(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski) CHOCK FULL: Kyle Petchock of the Community Park Bluefish swim team competes in a breaststroke race in recent action. Last week, Petchock, placed third in the boys’ Division 1 18-and-under 50-meter freestyle and fourth in the 50 breaststroke at the Princeton-Area Swimming and Diving Association (PASDA) championship meet.

New Coach Sichet Enjoys Smooth Transition as CP Bluefish Swimmers Produce Big Season

Bill Alden

Stepping in as the new head coach of the Community Park Bluefish swim team this summer, it didn’t take Andy Sichet long to realize that he had something special on his hands.

“The highlights started with us swimming against Cranbury in the first meet,” said Sichet, who is a founder and coach of the Lawrenceville Stingrays swimming and water polo program.

“They are a big rival and a big team. We hosted them and that helped. We had a lot of support; there were a lot of families there. We just squeaked out a win. I talked with the other coaches about why we had lost to them before. We came up with a system that helped us make the right lineup. That meet started us on the right note.”

The wins kept coming for the Bluefish as the team ended up going 5-0 in dual meets in Princeton-Area Swimming and Diving Association (PASDA) Division 1 action.

“It has been the most successful year in a decade for the team,” said Sichet. “I am extremely pleased with the overall season.”

Sichet was a little less pleased with how the CP squad ended its season as it placed five of six teams in its division in the PASDA championship meet last week at the Flemington-Raritan Community Pool.

“Unfortunately, there has not been a big push in the past for the championships,” lamented Sichet. “I would like to change that.”

There is not much else that Sichet would like to change as he made a smooth transition in taking the helm of the CP program.

“I found out that it was a mirror image of the Stingrays,” said Sichet, noting that his adjustment was eased by the efforts of assistant coaches Nina Rossi, Jesse Lieberman, Jordan Lieberman, and Marissa Talvi.

“You work hard, improve, and have fun at the same time. There is not a big focus on W’s and L’s. I find that the kids end up doing quite well that way.”

While CP didn’t finish as high as it may have wanted in the PASDA championships, it had plenty of swimmers who did well.

In the 10-and-under boys, Jaxon Petrone, Gefen Bar-Cohen, and Charles Yandrisevits excelled while the trio of Madeline Hoedemaker, Kate McLaughlin, and Robyn Carter were standouts for the 10-and-under girls.

Gabriel Bar-Cohen, Jake Otterbein, Cole Valente, and Jacob Rist starred for the 11-12 boys with Maddie Deardorff, Charlotte Singer, and Rhea Bhatt coming up big for the 11-12 girls.

Will Stange and Kyle Petchock produced some big swims for the 13-18 boys with Serena Deardorff, Ceara Bowman, Miranda Ford, and Nicole Kratzer starring for the 13-18 girls.

The 13-year-old Stange dominated all summer and culminated his season with a superb performance in the PASDA championships, taking first in the boys’ Division 1 14-and-under 50-meter freestyle, 50 butterfly, and 50 backstroke races.

“Will is a tremendous swimmer; he has incredible potential short term and over the long haul,” asserted Sichet. “I hope to see him at the Olympics someday. He is very coachable; it is great to have him on the team.”

In Sichet’s view, it was a total team effort that paved the way to CP’s success this summer.

“We had a lot of talent; we had many 1-2-3’s in the dual meets,” said Sichet, noting that such families as the Petrones, Carters, Hoedemakers, and Lacavas provided at least two talented swimmers to the program.

“Every age group contributed to our scores; we had so many kids who were good. I look at this as a whole; it took a team to do this well. Different swimmers stepped up in different meets.”

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