on Friday and Randolph on Monday before closing out the regular season with meets against King Philip and Stoughton.
As of last week, both Melendez and Ha had qualified for either sectionals or states in several events, while Mitchell has qualified for states in the 50 free and 100 fly. Several boys relay teams have also qualified for states, and the girls 200 medley relay has qualified for sectionals. A few other girls relay teams and a number of boys swimmers — including Ferstler, Guerini and Nadeau — are all “really close” to qualifying for sectionals, according to Cavanaugh.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=32144
Posted by Jay Turner
on Jan 21 2016. Filed under High School, Sports.
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