The Bromfield swim team entered its first meet missing two veteran performers due to injury and illness. Key performances by relay teams in the 200-meter medley relay allowed Bromfield to jump to a comfortable lead, and an exciting “must win” race in the final 400-meter freestyle relay clinched the team victory.
The 200 medley relay team, featuring Jessica Madigan, Kylie Gordon, Eric Hazoury, and Carly White, charged to the lead in the first race. Bromfield’s second relay team, with Laura Nocka, Ryan Andrews, and newcomers Clark Jacobson and Elizabeth Smetana pulled off the early upset of the Worcester team with a surprise second place. Smetana returned minutes later with an impressive swim in the 200-meter individual medley. Hilah Connelly swam an outstanding race in the same event, outsprinting her Worcester competitor in the final freestyle leg and logging a personal best time in the first race of the season. Bromfield continued to keep Worcester at bay with second- and third-place sprints from Hazoury and veteran Gordon in the 50-meter freestyle. Bromfield topped the scoreboard 36–26 going into the break.
Worcester began its bid for the win after the break. Rita Fagan, Bromfield’s lone 100-meter butterfly entry, matched her last season’s best time in her first race of the year. Amelia Mazzola turned in a superb 100-meter freestyle race from the outside lane.
In spite of these performances, Worcester swimmers worked their way to within one point. Bromfield answered back in the 500-meter freestyle featuring Hazoury, who placed second while shattering the Bromfield boys high school record by more than 30 seconds. White and Nocka turned in strong early season races, placing third and fourth respectively. In the 200-meter freestyle relay, Bromfield showed its depth once again. A young relay team took charge of the middle lane, placing second to an experienced squad of Worcester sprinters. Bromfield’s second relay team of Mazzola, Connelly, Greg Scantlebury, and anchor Alex Teixeira surprised the coaches and the Worcester team with the touch-out at the wall for third-place points. Score: Bromfield 61, Worcester 60.
With the encouragement of a very lively corps of parents in the stands, Bromfield swimmers continued to perform well beyond early season expectations in the 100-meter backstroke and the 100-meter breaststroke. Madigan and Grace Bilodeau held fast in the 100 backstroke to protect Bromfield’s one point lead. Gordon and Smetana turned in sectional qualifying times in the 100 breaststroke, once again guarding Bromfield’s slim lead.
Amid deafening cheers, the relay teams prepared for the final race of the day. Swimmers and spectators alike knew that the team that placed first in the 400 freestyle relay would win the meet. Hazoury swam an impressive lead-off leg against Worcester’s top sprinter, in spite of accidentally stopping after the first 50, which gave Worcester an unexpected 10-yard lead and his coaches a good scare. Second-year swimmer Stephen Branam dove in for the chase and swam a race that no one on the team will soon forget. By the end of his leg, he had reeled in his competitor. Branam’s impressive effort tied the race. Connelly built on this performance, steadily gaining ground to give White several yards to spare. White finished off the Worcester team with a strong and carefully paced swim that led the team to the relay as well as the meet victory. Bromfield’s second relay team of Ryan DeWolf, Mazzola, Jocelyn Harte and Megan Vilcans sealed the victory, 87–80.
