Swimmers lock in on section title
Hawkeye boys dropping times, seeded well for Wednesday's big meet
Cooperstown Swimming Coach John Hodgson turned in this preview of Wednesday’s Section III meet. It may be too long for email, but click the link to finish reading.
The Cooperstown boys varsity swim team is headed to the Section III Class C finals on Wednesday, Feb. 14, in Syracuse. After an amazing season with a record of 10-2, Cooperstown is seeded well for Sectionals. We’ll be competing against other schools of similar size for the Class C title.
Our team of 17 athletes have been working exceptionally hard in practice, they are ready for the Finals and I could not be more proud of this team.
Here they are, your Cooperstown Hawkeyes varstiy swim team.
Finn “el Capitan” Morgan. Senior: 100 yard Butterfly, 100 yard Backstroke.
Finn joined the varsity team in eighth grade and has always been one of the team’s best swimmers. Now, in his final year, Finn has stepped up and is leading this team to one of its greatest seasons. His dedication to the program is unrivaled, his commitment to the sport is fierce, and his consistent improvement month after month, year after year is something to behold.
Finn has always preferred the backstroke but will gladly swim the more challenging events. He is an aquatic “Swiss army knife;” he can do everything and anything, just put him to work. At Sections, 17-year-old Finn is seeded seventh in the fly and fourth in the backstroke.
London "Showtime" Kinley. Sophomore: 200 Individual Medley, 100 butterfly.
Every team needs a London Kinley. When everyone says no, he says go. He cheers when we need a boost, and he swims faster than fast. He is a constant check mark, thumbs up, fist pump emoji. This co-captain is a sauce on the back burner, filling the room with a fantastic aroma, always a perfect simmer until BAM, rigatoni baby.
London has been with the team since eighth grade and in his third season he is seeded second in the 200 IM and third in the 100 butterfly, where he's hoping to swim his fastest time of the year.
Margaret "the Giraffe" Raffo. Senior: 200 Individual Medley, 500 freestyle.
This athlete is, without question, our team's most amazing individual. Swimming in an all-male league can be daunting, to say the least, but this kid competes and podiums like a champion. Prior to this year, my only experience with the Giraffe was watching her win award after award at the CCS Sports Night and wishing she would join our girls swim team. I can't tell you what an honor and joy it has been, thanks, MR!
In her first and final season as a Water Hawkeye, Margaret will swim the 200 Individual Medley in the fourth-seeded position and the 500 freestyle as the sixth seed.
Theo "Mc Flurry" Feury. Sophomore: 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle.
This man is ice cold. He never backs down, never quits, never gives less than 100 percent. Theo swims the most difficult, most challenging events for us because he believes in himself and the team. He's only been swimming competitively for three months and in this time he's turned into a solid distance swimmer with outstanding skills.
Theo will be seeded 17th in the 200 freestyle and 12th in the 500 free. I am so glad this athlete joined the team this year, I look forward to many more seasons with him.
Creighton "Thanks" Williams. Junior: 100 breaststroke.
After all the kickboards have been thrown, and there's no one left for Creighton to wrestle into submission or hold underwater, Creighton always says, "thank you, Mr. Hodgson," at the end of practice. Such a class act. Creighton is one-third of our team's "Harry, Hermione and Ron" trio but is everyone's personal cheering section. If you're swimming, Creighton is helping you achieve your best through motivation and his own brand of powerful positivity.
Creighton is the 16th seed in the breaststroke event. He's been training all season, he's darn strong, and he's ready to compete!
Brendan "Heavy B" Heavner. Junior: 200 and 100 freestyle.
A great athlete, a great competitor, and a great teammate — that's what you get when Brendan signs up for your team. He's developed a strong freestyle stroke this year and he's one of the reasons we've been so successful. When we need someone to place high in an individual or relay event, Brendan always gets it done.
Brendan is seeded 16th in the 200 and 15th in the 100 freestyle. I'm very excited to see what he can do on Wednesday. Thanks for all your work, Brendan.
Hayden “The Mail Man” Spencer. Sophomore: 100 backstroke.
Behind a cool exterior burns the heart of a champion. When you see Hayden in the minutes before a swim meet, you can tell he's visualizing what's about to go down. And when he gets up on the starting blocks, he's composed and patient, just waiting for his chance. Never boastful, he's the embodiment of "show me, don't tell me," a coaching cue I picked up from his father, Lucas. Hayden delivers, every single time.
At Section III Finals, Hayden is seeded 14th and will do his best, without question.
Sonam “Big Guy” Gyamtso. Junior: 50 and 100 freestyle.
Sonam is a fascinating athlete. In three months, he went from shallow-end arm-floaties to fifth fastest swimmer on the team. He's a tenth of a second off Henry's time and Henry is freakin' fast! Sonam leads in practice, he is the loudest on the bench, loudest on the bus and of course, he leads every team cheer. Why? Because he's Sonam, and that's more than enough reason. My prediction, Sonam will lead the team to victory this year and next year as well.
Some of my favorite memories of this season involve working with Sonam's dives, strokes and turns. At sectionals, Sonam is seeded ninth in the 50 freestyle and 14th in the 100 free.
Emerson “Mr. Awesome” Toulson. Senior: 50 freestyle.
When Emerson walks on deck, you know you're going to have a good practice. When he's got some down-time, he laughs, he dances, and sings. His happiness cannot be contained. And when it's time to work, he simply changes his actions and keeps his emotions. We don't get a ton of kids who smile during the work sets in practice, but there's really not a lot of kids like Emerson.
In the 50 freestyle, Toulson is seeded 12th but he'll swim like he's seeded first.
“Big Game” Hunter Kinley. Ninth grade: 100 yard breaststroke, 50 freestyle.
Hunter is the future of this team. He has amazing strokes, great speed, a wide range of talents and always wears a big smile. He’s a pleasure to work with, his friends love having him in the lane, if only it didn’t take forty-five minutes to get in the pool. I mean, the water is above normal room temperature! Maybe by the time he’s a senior we can get it down to 30 minutes of shallow end, elbows up hopping.
Young Hunter is seeded seventh in the 100 breaststroke and 13th in the 50 free. We wish him the absolute best of luck at sections.
Colton “Mr. Smooth” Kinley. Seventh Grade: 200 Individual Medley, 100 breaststroke.
Rounding out the Kinley triple threat is young Colton. This kid has been swimming since before he could walk and with his extensive aquatic experience he brings a lot of talent to the team. This tough man is competing at the Section III finals in the 200 Individual Medley and 100 breaststroke. We are lucky to have him — please remember the name Colton Kinley because this kid is going to be a superstar.
Lachlan “Monster” Morgan. Seventh grade: 500 freestyle, 100 backstroke.
Our second seventh grade swimmer has had a phenomenal year with the Water Hawkeyes. He’s dropped over a minute in the 500 freestyle and swims workouts in practice designed for kids twice his age. He’s been given some of the tougher events at the meets this year, but he’s always swam well and never once complained. I’m so excited to see what he’s capable of in the years to come.
This can’t be correct. In the 500 freestyle, Lachlan is seeded seventh? And in the 100 backstroke he’s seeded eighth? So, if all goes as planned, this young man should be on the podium and bringing home ribbons? Unpossible!
Shep “Slick” Olsen. Eighth grade: 200 freestyle, 100 backstroke.
When you meet Shep Olsen, you automatically like this athlete. But when you watch him swim, in practice and at meets, you stand up and cheer because he’ll give you a reason. Shep has gone from swimming normal workouts to high-intensity training. He has taken his competitive strokes to another level, he works as hard as anyone on the team. My favorite thing about Shep is you only have to tell him once. No matter what it is, if you offer a critique or tip, you never have to mention it again. I love coaching, and coaching Shep is extremely fun.
Slick Shep is seeded ninth in the 200 IM (the absolute worst event, his words), and freakin’ fifth in the backstroke? That must be a typo. You go, Shep.
Henry “Thoughts and” Ayers. Eighth Grade: 100 freestyle, 100 breaststroke.
Do you see that smile? Normally a kid with the incredible amount of determination, focus, drive, and athleticism that Henry has does not smile like that. Somehow he manages to be an awesome kid and fierce competitor. He’s the fourth fastest on the team but he’s better known for his kindness and happiness. That is, until we start playing water polo. I literally had to change the water-polo rules to protect the other players from Mr. Smiley Pants.
Henry is an amazing athlete. He is seeded sixth in the 100 free and fourth in the 100 Breaststroke. I can’t wait to see how he does at this meet.
Macon “Mr. Swim Meet” Aramini. Ninth grade: 200 and 500 freestyle.
Equally as intense as his good friend, Henry, Macon is an absolutely incredible competitor. This is his third year with the team and he is either our second or third fastest swimmer depending on the event. When Macon is up on the blocks, it doesn’t matter what position he’s in, he’s most likely going to win the event. He’s destined for greatness; he’s always going to swim faster than you imagined.
At age 14, Macon is seeded second in the 200 freestyle and third in the 500 free. That is some impressive career you’ve got, Mr. Aramini. Keep it up!
Thomas “Wrecking Ball” Hellenthall
Thomas signed up to swim varsity with one goal above all the others, to qualify for the State Finals. In order to do so, he had to finish with a nearly impossible time in his favorite event. If you want it, you have to be perfect, you have to swim a flawless event. I was there when he swam the 100 yards of backstroke in a states-qualifying time of 54.15 seconds, and I will be there when he tries to make his states times in the 50 and 100 freestyle. If anyone can do it, Thomas can.
In his events of choice, Thomas is seeded third in the 50 free and second in the 100 free.
Noah “Special Teams” Harding. Sophomore.
One of my favorite team members is Noah Harding. He works constantly at his swimming and makes improvements every practice. Noah will be joining us as an alternate on Wednesday, we appreciate his dedication to the team and we’re grateful for all he’s given us this season.
Let’s go Coop!
Coverage of Cooperstown’s 2023-24 is brought to you in part by an anonymous local business. To sponsor a team, season or the school year, contact Greg at JYDBook@gmail.com.