Published February 10, 2021
PEABODY — The is plenty of good news to go around for the Lynnfield High Swim team nowadays. The 2021 boys’ team, who co-ops with Wakefield High, won the Cape Ann League with a perfect record of 5-0.
“This is a really special team,” said head coach Jeff Boyd. “We have no superstars, but everyone is dedicated and can swim really well. We are a team in the truest sense. There’s not one person carrying everyone else. They all work their hardest and do their best at every practice and every meet. This is our fourth championship since the team started and it was easily the most dominating team of those four.”
The Pioneer-Warriors beat Triton on Jan. 24 to move to 3-0. They beat Manchester-Essex 124-47 on Jan. 31 and finished their season on Feb. 4 with a clutch victory over North Reading-Wilmington.
Against Manchester-Essex, plenty of Lynnfield swimmer had highlights. Sophomore Adam Ho got 1st in the 500 freestyle in 6:24.89 and 2nd in the 200 individual medley in 2:28.72. Ho was also a part of two 1st place relay teams. He teamed up with Wakefield’s Evan Chan, Robert Brown and Spencer Little for 1st in the 200 medley in 2:04.43. Ho, sophomores Christian Murphy and Ben Sykes and Wakefield’s senior captain Alex Kent were 1st in the 400 free relay in 4:15.76.
An all-Lynnfield team of Murphy, junior Nick Jacobs, junior Shane McQueen, and senior Jack Zalvan were 3rd in the 200 free relay in 1:58.1.
Junior David Kasdon was 1st in diving. Freshman Russell Kasdon got 4th.
Sykes got 2nd in the 100 yard backstroke in 1:13.25. Zalvan was 3rd in 1:56.61. Sykes was 3rd in the 200 individual medley in 2:42.84.
Murphy got 3rd in the 100 freestyle and sophomore Charlie Beatrice was 3rd in the 500 free.
Jacobs got 4th in the 50 free and sophomore Kyle Morais was 4th in the 100 butterfly.
Against North Reading-Wilmington, Murphy, Ho, Sykes and Kent were 1st again in the 400 free relay in 4:18.32. Jacobs, Beatrice, Zalvan and junior Domenic Ferrante were 3rd.
David Kasdon was 1st again in the dive.
Ho, Brown, Chan and Littler were 2nd in the 200 medley relay while Sykes, McQueen, Zalvan and Little were 3rd.
Murphy got 3rd in the 200 free in 2:28.33. Ho was 3rd in the 200 individual medley in 2:29.71.
Murphy (1:04.01) and Jacobs (1:05.26) went 3, 4 in the 100 free.
Beatrice got 3rd in the 500 free.
Jacobs, Murphy, McQueen and Zalvan were 3rd in the 200 freestyle relay.
Sykes got 2nd in the 100 backstroke in 1:14.23 and Ho was 3rd in the 100 breaststroke in 1:19.55.
“This is why I wanted to come back: to lead great kids to great success,” said Boyd who returned to coach the team last season. “I’m amazed it happened in only two years since coming back, but I couldn’t be happier for these kids. We have a culture here predicated on character, and character leads to success. I couldn’t be prouder.”