By HockomockSports.com Staff

EDITOR’S NOTE: Please note, HockomockSports reached out to all coaches seeking information for our annual previews.

2024-2025 Hockomock Swimming Preview

Attleboro

2023-2024 Boys Record: 6-0 (Kelley-Rex division champions)
2023-2024 Girls Record: 4-1
Coach: Darbie Sawyer & Sarah Butler

It’s hard to start the conversation about this season without acknowledging the success the Bombardiers had last year. The boys put together one of the best seasons in program history, culminating in a south sectional championship and a fourth place at states. With 12 top place finishers gone to graduating, it’s a bit of a new start for the boys in blue.

As Attleboro integrates some new faces into new faces, it will lean on senior Andrew Collins and sophomore Ayden Gietz, who will both be top swimmers for the team this year and expand on the races they competed in a year ago. Freshman Kris Kotnisz could make a splash right off the bat, with sectionals and states in sight. That trio joined with Ryan Norman to secure a pair of relay wins in the Bombardiers’ season-opening win over Seekonk.

“I am excited to see younger swimmers step up,” said Attleboro coach Sarah Butler. “We know that we are a different team than the last 4 years – swimmers have set goals for this season, mostly personal goals, and we are excited to work all season to meet those personal goals and expectations.”

The girls team will be a smaller group and it will welcome some new faces so the Bombardiers will lean heavily on four talented and experienced swimmers. Three-time Hockomock League MVP Zuri Ferguson, who swam in the Olympics this summer for Trinidad & Tobago, is a multi-time state champion and will look to make one last splash this winter before heading south to the University of Florida next year. Ferguson is joined by Ava Dougherty, Samantha Provost, and Caroline Lynch-Bartek; that group placed at states last year in the 200 medley relay.

Doughtery has improved across the board but will be one of the top swimmers in the breaststroke this winter after taking second at Hocks last year. Provost also had a strong offseason and will be used across a multitude of events for the Bombardiers this year while Lynch-Bartek is the go-to option in the freestyle races.

Foxboro

2023-2024 Boys Record: 4-3
2023-2024 Girls Record: 1-6
Coach: Joel Stein

With a strong core of returners, the Foxboro boys team could make a big splash in the Davenport division this season.

Two-time Hock all star Evan Stein returns for his senior season, fresh off a fourth-place finish at Division 2 states last year in the 100 back, along with a sixth-place finish in the 100 free. Stein finished fourth or better in four events at Hocks last year and owns or shares in 10 of 11 school records, so he will certainly be one of the top swimmers in the Hock this year. Senior Matthew Rochford is a go-to option in the breaststroke, junior Josh Netson excels in the free, and sophomore Brandon Franciosi will look to build on a strong debut year; that group of four gives Foxboro a formidable relay team. Sophomores Tyler Brazell and Nikunj Nagpa are coming off strong offseasons while freshmen Andrew Gallagher, Ronan Callahan, and Declan Do could make an immediate impact.

The Warriors return a couple of state qualifiers on the girls side. Captain Ava Gallagher went to states in both the 500 free and 100 fly and was a Hock all star while junior Molly Lockwood qualified in the same events. Add in the experience of junior Darrah Bertumen and the Warriors have a strong core to lean on as they look to challenge for the Davenport division. Sophomore Hannah Ouellette and freshmen Izzy Gove and Niamh Kelly are new to the team and will be instant contributors; Yassmine Bougoussa, Mynerge Janvier, and Noah Cohen are familiar faces back in the pool this winter. That depth will be key as Foxboro looks to improve on its eighth-place finish at Hocks last year.

Franklin

2023-2024 Boys Record: 2-3
2023-2024 Girls Record: 5-0 (Kelley-Rex division champions)
Coach: Carl Cederquist
The Franklin girls are in the midst of a dynasty-like run in the Hockomock League and it’s going to be hard to slow them down this winter.

The Panthers have a new head coach in Carl Cederquist, who has come out of retirement and has over 40 years of coaching experience. With over 30 swimmers on the girls team, there’s a lot of optimism for the dominance of the Hock to continue. Kseniya Baghdasaryan and Taylor O’Neil are back to give the Panthers a boost on the girls side while Brendan Collins and Owen Chandaria are looking to do the same on the boys team.

There are plenty of familiar faces too. Harika Birali is back after a third-place finish in the 100 backstroke at states plus a fifth-place finish in the 100 free. Ava Pecora and Sasha Baghdasaryan are both veterans on the team that competed at states last year. On the boys side, Zack Pecora, Miller Wasik, and Ollie McCarthy are all top swimmers looking to help the Panthers bounce back from finishing eighth at Hocks last year.

“We have a couple of young exciting freshman joining the team and we’re are looking forward to having a great season and a Hockomock Championship,” Cederquist said.

Mansfield

2023-2024 Boys Record: 4-4
2023-2024 Girls Record: 3-5
Coach: Brian Schwartz
After only graduating one senior from last year’s team, the Mansfield girls team comes into the season looking to challenge for the Davenport division title.

One of the main reasons that the Hornets will be in the conversation this season is senior Addison MacDonald, who had a pair of top 10 finishes at states last year with a fifth-place finish in the 500 free and eighth in the 200 free. With some depth around her, the Hornets will step into the title hunt conversation. Junior Clara Schreiber has shown a lot of improvement in each of the last two seasons and could be in line for a breakout year for Mansfield, who will be looking to send a relay team or two to the postseason. Another big asset to the team is senior diver Danielle Fligor, who was the Hockomock League champion last season.

Mansfield will have a bit of a youth movement on the boys side after graduating a talented senior group from last year. Juniors Andrew Fleischmann, Nathan Qu, and Jeffery Lim are prime for strong seasons as returners while sophomores Jackson Keyes and Patrick Murray are looking to build upon stellar rookie years and qualify for the postseason this winter.

Milford

2023-2024 Boys Record: 6-1
2023-2024 Girls Record: 4-3
Coach: David Chaplin, Katherine Lemire, Oliver Michalewski
Both the Milford boys and girls teams are coming off winning seasons a year ago in the dual meets and will be looking to take it to the next level this winter.

“The goal is a division championship and on to the postseason,” said head coach David Chaplin. “To that end, we have added the Milford Invitational during Christmas break, a six-team seeded championship format featuring Hock friends Franklin and King Philip along with New Bedford, Ashland, and Dedham.”

The team leadership and culture have transitioned smoothly to this year’s captains: Aaron McIsaac, Ben Pezza, Cory Rattray, Brighid Howland, and Vedi Raval. Beefing up the regular season schedule should help prepare both squads for their goal of the postseason. On the boys side, Rattray is coming off a season in which he competed in four events at states, highlighted by individual races in the 50 free and the 100 free. Both McIsaac and Pezza joined Rattray and Ethan Fiedler in competing at states in relays; the group took seventh overall in the 200 free. Fielder is also a strong swimmer in both the fly and breaststroke, sophomores Connor Hayes, Lucca Ramos, and Eli DeBarros provide crucial depth, and freshman Ishmeal DaSilva could make a splash in his rookie season.

Head coach Katherine Lemire noted how the addition of Sharon to the Kelley-Rex certainly makes things interesting, and along with Attleboro, Franklin, and the Scarlet Hawks, it could be the deepest division the league has seen. Milford will turn to Howland and Raval to lead the way, and both will be key components in the relays. Sophomore Mackenzie Roy had a terrific rookie year and is a candidate to help the Hawks solve their recent drought of sectional qualifiers.

“I love the energy this team is bringing to the table so early on in the season,” Michalewski said. “It feels as if last season ended and this season began without any time lapsing in between. Most athletes are in the same racing form at the beginning of this season as they were at the conclusion of last year’s season. The coaching staff is really excited to see what these two teams can do this year.”

Oliver Ames

2023-2024 Boys Record: 1-5
2023-2024 Girls Record: 4-2
Coach: Morgan O’Hara
New head coach Morgan O’Hara knows the Tigers can have success in the pool: she’s lived in. Just five seasons ago, she was a major part in leading Oliver Ames to its second straight win at the Hock championship meet.

Now O’Hara is looking to lead the Tigers back to the top as the head coach. She’s joined by assistants Makayla Paquin and Sophie Hirtle, and all three have earned top finishes at Hocks in the past. In fact, O’Hara still owns two meet records as a member of the 200 and 400 free relays in 2019. This season, she will be leaning on four senior captains Addison McDonagh, Puqi Luo, Mackenzie Merrill, and Angela Chiereghio to lead the way.

So far this season, the Tigers participated in the Milford relay carnival to start the year as well as a crossover meet against Franklin. O’Hara noted there has been some growth already in this group and a high level of compete.

“Our four leaders are ones to watch out for in the Hock, and we are looking forward to a great season!” O’Hara said.

Sharon

2023-2024 Boys Record: 6-0 (Davenport division champions)
2023-2024 Girls Record: 4-2
Coach: Sara Barbera
This could be a big winter for the Eagles, who return a lot of talented swimmers on both the boys and girls teams.

Starting with the boys, who finished second overall at Hocks last year, there is a lot of optimism with this group. Junior captain Brac Buffa had a breakout season last winter, taking first in the 500 free and third in the 100 fly at Hocks, and will be looking to push to get back to the postseason for the second straight season. He is joined by seniors Sammy O’Reilly and Ray Luo, who competed at sectionals in the 200 free relay last year, as captains for this year’s Eagles team. Sophomore Leo Tran was another breakout swimmer as a freshman, taking second in the 100 free (by less than one second) and third place in the 200 free at states (by less than three seconds). Alex Ng and Justin Hsu also have experience at sectionals from last year and freshman Shaurya Bedre is a swimmer to keep an eye out for this winter.

There were a lot of girls swimmers from the Hock who had a lot of success in the postseason but one of the best was Sharon’s Feining Huang, who was a double state champion after winning both the 200 free and 100 fly; on top of that she was the Hock champ in the 200 IM and set the championship meet record. She will obviously be one of the top swimmers both in the Hock and statewide this season and will keep Sharon in the mix for the Kelley-Rex title. Senior captains Avital Gerts (500 free state qualifier) and Hannah Spears will lead the way for the squad this year. Newcomers Cora Shea, Wilma Zeng, and Daisy Ryu are all candidates to make an immediate impact for the Eagles.