Lady Rams swim team splits deuce
October 12, 2023 at 12:50 a.m.
The timing has never been better for the ever-improving Port Chester Lady Rams swim team.
It has become the Lady Rams’ swim time "when it's really awesome to see what's happening, the time when it goes beyond wins and losses, the time when it's precisely what you want to see happen as a coach, the time when the girls are pushing themselves to each get faster as their times and PRs (personal records) have been changing each day, every day, week and meet," said coach Colleen Cahill.
Ups and downs
The former Fordham/Marymount collegiate swimmer referred to the Lady Rams’ most recent away performances in the past week or so—a beatdown of Mount Vernon for the second time this season followed by a 2-point loss to Brewster.
But the inspirational coach didn't focus on the latest win and loss. She was more excited about the way her team kept improving, making continuous splashes for the better.
In the rematch against Mount Vernon last Wednesday (10/4), the Lady Rams won nine of the 11 events while churning away to a 77-63 win. But it was the way they did it with Nicole Ortega and Chenoa Marquez tied for the most individual points scored and just about everyone on the team contributing to the scoring.
Off and running
It started with the very first event with the confident Lady Rams running away with the 200 Medley Relay featuring strong legs swum by captain Jaina Gonzalez (back stroke), Marquez (breaststroke), Ortega (butterfly) and Morgan Saunders (freestyle).
While that was impressive, it was the way Gonzalez came back to win the 200-free, an event she had lost earlier in the season to Mount Vernon by a fraction of a second in a photo finish. This time around Gonzalez won going away, dropping 11 seconds from her previous time and shaving three seconds off her own PR of 2:53.80 set last year in the ultra-competitive Conference Championships.
Beat goes on
And the beat went on.
Marquez came back and broke her own PR in the 200-Intermediate.
Promising freshman Estefana Bautista, a newcomer with no previous varsity swimming experience, won the 50 free and six of the eight Port Chester entries set PRs, that number including Daisy Ruiz, Kaylee Dugally, Danna Rodriguez-Poroj, Anabel Jimenez, Natalia Guzman and Elisa Lopez.
Ortega won the 100-yard butterfly, Marquez took the 500-yard free and Gonzalez won the 100-yard backstroke while Sophia Tellez finished second with a new PR.
The Lady Rams wrapped up the meet by winning the final event, the 400-freestyle relay, with the winning quartet consisting of Marquez, Kimberly Rivera, Gonzalez and Saunders.
Close Brewster loss
In the close 47-45 loss to Brewster last Friday (10/6), the Lady Rams came close in a meet where most scores are usually anywhere from 10 to 20 points apart, but not close enough, coming up just two points short of the win. Gonzalez was their high point scorer and wins came in four different events. The Lady Rams won the 200-medley relay with Gonzalez (back stroke), Marquez (breaststroke), Ortega (fly) and Saunders (free). Gonzalez won the 200-freestyle, coming close to her PR of 2:53.94. Ortega clocked a PR of 1:28.91 in winning the 100-butterfly. And the Lady Rams won the 400-freestyle relay with the winning quartet including Bautista, Saunders, Rivera and Gonzalez.
Eye on the prize
Cahill, also a special education teacher at the Thomas Edison School as well as at Port Chester High School, noted that Bautista's making the varsity relay team as a freshman rated as a significant achievement because she has had no previous competitive swimming experience.
But that just seems to go with the territory for the ever-improving Lady Rams with their continuous can you top this competitive attitude.
Cahill and her team are hoping for more Ws and PRs in their upcoming away meets Wednesday (10/11 after press time) against Peekskill and Harrison away Friday (10/13). Their next home meet is Monday (10/16), Senior Night, against Woodlands with a return match against Brewster Wednesday (10/18), both at 4:30 p.m. And win or lose, it has already been quite a record-breaking season with the best yet to come.
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