Preiss finishes season at states

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Marina Preiss was a little off her mark at the state swimming championships in Rochester on Friday, but the East Hampton eighth-grader had already exceeded the accomplishments of all the Lady Bonackers that came before her.

Preiss clocked 25.30 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle and 55.86 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle in the first round of the state championships. Both times fell short of her qualifying and personal-best times at the county meet at Suffolk Community College in Brentwood the previous Saturday, November 14, where she had a stellar performance and smashed her personal records in both events, finishing the 50 free in 24.91 seconds and the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 55.24 seconds. The quick finishes earned her a ticket to states and the distinction of being the first ever East Hampton girls varsity swimmer to advance to such a high level of competition.

Seven other Lady Bonackers swam at the county meet and finished with personal records, but none of them qualified for the state championships. Six of them had stamped their tickets to counties by the team’s second meet in September.

This season was only Preiss’s second swimming competitively and the eighth-grader has four more years to perfect her technique and improve her times at the varsity level. Preiss said she will likely improve, but she expects to level off and reach her full potential before graduating in 2014.

Head coach John McGeehan coached the Lady Bonackers for the first time this season after inheriting the team from Tom Cohill, who continues to coach the younger girls on the East Hampton Hurricanes. Both men were on hand when Preiss qualified at the county meet.

The team finished third in League III with a 3-2 record, 5-4 overall, behind West Islip (5-0, 6-3 overall) and Harborfields (4-1 and 8-1 overall) and it appears the girls may do even better next year.

The girls who made the county meet beat the Lady Tornadoes and finished very close to West Islip there, proving that they’re continuing to develop and improve as a team. The Lady Bonackers roster included 17 girls this season and 16 are eligible to return next fall.

Only senior Katie Brady, a breaststroke swimmer, will graduate in the spring. Brady has been swimming for East Hampton since the team’s inception three years ago and she held the distinction of being the only senior leader this season.