CAZENOVIA — On Saturday, Aug. 6, Cazenovia Country Club (CCC) took home first place overall from the Syracuse Area Swim League’s (SASL) Annual Interclub Championship for the fifth year in a row.
Nearly 160 swimmers, ages 4-17, competed in the championship meet at the Cavalry Club on Troop K Road in Manlius.
The CCC swim team is made up of swimmers from Cazenovia Central School District, Fayetteville-Manlius School District, Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District, and Chittenango Central Schools.
According to CCC Swim Team Coach Josh Smith, 62 of CCC’s 80 swimmers competed in the meet, which was broken up into six divisions based on age (6 & Under, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and Open).
The top three combined team scores were 1511.5 for CCC, 570.5 for Drumlins, and 474 for the Cavalry Club.
“There were so many standout performances from this past weekend,” said Smith. “To name a few, Conor Kelly (11-12) won five individual events, Emme Prendergast (9-10) won five individual events. Riley Fitzgerald (11-12) won four of her events, [as did] Ben Prendergast. Maeve Kelly (13-14) and Max Vidakovic (Open) each won three of their individual events. The Cazenovia team, made up of Daniel Aversano, Elliot Stratton, Liam Gleeson, and Cooper Frazee won the Boys 200 Medley Relay.”
Smith expressed that while he is of course proud of his swimmers’ accomplishments in the pool, he is even prouder of the way they carry themselves, regardless of the team’s success.
“Day in and day out, the older swimmers invest a lot of their energy toward the ‘littles,’ said Smith. “Often, you’ll see high school students spending a lot of their time at meets and during practice assuring that not only are [the younger kids] learning and improving, but that they are having a great time doing it. That is what I am most proud of.”
The SASL is made up of six competitive swim teams — CCC, Cavalry Club, Bellevue Country Club, Drumlins Country Club, Lake Shore Yacht & Country Club, and Onondaga Country Club. All the clubs were represented at the Aug. 6 meet.
According to Smith, the league competes throughout the summer, typically scheduling dual meets with each other on Tuesday and/or Thursday evenings at one another’s facilities.
“All three of my kids have swum for the team since they were eligible at age 5, and [they] are now 14, 13 and 11,” said Cazenovia resident Meghan Kelly. “Not only has it helped them become amazing swimmers, but the culture of this program is unlike any other athletic team they’ve been a part of. They have made great friends in Caz and surrounding districts, developed confidence, and learned how to support their teammates of all ages and abilities. It’s the highlight of our summer.”
The Annual Interclub Championship was the final meet of the SASL season. Going into the school year, swimmers can choose to swim in the winter with various USA clubs and/or high school teams.
CCC is a private 18-hole championship golf course and family country club at 3711 Number 9 Road, Cazenovia.
In addition to a competitive swim team, the club’s pool area offers supervised swimming with certified lifeguards, beginner to advanced swim lessons, and a wading pool for toddlers.
To learn more about the club, visit caz-cc.com.
