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PHS Boys' Swimmers Aim for 3rd MCT Title While Girls' Squad Looks to Keep Improving
By Bill Alden
Prior to the season, Princeton High swimming coach Greg Hand asserted that it was pretty unlikely that his boys' squad would win its third straight title at the Mercer County Swimming Championships.
But with PHS off to a 9-0 start with wins over such formidable foes as WW/P-S and Lawrence, Hand is a little bit more optimistic as the Little Tigers head into the county meet this week at Lawrence High which starts with preliminary races on February 5 and 6 with the finals slated for February 7.
"I see us as being a little stronger now than I had thought before," said Hand. "One of the reasons is that our sprint crew of Tom McKinley, Matt Millar, Anson Hook, and Billy Boyce have improved significantly."
With the contributions of that quartet plus the brilliance of the team's two top guns, Jesse Applegate and Pete Hand, the Little Tigers are in the area's Top Times list in the 200-yard freestyle relay and 400 free relays as well as the 200 medley relay.
PHS tops the charts in the 200 medley relay with a blazing time of 1:44.27. The team has posted the second best time in the 200 relay (1:36.22) and the 400 relay (3:27.41).
As for individual events, Applegate and Hand have cemented their status as two of the top swimmers in the area. Applegate, the towering senior sprint specialist, is ranked first in the 100 free (47.67), second in the 50 free (21.06), second in the 100 backstroke (54.75), and third in the 200 free (1:50.03).
The versatile junior Hand, the coach's son, is at the top of the charts in the 100 breast (1:03.36), has recorded the third fastest time in the 200 individual medley (2:03.80), and is ranked fifth in the 100 butterfly (57.70).
The team's solid work has Hand acknowledging that it will be in the hunt for another county crown. "There should be three teams vying for the county title and we're one of them," said Hand, who believes that WW/P-S and Lawrence will likely pose the stiffest obstacles to PHS' bid for a three-peat. "Depth is going to be a huge factor and that's where we're not as good as we've been in the past."
But no matter what happens at the county meet, Hand believes his squad is primed to make another deep run in the upcoming state tournament which utilizes the dual-meet format.
"The guys, even the underclassmen, have a real excitement about the states and getting a good seed," said Hand, whose boys' team finished second in the Public B state tournament in each of the last two seasons. "We read the newspapers and we know there are some good times in our bracket. We are confident that we have a lot of swimming left."
Hand is also confident that his girls' team has plenty of good swimming left. The girls have gotten off to an impressive 6-3 and seem to be progressing with each meet.
"The girls have really come along," said Hand, noting that the team has already achieved a much higher power point rating than last year. "The non-club swimmers have gotten much better. We've had a year of growth and two months of the season."
While Hand acknowledges that his squad is better suited to succeed at dual meets, he has no qualms about the girls' fighting spirit. "We may not be a good team at a county meet, our depth is not at championship level," explained Hand. "We're looking to swim our best times and learn from the experience. What we want to be is a team that enjoys competing and doesn't back off."
Hand is expecting big things at the county meet from sophomore sensation Nina Rossi, who was named as the meet's Most Valuable Swimmer on the girls' side as a freshman. "Nina is very excited and very fit," said Hand of the talented Rossi who has posted the area's best time in the 200 IM (2:10.02) and the 100 fly (58.23) and the third best time in the 500 free (5:16.78).
While Rossi is just a sophomore, Hand says she has emerged as a leader for the Little Tigers.
"The kids rely on her as a presence on the deck," said Hand, whose three relay teams have each recorded the fourth fastest time in the area while Maddy Carroll has posted the fourth fastest time in the 100 free (57.29) and Martha Ferguson has the fourth fastest time in the 100 breast (1:09.87). "The kids look to her for optimism."
These days, there is plenty of reason for optimism throughout the PHS swimming program.
