The eyes of the Western Massachusetts swimming and diving community will be focused in Springfield on Sunday.
The annual Central/West Swimming & Diving Championships are slated for the Art Linkletter Natatorium on the campus of Springfield College, and the Hampshire County contingent should very much be in the mix for titles in multiple disciplines.
The boys race will be held at 9:30 a.m., before the girls event follows at 3:30 p.m.
Hampshire County swimmers enter as the top seeds in six of the 12 events.
After a fine regular season, Easthampton junior Natalia Robak is the No. 1 seed in both the 100 and 200-yard freestyle swims. Robak is the top seed in the 200 freestyle by over six full seconds, and she has nearly a full second on the field in qualifying for the 100.
Amherst’s Lucy Smith is another swimmer to watch on Sunday, as she’s penciled in as the clear No. 1 seed in the 50 freestyle — besting the field by over two full seconds. The junior is also in the mix in the 100 butterfly, where she’s the No. 3 seed in the field.
Northampton junior Sydney Abild is the No. 1 seed in the 100 breaststroke on Sunday, an event she also has two full seconds on the field. Abild is also a factor in the 50 freestyle, where she’s the No. 2 seed behind Robak.
Belchertown’s Aubrey Harrington is the No. 2 seed in the 200 freestyle behind Robak, and the freshman will look to make some noise in that discipline to pace the Orioles.
Other top 10 seeds on the girls side include Amherst’s Sophie Ziomek (No. 8 in 200 free, No. 3 in 500 free), Northampton’s Asha Kulp (No. 10 in 200 free), Amherst’s Rowan Albertson (No. 5 in 50 free), Amherst’s Adda Hennessey (No. 8 in 50 free, No. 4 in 100 free), Northampton’s Kailey Murphy (No. 10 in diving), Amherst’s Deborah Wells (No. 5 in 100 fly, No. 6 in 100 backstroke), Belchertown’s Alannah Lavoie (No. 7 in 100 fly), Belchertown’s Valerie Williams (No. 6 in 500 free), Amherst’s Aurora Donta-Venman (No. 9 in 500 free) and Amherst’s Sara Baxter (No. 5 in 100 backstroke).
The relay teams are also in prime positioning to shine on Sunday. Amherst has the top-seeded quartet in the 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay, as well as the second-seeded side in the 400 freestyle. Northampton and Belchertown also qualified in the top 10 in all three relay races.
The Belchertown boys are in line for a memorable Sunday in the pool, if seeds manage to hold.
The Orioles have two individual swimmers slated as No. 1 seeds, while the 400-yard freestyle relay team also enters with the fastest qualification time in the field.
Senior Mitchell Dubey sets the tone, and he’s the heavy favorite in the 200-yard freestyle with a qualification time over 11 seconds faster than the rest of the field. Dubey is also the No. 1 seed in the 500 freestyle, where he’s a whopping 26 seconds faster than the field so far this season.
Belchertown teammate Luke Giguere is also one to watch, particularly in the 100-yard butterfly where his fastest time on the season is over two seconds faster than the field to put him in the No. 1 spot. Like Dubey, Giguere is seeded first in two events, as he also has the fastest time in the 100 backstroke by a healthy margin.
Senior Evan Harrington is another of a loaded Belchertown team that should be in the mix on Sunday. Harrington is the No. 3 seed in the 200 freestyle, and is the No. 4 seed in the 500 freestyle.
The Orioles also have the top-seeded team in the 400 freestyle relay, and they’re seeded second in the 200 medley relay.
Amherst junior Callum McDonald is seeded in the top 10 of two different individual events. He’s No. 3 in the 200 IM, and ninth in the 100 breaststroke. Teammates Sam Kennedy (seventh, 100 butterfly) and Evander Maradiaga (eighth, 100 fly) are other top 10 seeds on Sunday, and the Hurricanes also have the No. 4 team in the 400 freestyle.
Tyler Hetu of Easthampton is the top-ranked competitor from his team, as he’ll look to contend in the diving event as the No. 2 seed there before Saint John’s Joel Picard.
Northampton’s Jack Mattison Gulotta will be one to watch for the Blue Devils in the 500 freestyle, as he enters as the No. 5 seed overall. Teammate Henry Bayne is also a top 10 seed in the diving event, where he has the sixth-best score in the field. Northampton also has three relay teams ranked in the top 10.
Holyoke’s Brady Pijar is the lone top 10 seed from his school, as he’s ninth in the 500 freestyle.