The Maplewood Makos have a third new team record set by 14-year-old Ashna Patel, who swam the 50-meter backstroke with a time of 30.24 seconds.
“Congratulations, Ashna! We are bursting with pride and excitement for your remarkable achievement,” the coaches said in a statement. “Your dedication and hard work have truly paid off, and we can’t wait to see you achieve even greater things in the swimming world. Keep working hard!”
Patel set the new record in last Thursday’s meet against Morris Township.
Earlier this season, teammate Mason Keith set records in the 50-yard breaststroke and the 100-yard individual medley. (Maplewood Community Pool event lengths are measured in yards, while divisional championship events are listed in meters.)
The coaches announced the new record on Monday, July 22, following the New Jersey Summer Swim League Division 3 Championships.
Held on an 83-degree morning at Morristown’s Ginty Swim Pool, the divisional championships included top swimmers from Maplewood, West Orange, Summit, Berkeley Heights and Morris Township.
Next, the top 16 swimmers, plus two alternates, in each of the four NJSSL divisional championships will head to the Meet of Champions at the New Providence Community Pool at 8 a.m. on Thursday, July 25.
Below are some Maplewood Makos highlights from the Division 3 championships.
Individual Medley: A second-place finish for Liliana Scoon in the girls 12-and-under, 100-meter IM, with a time of 1:20.69; a third-place finish for Shawn Juter for the boys (1:39.65). In the 13-and-over girls event, Harlow Hatch (1:15.12) took first place, and Sofia Kopytek (1:16.00) tied for second.
Freestyle: The Makos saw third-place finishes by Ned Aglione (22.86) in the 8-and-under 25-meter freestyle event, and Johnson Kohlman (16.18) in the 50-meter 9-10 age group. Clyde Williams (33.25) took second place in the 11-12, 50-meter event. Teammates Nola Meehan (29.69), Harlow Hatch (29.87) and Caroline Lembrich (31.63) swept the girls 13-14, 50-meter event. Liam Scoon clocked a 27.15 finish for first place in the boys 13-14 age group. In the 15-18 freestyle events, Sofia Kopytek (30.09) took second for the girls, and Mason Keith (25.08) took first.
Backstroke: Teddy Walters (24.66) won in the 8-and-under, 25-meter backstroke event, and Henry Ezell (47.40) took third in the 50-meter, 11-12 boys event. In the girls 13-14 50-meter backstroke, Caroline Lembrich (34.64), Ashna Patel (35.33) and Nola Meehan (36.00) swept the top three spots. Jackson Merry (36.22) took third in the boys 13-14 age group.
Breaststroke: Harlow Armentrout (28.02) and Finley Hemmer (30.50) took second and third place, respectively, in the 8-and-under 25-meter breaststroke. Evangelina Kholodova (24.31) took second place in the 9-10 age group 25-meter event. Carolyn Kopytek (41.47) and Ashna Patel (41.81) finished second and third, respectively, in the 13-14, 50-meter breaststroke. Liam Scoon (35.19) won the 13-14 boys event, and Mason Keith (31.06) won in the 15-18 age group.
Butterfly: Teddy Walters (27.02) finished second in the 8-and-under, 25-meter butterfly, and Johnson Kohlman (18.97) took second for the 9-10 boys in the 50-meter event. Liliana Scoon (34.13) finished second in the 11-12 girls 50-meter butterfly. Clyde Williams (37.66) topped the 11-12 boys in 50-meter butterfly. In the 13-14 age group, Ashna Patel (33.15) won the girls 50-meter event, and Jackson Merry (34.16) took second for the boys.
Medley Relay: Peyton Meda, Evangelina Khodolodova, Liliana Scoon and Hailey Hemmer finished third in the 100-meter medley relay for 12-and-under girls with a time of 1:22.03. The Maplewood Makos won the mixed 13-and-over 200-meter medley relay with teammates Sofia Kopytek, Liam Scoon, Harlow Hatch and Keith Mason with a time of 2:08.89.
Freestyle Relay: The Makos took third in the mixed 8-and-under 100-meter relay, with Zaidyn Roman, Clio Rose, Harlow Armentrout clocking in at 1:37.63. Maplewood won the 12-and-under 100-meter event, with teammates Alice Lynch, Leila Pasinosky, Zoey Santana and Sara Keith finishing in 1:14.09. Makos boys in the 12-and-under category also won their 100-meter freelay Shawn Juter, Will Ledbetter, Johnson Kohlman and Clyde Williams with a time of 1:12.52. In the mixed 13-and-over age group, Maplewood swimmers Ben Midland, Nola Meehan, Emerson Meda and Dylan Meda took third in the 200-meter freestyle relay with a time of 2:02.47.
Ashna Patel, center, and Sandra Kopytek, left, swim the 50-meter backstroke at the divisional championships on Monday, July 22. Patel now holds the new team record for the event with a time of 30.24 seconds. (Bruno J. Navarro)
