The Bromfield swim team competed at the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association swimming and diving Central West sectionals at Springfield College on Sunday, Feb. 11, joining more than two dozen teams—from Weston to Pittsfield—in one of the season’s most anticipated events.
Riley Dasch, the team’s only qualifying eighth-grader, completed 11 dives. (Photos by D. Caroom)
The girls team placed ninth with 94 points among 27 schools while the boys team placed 12th with 90.5 points among 27. The total score for both teams was 184.5 points.
The swim events started with the girls 200-yard medley relay, with Bromfield swimmers finishing with a time of 2 minutes, 0.39 seconds, placing fifth out of 18. The boys also did well in their 200 medley relay, achieving 12th place with a time of 1:56:08. Both the girls 200 medley relay and the boys 200 and 400 freestyle relay teams qualified to compete at the state meet the next weekend.
The meet continued with strong swims from senior Ella Bergeron. She competed in the 100-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke, taking eighth place and seventh place, respectively. Other Bromfield backstroke swimmers were also successful, with sophomore Charlotte Miling taking 15th place in the 100-yard backstroke, qualifying for states with a time of 1:09:01.
Vance Petrossi, a junior, said that he was “extremely proud of how the guys fought it out” during the meet and was glad that they’ll “have a big crew for states this year.”
A highlight for the team was that swimmers from every grade (8 to 12) had qualified for sectionals. Riley Dasch, the team’s only qualifying eighth-grader, completed 11 dives for a total score of 268.85. In addition, freshman Bowen Clarke qualified for states in the 200-yard freestyle and also competed in the 100 freestyle. This year both the girls and boys sent six swimmers to the competition, two more boys than last year. Junior Isaac Xu said he was happy that more boys could participate, and that the meet represented “a big jump up from last year for the boys.”
Bromfield’s great performances were rewarded with 12 swimmers qualifying for states, and the team earned eight medals in total. The Bromfield captains said the team had “incredible performances from both the girls and the boys.” Molly Hyde-Caroom, the team’s head coach, said how proud she was and congratulated the team.
With 12 team members headed to the MIAA Division 2 state meet on Feb. 17 and 18 at MIT, the team spent the preceding week prepping for that event. Details will follow next week.
Sophia Andrade comes up for a breath in the 200-yard individual medley.
Ryan Donahoe, Bowen Clarke, Douglas Caroom, and Vance Petrossi show off their medals.
Russell Poutasse is a Bromfield junior.
MIAA Central West swimming and diving sectionals
Girls results
Team total: 94 points, ninth place
- 200-yard medley: Charlotte Miling, Niamh Fallon, Ella Bergeron, and Kiera Fallon, fifth, 2 minutes, 0.39 seconds
- 200-yard freestyle relay: Sophia Andrade, Niamh Fallon, Charlotte Miling, and Kiera Fallon, 12th, 1:52.79
- 400-yard freestyle relay: Kiera Fallon, Sophia Andrade, Niamh Fallon, and Ella Bergeron, 10th, 4:06.35
- 200-yard individual medley: Sophia
- Andrade, 15th, 2:32.98
- 100-yard freestyle: Ella Bergeron, eighth, 57.04
- 500-yard freestyle: Kiera Fallon, seventh, 5:53.49
- 100-yard backstroke: Ella Bergeron, seventh, 1:04.58; Charlotte Miling, 15th, 1:09.01
- 100-yard breaststroke: Niamh Fallon, 17th, 1:18.49
- 1-meter diving: Riley Dasch, 14th, 268.85 points
Boys results
Team total: 90.5 points, 12th place
- 200-yard medley: Ryan Donahoe, Isaac Xu, Yaxi Li, and Douglas Caroom, 12th, 1:56.08
- 200-yard freestyle relay: Vance Petrossi, Ryan Donahoe, Douglas Caroom, and Bowen Clarke, sixth, 1:37.71
- 400-yard freestyle relay: Vance Petrossi, Douglas Caroom, Ryan Donahoe, and Bowen Clarke, eighth, 3:39.45
- 200-yard freestyle: Bowen Clarke, 14th, 1:59.40
- 50-yard freestyle: Douglas Caroom, 27th (tied with Vance Valeta from East Longmeadow High School), 25.09
- 100-yard freestyle: Vance Petrossi, sixth (tied with Ryan Shea from Belchertown High School), 51.40; Bowen Clarke, 15th, 53.63
- 100-yard backstroke: Ryan Donahoe, 22nd, 1:05.84
- 100-yard breaststroke: Vance Petrossi, fourth, 1:03.4
