Team News Archives (2021-22 season)

 

March 15, 2022

5 girls and 8 boys from the Bernards High School swim team have been named to the All-Skyland Conference Valley Division team.  For the girls, Sami Bender (50 free) and Meghan Robinson (200 IM) have been named to the first team while Ashley Hartnett (100 back) and Grace Korey (500 free) have been named to the second team.  All four girls were selected for the second team 400 free relay and Tara Hartnett earned Honorable Mention. 4 boys were named to the first team for individual events - Thomas Ambelang (200 free), Trevor Lukacsko (100 fly), Ryan Schuller (100 back), and Bryce Lukacsko (100 breast), and 3 boys to the second team - Everett Bailey (200 free), Matt Giunta (50 free), and Nicholas Snyder (100 back).  All 3 boys relays received first team honors (Ryan, Bryce, Trevor, and Thomas for the medley relay and 400 free relay, and Ryan, Bryce, Thomas, and Matt for the 200 free relay).  Valdemar Alstrom earned Honorable Mention.  

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March 6, 2022

The 8 swimmers who represented Bernards High School at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions at the Gloucester County Institute of Technology on March 5 and 6 swam extremely well - with 6 season best times and 2 new school records!  Senior captain Ryan Schuller tied Matt Voight's 2018 record time of 52.98 in the 100 back and junior Sami Bender broke Tatiana Prendella's 2015 record of 24.75 with a 24.66 clocking in the 50 free.  Ryan also swam to a personal best in the 200 IM with a 1:57.18 (#2 on the all-time list) which earned him All-State honors (top 16).  Both the girls 200 medley relay (Ashley Hartnett, Meghan Robinson, Sami, and Grace Korey) and the boys 200 free relay (Bryce Lukacsko, Matt Giunta, Thomas Ambelang, and Bryce) posted the season's fastest times with both relays improving on their #6 all-time listings.

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February 17, 2022

The Bernards boys team closed out their season with a tough loss against the #1 seed Governor Livingston (56-114) in the North 2 Group C State Sectional final at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA on February 17.  Ryan Schuller led the Mountaineers with individual wins in the 200 IM and the backstroke, improving on his #2 all-time position with a 1:57.63.  Ryan also swam on two second place relays with Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Thomas Ambelang on the medley and Matt Giunta, Everett Bailey, and Trevor on the 400 free relay.  Bryce added two silvers to the mix with one in the breaststroke and the other on the 200 free relay with Matt, Thomas, and Nicholas Snyder.  This was the fifth appearance for the Bernards boys team at the State Sectional Finals.

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With the dual meet season over, the next, and last competitive event for Bernards will be the Meet of Champions on March 5 and 6 and the Gloucester County Institute of Technology.  Qualifying for the meet are 4 girls and 4 boys:  Sami Bender (50 and 100 free), Meghan Robinson (100 breast),  the 200 medley relay team of Ashley Hartnett, Meghan, Sami, and Grace Korey.  Ryan Schuller (200 IM and 100 back), and the 200 free relay team of Ryan, Thomas Ambelang, Matt Giunta, and Bryce Lukacsko.

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February 14, 2022

The Bernards boys team will be attending their 5th consecutive State Sectional North 2 Group C final after taking down West Morris 101-69 at the Somerset Hills YMCA on February 14.  The boys, who were seeded 2nd in the tournament won all but two events and touched the wall first in every relay,  Ryan Schuller (IM and back) and Thomas Ambelang (200 and 100) each won two individual events and also swam on two winning relays.  Ryan led off the medley in front of Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Matt Giunta while Thomas opened up a lead in the 200 free in front of Matt, Nicholas Snyder, and Bryce.  Then they both closed out the meet with a gold medal in the 400 free with Everett Bailey and Trevor.  Brothers Bryce (50) and Trevor (fly) each topped the podium in their individual events.  Ryan's blistering 1:57.86 in the IM pushed him up to the #2 all-time spot for Bernards. The boys also put two bronze medal relays up with Everett, Valdemar Alstrom, Nicholas, and Ilay Ben-Shimon in the medley and Ilay, Colby Giunta, Eli Lennox, and Valdemar in the 400 free.

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The boys will face Governor Livingston in the State Sectional Finals on February 17 at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA.

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February 11, 2022

The 7th seeded Bernards girls gave the 3rd seeded Hopewell Valley girls a run for their money in the quarterfinal round of the Central Group C State Sectional tournament at the Pennington School on February 11.  The Mountaineers closed out their season at 7-4 with a very close 81-89 contest - winning 7 of the 11 events.  Sami Bender and Meghan Robinson once again led the team with individual wins in the 50 free and fly (Sami) and the IM and breast (Meghan) and they both swam on the first place medley relay (with Ashley Hartnett and Caitlyn Sebastian) and the 400 free relay (with Ashley and Grace Korey).  Ashley added a gold in the backstroke.  Sami's 100 fly improved her all-time "Top 20" spot to #9 and Meghan's 100 free on the closing relay puts her at the #14 all-time spot.  Critical runner up spots were recorded by Grace (200 and 500), Ashley (100), and the 200 free relay team of Annabella DeRosa, Shannon Meeks, Caitlyn, and Grace.

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The next meet for Bernards (#2) will be the boys North 2 Group C Semifinals meet against West Morris (#7) at the Somerset Hills YMCA on February 14.

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February 8, 2022

The Bernards girls, who were seeded 7th in the Central Group C State Sectional tournament upended 6th seeded Shore Regional in a close battle at the Jersey Shore JCC in Deal on February 8.  Sami Bender broke the Catherine Skoda's 19 year old school record of 28.15 with a 27.51 clocking in the 50 meter freestyle.  This was one of four gold medals for Sami as she also took the fly and was on the winning medley and 400 free relays (with Ashley Hartnett, Meghan Robinson, and Grace Korey).  Meghan (IM and breast) added 2 individuals wins as well, and Ashley added 1 (back).  Grace was runner up in the 200 and 500 free, and Ashley also grabbed a silver in the 50.  Annabella DeRosa, Keaton Haughan, Shannon Meeks, and Caitlyn Sebastian added a critical second place finish in the 200 free relay.  With Shore's top swimmers winning the 100, 200 and 500 free as well as the 200 free relay, the collection of eight bronze medals secured the victory for Bernards.  Finishing third in 5 of the 8 individual races were Tara Hartnett (200 and 500), Shannon (fly), Brigette McGee (back), and Annabella (breast), as did everyone of Bernards' second relay teams.  In the medley the bronze was won by Brigette, Annabella, Shannon. and Caitlyn; in the 200 free it was the team of Anna Rekatas, Audrey Panik, Miray Savluk, and Anya Singh; and in the 400 free it was Tara, Nina Marquard, Shannon. and Brigette.

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The girls advance to the quarterfinal round where they will face 3rd seed Hopewell Valley on February 11.

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February 3, 2022

Bernards celebrated the end of their regular season schedule with friendly cross-town rival Ridge by recognizing 27 graduating seniors - 11 from Bernards and 16 from Ridge.   Ridge prevailed in both meets as the Bernards girls lost lost 49-120 and the boys by a score of 53-117.  Meghan Robinson was the sole winner for Bernards, touching first in the breaststroke and swimming on two runner up relays - the medley with Ashely Hartnett, Sami Bender, and Grace Korey and the 200 free with Sami, Annabella DeRosa, and Shannon Meeks.  Sami added two more silvers in the IM and fly, and Grace (500) and Ashley (back) added one each.  Ryan Schuller was the lone individual winner for the boys taking the IM and the backstroke.  Ryan added second in the 400 free relay with Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Matt Giunta and a third in the medley relay with Thomas Ambelang, Trevor, and Matt.  Bryce added three silvers in the 50, fly, and the 200 free relay with Everett Bailey, Matt and Trevor.  Bernards had 3 more bronze medal finishes - Thomas in the 500 (with a #14 all-time BHS swim) and breast and Everett in the 100.

 

The girls ended the regular season at 6-3 and the boys finished at 7-2.  Bernards also recorded one coed victory this season.

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Both squads will move on to the State Sectional tournament next. The girls are seeded 7th in the Central Group C section and the boys are seeded 2nd in the North 2 Group C section.  The girls will face 6th seed Shore Regional on Feb 8 at the Jersey Shore JCC while the boys have earned two "bye" meets and will start their tournament in the semifinal round on Feb 14.

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January 31, 2022

The Bernards swimmers faced their toughest opponent so far in Watchung Hills and the boys were handed their first defeat of the season.  The girls lost 59-111 while the boys fell 73-95.  Meghan Robinson was the sole victor for Bernards as she won her trademark event, the 100 breaststroke.  Bernards did secure second place in every other event, except the 100 free.  Meghan added a silver in the IM, and swam on two runner up relays - the medley with Ashley Hartnett, Sami Bender, and Grace Korey, and the 200 free with Annabella DeRosa, Shannon Meeks, and Sami.  Taking two individual seconds each were Sami (50 and fly), and Grace (200 and 500), and adding one was Ashley (back).  Grace and Ashley swam together on the 400 free relay with Nina Marquard and Shannon to complete the silver medal (near) sweep.  

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The boys were led by Ryan Schuller as he won both of his individual events (IM and back) and led off the first place medley relay followed by Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Matt Giunta.  Bryce secured the only other gold medal for Bernards in the 50 free, and just got touched out in the breaststroke.  Thomas Ambelang scored runner up points in the 100 and 200 free, as did Everett Bailey (500), and Trevor (fly).  The boys added two more silvers in both free relays - Bryce, Matt, Nicholas Snyder, and Thomas in the 200 and Thomas, Everett, Trevor, and Ryan in the 400.

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January 26, 2022

With the Skyland Conference Valley Division title on the line, the Bernards girls and boys teams wrapped up their undefeated Conference season with victories over Gill St. Bernards.  The girls have been division champions for 4 consecutive years while the boys have extended their streak to 7 years!

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The girls won 67-66 and the boys won 81-23.  Sami Bender won the 50 free and fly, Meghan Robinson took the IM, and Ashley Hartnett won the backstroke (improving on her #15 all-time swim), but the meet was won by all the runner up swims as Gill touched first in 5 events. Sami, Meghan, and Ashley swam on the second place medley relay with Grace Korey, who added silver medals of her own in the 200 and 500.  Sami and Meghan also swam on the runner up 200 free relay with Annabella DeRosa and Shannon Meeks - both of whom scored an important third place in the medley relay with Brigette McGee and Keaton Haughan.  Other key bronze medal finishes were recorded by Tara Hartnett (200), Annabella (IM), Brigette (50), and Ashley (100).

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The boys won easily against the very small Gill squad of 4 boys.  Bryce Lukacsko won the 50 and the 100 and Trevor Lukacsko (200), and Nick Snyder (fly) each added an individual win.  The medley relay was won by Thomas Ambelang, Kurt Hunziker, Valdemar Alstrom, and Matt Giunta and the 200 free relay of Everett Bailey, Kurt, Nathan Gonazalez, and Nick touched first.

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January 24, 2022

Both the girls and boys teams remained undefeated in Skyland Conference meets by taking down Voorhees at the Raritan Valley Community College on January 24.  The girls won a very close match 89-81 with the efforts of double individual winner, Sami Bender (IM and fly) and single winners Meghan Robinson (100), Grace Korey (500). and Ashley Hartnett (back).  Ashley, Meghan, and Sami teamed up with Caitlyn Sebastian to win the medley relay and Sami and Meghan, won the 200 free relay with Grace and Annabella DeRosa. Grace (200), Ashley (50), and Meghan (breast) added silver medals along with the final free relay team of Grace, Nina Marquard, Shannon Meeks, and Ashley.

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The boys won every event of the evening as Everett Bailey and Bryce Lukacsko led all point scorers with 2 individual wins each.  Everett touched first in the 100 and 200 free and Bryce captured the 50 free and 100 fly. Everett and Bryce each swam on 2 gold medal relays as  Everett swam the medley with Ryan Schuller, Trevor Lukacsko, and Bryce, and then anchored the 400 free relay behind Trevor, Matt Giunta, and Valdemar Alstrom.  Bernards also took the 200 free relay with Bryce, Matt, Nick Snyder, and Ryan.  Also winning individual races were Trevor (IM), Ryan (500), Valdemar (back). and Kurt Hunziker (breast).

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The times for this meet were used for a virtual contest with Warren Hills (who swam against Somerville today) and this resulted in two more conference victories for Bernards, keeping the Bernards win streak intact at 5-0.  The girls won 122-35 and the boys came out on top 117-52.  The placing for the boys was almost identical to the Voorhees meet with a few third and fourth place swaps.  On the girls side, Grace (200), Ashley (50) and Meghan (breast) added a second individual win and Grace, Nina Marquard, Shannon, and Ashley led a 400 free relay sweep with the second place team of Caitlyn, Keaton Haughan, Brigette McGee, and Tara Hartnett as the Bernards girls won every event.

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January 22, 2022

Both the girls and boys teams finished in 9th place in the very competitive Somerset County Championships at Montgomery High School on January 22.  This time the boys put up a Meet of Champions qualifying relay as Bryce Lukacsko, Ryan Schuller, Matt Giunta, and Thomas Ambelang swam the 7th fastest 200 free relay in BHS history and finished 4th in the county.  Ryan improved on his Skyland Conference championship performance in the 200 IM as he lowered his IM time to 1:59.08 to bump him up to the 3rd fastest all-time swim - good for a silver medal.  Ryan was also 4th to the wall in the backstroke, and teamed up with Bryce, Thomas and Trevor Lukacsko on the 6th place medley relay.  Bryce added a 6th place in the fly and an 11th place in the breast; Thomas finished 11th in the 50 (#17 all-time) and 12th in the 100 (#18 all-time), and Trevor added a 10th place in the fly.  Rounding out the scoring for Bernards was the 7th place 400 free relay team of Nicholas Snyder, Trevor Lukacsko, Everett Bailey, and Valdemar Alstrom.  Everett made it to the all-time top 20 list with his 19th fastest 200 free for BHS.

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Sami Bender, Meghan Robinson, Grace Korey, and Ashley Hartnett all put points on the board as they teamed up on both the 9th place medley relay and the 7th place 200 free relay.  Sami added another Meet of Champions qualifying swim with a 3rd place in the 100 (#6 all-time) and an 8th in the 50; Meghan swam to a 7th in the IM and a 6th in breast, and Grace finished 10th in the 500 and 11th in the breast (#7 all-time). 

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January 15, 2022

Bernards sent a small but powerful team to the Skyland Conference Championships at Montgomery High School on January 15 as the boys finished 7th (out of 13) and the girls finished 9th (out of 16).  Meghan Robinson broke Jessica Snyder's 2018 school record in the 100 breast with a 1:07.12 - good for 3rd place in the conference. She also swam the breaststroke leg on the Meet of Champions qualifying medley relay along with Ashley Hartnett, Sami Bender, and Grace Korey.  The medley relay time was the 6th fastest relay of all-time for Bernards.  Meghan also posted the 6th fastest 200 IM of all-time (2:12.74) which earned a 7th place finish and Sami Bender just missed the school record in the 50 free with a 4th place 24.85. Sami added an 8th place in the 100 free and Sami, Grace, Ashley, and Meghan completed the scoring by swimming the 8th fastest 400 free relay in the conference.  Ashley's backstroke moved her up to the 15th spot on the all-time list.

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The boys also had an outstanding meet as Ryan Schuller earned silver medals in the IM (2:00.20 - 4th on the all-time list) and backstroke, and led off the 5th place medley relay team with Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Thomas Ambelang - all of whom scored in their individual events as well.  Bryce came in with a 7th (50 free) and 5th (breast - 6th all-time for BHS), Trevor grabbed the 11th spot in the fly (also 11th all-time for BHS), and Thomas finished 10th in the backstroke (8th on the all-time list).  The same squad finished 7th in the 400 free relay and Nicholas Snyder, Valdemar Alstrom, Ilay Ben-Shimon, and Everett Bailey completed the scoring touching the wall in 8th place in the 200 free relay.  Trevor's backstroke moved him up to the 16th spot on the all-time list.

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January 12, 2022

After a long holiday break and two meet postponements due to COVID concerns, Bernards returned to the pool for a virtual coed meet against Franklin.  Bernards swam on January 12, and Franklin swam on January 13.  The results were shared and Bernards came out on top 105-65.  Bernards won 8 events led by Ryan Schuller's individual victories in the IM and the backstroke as well as the 2 relays he swam on.  The opening medley relay was won with Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Matt Giunta and the closing 400 free relay with Ilay Ben-Shimon, Eli Lennox, and Everett Bailey touched out their virtual opponent for the win.  Additional first place swims were posted by Bryce (50), Trevor (fly), Thomas Ambelang (100), and Valdemar Alstrom (500).  Bernards also took 3rd place honors in the medley relay (Ashley Hartnett, Meghan Robinson, Sami Bender, and Caitlyn Sebastian) and the 200 free relay (Annabella DeRosa, Keaton Haughan, Shannon Meeks, and Nina Marquard).

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December 20, 2021

The Bernards swim team had not faced Millburn since 2012 for the girls and 2010 for the boys but finished with the same outcome as their last meetings as the girls fell to Millburn 72-98 while the boys prevailed 94-76.  The girls are now 3-1 while the boys remain undefeated at 4-0.

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The girls put up a good fight while trying to make up for a few missing swimmers and managed to win 5 events, including the opening medley relay where Sami Bender, Grace Korey, Meghan Robinson, and Cydney McGee out swam Millburn by just over a second.  Meghan followed that with 2 individual victories (100 free and breast) and Sami (IM) and Grace (500) posted a win each.  Sami's IM time moved her from 10th up to 7th on the BHS all-time Top 20 list.

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The boys opened up the meet with an exciting come-from-behind win in the medley relay as Thomas Ambelang threw down a 22.89 split behind Ryan Schuller, Bryce Lukacsko, and Trevor Lukacsko to out touch Millburn by a tenth of a second.  That race set the tone for the meet as Bernards went on to win 8 more events with several races going right down to the wire.  Thomas (100 and 200 free) and Ryan (IM and back) added two individual wins and Bryce (50) and Trevor (fly) each added one.  Thomas improved his 18th all-time 200 free time with his win.  Thomas combined with Valdemar Alstrom, Matt Giunta, and Bryce to take the 200 free relay and then the boys closed out the meet with a solid 1-3 finish in the 400 free relay as Everett Bailey, Matt, Ilai Ben-Shimon and Ryan grabbed gold, and Nicholas Snyder, Colby Giunta, Eli Lennox, and Trevor secured the bronze medal.

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December 15, 2021

The Bernards swim team remained unbeaten (at 3-0) in their 2021-22 season with wins against Somerville at the Somerset Hills YMCA.  The girls won 10 events to come out on top in a 107-62 victory while the boys took all 3 relays and 4 individual events on their way to a 113-55 finish.

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Sami Bender, Ashley Hartnett, Grace Korey, and Meghan Robinson opened the meet with a solid win in the medley relay and then each of them won 2 individual events to lead the way for the Bernards girls.  Sami won the IM and fly, Ashley the 50 and back (improving on her all-time 19th time), Grace the 200 and 500, and Meghan the 100 and breast.  Adding to the gold medal tally was the 200 free relay of Annabella DeRosa, Keaton Haughan, Shannon Meeks, and Cydney McGee.  Somerville took 2nd in every event except the fly where Shannon followed Sami to a 1-2 finish and Nina Marquard, Tara Hartnett, Brigette McGee, and Ashley grabbed the silver in the closing free relay.

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The boys won convincingly as they swept 4 of the 7 events they won including the opening medley relay where Everett Bailey, Bryce Lukacsko, Trevor Lukacsko, and Ilai Ben-Shimon touched first followed one second behind by Ryan Schuller, Valdemar Alstrom, Nicholas Snyder, and Matt Giunta.  The 3 individual event sweeps were the fly (Trevor, Thomas Ambelang, and Nicholas), 500 (Ryan, Bryce, and Everett), and the back (Everett, Trevor, and Eli Lennox).  Bernards also sprinted to first place finishes in both free relays with Nicholas, Colby Giunta,, Milo Perone, and Bryce in the 200 and Trevor, Everett, Colby, and Eli in the 400.

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December 8, 2021

The Bernards girls and boys teams are off to a great start of their 2021-22 season with victories over Rutgers Prep at the Somerset Hills YMCA.  The girls won every event on their way to a 116-49 victory while the boys had a tough fight on their hands but came out on top 99-67.

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Sami Bender (IM and fly), Ashley Hartnett (50 and back), and Grace Korey (200 and 500) each won both of their individual events while Tara Hartnett (100) and Meghan Robinson (breast) added one.  Ashley, Meghan, Sami, and Keaton Haughan touched the wall first in the medley relay, followed by Brigette McGee, Annabella DeRosa, Shannon Meeks, and Caitlyn Sebastian for the silver.  Annabella, Tara, Shannon, and Meghan took the 200 free relay and Nina Marquard, Grace, Sami, and Ashley earned gold in the 400 free relay.  Bernards brought home bronze medals in the both free relays as Morgan Sikes, Anya Singh, Anna Rekatas, and Audrey Panik swam the 200 and Keaton, Tara, Miray Savluk, and Caitlyn swam the 400. Ashley's backstroke time put her back on the BHS all-time top 20 list at #19.

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The boys won a tight meet as Rutgers Prep surprised Bernards with a very fast opening medley relay followed by a narrow victory in the 200 free.  Then Ryan Schuller and Nick Snyder finished 1-3 in the IM and Bernards controlled the rest of the meet - taking the fly (Trevor Lukacsko), 100 (Thomas Ambelang), back (Ryan), and both free relays - closing the meet out with a 1-2 punch in the 400.  Thomas, Valdemar Alstrom, Matt Giunta, and Bryce Lukacsko touched out Rutgers in the 200, and then Nick, Everett Bailey, Trevor, and Ryan led the sweep in the 400 with Eli Lennox, Ilai Ben-Shimon, Matt, and Valdemar right behind. 

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December 1, 2021

The Bernards girls and boys teams were able to resume their separate girls and boys in-person meets with a spirited win over Belvidere at the Phillipsburg Elementary School.  Both teams extended their overall record against Belvidere to 12-0 as the girls won 99-69 and the boys won 117-46.

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The girls, led by Sami Bender won every event except the sprint freestyle events and took every silver medal position except in the backstroke.  Sami won the IM and the fly and also swam on the winning medley relay with Ashley Hartnett, Meghan Robinson, and Keaton Haughan.  Meghan added a victory in the breast and Ashley touched first in the back.  Grace Korey grabbed the gold medal in the 200 and 500 free.  Bernards was runner up in every relay event  with Brigette McGee, Annabella DeRosa, Shannon Meeks, and Caitlyn Sebastian in the medley, Shannon Caitlyn, Tara Hartnett, and Keaton in the 200 free, and Nina Marquard, Caitlyn, Bhavya Negi, and Grace in the 400 free.  Sami's time in the IM improved on her #10 all-time BHS list.

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The boys, led by senior co-captains Bryce Lukacsko and Ryan Schuller won every event except the 100 free.  Bryce took the 50 free and breast while Ryan won the IM and the back.  They both were on 2 gold medal relays as they won the medley with Nicholas Snyder and Matt Giunta and the 400 free with Thomas Ambelang and Everett Bailey.  Matt, Thomas and Nicholas won the 200 free relay with Valdemar Alstrom.  Rounding out the first place swims were Thomas (200 free), Trevor Lukacsko (fly), and Everett (500).  Thomas' 200 free placed him 18th on the all-time BHS list. The medley relay squad of Eli Lennox, Valdemar, Trevor, and Ilai Ben-Shimon took the silver medal.

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While hand shakes were not permitted, both teams were able to cheer robustly as things started to return to normal.