First Posted: 2/12/2015
SCRANTON – Pittston Area and Wyoming Area began the transition from regular-season dual meets to postseason championship events by heading to invitationals last weekend.
The Patriots sought out new competition and produced impressive results.
Mia Nardone won two girls’ events while Brandon Winters won a boys’ event for Pittston Area in the Les Richards Invitational at Scranton High School.
“I think it was perfect timing going from our regular dual meets to getting ready for districts,” Pittston Area coach Amy Hazlet said. “A lot of kids had their best times and actually got really good seeds for districts.”
Seeds for the district swimming events Feb. 27-28 at the Wilkes-Barre CYC are determined based on each swimmer’s best time of the season. District competition begins Feb. 21 with the diving competition only.
While Wyoming Area was one of eight Wyoming Valley Conference schools to gather at the Ray Wills Swim and Dive Invitational at Wyoming Valley West, Pittston Area went to Scranton to compete against Lackawanna League schools.
“We chose to go to Les Richards and not Ray Wills because Ray Wills was everybody we swam this year,” Hazlet said. “We were able to swim against Delaware Valley which is one of the best teams in the state and Scranton Prep which is one of the best teams in the state in Double-A.
“I think it was really good for our kids to see other competition than what was in our league.”
Nardone went through the morning qualifying with the second-best time in the 100-yard butterfly and third-best in the 100 backstroke. She then won each event in the afternoon finals.
After finishing the butterfly in 1:00.65 to win by almost three seconds, Nardone won the backstroke in 1:03.44.
“Mia dropped a second in the butterfly with her best time of the season and, going into districts, I think it gave her the confidence that she needed,” Hazlet said. “In the backstroke, she dropped two seconds from her best time and she was going to be a minute or 1:01, but I could tell that she ran out of gas going into that last turn.
“That was the seventh time that she raced that day.”
Nardone had one more big effort left, posting a 55-second anchor leg to bring the closing 400 freestyle relay team in in third place after barely reaching the final as the sixth qualifier.
Erin Senese, Kassity Roche and Arianna Boccardi were also part of the relay team.
Roche, Adison Hazlet, Nardone and Boccardi teamed to take fourth in the opening 200 medley relay.
Katrina Dillon was sixth in the 500 freestyle.
Winters beat a strong field in the 100 backstroke by finishing in 56.94 seconds. He also took second in the 50 freestyle.
Hazlet is hoping Winters will be the top seed in the 100 backstroke at the District 2 Class AA Championships.
“I haven’t seen anybody else have a better time this year,” she said.
There was no team scoring in the Richards Invitational.
Wills Invitational
PLYMOUTH – Wyoming Area competed at the Ray Wills Swim and Dive Invitational Feb. 6 and 7.
The Warriors finished sixth out of eight girls teams and sixth out of seven boys teams. Host Wyoming Valley West won both titles.
Ryan Murphy finished second in the 200 freestyle and fifth in the 100 butterfly as well as being part of third- and fourth-place relay teams.
Michael Murphy was third in both the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke while also taking part on the two relay teams that placed.
Connor Dileo was fifth in the 200 freestyle.
Amy Alder led the Wyoming Area girls by finishing fifth in the 200 freestyle, taking sixth in the 500 freestyle and swimming a leg of the sixth-place 400 freestyle relay.
Regular season ends
The Wyoming Valley Conference season came to an end Tuesday.
Tunkhannock won the final three events to beat Pittston Area, 94-89, in a girls meet.
Pittston Area finished the season 9-4.
Mia Nardone won the 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly. Sierra Williams won the diving. Erica Colon, McKenzie Connors, Tara Johnson and Erin Senese combined to win the 200 freestyle relay.
Holy Redeemer swept Wyoming Area, winning the boys meet, 86-77, and the girls meet, 142-43.
Ryan Murphy won the 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly for the Wyoming Area boys, who finished 3-6 in the WVC.
Joe Earl won the diving and Seth White the 100 backstroke.
The Wyoming Area girls, who finished 2-10-1, won only one event. Amy Alder was first in the 100 freestyle.
