The Cougars avenged last year’s South Jersey Group A championship meet loss against Egg Harbor by defeating the Eagles for the 2017 title on Feb. 15.
The 2016–17 season was a final chance for the seniors on the Cherry Hill High School East girls swimming team to win a team championship.
The Cougars had solid teams over the last three years, but were never able to get over the hump to win a South Jersey Group A title.
However, shortcomings in past seasons weren’t going to deter seniors such as Lauren Kerner.
“Although we fell short the past few years, we wanted to go out with a bang,” Kerner said. “We knew this could be our year.”
A strong freshman class joined an already talented Cherry Hill East team and pushed the Cougars over the top in 2017. Cherry Hill East earned its first sectional championship since 2013, defeating Egg Harbor in the South Jersey Group A championship on Feb. 15 to clinch the championship.
“It felt great to beat Egg Harbor this year after last year was so close,” senior captain Gwen Kramer said. “I remember last year the seniors being all devastated that they were so close to winning sectionals.”
A number of talented freshmen gave the Cougars a huge boost in 2017. Freshmen such as Grace Yoon, Brianna DiSanti and Karolyn Merch racked up event wins and points throughout the season for the Cougars.
Senior captain Katie Doyle swam with DiSanti and Merch over the summer and knew what they were capable of in the pool.
“I knew both of these girls could be put in almost any event and perform,” Doyle said.
Many of the other older swimmers also knew about the incoming freshmen prior to this season and were excited to compete on the same team.
“All of them have an incredible work ethic and know how to race,” Kerner said. “It was awesome being a part of the medley relay with the three of them.”
Yoon admittedly didn’t know what to expect entering her first high school season, but said the support of the seniors helped a lot.
“I have known some of the girls for several years from summer swimming or club swimming,” Yoon said, “so I felt that it was going to be a fun, supportive atmosphere.”
In and out of the pool, the seniors played a role in leading the team and helping the younger swimmers when needed.
“The younger girls tend to ask questions about who they should keep an eye out for or how to race a particular event,” Kerner said. “High school swimming is supposed to be a fun opportunity, and I try to not let the younger girls forget that.”
“My one goal as captain was to make sure everyone had as much fun as I have had these past four seasons, and I think I accomplished that,” Kramer said.
Despite the team’s regular season success, there were no guarantees entering the sectional final against Egg Harbor. Egg Harbor had defeated Cherry Hill East for the sectional title in 2016, and the Cougars finished behind Egg Harbor in team points at the 2017 South Jersey invitational meet in January.
Cherry Hill East’s sectional victory was a team effort. Though an Egg Harbor swimmer took first place in five of the eight individual races, the Cougars won first place in the three relay events to seal the championship. Their performance in the relays was huge in helping to seal the title.
“We had many strong individual swimmers, so when putting them together, I knew we would have an even stronger outcome,” Doyle said.
This year’s sectional title may be the start of a bright future for the Cougars. With a lot of talented swimmers returning, Cherry Hill East will likely be a championship contender over the next few years.
“I think that we’ll continue to stay strong, but we will miss the excellent leadership and friendship of the graduating seniors,” Yoon said.
“I wish I wasn’t a senior so I could see how good they are by the time they graduate,” Kramer said.
