Even with a month of successful meets behind them, the Liverpool boys swim team had not drawn clear in the CNY Counties League because Baldwinsville matched them, victory for victory, even though three of them were by two points or less.
Regardless of how close those results were, though, the Bees were a good team, and the Warriors were prepared for them in Thursday night’s first-place league showdown, earning some of its best times of the winter and tearing past B’ville 101-79.
Tom Griffin began his big effort by swimming the 50-yard freestyle in 22.49 seconds, more than half a second ahead of B’ville challenger Alex Hiltbrand (23.05 seconds), and followed up by going under 50 seconds to win the 100 freestyle in 49.84 seconds over the Bees’ Ryan Hiltbrand (51.51 seconds).
Also winning twice on an individual basis, J.J. Ross had to turn back his teammate, Curtis Merrick, as Ross won the 200 individual medley in 2:06.12 and Merrick settled for second place in 2:10.74.
Then Ross qualified for the March state meet in the 100 butterfly with his winning time of 53.94 seconds, and that was needed since Alex Hiltbrand finished second in 55.83 seconds, offering a sturdy challenge.
Merrick would gain a victory of his own in the 100 backstroke in a quick 57.85 seconds to fend off B’ville’s Evan Bohman (59.60 seconds). Brennan Matthews won the diving competition with 208.45 points as teammate Urly Grabovyy was second with 139.05 points.
During the 200 freestyle relay, the Warriors’ team of Griffin, Ross, Matt Geary and James Hunter roared to first place in 1:31.70, one of its best times of the winter, with B’ville second in 1:34.70.
Ross, Merrick, Brandon Nguyen and Erich Hyde were victorious in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:37.85 as Nguyen finished third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:11.73, inches behind Dan Stapleton (1;11.56), in the 100 backstroke. Geary was second in the 200 freestyle in 2:01.28 behind the Bees’ John Licciardello 1:54.49).
Cicero-North Syracuse would resume its season Friday night, against the combined Syracuse City team at Nottingham High School, and would roll to a 102-84 victory as Nick Engell and Nate Ancona led the way.
Engell went 2:02.08 in the 200 freestyle to beat out teammate Steve Cooley (2:05.02) as Ryan Heitmann (2:16.27) completed a 1-2-3 sweep. Then, in the 500 freestyle, Engell won in a time of 5:32.44 as Sean Payrot (5:47.01) finished third.
Ancona would, in a time of 2:23.06, pull away from Owen Flaherty (2:33.50) in the 200 IM and later win the 100 butterfly in 1:00.37 as Heitmann finished third. Then Ancona, Engell, Cooley and Payrot would pair up and win the 200 freestyle relay in 1:37.99.
Cooley got a win of his own in the 100 freestyle, finishing in 53.91 seconds as Elias Ward (56.50 seconds) was runner-up. Payrot rolled to first place in the 50 freestyle in 24.23 seconds, nearly a full second ahead of the field. Payton Connors won the 100 backstroke in 1:02.23 as Flaherty was second in the 100 breaststroke in 1:13.28. Payrot, Ward, Engell and Cooley were victorious in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:45.29.
Liverpool would swim again Wednesday against Fayetteville-Manlius at the Cazenovia College pool the Hornets use as a home facility, just as C-NS visits Fulton.
