Wissahickon boys turn the tide with Upper Dublin; Cardinal girls prevail over Trojans

UPPER DUBLIN >> For Hudson Bowers, Thomas Mazur and William Hertz, the diving board was calling…

“It’s so fun to come and dive at these meets. I’ve been here swimming for years, just watching the divers and being like, ‘how do you do that?'” said a smiling Bowers. “And now it’s like, I’m doing that. I’m the diver guy. It’s fun.”

Bowers, Mazur and Hertz were the diver guys for Wissahickon on Tuesday, and major point scorers. The trio – placing first, second and third in the event – was an integral part of a monumental victory for Wissahickon.

“That was a historic win. I don’t know the last time that’s ever happened – if it’s ever happened,” Trojans coach Jonathan Faikish said. “Diving was absolutely huge. We have three senior divers who have never dove before.”

The Wiss boys produced a 97-86 victory over the Cardinals while the Upper Dublin girls continued their push with a 96-82 win over the Trojans in a Suburban One League Liberty Division double dual meet at Upper Dublin.

“It was a good day. There were a lot of team points – seconds, thirds and fourths. So that was huge for us today,” Faikish said of the win.

Points in diving seemed a long shot before the season started. But Bowers, Mazur and Hertz stepped forward.

“They were trying to get more people for diving and I wound up loving it,” said Bowers.

Inspiration came from many sources.

Said Mazur: “My physics teacher had just gotten into diving and he was telling us about his diving experience. He heard that we had no divers, so he just kept pushing it and pushing it for us to give it a shot.

“It’s a lot of fun. At first it was discouraging because there’s a lot of technique. But once I stuck to it, I really liked it.”

Upper Dublin did not have divers on Tuesday, but there were still some nerves for the Trojan trio.

“During the day, I was a little nervous, thinking I have to dive in front of a lot of people today,” said Hertz with a grin. “But the pressure wasn’t that bad because I’m friends with all the people on the team.”

Hertz even attempted a back flip for the first time.

The ultimate frisbee player is getting the hang of it.

“The two best girls on the water polo team told me they would do frisbee if I would do diving. It’s fun to try something new,” he said. “I’m definitely more excited after this meet to see how I improve and how much better my dives look.”

Some familiar faces also did their thing for Wiss, as captains Nate Valentine, Nick Donofrio and Jordan Quimby led a senior-heavy group in the pool.

“(This win is) a tribute to our senior class, leading the team consistently. It’s just absolutely awesome,” Faikish said.

Valentine helped spark things for Wiss with a victory in the 200-yard free style.

“There was just a good vibe around the whole team today,” he said. “It gets you hyped before each race and makes you go faster.”

Another key moment came when Valentine teamed up with Donofrio, Reed Harris and Logan Bruno to grab first in the 200 free relay.

“We would always come to this meet every year thinking we’re gonna get blown out because it’s Upper Dublin. They’ve always been good,” Donofrio said. “This year was different for us. It was a good day.”

Said Quimby, who raced to second in the 500 free: “During winter break, you’re always practicing. It’s long hours and stressful mentally. It’s always tough to come back (for that first meet after break), but things went our way today and we’re gonna keep building that positive attitude as our season progresses.

“Every kid on this team has worked their butt off.”

Wissahickon combined its efforts to overcome a strong Cardinal squad, which got a pair of victories from Jack Vitella in the 100 and 500 free.

Arina Vorobyeva had a sensational afternoon for the Upper Dublin girls, winning the 200 free and 500 free as well as leading off the first-place 200 medley relay.

Sarah Pickel shined for the Wiss girls, touching first in the 50 free and 100 back and leading off the winning 400 free relay.

Upper Dublin hosts Quakertown Friday and Wissahickon hosts Hatboro-Horsham that afternoon.

Boys Swimming

Wissahickon 97, Upper Dublin 86

200 medley relay: Upper Dublin (Michael Gewartowski, Henry Caldwell, Spencer Motelson, Alex Freilich), 1:44.29; 200 free: Nathan Valentine (W) 1:52.52; 200 IM: Alex Frelich (UD) 2:08.88; 50 free: Spencer Motelson (UD) 23.03; Diving: Hudson Bowers (W) 110.45; 100 fly: Tyler Shilling (W) 56.86; 100 free: Jack Vitella (UD) 50.12; 500 free: Vitella (UD) 5:02.23; 200 free relay: Wissahickon (Nathan Valentine, Nick Donofrio, Reed Harris, Logan Bruno), 1:33.15; 100 back: Michael Gewartowski (UD) 58.39; 100 breast: Toby Herzog (UD) 1:02.45; 400 free relay: Upper Dublin (Gewartowski, Spencer Motelson, Zach Holmlund, Alex Freilich), 3:26.95.

Girls Swimming

Upper Dublin 96, Wissahickon 82

200 medley relay: Upper Dublin (Arina Vorobyeva, Emma McCarthy, Vikki Williams, Maya Gondek), 1:53.24; 200 free: Arina Vorobyeva (UD) 1:56.88; 200 IM: Ava Walters (W) 2:18.28; 50 free: Sarah Pickel (W) 25.89; Diving: Jillian Fracht (UD) 170.30; 100 fly: Olivia Auwarter (UD) 1:01.93; 100 free: Olivia Vitella (UD) 58.08; 500 free: Arina Vorobyeva (UD) 5:12.37; 200 free relay: Upper Dublin (Emma McCarthy, Hannah McKeown, Maya Gondek, Alicia Taylor), 1:43.04; 100 back: Sarah Pickel (W) 1:04.01; 100 breast: Bernice Fu (W) 1:14.04; 400 free relay: Wissahickon (Sarah Pickel, Maddie Johnson, Ava Walters, Bernice Fu), 3:56.76.