Girls’ Swimming Falls to Andover

Exeter lost by a very narrow margin to their blue rivals, Phillips Academy Andover, this past Saturday. With a score of 90-96, it was a disappointing and close game for Big Red.

Prep Ashley Lin commended her fellow preps for their strong performances, particularly Liz Williams, who placed first in every event she swam, and Tina Wang, who was a top scorer alongside Williams. “[Williams] didn’t even look tired,” Lin said.

Exeter also won both the 200-yard and 400-yard relays and upper Emily LaRovere finished second in the 50 yard free. Co-captain and senior Olivia Reed praised the team on “fantastic swims across the board.”

“The whole meet was really exciting, because although they were stronger than us in some events, we also were stronger than them in several events, especially in the second half.”

The girls anticipated a close, tough meet due to Andover’s talent. “We went into the meet expecting some tremendous competition,” prep Christine Baker said. “[We knew] that Andover had won against teams we had lost to and that they have some talented swimmers.”

Co-captain and senior Stajz Saar felt similarly to Baker and added that the meet was decided by just a few events. “We gave it our best, and all of the girls on the team swam exceptionally well, but Andover was much stronger than us in one or two events, which is what the meet came down to,” she said.

She continued to say that the turnout from Exeter students was “pretty disappointing,” especially because it was both the girls’ last home meet and their matchup with Andover. According to Saar, the crowd was mostly parents.

Lower Sarah Shepley, however, was pleased with the turnout. “There were a lot of students and parents in the stands from both Andover and Exeter, and it was great to see how supportive the parents were,” she said.

Shepley said that the tight score contributed to high energy levels by the pool. “The whole meet was really exciting, because although they were stronger than us in some events, we also were stronger than them in several events, especially in the second half,” she said.

Reed also felt that the atmosphere was particularly excited during the meet. “Both teams brought their A-game and I know the girls on our team were particularly pumped,” she said. “Everyone was on their feet cheering.”

Saar said that the team will be working hard for the next few weeks, particularly on their turns. “We’re going to focus on the details because that can make the difference between a first place finish and a fifth place finish,” she said. Reed said that the team will continue to work on fast finishes and high intensity.

Shepley was confident that the team will be successful at the upcoming Interscholastic championships at Deerfield. “We’ve all been working really hard, so with all the hours of training we’ve put in the pool this season, I think that we are going to perform really well at Interschols,” she said.

“Going into Interschols, I think we really want to see this positive energy continue,” Reed said. “We will be facing all of our competition at interschols which will make each swim even more competitive.”

Exeter’s record is now 5-4. They will head to Deerfield for the New England Championships on March 5 for two days of intense competition against many of the teams they’ve faced already this season.