After falling just short last year, the Bishop O’Connell Knights had the necessary added incentive to win this season’s Northern Virginia Catholic swimming and diving team championships.
O’Connell won both the girls and boys high-school titles Saturday (Jan. 18) at the 15th annual event, held at Freedom Center in Manassas. The girls won with 400 points and the boys with 404.
The last time both won the titles in the same season was 2020. Each team finished second by just a few points last winter.
This year, the boys won five events with a trio of seconds and six thirds. The girls won six events, including three relays, with six seconds and as many thirds.
“We knew we could win boh, because the teams have been winning all season, and this is awesome,” O’Connell coach Lauren Simonson told ARLnow. “They showed the unity and strength of our team, and they were ready for it.”
Leading the O’Connell boys was double winner Timmy Adye in the 50 freestyle (21.83) and 100 free (48.05). Paul Mullen had a victory in the 500 free (4:36.41, a meet record) and a second in the 200 free. Freshman diver Rai Detten finished first (251.65 points).
O’Connell’s 400 free relay won in a meet record 3:16.17. Mullen and Adye swam in that event.
The Knights’ Graham Rowan was second in the 100 free and 100 backstroke and swam on the winning relay. With two third-place finishes were Wills Fleming in the 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley, and Keaghan Fahle in the 200 free and 500 free.
Also third were Colin Buckhorn in the butterfly and Kellen Colevas in diving.
Jermaine Worthen was fourth in the IM and breast and he swam on the winning relay, Cru Molter was fourth in the fly and sixth in the 200 free, and Pete Sheehey was fifth in the fly and eighth in the back.
Other boys with additional or top-15 finishes were Colevas, Detten, Buckhorn, Behr Galanes, Peter Johnson, Jordan Koller, Max Saybolt and James Miller.
The boys medley and 200 free relays had two teams entered that placed second and fourth in each race.
One of the top swimmers for the O’Connell girls was Kalyn O’Hara with a win in the IM (2:11.44) and a second in the back. Another was Eleanor Wertzler with a first in the 50 free (25.49) and third in the 100 free. Audrey McKeen won the breast (1:08.51) and was third in the 50 free.
Rowan Elliott was second in the 100 and 200 free, Anna Sullivan was second in the breast and third in the 200 free, and Stella Mastroianni was second in the IM and third in the fly.
Carlin Smittle was third in the 500 free and eighth in the fly, and Caeli McIntosh was sixth in the 500 free and 11th in the 200 free.
In girls diving, O’Connell’s Isabel Smith was second, Catherine Ayers third, Leah Close fourth and Maggie Levi seventh.
Other O’Connell swimmers with top-15 finishes were Reagan Cervenale, Emerson Feeley, Molly Kinsella, Moira Kinsella, Mackenzie Muller, Dylan Crombe, Anna Zea and Claire Thompson.
The O’Connell girls won all three relays in times of 3:39.21 (400 free, meet record), 1:42.46 (200 free) and 1:50.47 (200 medley). Mastroianni, O’Hara, Rowan and Wertzler swam on the 400 free.
McKeen, Sullivan, O’Hara and Thompson made up the 200 free relay. Rowan, Sullivan, Wertzler and Mastroianni swam on the medley relay.
Another medley O’Connell relay was third, and a second 200 free relay finished sixth.
