Swim girls finish third at CSC meet

Kane sets meet record; 15 Coop/Milford swimmers get PRs at team finale

(Cooperstown’s swim team celebrates its success at the Center State Conference meet Friday in Rome. Contributed photo.)

Coach John Hodgson checks in from the CSC championship meet in Rome, with this report:

Cooperstown took third place at the Center State Conference Swim Championships in Rome. In a season-ender, the Cooperstown Chromiums took on the Proctor Potassiums, the Adirondack Aluminums, the West Canada Valley Vanadiums, the Rome Free Academy Rhodiums, the Hydrogen from Holland Patent and the Whitesboro Borons.  

It was a great meet, seven teams going head-to-head in an epic battle.

Each of the nine swimmers from Cooperstown swam two individual events. That's a total of 18 individual events, 18 opportunities for our swimmers to swim their best, post their best time. 

Of the 18 individual events tonight, 15 of them were personal records. That is to say,15 times our girls swam faster than they have ever swam before. It was an incredible night and I was lucky to be a part of it all. Many parents were there to cheer the team on, and for those that couldn’t make it, here’s your recap!

"There's a million things I haven't done, but just you wait."

Top story of the night goes once again to Emily Kane, eighth grade athlete from Milford, whose 500 yard freestyle time of 5:43 was a Center State Conference Championship Meet record. All season long, Emily has posted times between 6:00 and 5:57, so her fourteen second PR of 5:43.24 was absolutely phenomenal. Even better than her achievement was the reaction from everyone in attendance. All eyes were on her, everyone was blown away, I cried, (a bit), and I probably wasn’t alone.  How do you top that? Just you wait! Emily returned in the 100 breaststroke with a personal best 1:14.59, three and a half seconds better than her fastest time.

"I probably shouldn't brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish."

Caitlin O’Sullivan is one of the hardest working, most impressive individuals you’ll ever meet. She swims fast but also is quite content, (and effective), when coaching others to greatness. So when she asked if she could go first in her relays, how could I say no? Here’s how she swam at championships, and I do hope you’re sitting down.  200 freestyle, 2:11.37, 4 second PR; 100 butterfly, 1:10.43, 1 second PR; 50 freestyle, 27.08, 1 second PR; 100 freestyle, 1:01.40, 2 second PR. This bundle of positivity was positively incredible. Caitlin is loud, confident, kind, enthusiastic, energetic, hilarious, strong, fast, talented, knowledgeable, often car sick, curious, smart and always unpredictable. She is a great Caitlin O’Sullivan.

“Rise up!”

Tara Phillips has a lot to be proud of this year and I’m going to miss her energy when the season is over.  Tonight, Tara posted a 2:11.37 in the 200 freestyle, four seconds faster than her best time. I knew my voice wouldn’t last tonight and I’m happy that I lost it shouting at/motivating Ms. Phillips. Her 100 breaststroke time of 1:27.82 was 0.4 seconds slower than her best of the year, but my goodness did this kid look great. You gotta appreciate and respect Tara’s efforts, dedication and commitment. Thank you for a great season, we wish you well as you transition to volleyball competition.

“I’m young scrappy and hungry and I’m not throwin’ away my shot!”

Alana Pietruszka, first year on the Cooperstown varsity girls swim team, first experience with competitive swimming, an amazing addition to the team. In the 50 freestyle, Alana scored a personal best time of 31.13. In the 100 freestyle, Alana posted a 1:12.82 and that’s a personal best by 3.5 seconds. This kid is doing amazing things and no one can say how fast or how far she’ll go. Perhaps she’s the diamond in the rough, a shiny piece of coal. Thank you, Alana.

“I’m past patiently waitin’ I’m passionately smashin’ every expectation.”

Jaina Bischof was on fire tonight.  In the 50 freestyle, JB had a 29.34 PR. She not only broke the “30 second” barrier, she came in like a wrecking ball! In her favorite event, the 100 backstroke, Jaina PR’ed by 1.3 seconds with a 1:14. This was a fantastic evening for Jaina, complete with hijinks, pranks, jokes and fun memories. Congratulations, Jaina.

“Talk less. Smile more.”

Punya Phaugat was an amazing swimmer at tonight’s CSC championships. In the 50 free, Punya clocked a 37.51, 0.3 seconds off her personal best. And in the 100 free, she clocked a 1:26.94, only a half second slower than her best time. Punya’s efforts all season long have paid off; she works hard in practice, she is always trying her best and consistently posts great times. This 10th grade swimmer will go far and we’ll be there to cheer you on in your junior and senior years with the team.  Congratulations, Punya.

“Look around, look around at how lucky we are to be alive right now.”

Annie Walker, don’t count her out, you better count her in! Coming off a nasty cold, Annie was mostly ready to swim, it was hard to tell during warm ups. However, during the meet, Annie was all business. In the 50 freestyle, Annie set a personal best by 2 seconds with a 29.46. In the 500 freestyle, Annie beat her old record by 10 seconds with a 6:47.59. Put that illness on pause, we’ve got championships on the line! Annie always gives it everything she’s got and consistently places in top ten. Great job, Annie!

"He will never be satisfied. I will never be satisfied."

Arya Patel swam some of the more difficult events tonight and swam until the wheels came off! In the 200 individual medley, Arya beat her best time ever by 5 seconds with a 2:58.71. This was an amazing swim and I was there for every kick. In the 100 backstroke, Ayra also PR’ed with a 1:20.21. She was going for a much faster time, but I was extremely proud of Ms. Patel and her events tonight. Arya is someone I can always count on to get things done, and I’m grateful to have her on the team.

“I am not throwin’ away my shot.”

What can be said about Margaret Riesenfeld? This young athlete is so much more than just a swimmer. She is a spinning ball of energy that you absolutely must respect. Margaret’s 32.77 in the 50 free, and her 1:18 in the 100 freestyle were the fastest times she’s ever swam in these events. The best part was asking Margaret if she enjoyed herself tonight. One hundred percent, she had the best meet of the year.  Big congratulations to you, Margaret!

Well, that closes out our regular season! Cooperstown girls varsity swimming finishes the 2022 season with a fantastic 10 wins and 2 losses, our best record in many years. There are many people to thank: family, friends, coaches and swimmers. We are all extremely grateful for all the support you’ve given us. Thank you for everything. Our next event is the Section III meet Nov. 2, and followed by the State Qualifiers on Nov. 4. Please celebrate with us as we close out the 2022 girls varsity swimming season.

Let’s go Coop!