The MIAA Swimming and Diving Committee approved statewide alignments and qualifying standards for meets this winter season in a virtual meeting on Thursday.
The committee unanimously approved a two-division alignment for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, noting that it may be fluid with changes based on new rules for statewide tournaments.
Since swimming and diving is a hybrid sport, it isn’t subject to the same changes that team sports are since the new system was ratified in February. Committee members have yet to receive indication of what tournament changes to hybrid sports like swimming will look like.
Nevertheless, the proposal now moves on to the Tournament Management Committee (TMC).
Teams were sorted by enrollment, with a cutoff of 1,050 students dividing the two divisions. The alignments were then adjusted based on factors as determined by the TMC. Vocational schools were moved down a division, while private schools moved up a division. Single-gender schools were aligned by doubling their enrollments. Uniquely to swimming and diving, cooperative schools were aligned based on the enrollment of the largest school in the co-op.
Local teams were aligned into the division as such, for both the boys and girls squads:
Division 1: Holyoke
Division 2: Amherst Regional, Northampton, Belchertown, South Hadley, Easthampton
The committee also voted 10-0 in approval of new qualifying standards for the 2020-21 winter sectional and state meets. The standards were adjusted based on factors such as upward and downward trends in results over time and the amount of competitors from the previous year that graduated.
The new qualification standards for the boys Central/West sectional are as follows, with last season’s standards in parentheses:
200-yard medley relay: 1:59.59 (1:59.59)
200 freestyle: 2:01.32 (2:03.77)
200 individual medley: 2:20.09 (2:17.75)
50 freestyle: 24.18 (24.36)
Diving: 160 x 2 (165 x 2)
100 butterfly: 1:01.89 (1:01.89)
100 freestyle: 53.55 (54.16)
500 freestyle: 5:38.04 (5:38.04)
200 freestyle relay: 1:44.05 (1:44.05)
100 backstroke: 1:05.02 (1:04.55)
100 breaststroke: 1:10.72 (1:12.09)
400 freestyle relay: 4:10.48 (4:15.90)
These are the new qualification standards for the girls Central/West sectional:
200 medley relay: 2:10.81 (2:10.80)
200 freestyle: 2:11.81 (2:11.18)
200 individual medley: 2:32.36 (2:31.84)
50 freestyle: 27.24 (27.29)
Diving: 165 x 2 (165 x 2)
100 butterfly: 1:09.00 (1:09.00)
100 freestyle: 1:00.33 (59.71)
500 freestyle: 5:56.72 (5:56.72)
200 freestyle relay: 1:56.02 (1:55.47)
100 backstroke: 1:07.61 (1:08.01)
100 breaststroke: 1:18.91 (1:19.73)
400 freestyle relay: 4:25.83 (4:25.83)
Other agenda items for the meeting included reports on each of the sectional and state tournaments last season. Pat McDiarmid, the director of the Central/West tournament, reported another strong year for the event, giving thanks to the hosting capabilities of Springfield College. The tournament will remain at the home of the Pride next season.
The committee also reviewed both fall and winter formats for the 2020-21 season, unanimously approving the former and beginning initial discussion of the latter. A formal vote to approve the winter format will be held at their next meeting in the fall.