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East Hampton senior Emmet McCormac swam best times in all four events he competed in — the 50 and 100-yard freestyle, the 50 free as part of the the 200 free relay and 100 free as part of the 400 free relay — during the Suffolk County boys swimming championships on February 10 at Stony Brook University. MARIANNE BARNNETT
Pierson freshman Nicky Chavez dropped the second largest combined amount of time, 5.1 seconds, in his two events — the 200-yard individual medley and 100 backstroke — that he competed in during the Suffolk County boys swimming championships at Stony Brook University February 10. MARIANNE BARNNETT
Emmet McCormac left it all in the pool Saturday.
The East Hampton senior swam personal bests in all four of his events at the Suffolk County boys swimming and diving championships at Stony Brook University on February 10 to cap off his Bonackers campaign. His 50-yard freestyle time of 22.87 seconds and 100-yard time of 51.16 seconds helped the 200 and 400 free relay teams to eighth-place finishes. McCormac’s time of 52.46 in the 100 free was good for 14th place and his 23.53 showing in the 50 free landed him in 17th. The senior said he was astonished with his times considering he was not feeling well.
“Emmet’s determination was evident,” head coach Craig Brierley said. “Even after going a best in last week’s 100 free, he dropped his best time again in this meet. Earning best times in consecutive weeks is an extremely difficult task, and Emmet showed his true grit and competitiveness that has made him one of the team’s consistent contributors each year he has been here. The coaches could always count on Emmet when it came down to competing at his best.”
East Hampton sophomore Liam Knight was the team’s highest point scorer with 16 individual points from an eighth-place finish in the 200 free and a twelfth-place finish in the 100 backstroke. He completed the events in 1:51.15 and 58.09, respectively. Knight also contributed to the 400 free relay, which finished the event in a season-best time 3:34.79, down 5.6 seconds. The sophomore concluded his opening leg of the race in a personal-best 50.92.
“It was an exciting atmosphere with so many fast people,” Knight said. “I was happy with how I did overall.”
While McCormac had the highest combined time drop of the meet with 5.61 seconds for the East Hampton/Pierson team, right behind him was Pierson freshman Nicky Chavez. He finished 11th in both the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke, dropping 2.5 and 2.6 seconds in the events, respectively. He touched the wall in the individual medley in 2:09.69 and backstroke in 58.04 to add 12 points to the Bonackers’ 89-point total, which placed the team ninth out of 22 schools.
“It felt good to be back and to do so well,” said Chavez, who competed at counties last year and improved immensely on his third-to-last place finish in the 200 individual medley. “I just practiced hard, and a better pull underwater helped a lot.”
Also closing out his high school career with best times was East Hampton senior Owen Robins, who raced in the 200 medley and 200 and 400 frees relays. He swam his opening leg of the 200 free relay in 24.34 to lift the quartet — with McCormac as the anchor and junior Wyatt Smith and sophomore Abe Stillman as the middle swimmers — to a time of 1:38.20. Robins completed his 100-yard leg of the 400 free in 54.05. Smith also swam in that event. Robins’s 26.45 showing in the 50 fly as part of the 200 medley with Smith, Stillman and junior Cristian Sigua landed in 10th with a time of 1:55.15.
East Hampton freshman Ben Kriegsman also swam a personal best, in the 100 backstroke, touching the wall in 1:02.29 to finish 18th.
“The coaches were thrilled with the efforts the boys put in for each of their races,” Brierley said. “The Bonackers were focused and motivated to give their best — to represent themselves and their schools with pride. … They showed all the skills and characteristics they have been developing over the course of the season, and over the years, with a fantastic display, and testament, of what makes our team special each year.”
Chavez said he was excited to see his teammates, especially the seniors, have such success in their final meet.
“I have worked with them a lot — bonded with them — and they have taught me so much,” he said. “They have been leaders and friends.”
The coach said the senior captains, which includes East Hampton senior Jack O’Sullivan, have shown positive, respectful and encouraging leadership that he said the team has benefited greatly from.
“It is special, as coaches, to observe and be a part of the growth that is shown throughout each season,” Brierley said. “This was another season where a group of wonderful boys grew into a family and held up the standards left from previous years.”
