The Cinderella season continues for the Duxbury girls’ swim team, as they finished fourth out of 36 teams at the South Sectionals last weekend at MIT. Ten swimmers and one diver competed in the meet that was won by perennial power Gardner (290 points), with Barnstable finishing second (190), Westboro taking third (155) and the Lady Dragons ending up in fourth with 88 points. {sidebar id=4}

The noisy crowd energized the Duxbury team, and nearly every swimmer recorded season-low times.

Leading off the meet were Molly Davis (backstroke), Andrea Strand (breaststroke), Katilin Buckley (butterfly) and Emily Hutchinson (freestyle) in the 200-yard medley relay where the team raced stroke for stroke with four other squads, finishing in 2:02.83 (8th).

Buckley and Katelyn Coghlan were up next in the 200-yard freestyle and both rose to the occasion, as Buckley slashed six seconds off her previous best time to take second (2:00.90). Coghlan also erased a second off her best time and made a State qualifying time (2:09.60). {mosimage}{mosimage}

After seeing her teammates perform so well, Liz Antaya was motivated to race her own personal best times. The senior co-captain dusted a second off her 200-yard individual medley time (2:28.09) and her 100-yard butterfly (1:08.04).

Sprinters Hutchinson (26.42) and Gaby Pipp (26.87) also put in solid performances in the 50-yard freestyle, placing ninth and 13th respectively.

Scoring valuable points in the 100-yard freestyle were Buckley (6th) with a time of 57.3 and Hutchinson (9th) in a 58.43.

The 500-yard freestyle featured three underclassmen: Sarah Goldberg, Coghlan and Alix Brady, all of who kicked it up a notch, bettering or meeting their personal best times. Goldberg crushed her previous low by 10 seconds placing 10th (5:44.67), while Coghlan matched her previous best while touching 15th (5;53.88). Brady also dropped four seconds while finishing 22nd (6:03.42). {sidebar id=1}

Brady also stepped in for the ailing Hilary Dudley in the 200-yard freestyle relay, teaming with Goldberg, Pipp and Davis, as the team busted out a season-low 1:49.72 for eighth.

Continuing the theme of best times, Davis cut a second off her previous low in the 100- yard backstroke (1:08.58), just behind Gold berg, who was 15th (1:08.58).

In other action, sophomore Hadley Burnham made a statement in the diving competition placing fifth with 265.25 points, while senior co-captain Andrea Strand took 17th in the 100-yard breaststroke.

The final event was the 400-yard freestyle relay; the most nerve-wracking event for parents and swimmers because it often affects the outcome of a meet. This race was no exception, as Buckley, Hutchinson, Pipp and Gold-berg teamed to blow away their previous low by three full seconds (3:53.18) while edging Westboro for third place.

Coach Jay Craft said “The team did a great job. I think they will swim even faster at States.”{sidebar id=6}