The Loomis Chaffee boys and girls swim teams delivered great performances at the Founders League Championships, concluding on Saturday, March 1, at Miss Porter’s School. The boys finished second as a team, with numerous best times and top finishes. The girls team placed third in its meet, with multiple standout performances and a relay victory.  

Depth of talent was a major factor in both teams’ success, with points awarded to the 16 top finishers in individual events and eight teams in relays.   

On the boys side, the Pelicans had two individual champions: junior George DeVos in the diving competition, held on Wednesday, February 26; and freshman Chris Nelson in the 500-yard free on Saturday. 

The 200-yard medley relay team of Nelson, junior Jerry Li, senior co-captain Harava Rahardjo, and senior co-captain Matej Kubinsky kicked off the swim meet with a season-best time of 1:38.75 to secure second place. Junior Chris Zeng took second in the 200-yard freestyle, with sophomore Dean Tran and freshman J.C. Liu swimming personal bests to place seventh and 10th, respectively. Rahardjo placed sixth in the 200-yard individual medley with a best time, while sophomore Andy Vuong made a major drop in time to finish eighth, and sophomore Ethan Feng added valuable points in 13th. 

Kubinsky had a standout race in the 50-yard free, finishing as runner-up in a tight contest, with junior George Mirgorodskiy (seventh), sophomore Jinsen He (11th), and junior Wyeth Andrews (12th) all swimming their best times. Rahardjo recorded a lifetime best to finish fourth in the 100-yard butterfly, with Li placing eighth. Kubinsky and junior Tintin Ding delivered strong performances in the 100-yard free, finishing fourth and fifth, with Kubinsky posting a season-best and Ding a lifetime best. Liu, Mirgorodskiy, and Andrews also dropped time in the event, and sophomore Jack Haegele notched a personal best. 

Nelson dominated the competition in the 500 free, and Zeng swam to a strong third-place finish in the event. The 200-yard free relay squad of Ding, Mirgorodskiy, Zeng, and Kubinsky raced to second place, and Nelson returned to take third in the 100-yard backstroke. Li (fifth place), Vuong (seventh), Cormier (10th), and Haegele (12th) all set personal bests in the event. The meet concluded with the 400-yard free Relay, where Ding, Rahardjo, Nelson, and Zeng broke the 3:20 barrier for the first time this season, finishing in second place at 3:18.98. 

When the final points were tallied in the seven-team boys meet, the Pelicans placed second with 442 points. Choate placed first with 616 points, and Hotchkiss was third with 274.  

The girls team competition was close, especially for the top three spots. Porter’s won with 478 points, Choate was second with 440, and Loomis scored 431 to earn third in the eight-team meet. 

Among the team’s many high finishes, the Pelicans had two event victories: junior Sally Langmaid in the 500-yard freestyle and the 200-yard free relay team of sophomore Helen Lu, sophomore Amelia Chung, senior Lucia Zhang, and senior Jessica Zhao. 

The 200-yard medley relay team of junior Abbie Wildstein, Lu, junior Marin Benoit, and Chung set the tone early in the swimming events, finishing second with a time of 1:51.50. In the 200-yard free, Wildstein secured third place in a time of 1:59.31, with Zhao (fifth place) and Langmaid (seventh) also contributing key points. Lu and Zhang made their mark in the 200-yard individual medley, finishing second and fourth, respectively. Chung (eighth place) and senior Amy He (ninth) led the sprint events for the Pelicans in the 50-yard free. 

Benoit impressed in the 100-yard butterfly, finishing second with a time of 57.99, while freshman Maxene Meroy placed ninth. Zhao continued her strong meet, placing third in the 100-yard free in a time of 55.22, with Chung (sixth place) and He (seventh) also scoring big points. 

In the 500 free, Langmaid won the race with a time of 5:21.06, while Zhang followed closely in third place (5:29.15). The victorious 200 free relay team powered to a winning time of 1:40.96. 

The backstroke and breaststroke events saw strong performances from Benoit (second, 1:00.18) and Wildstein (third, 1:00.55) in the 100-yard back and Lu (second, 1:08.65) and Meroy (fourth, 1:12.82) in the 100-yard breast. 

In diving on the previous Wednesday, sophomore Sarah Lamphere placed third, freshman Annika Schnabel finished fifth, senior Catherine Lam took eighth, and junior Paige Biller placed 12th. 

Looking ahead, the Division I New England prep school swimming and diving championships will begin this Wednesday, March 5, with the diving competition at Deerfield. 

The preliminary swimming events will be held at Hotchkiss on Saturday, March 8, at 1:30 p.m. The finals will take place on Sunday, March 9, at Hotchkiss, beginning at 11:30 a.m. 

See the preliminary swimming livestream link here and the finals livestream link here. 

Good luck to our girls and boys swimming and diving teams!