Here is the story by PJ Potter of NJ.com
The 2022-23 swimming season could not have ended in a more exciting and dazzling fashion.
In the final dual meet in New Jersey this winter, two teams remained, fighting for the illustrious NJSIAA Group A title. The atmosphere was thunderous as everyone looked on at last year’s rematch between Westfield and Cherry Hill East.
Both powerhouse squads have long prepared for this moment and it all lived up to the hype. Avenging last season’s loss, top-seeded Westfield took down second-seeded Cherry Hill East, 91-79 behind five first-place finishes to win the program’s 27th state title on Sunday in Sewell.
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2/26 – 5:30 PM Boys Swimming Final Cherry Hill East 79 Westfield 91
“I’m on top of the world right now,” Westfield senior Colin Kavanagh said.
“After losing last year, we put in everything to get to this moment. Every lap we swam was to get back here.”
A back-and-forth battle that saw five lead changes throughout, No. 1 Westfield entered the final relay with 83 points.
Just three points away from glory, the Blue Devils (15-0) were worn down but knew what potentially lied ahead of them.
Westfield cranked out the win in the relay at 3:12.89 from Logan Swenson, Kavanagh, Danny Pierce and Owen Waibel – and the celebration began
“At that point, we were so exhausted. But hey, we were one race away from being state champions. We pushed through it all and got the first place to win in our final race,” Kavanagh said.
“We knew it would be super tight. We just wanted to cap off an awesome meet and it was fight until the end,” Swenson added.
The title is Westfield’s first since 2016 and seventh overall under head coach Jeff Knight.
“It’s been a long time that we’ve worked towards accomplishing this. I’m so proud of this group for finally getting back to the top and taking this one home. We had a plan going in and the boys executed it perfectly,” Knight said.
At two separate points, the score was tied. With four races left on the docket, the score read 55-all.
Westfield sprinted to a one-two finish in the 200 FR (1:28.39, 1:28.56) to jut out to a 10-point lead that caused mayhem in the natatorium.
“This is amazing. We worked so hard remembering what happened last year in this pool. It really paid off,” Waibel said.
The Blue Devils never surrendered that lead. A big help came from a bit of a surprise in the lineup.
But if you know how good Waibel really is, maybe we shouldn’t be so surprised that he was penciled in for the breaststroke. For the first time this season, Waibel raced this event.
And he won.
Inching out Cherry Hill East’s James Tao by 0.19 seconds, the sophomore sensation garnered the victory at 57.08 to pave an 83-73 lead.
“I didn’t really swim it much this year, but Coach told me that this would be best for the team. I just wanted to close out the meet strong for us. I felt James [Tao] next to me the whole time. I just had to get my hand on the wall. I was a little nervous but I kept my mind on the ultimate goal. It worked out,” Waibel said.
“Owen is one of the best swimmers in the state. He’s so versatile and we had studied their team and responded accordingly. So for us, we gave Owen the opportunity to get it done for us in the breaststroke,” Knight added.
The No. 4 Cougars (13-1) clipped six first-place nods in the meet. Ryan Cortes led the way with wins in the 50 freestyle (20.65) and 100 freestyle (45.76).
“Ryan is better than advertised. He’s also a great leader and helps get our kids out of their heads and focused. He’s a real class act and will be missed,” Cherry Hill East head coach Joe Cucinotti said.
JD Moyer was also quick, adding wins in the butterfly (50.81) and backstroke (50.92). The butterfly race was electric as the Cougars went 1-2-3 from Moyer, Ben Schlotterer and Connor Borrelli to tie the meet at 39.
“That was a new meet there. A sweep is great, especially to tie it up and that got us excited,” Cucinotti said.
Jack Behm also won the 500 freestyle at 4:44.89.
The defending champs’ dual meet win streak comes to a close at 56. To cap an incredible run, the Cougars picked up key wins over Egg Harbor, Hillsborough, Gloucester Tech, Cherokee, Haddonfield, Mainland and Cherry Hill West this winter.
“We knew coming in that today would be tough. The boys swam very well and we’ll wake up tomorrow not feeling discouraged,” Cucinotti said.
“We’re still winners. I’d rather swim and finish in second than not be here at all. It was a great season.”
Westfield’s dream season finally came to life. Winning the Union County meet, North 2, Group A sectinal finals and the Group A title marks an incredible journey for a squad seeking redemption.
“They are one of the very best teams I’ve ever been associated with. They make coming to coach every day truly an enjoyable experience,” Knight said.
“I’ve seen some of them since I was teaching them in sixth grade, so to see them achieve these goals years later is something I’m so proud of.”
“This means so much. Everybody who was on the team last year wanted this one so bad, we’ve thought about it so much. It feels so good,” Swenson finished.
