Cougars Breeze to Sectional Title

The girls swim team defeated Milburn to win the North II, Division B sectional title on Friday. The 127-43 win propels the Cougars to the Group II final against state power Westfield.

“It’s a big victory,” head coach Dave Steele said after the meet. “It’s another big step toward what we’re trying to accomplish, which is the overall state title. The kids swam really well against a tough Milburn team, I couldn’t be prouder.”

Senior captain Greta Leberfinger helped get the first points on the board, swimming the second leg of the 200 medley relay. The team finished with a time of 1:52:30. Leberfinger also took first in the 100 breaststroke in 1:08:82.

Leberfinger called the win “amazing."

"I can’t even explain," she said. "We’re on fire, and I hope we go all the way.”

Freshman Regan Kology also had a strong showing, taking first in the 200 freestyle and second in the 500 freestyle. Kology, who has never swam in a meet of this caliber, is one of several powerhouse first-year swimmers who have helped make this season a splash.

“We’re lucky enough to have a nice influx of freshmen who have also added some real punch in the middle lanes,” Steele said. “For example, we had four team records broken today. All four records were broken by freshmen: Regan Kology in the 200 and 500 free and two by Jess Gorham in the 50 and 100.”

Kology attributed her stunning day to a friendly rivalry with a Milburn swimmer.

“I actually know the girl who I was swimming against—Cailley Silbert—and I was really excited to race her,” Kology said. “We always swim next to each other in private club and it’s great. We’re on the same team and we push each other and make each other go faster. To win, it felt really good to do that just for myself but also for my team. It’s great to be able to contribute to this win in a big way.”

Leberfinger had knowledge of her opponent’s ability as well.

“I knew they were very good,” she said. “I knew the Morreales were very good swimmers and I was going to have a lot competition. I was really pumped. Everyone was doing so well, I just wanted to keep it going. It was my time, so I got in there and did what I had to do.”

Chatham still has a tough road ahead, but Steele is confident his team can maintain the momentum it has built all season.

“Our strategy today and in just about every meet is to dominate with our depth,” he said. “We’re able to put three strong swimmers in every single individual event. Most of the time, that’ll help carry us through. We have our work cut out for us, but we have two more steps to go.”

“We’re very good,” Leberfinger said of her team. “We don’t know what to expect because we’ve never swam either of the teams that we will be swimming. The way we’re swimming now, we just have to keep up what we’re doing.”

While still looking ahead, Kology is thrilled for her team’s achievements.

“To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect coming into this,” she said. “We’ve been swimming really well this year and working our hardest, and I’m excited to see what else we can do. We’ve been doing beyond what we expected this year and I hope we can keep it up. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”