Bernards High
Swim Team
Team News Archives (2016-17 season)
February 23, 2017
Bernards closed out their dual meet season with 2 losses against cross-town rival Ridge at the Somerset Hills YMCA on February 23. 2017. The boys finished the season at 14-2 and the girls at 12-4 at what was arguably one of the strongest seasons in Bernards swim team history. Ryan Van Dijk, who won the 50 free and was second in the 100 breast, put enough points on the board to break last year's teammate - Ben Baxter's career point scoring record by one point! Ryan finished his BHS career with 796.5 points, erasing Ben's record of 795.5 points. Ryan also broke Mitch Colby's single season scoring record of 231.5 points (from 2008) with 269.75 points. Sophomore Matt Voight, with a second in the 500 and third in the 200, touched first as anchor on the 400 free relay and capped off a 258.75 point season, which moved him in to first on the leaderboard for average points per season with 218.38. Joining Matt on the winning relay was Alex Kiel, Joe Kiel and Mike Doerr. The boys score was 58-112. New best times were posted by Joe Kiel (IM) Will Garvin (back).
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The girls lost 68-102 but managed to win the opening medley relay (Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Mallika Negi and Caroline Casella) and two individual events (Izzy Piccone - backstroke and Jessica - breaststroke). New best times were recorded by Caroline (IM), Ali Maffei (IM), Mallika (breast), Izzy (IM and back), Megan (500 free) and Jessica (200 free).
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February 22, 2017
The Bernards girls lost in the semifinal round of the Group C All-Section state playoffs, falling 64-106 to the number one seed, Mountain Lakes at Rowan College on February 22, 2017. The meet, which set the girls record at 12-3, capped off an incredible run through the state playoffs that produced Bernards' first ever girls state sectional title and a trip to the group playoffs. The girls put up a tough fight, winning three individual events and one relay as Ali Maffei won the 500, Megan Sardis the backstroke and Jessica Snyder the breaststroke. Ali and Megan also swam on the winning 400 free relay along with Caroline Casella and Izzy Piccone. Ali had a particularly good meet as she also set a new PR in the 200 free, and anchored the 3rd place 200 free relay with a very fast come-from-behind split, only moments after climbing out of the pool from the 500 free. Also swimming to a new PR was Grace Villani in the 500.
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February 21, 2017
The Bernards boys lost their first meet of their amazing season in the Group C All-Section semifinal round, 66-104 against the number one seed, Demarest at the Passaic County Technical Institute on February 21, 2017. Bernards did not go down easily pushing the very strong Demarest squad in every race. Ryan Van Dijk led the way with 2 individual wins in the 50 free and the 100 breaststroke while Matt Voight improved his BHS all-time #4 top time in the 500 free with a second place 4:57.24, Matt was also runner up in the 200 free by six hundredths of a second. Ryan and Matt joined Joe Kiel and Mike Doerr in the 200 medley relay that also came in second by six tenths of a second. Joe swam to 2 silver medals in the 100 fly and back and Alex Kiel placed second in the 100 free. Ryan, Ross Zazzarino, Alex and Julian Baxter grabbed second place in the 200 free relay and Alex, Joe, Mike and Matt touched first in the closing 400 free relay, with Nicholas Falivene, Nick Schwed, Eric Bernhard and John Leskauskas taking third.
At 14-1, the 2016-2017 season is one of the best in Bernards High School's 29 year history.
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February 17, 2017
The girls followed the boys with the first ever girls state sectional title for Bernards, defeating Caldwell 95-75 at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA on February 17, 2017. The Bernards girls put on an impressive show as they captured all 3 relays and won 5 individual events. Megan Sardis led the way with wins in the 50 free and 100 fly and she also swam on the first place medley and 400 free relays. Other individual winners were Izzy Piccone (200 free), Kristen Sardis (100 free) and Jessica Snyder (breast). In addition to the wins, the girls displayed consistent strength throughout the meet by claiming second place in every event except the breaststroke. Mallika Negi (IM, fly) and Caroline Casella (100 free, back) each had two runner up swims and Ali Maffei (200), Kristen (50 free) and Izzy P (500 free) each recorded one. Caroline Van Dijk, Alexis Buzby, Kerry Broderick and Ali Maffei captured the bronze in the 200 free relay. There were many best times registered by Zoe Bender (IM), Caroline C (100 free), Sarah Celentano (50 back medley relay), Skylar Gosselin (50 and 100 free), Ali (100 and 200 free), Izzy Marks (50 free). Izzy P (50, 200 and 500 free), Kristen (50 back medley relay and 100 free), Megan (50 free) and Mattie Sbaraglio (breast).
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The girls have earned a berth in the All Section Group C state championship round of 4 and will swim in the semifinals on February 22 at Rowan College.
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February 16, 2017
The boys won the first swim team state sectional title in Bernards history by beating Caldwell 115-55 in the final round at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA on February 16, 2017. The Bernards boys - undefeated in 14 outings - have dominated their opponents this season by scoring over 100 points in every 6 lane meet they swam in, except for one. Their state sectional final meet was no exception as Bernards opened the meet with a 1-2 sweep of the medley relay as Matt Voight, Ryan Van Dijk, Joe Kiel and Mike Doerr touched first, just ahead of John Leskauskas, Chris Van Dijk, Julian Baxter and Nicholas Falivene. Bernards continued to expand their lead throughout the meet, winning every event except for 2. Bernards also swept the IM with Matt, Ross Zazzarino and Nicholas outracing all of the Caldwell boys. Matt won his second event of the meet by taking the 500 free in a Bernards 1-2-4 finish. with Nick Schwed taking second and Eric Bernhard dropping 30 seconds off of his previous best time with an exciting come-from-behind finish to sneak in for the fourth place spot. Ryan Van Dijk also took two individual events by winning the 50 free and the 100 breast, which also showcased a 1-2-4 finish as Ross took the silver, just ahead of Chris. Joe grabbed the top spot in the fly as did John in the back. In additional to Eric's 500, PRs were recorded by Mike (200 free), Nicholas (IM, fly, 100 free), Joe (fly), Chris (50 free) and Ross (IM).
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The boys have earned a berth in the All Section Group C state championship round of 4 and will swim in the semifinals on February 21 at Passaic County Technical Institute.
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February 13, 2017
The Bernards girls and boys swim teams opened their NJSIAA State Sectional (Group C) Championship tournament with two convincing semifinal wins at the Somerset Hills YMCA on February 13, 2017. The boys, seeded first, overpowered fourth seed, Madison 105-64 while the second seeded girls, swam past third seed West Essex 112-58. The boys extended their unbeaten streak to 13-0 with their all-time 100th team victory and the girls improved to 11-2 for the season.
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The boys finished 1-2 or 1-3 in every event except the back and breast and capped off the victory with an MOC cut 3:23.33 in the 400 free relay swum by Alex Kiel, Joe Kiel, Ryan Van Dijk and Matt Voight. Scoring two individual wins were Matt (200 and 500 free) and Mike Doerr (50 and 100 free) while Ryan (IM) and Joe (fly) each put one individual win on the board. Matt, Ryan, Joe and Julian Baxter took the opening medley relay and Mike, Julian, Chris Van Dijk and Ross Zazzarino touched first in the 200 free relay. New personal bests were recorded by Nicholas Falivene (fly split), Owen Kelly (back), Joe (fly split and 100 fly), Chris (breast split and 100 breast) and Ryan (100 free).
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The girls won every event except for the final relay as they also finished 1-2 or 1-3 in every event except for the 500 free (and the final relay). Leading the way with two individual wins were Megan Sardis (fly and back) and Izzy Piccone (200 and 500 free). Mallika (IM), Caroline Van Dijk (50), Caroline Casella (100 free) and Jessica Snyder (breast) each took one event. In the only event that Bernards did not win, the two relay teams of Mattie Sbaraglio, Lauren Browne, Skylar Gosselin, and Caroline Casella and Sophie Ray, Ciara Guglietta, Maren Petrie and Kerry Broderick took the silver and bronze medals finishes respectively. Best times were posted by Kerry (200 free), Sarah Celentano (breast), Skylar (50 and 100 free), Izzy P (50 free), Sophie (100 free)., Samantha Slater (100 free) and Maria Vazquez (50 and 100 free).
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The Bernards boys will face Caldwell for the final round on Thursday, February 16 while the girls will also face Caldwell for their final meet on Friday, February 17. Both meets will be at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA.
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February 4, 2017
The Bernards girls and boys swim teams swam to very strong sixth place finishes at the Somerset County Championship meet at Montgomery High School on February 4, 2017. The highlight of the day was Jessica Snyder's sizzling 1:08.22 in the 100 breaststroke which established a new Bernards High School team record. Jessica lowered the previous standard of 1:08.33, set by Nori Skoda in 2003. Also, both the girls and boys 200 freestyle relays qualified for the Meet of Champions. The girls placed 5th and swam to a BHS all-time #3 time of 1:42.16 with Caroline Casella, Megan Sardis, Mallika Negi and Kristen Sardis. The boys, finishing 4th in the county posted a BHS all-time #4 time of 1:31.13 with Ryan Van Dijk, Mike Doerr, Matt Voight and Alex Kiel. Other new Top Five times were recorded by Matt in the 200 free (1:49.09) and 100 back (56.40), Ryan in the IM (2:03.33), Ross Zazzarino ini the 100 breast (1:05.64), Kristen in the 50 free (25.37) and 100 breast (1:10.07) and the girls 200 medley relay (1:51.74) team of Megan, Jessica, Mallika and Caroline.
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Also posting best times were Caroline Van Dijk (50 and 100 free), Ali Maffei (500 free), Isabella Piccone (200 and 500 free), Sophie Ray (back), Nicholas Falivene (fly and 500 free), John Leskauskas (back) and Chris Van Dijk (50 free and breast).
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February 2, 2017
The Bernards boys and girls swim teams earned the number one and number two seeds respectively in the North 2, Group C state sectional championship playoffs. The high seeding has earned Bernards BYEs for the first two rounds and will start the playoffs in the semifinal round on Monday, February 13 at the Somerset Hills YMCA. The boys will face the winner of the Lyndhurst (#5) and Madison (#4) quarterfinal meet. On the girls side, Glen Ridge (#6) will face Harrison (#7) in the preliminary round with the winner of that meet swimming West Essex (#3) in the quarterfinal round. The winner of that meet will swim Bernards in the semifinal round.
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February 1, 2017
The Bernards swim team clinched the Skyland Conference Raritan Division championship title with convincing wins over Belvidere at the Somerset Hills YMCA on February 1, 2017. Bernards defeated all 8 of their division opponents. The boys defended the title they won last year and the girls reclaimed the title they last held in 2013. This is the first time in Bernards High School history that both the girls and boys teams have held the division title in the same season.
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The girls, who are 10-2 overall started their 117-53 victory by sweeping the opening medley relay. Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Caroline Van Dijk and Maren Petrie took first and were followed a second later by Caroline Casella, Zoe Bender, Isabella Piccone and Alexis Buzby. The girls continued their winning ways with three double winners (Megan - fly and back, Jessica - IM and breast, Isabella Piccone - 50 free and 500 free. Also taking firsts were Caroline C (200 free) and Caroline V (100 free). The 200 free relay was won by Jessica. Alexis, Maren Petrie and Caroline C, while the 400 free relay team of Caroline V, Sophie Ray, Isabella Piccone and Megan Sardis). Recording best times today were Lauren Browne (200 free), Caroline C (200 free), Sarah Celantano (50 free). Isabella Piccone (500 free) and Mattie Sbaraglio (50 free).
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The boys won by a score of 129-40 as 7 different boys won the 8 individual events and Bernards took all 3 relays. Mike Doerr was the sole double winner as he won the IM and the 500 free. The other winners were Nick Schwed (200 free), Alex Kiel (50 free), Ryan Van Dijk (fly), Chris Van Dijk (100 free), John Leskauskas (500 free), and Ross Zazzarino (breast). John, Ross, Ryan and Nicholas Falivene (medley) and Matt, Ross, Chris and Ryan (200 free) led 1-2 sweeps in each of their relays and the 400 free relay squad of Alex, Julian Baxter, Owen Kelly and Ryan was victorious as well. Best times were posted by Eric Bernhard (200 and 500 free), Mike (IM and 500 free), Will Garvin (200 and 100 free), Owen (100 free), Alex (200 and 100 free), Joe (50 free), Chris (50 breast split), Ryan (50 fly split), Matt (breast), and finally Ross (50 breast split)
Bernards (North 2, Group C) awaits the announcement of the state sectional playoffs brackets and will begin the state tournament next week, after they compete in the Somerset County championships this weekend.
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January 31, 2017
The Bernards swim team swam against Watchung Hills at the Morris Union Jointure on January 31 and saw the boys extend their unbeaten streak to 11 (106-63) while the girls fell just short (78-92), losing only for the second time this season (9-2).
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The boys won 9 of the 11 events with double individual wins coming from Ryan Van Dijk (IM and 100 free) and Matt Voight (200 and 500 free) and single victories from Mike Doerr (50 free), Joe Kiel (fly) and Ross Zazzarino (breast). Joe, Ryan, Julian Baxter and Mike took the medley relay and Alex Kiel, Mike, Ryan and Matt finished first in the 200 free relay. Best times were recorded by Will Garvin (breast), Joe (back split), Ryan (100 free) and Ross (breast split).
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The girls opened the meet with a solid win in the medley relay (Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Mallika Negi and Caroline Casella), but only managed to touch the wall first in two other events (Megan - fly and Jessica - breast). Thanks to several silver and bronze swims, the girls kept the score to within 2 points through the first 8 events, but couldn't grab the lead as the Watchung girls won the backstroke and the two freestyle relays to clinch the meet. Swimming to new best times were Kerry Broderick (100 free), Kaelyn Godbey (100 free), Skylar Gosselin (100 free), Ali Maffei (500 free), Isabella Piccone (50 and 500 free), Mattie Sbaraglio (50 free), and Grace Villani (200 free).
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​The team faces Belvidere tomorrow in their final Skyland Conference/Raritan Division dual meet. A victory will clinch the Conference Division title for both the girls and the boys.
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January 25, 2017
Using an experimental lineup, the Bernards swim teams beat their next to last Raritan Division competitors from Rutgers Prep to come close to finalizing their conference champion title. The girls won by 108-60 and the boys score was 114-54.
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Best times were recorded on the girls team by Sarah Celentano (100 Free), Isabella Marks (50 Free), Mallika Negi (500 Free), Isabella Piccone (50 Back, 200 IM), Sophie Ray (50 Back, 500 Free), Kristen Sardis (100 Back) and Maria Vazquez (50 Fly).
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The boys swam to an easy win behind best times from Michael Doerr (500 Free), Will Garvin (50 Free, 100 Free, 100 Back), Owen Kelly (50 Back, 100 Back, 100 Free), Ryan Van Dijk (100 Back, 100 Free) and Ross Zazzarino (200 Free, 100 Breast).
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The team faces Belvidere next Wednesday in their final Skyland Conference/Raritan Division dual meet. The girls record now stands at 9-1, while the boys remain undefeated at 10-0.
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January 21, 2017
The Bernards girls and boys teams swam best time… after best time… on January 21, 2017 at Montgomery High School. In the morning, the girls finished 7th overall, a two-place improvement from last year. In the afternoon, the boys placed a strong 6th overall. One school record and 8 other top 5 swims were achieved.
The swimming started off with the medley relay of Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Mallika Negi, and Caroline Casella doing a best time of 1:52.98, achieving 3rd place all time for BHS. Other top 5 swims were accomplished by Mallika (#5 in Fly), Jessica (#3 in Breast) and the 200 Free Relay of Jessica, Mallika, Ali Maffei, and Kristen Sardis (#4 all time). Other BHS career best times were set by Ali (200, Fly), Mallika (Back). Relay splits had best times for Caroline Casella (50, 100), Jessica (50), Ali (50), and Kristen (50).
The boys performance was exemplified by Ryan VanDijk and Matt Voight. Ryan set a school record in the 100 Breaststroke, placing 3rdwith a 59.70. he also moved into 3rd all time in the 200 IM with a 2:04.54. Matt moved into 5th all time in the 200 free with a 1:49.13, then later moved to 4th in the 500 free with a 4:59.07.
Their afternoon started with an MOC qualifying Medley Relay team of Matt, Ryan, Joe Kiel, and Julian Baxter placing 5th. The boys had another top 5 swim by the 200 Free Relay of Ryan, Alex Kiel, Michael Doerr, Julian (#5 all time). The list of best time swims also includes Alex (200, 100), Nick Schwed (200), Ross Zazzarino (IM, Breast), Chris VanDijk (50, Breast), Joe Kiel (Fly, Back), Michael (50, 100), and John Leskauskas (100).
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January 18, 2017
The Bernards Boys and Girls teams continued their winning ways with victories over Somerville at the Somerset Hills YMCA on January 18, 2017. The boys won 135-35 using one/two sweeps in all three relays, and individual first places from Joe Kiel (200), Ryan Van Dijk (IM, Breast) Alex Kiel (50, 100), Michael Doerr (Fly), Matt Voight (500), and John Leskauskas (Back). Best times from Alex (Fly split), Joe (200, 500), Nick Falivene (IM), Eric Bernhard (50), Ross Zazzarino (Fly, 500), and Owen Kelly (back) show how hard this team is working and benefiting with fast times!
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The girls team won by a score of 103-67. First places in all three relays and from individual winners Mallika Negi (200, Fly), Jessica Snyder (IM, 100), Caroline Van Dijk (50), Isabella Piccone (500), and Zoe Bender (Breast) paved the way to victory. Best times from Lauren Browne (200), Mallika (200), Kerry Broderick (50), Kaelyn Godbey (100), Grace Villani (500), Isabella (Back), and Sarah Celantano (Breast) are to be congratulated on their successes!
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This weekend the team travels to Montgomery HS for the toughest conference meet in NJ, then swim at home next Wednesday against Rutgers Prep in one of the last conference dual meets. The Boys team remains undefeated at 9-0, while the girls stand at 8-1 in dual meet competition.
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January 12, 2017
The Bernards swim team is on a roll! The girls and boys continued to improve their records with another set of wins against James Caldwell at the Caldwell Community Center on January 12, 2017. The boys swam to another easy victory to stay undefeated at 8-0 and the girls defeated the Caldwell girls for the first time in 7 outings and improved to 7-1 for the season. Caldwell is also in the same state section as Bernards (North 2, Group C).
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The boys won 9 of 11 events and took first and third on all 3 relays, winning by a score of 116-54. Joe Kiel (fly and back) and Ryan Van Dijk (IM and breast) took both of their individual events and swam on two first place relays. Joe swam with Ryan, Matt Voight and Julian Baxter to take the medley and finished the meet with Matt, Mike Doerr and Alex Kiel on the fastest 400 free relay of the night. Ryan led off the winning 200 free relay ahead of Julian, Mike and Alex. Alex also won the 100 free and Matt's first place time in the 500 lowered his own BHS all-time #4 clocking to a 5:01.10. The bronze medal relays were swum by John Leskauskas, Ross Zazzarino, Nicholas Falivene, and Chris Van Dijk (medley); Ross, Eric Bernhard, Chris, and Will Garvin (200 free); and Nicholas, Nick Schwed, Eric, and John (400 free).
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The girls had a tighter contest, but still managed to touch first in all three relays and four individual events to end up on top 90-80, beating Caldwell for the first time in 7 years. Megan Sardis was the sole double winner (50 free, fly) and also swam on the winning medley relay (with Jessica Snyder, Mallika Negi and Caroline Casella) and anchored the 400 free relay (with Isabella Piccone, Caroline Van Dijk and Mallika). Jessica (breast) and Mallika (IM) added first place points as did the 200 free relay of Kristen Sardis, Jessica, Caroline C and Isabella. Adding critical runner up points were the medley relay team of Kristen, Zoe Bender, Caroline V and Alexis Buzby along with individual points from Sophie Ray (200, 500 free) and Ciara Guglietta (back).
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January 11, 2017
The Bernards swim team put on a thrilling performance against perennial Skyland Conference rivals North Hunterdon at the Somerset Hills YMCA on January 11, 2017. The boys continued their unbeaten streak (7-0) with a lopsided score of 136-34 and the girls beat the conference's Raritan Division champions of the last 3 years, 93-77. The girls last shared the conference division title with North Hunterdon in 2013 when they tied them 85-85 and since then have been the division runner up.
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The girls set the stage when Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Mallika Negi and Caroline Casella improved their BHS all-time #3 time in the medley relay with an MOC qualifying time of 1:53.24. The girls team never looked back as they placed 1-2 or 1-3 in the next 5 events and also won both freestyle relays. In the 200 free, Ali Maffei and Isabella Piccone went 1-3; in the IM Mallika and Jessica took the top 2 places; in the 50 free, Megan and Caroline finished 1st and 3rd; in the fly, Megan won her second individual event of the evening, leading the 1-2 sweep with Mallika, who's time put her on the BHS all-time top 5 times list with a 1:00.98, and finally Kristen Sardis and Caroline took 1st and 3rd in the 100 free before North Hunterdon won their first event. Mallika, Jessica, Kristen and Isabella combined to take the 200 free relay, Jessica capped off the individual victories, dropping her own BHS all-time #4 time to a 1:10.74 in the breaststroke and then Isabella, Caroline, Ali and Megan sealed the deal by touching first in the 400 free relay.
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The boys dominated every event finishing 1-2-3 or 1-2-4 in the individual events and 1-2 or 1-3 in the relays. Topping the scoring were Alex Kiel (200, 100 free), Joe Kiel (fly and back) and Ryan Van Dijk (IM and breast) with two individual wins apiece and Julian Baxter (50 free) and Matt Voight (500 free) with one victory each. Swimming to silver medals were Mike Doerr (200, 100 free), Matt (IM), Chris Van Dijk (50 free), Julian (fly), Nicholas Falivene (500), John Leskauskas (back) and Ross Zazzarino (breast). Bronze medals were awarded to Nick Schwed (200, 500 free), Eric Bernhard (50 free), Nicholas (fly), John (100 free), and Chris (breast).
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January 5, 2017
The Bernards swim team is on a roll! Both the girls and boys teams beat Hanover Park at Morristown High School on January 5, 2017, improving their records to 5-1 and 6-0 respectively. The girls beat Hanover Park 98-72 as Isabella Piccone broke a 27 year old BHS record in the 400 meter freestyle with a 5:03.95. Megan Sardis led the point scoring by taking the fly and back and anchoring the 400 free relay behind Isabella, Caroline Casella and Kristen Sardis. Also finishing first were Ali Maffei (200 free) and Mallika Negi (IM). Mallika also touched first to bring home the 200 free relay with Jessica Snyder, Zoe Bender and Kristen.
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The boys rolled past Hanover Park with a convincing 111-59 score as Ryan Van Dijk set a new team standard in the 100 meter breaststroke with a 1:09.60, taking down a record that stood for two decades. Alex Kiel topped the scoreboard by winning both the 200 and 100 free and taking a turn in the first place 200 free relay with Ryan Van Dijk, Ross Zazzarino and Julian Baxter. Additional gold medal points were recorded by Chris Van Dijk (50 free), Matt Voight (400 free), Joe Kiel (back) and Ryan (breast). Bernards (Matt, Ryan, Joe and Julian) also opened the meet with a victory in the medley relay
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January 4, 2017
The Bernards swim team remained undefeated (4-0) in Skyland Conference Raritan Division action with wins against Voorhees at Raritan Valley Community College on January 4, 2017. The boys improved their overall record to 5-0 by taking every event in a 120-47 win. Matt Voight led the way with 4 wins - two (back-to-back) individual wins in the 200 free and IM and 2 relays (medley with Ross Zazzarino, Julian Baxter and Mike Doerr and 400 free with Joe Kiel, Eric Bernhard and Alex Kiel). Ross also added 2 individual wins (500 free, breast), and grabbing one individual gold each were Chris Van Dijk (50 free), Ryan Van Dijk (fly) Mike (100 free) and Alex (back). Ryan, Joe and Mike also combined with John Leskauskas to finish first in the 200 free relay.
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On the girls side, Megan Sardis led Bernards to a 122-48 victory with individual wins in the 50 and 500 free and one relay win in the medley along with teammates Zoe Bender, Caroline Van Dijk and Ciara Guglietta. Mallika Negi also took two firsts (200 free and fly) and winning one race each were Caroline Casella (IM), Isabella Piccone (100 free) and Jessica Snyder (back). The girls also took both freestyle relays as Zoe, Caroline V., Alexis Buzby, and Caroline C took the shorter race and then they added a little icing on the cake with a sweep of the longer relay. Touching first were Isabella, Grace Villani, Maren Petrie and Caroline C followed by Sophie Ray, Lauren Browne, Mallika, and Kristen Sardis with the silver.
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December 19, 2016
The Bernards swim team continued its winning ways with big wins over Skyland Conference Raritan Division rival Phillipsburg at the Phillipsburg Elementary School on December 19, 2016. The boys extended their unbeaten streak to 4 with a solid 100-70 victory, taking all 3 relays. Leading the way for the Mountaineers was Matt Voight with individual wins in the IM and the 500. Matt’s 5:04.16 improves on his own BHS #4 all-time ranking in the distance event. Matt also led off the winning medley relay (with Ryan Van Dijk, Joe Kiel and Julian Baxter) and swam on the closing 400 free relay (with Alex Kiel, Mike Doerr and Joe Kiel). Ryan also won the breaststroke and swam first on the 200 free relay (followed by Mike, Alex and Julian). Joe snagged the other gold medal finish for Bernards in the backstroke. Bernards also put a third place finish on the boards in the medley relay with the team of John Leskauskas, Chris Van Dijk, Ross Zazzarino and Eric Bernhard.
The Bernards girls, who tied Phillipsburg in the last two meetings, finally broke through with a solid 94-76 win, improving their record to 3-1. The top scorer for Bernards was freshman Izzy Piccone who won the 200 and 500 free and also swam on both victorious free relays. Joining Izzy on the 200 free relay were Jessica Snyder, Ali Maffei and Caroline Van Dijk and on the 400 free relay were Mallika Negi, Caroline Casella and Megan Sardis. Adding to the individual gold medal count were Mallika (IM), Megan (100 free) and Jessica Snyder (breast). Bernards also managed three bronze medal performances in all 3 relays. In the medley relay, Ciara Guglietta, Zoe Bender, Caroline V and Alexis Buzby finished third, as did Zoe, Mattie Sbaraglio, Sarah Celentano and Kristen Sardis in the 200 free and Ali, Sarah, Alexis and Kristen in the 400 free relay.
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December 14, 2016
The Bernards girls and boys each added a win to their dual meet records against Warren Hills at Centenary College on December 14, 2016. The boys, who have been battling with Warren Hills for the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title for the past 5 years swam to a lopsided 76-18 victory - sweeping 8 events. Posting two individual event victories were Alex Kiel (100/200 free), Ryan Van Dijk (IM/breast) and Joe Kiel (fly/back). Matt Voight took the 500 free and then combined with Ryan, Joe, and Julian for the medley relay win and then closed the meet with a gold medal finish with Alex, Mike Doerr and Joe in the 400 free relay. Julian, Alex, Mike and Nick Schwed put one more first place finish on the scoreboard in the 200 free relay. Bernards swept both the medley relay (with John Leskauskas, Chris Van Dijk, Nicholas Falivene and Eric Bernhard) and the 400 free relay (with Nick, Nicholas, Eric and John) finishing right behind their first place teammates. The Bernards boys are now 3-0.
The Bernards girls also won handily with a 59-35 finish to improve their record to 2-1. Leading the way for the Mountaineers was Caroline Casella (100/200 free) and Mallika Negi (IM/fly) with two individual wins each. Also securing the top spot in their races were Caroline Van Dijk (50), Ciara Guglietta (back) and Zoe Bender (breast). The girls added wins in the medley relay (Megan Sardis, Jessica Snyder, Mallika and Caroline V) and the 200 free relay (Sophie Ray, Zoe, Caroline C and Mallika). The 400 free relay squad of Lauren Browne, Grace Villani, Skyler Gosselin and Mattie Sbaraglio closed out the meet with a bronze medal.
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December 13, 2016
The Bernards swim team split their meets against a very strong West Morris-Mendham squad at Morristown High School on December 13, 2016. The Bernards boys used their depth to beat WMM for the second time in four meetings 93-76 and improve their record to 2-0. Matt Voight, Ryan Van Dijk, Julian Baxter and Alex Kiel opened the meet by breaking the school record in the 200 meter medley relay with a 1:55.09. The boys touched first in only 3 individual events (Joe Kiel - fly, Matt - 500, Ryan - breast), but loaded up on points with six 2-3 finishes and then put the meet away with an exclamation point by sweeping the 400 free relay. Alex, Matt, Julian Baxter and Joe took the top spot and were followed by Mike Doerr, Ryan, Nick Schwed and Nicholas Falivene to complete the sweep.
The girls fell by a score of 75-95 to a strong WMM girls team as Jessica Snyder was the lone individual winner for Bernards taking the IM and breaststroke. Megan Sardis grabbed the silver medal in the 50 and backstroke as did Izzy Piccone (200 and 500) and Mallika Negi (fly). Bernards did close the meet by winning the 400 free relay (Ali Maffei, Izzy, Mallika and Kristen Sardis). The girls evened their record at 1-1.
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December 8, 2016
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December 2, 2016
Bernards opens with victories over Franklin.
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November 29, 2016
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November 10, 2016
The Bernards swim team's 29th season has kicked off with 23 girls and 14 boys. Seniors Ciara Guglietta and Caroline Van Dijk have been named co-captains for the girls squad and seniors Nick Schwed and Ryan Van Dijk will be co-captains for the boys. The team is looking stronger than ever and is excited for the upcoming schedule in the Skyland Conference - Raritan Division.