Coming off a 135-23 win against Oak Knoll the day prior, the WHS girls swimming team was ready to rally and resume their winning streak against Elizabeth at the Westfield YMCA. With a sweep in the 500-yard freestyle from senior co-captain Cecilia Wiggins, senior Mina Pektas and freshman Gemma Giordano, the Blue Devils secured their win, powering past Elizabeth 135-33.
Head coach Steve Whittington noted the back-to-back meets and the team’s effort over the season, and said, “I thought we did a great job. It’s been a couple of weeks since we had back-to-back meets. We haven’t swam in a few weeks, and to have back-to-back meets is a bit of a shock, but it’s only gonna help us.”
Because this meet was less intense than some others, the swimmers were able to choose which events to compete in and try new ones to showcase their versatility. Senior co-captain Ava Contract said, “Everyone got to choose their own events, and they got some off events. Everyone performed really well, and they tried the hardest.” This was an opportunity to show their coach they could swim in different events.
The girls swept, or “one, two, three’d” in seven events: The 200-yard freestyle, the 50-yard freestyle, the 100-yard butterfly, the 500-yard freestyle, the 200-yard freestyle relay, the 100-yard breaststroke and the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Senior Sofia Droskoski noted that the team’s streak is fueling their aspirations for the rest of the season. Droskoski said, “We’re on a high right now, and we’re on a roll. Our goals for the season are to take counties, to take sectionals and, most importantly, we want states, because that’s everyone’s end goal.” The last time the team went to the state finals was in 2022. The team is hungry to make it back this year.
With a 7-0 record, Westfield has won by an average of 79 points per game. “I’m hoping to stay undefeated, but we’re swimming against some really powerful teams next week,” Contract said. “There are some teams that are ranked higher than us in the state, so it’s a good test for us to see where we’re at.”
The girls hope to continue their undefeated season at home against Immaculate Heart Academy on Jan. 12 at 3:30 p.m. “The girls know that this is a huge meet for us,” Whittington explained. “Not only against IHA, but it will put us in a good position for the seeding at the end of the year for powerpoints.”
