Marblehead’s swim and dive team runs deep, or more accurately, swims deep, even deeper than the pools that they compete in. With the majority of athletes on both the boys and girls teams attempting to qualify for the sectional and state meets in February, the Magicians are a force to be reckoned with.
The girls only lost one swimmer from last year’s team, and all the boys did was add four talented freshmen to the roster, further bolstering an already talented squad. Many of the swimmers and divers on both rosters are club swimmers, meaning that they train year round. At the helm of both teams is Susan Guertin, and she says club swimmers help boost the program because they come in with a good deal of experience.
“They swim year round, and they swim either for the Y or the JCC, so they have more experience,” she said.
The teams depth and experience was on full display Thursday, Dec. 22 when it took on Danvers at the Lynch/vanotterloo YMCA. Despite having a number of swimmers out with the flu, the Magicians cruised to a 108-67 victory over the Falcons.
The victory was impressive and while team wins are always important, Guertin says that this year, the goal is to get the teams and athletes into the Marblehead High history books.
“I think the goal for the team this year is to break a number of the high school records, which are pretty fast,” Guertin said.
She added that the teams have their eyes set on finishing near the top of the standings at the state meets. Last year, the boys had one of their best finishes in school history, placing 11th overall. Guertin has higher expectations for them this year, but specifically stated that she wants to see what the girls can accomplish as well.
“The other goal, particularly for the girls, is to place well at the state championship. That’s the goal for the girls. The boys had their best place at the state championship last year and they are hoping to do better than that this year,” she said.