ROCKAWAY - They went from zero points and off the scoreboard in the county meet to 10 points and 19th place in the 23-team field for the first Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference Swim Championships held at Sussex Tech in Sparta on Sunday, Feb. 7.
"They" are freshmen Doug Sholander, Brian Dougherty, Matt Chan, Billy Fiorenzo, Alex Sancic, Nick Rafanelli, Adam Shamouil; sophomores Josh Shamouil and Andy Plucinsky; and Jerry Smith, the only senior on a Morris Hills High School boys swim team that the description "youthful" is an understatement.
While the improvement from the county meet to the first-year conference’s meet was minimal on the scorecard, it has to go down as huge in the overall scheme of things for the team as Knights head coach Heather McDonald and assistant coach Meghan Kennedy have their eyes focused on the future with this team.
The meet, as expected, was dominated by team champ Mountain Lakes, which scored 232 points to runnerup Chatham’s 183. Randolph (122 points), Kinnelon (119) and Morristown (106) rounded out the top five teams.
The rest of the field, in order of finish: 6. Jefferson (79); 7. Morris Knolls (75); 8. Mendham (73); 9. Delbarton (60); 10. Parsippany Hills (54); 11. West Morris (44); 12. High Point, Parsippany and Mount Olive (tie, 20); 15. Morris Catholic (19); 16. Pope John and Boonton (tie, 17); 18. Sparta (15); 19. Morris Hills (10); 20. Pequannock (9); 21. Vernon (6); 22. Montville and Park (tie, 3).
The top six finishers in each race earned medals; the top 12 finishers in each event earned team points.
Putting the team points on the board for the Knights were the all-freshman 400-meter freestyle relay team of Sholander, Fiorenzo, Sancic and Chan and then Chan again in the 200 free.
The Knights relay team finished ninth with a time of 4:17.81 and Chan’s time of 2:1.94 in the 200 free was good enough for 11th place.
In other races, Chan placed 15th in the 100 free; Sholander was 15th in the 100 back and 19th in the 400 free; the all-freshman team of Sholander, Dougherty, Chan and Fiorenzo finished 22nd in the 200 medley relay; Adam Shamouil was 33rd in the 400 free; Sancic was 36th and Rafanelli 42nd in the 100 fly; Rafanelli, the brothers Shamouil, and Sancic finished 25th in the 200 free; Plucinsky was 31st in the 100 back; and Fiorenzo was 42nd and Smith 45th in the 100 breaststroke.
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Knights blanked in 113-58 loss to Kinnelon
ROCKAWAY - The Morris Hills High School boys swim team failed to win a race in a 113-58 loss to Kinnelon in a meet held at the County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Wednesday, Feb. 3.
Matt Chan had two individual runnerup finishes for Morris Hills as he placed second in the 200-yard individual medley and 100 free.
Chan also swam on two second-place relay teams, teaming with Doug Sholander, Brian Dougherty and Billy Fiorenzo to finish second in the 200 medley relay and then swimming with Sholander, Alex Sancic and Dougherty to finish second in the 400 free relay.
Morris Hills finished 2-3 in the 200 relay team when Adam Shamouil, Nick Rafanelli, James Dean and Fiorenzo finished second and the team of Chris Fleischman, Billy McCabe, Jerry Smith and Josh Shamouil finished third.
The team of Sancic, Adam Shamouil, Dean and Rafanelli placed third in the 200 medley relay. Fiorenzo and Dougherty finished 2-3 in the 100 breaststroke.
Other third-place finishes were turned in by: Sholander in the 200 free and 100 back, Fiorenzo in the 50 free, Rafanelli in the 100 fly and Sancic in the 500 free,
The loss saw the Knights season record dip to 2-8; Kinnelon is 7-2.
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Knights pick up 'Big Meet' experience at counties
ROCKAWAY - There were no medals ... no points scored ... no headlines ... just a ton of experience.
The Morris Hills High School boys swim team entered five swimmers - senior Jerry Smith and four freshman - in the Morris County Swim Championship that were held at Morristown High School on Saturday, Jan. 30, and came home with no hardware.
But to freshmen Brian Doughterty, Billy Fiorenzo, Alex Sancic and Adam Shamouil, the experience of getting their feet wet in their first big high school meet has to be immeasurable.
The atmosphere, the strength of competition, the anticipation, the actual competing ... all these things will pay off for the young Knights in future meets.
Mountain Lakes won the team championship with 246.5 points and Chatham was the runnerup with 186 points. Morristown was third with 137; Kinnelon finished fourth with 114 points; and Randolph was fifth with 105 points to round out the top five finishers.
The rest of the field, in order of finish: 6. Mendham (84), 7. Morris Knolls (82), 8. Jefferson (76.5), 9. Parsippany Hills 69, 10. Delbarton 67.5, 11. West Morris 42, 12. Parsippany 34.5, 13. Park (18), 14. Montville 15. Mount Olive 12, 16. Pequannock 11, 17. Roxbury 2.
Medals went to the top six finishers in each race and team points were scored by the 12 fastest swimmers or teams in each event.
The best finish posted by Morris Hills at the meet was the 17th place earned by the all-freshman 200-meter medley relay team of Shamouil, Dougherty, Sancic and Fiorenzo.
Sancic, Shamouil, Smith and Fiorenzo finished 18th in the 200 free relay.
In individual races, Sancic was 29th in the 100 back and 38th in the 200 free; Fiorenzo was 37th in the 200 IM and 36th in the 50 free; Smith was 31st in the 100 breaststroke and 36th in the 100 free; and Shamouil was 28th in the 400 free.
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Knights fall to Mendham; Chen wins 200 free
ROCKAWAY - Matt Chen's first-place finish in the 200-meter freestyle was the only win for Morris Hills as the Knights lost a 105-65 decision to Mendham in a high school boys swim meet held at Morristown High School on Monday, Feb. 1.
Chen touched first in 2:19.98 as the Knights (2-7) finished the meet with eight second-place finishes and six third-place finishes.
Josh Shamouil was second in the 100 fly; Chan was second in the 100 free; Doug Sholander was runnerup in the 400 free and also took second in the 100 back; and Adam Shamouil was second in the 100 breaststroke.
The 200 medley relay team of Sholander, Jerry Smith, Chan and Alex Sancic took a second; Nick Rafanelli, James Dean, Josh Shamouil and Sancic were runnersup in the 200 free relay; and the team of Sholander, Sancic, Adam Shamouil and Chan finished second in the 400 relay.
Third-place finishes went to Rafanelli in the 200 IM and 100 fly; Sancic in the 50 free; Adam Shamouil in the 400 free and 100 breaststroke; and the team of Chris Fleischman, Juda De’Oliveria, Kyle Alea and Josh Shamouil in the 400 free relay.
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Knights bow to Chatham, 119-52
ROCKAWAY - The Morris Hills boys swim team lost to Chatham, 119-52, in a high school swim meet held at County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Thursday, Jan. 28.
The Cougars won 10 of the 11 races on the card as they improved their season record to 8-4.
The Knights' only individual victory was by Matt Chan, who won the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:36.47.
Morris Hills slipped to 3-5 with the loss.
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Chan gets lone win in loss to Mountain Lakes
ROCKAWAY - Matthew Chan got the only Morris Hills victory as the Knights lost a 125-45 decision to county-power Mountain Lakes in a high school boys swim meet held at the County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Thursday, Jan. 21.
Chan won the 110-yard freestyle in 55.54 and later placed second in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:13.23. William Fiorenzo also had a second-place finish for the Knights when he swam a 26.28 only to get edged by the Lakers’ Dan Estes’ winning time of 26.23.
The loss puts Morris Hills one game below the break-even mark at 3-4 while the victory was the sixth of the season against one loss for Mountain Lakes.
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Knights lose to sister-school Morris Knolls
ROCKAWAY - Morris Hills High School’s boys swim team suffered a 122-48 defeat at the hands of sister-school Morris Knolls at the County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Thursday, Jan. 14.
The Knights, who are now 2-3 on the season, did not win a single race and finished the meet with four second-place finishes in the individual races and two relay runnerup finishes.
The team of Douglas Sholander, Brian Dougherty, Matthew Chan and William Fiorenzo placed second in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:59.96. The Knights also placed second in the 400 free relay with Fiorenzo, Alexander Sancic, Shoelander and Chan swimming a 3:57.46.
In individual races, Sholander finished second in the 100 back in 1:03.33, touching a mere .20 behind winner Zach Bakun of Knolls, and was also second in the 500 free with a time of 6:0.81; Chan was second in the 200 IM with a time of 2:15.59 and was also the runnerup in the 100 fly in 1:00.12.
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Chan doubles as Knights bow to Park, 96-74
ROCKAWAY - Matthew Chan captured two individual races and swam on a winning relay team as the Morris Hills High School boys swim team lost a 94-74 decision to Park Regional at the Morristown High School poll on Monday, Jan. 11.
Chan won the 500-meter freestyle in 4:56.30 and captured the 100 breaststroke in 1:20.85 for the only individual wins for Morris Hills (2-2).
Swimming the anchor leg for the Knights’ 400 free realy team, Chan followed Doug Sholander, Billy Fiorenzo and Alex Sancic as the foursome won the race in 4:32.74.
Sholander picked up a pair of runnerup finishes, finishing second in the 200 IM in 2:43.60 and the 100 back in 1:11.87. Sholander also swam the lead leg on the Knights’ 200 medley relay team that consisted of Billy Fiorenzo, Chan and Alex Sancic and finished second in 2:12.73.
Sancic swam a 2:42.69 to finish second in the 200 IM and Fiorenzo had another runnerup finish for the Eagles when he finished second in the 50 free in 29.54.
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Knights lose to Pequannock, 97-78
ROCKAWAY - The Morris Hills High School boys swim team won all 11 events on the card but still lost a 92-78 decision to Pequannock because of Pequannock's depth in the individual races in a meet held at the County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Wesnesday, Jan. 6.
Morris Hills (2-2) got two wins each from Matthew Chan, William Fiorenzo and Douglas Sholander.
Chan won the 200-yard individual medley in 2:16.53 and the 100 breaststroke in 1:12.09; Fiorenzo won the free sprints, taking the 50 in 26.46 and the 100 in 1:01.25; and Sholander won the 500 free in 5:40.78 and the 100 back in 1:05.12.
Other individual wins went to Joshua Shamouil, who won the 100 fly in 1:13.43, and Alexander Sancic, who won the 200 free in 2:22.28 with Shamouil second in 2:32.73.
Morris Hills swept the three relays, finishing 1-2 in two of the races.
In the 200 medley relay, Sholander, Jerry Smith, Chan and Fiorenzo won with a time of 1:59.79; in the 200 free relay, Nicholas Rafanelli, James Dean, Smith and Sancic won in 1:56.82 with teammates Christoher Fleischman, William McCabe, Kyle Alea and Joshua Shamouil second in 1:59.75; and, in the 440 free, Sholander, Fiorenzo, Sancic and Chan won in 3:56.41 with teammates Adam Shamouil, Alea, Joshua Shamouil and McCabe touching second in 4:47.94.
Freshmen lead way as Knights edge Parsippany
ROCKAWAY - The Morris Hills boys swim team captured all 11 events on the card but Parsippany's depth made it close as the Knights escaped with an 86-84 victory in a high school swim meet at the County College of Morris pool in Randolph Township on Wednesday, Dec. 16.
For the third time in as many meets for Morris Hills (2-1), all the Knights' individual race winners were freshmen.
Doug Sholander, Matt Chan and Brian Dougherty each won two events and swam on two of the three winning relay teams for the Knights.
Sholander won the 200-yard freestyle in 2:06.09 and the 100 back in 1:04.25; Chan touched first in the 200 IM in 2:16.53 and 100 free in 59:91; and Dougherty won the 100 fly in 1:13.69 and 100 breaststroke in 1:08.56.
William Fiorenzo won the 50 free in 26.28 and Adam Shamouil won the 500 free in 6:27.04 with teammate Alex Sancic second in 6:39.76.
Sholander, Dougherty, Chan and Fiorenzo won the 200 medley relay in 1:57.46 and also teamed to win the 400 free relay in 3:54.81. Freshmen Nick Rafanelli, James Dean and Sancic teamed with senior Jerry Smith to win the 200 free relay in 1:54.66.
Parsippany is winless in three meets.
Knights bow to Parsippany Hills, 98-72
ROCKAWAY - Lack of depth hurt the Morris Hills boys swim team as the Knights lost a 98-72 decision to Parsippany Hills in a high school swim meet at Morristown High School�s pool on Wednesday, Dec. 9.
The Knights (1-1) won 10 of the 11 races on the card but Par Hills' numerous second- and third-place finishes led to the Vikings' victory.
Freshmen William Fiorenzo, Matt Chan and Doug Sholander each won two individual races as Fiorenzo won the 50-yard freestyle in 29.20 and the 100 free in 1:06.73; Chan won the 100 fly in 1:08.79 and 100 breaststroke in 1:21.02; and Sholander won the 500 free in 4:59.04 and the 100 back in 1:15.99 with teammate and fellow freshman Alex Sancic second in 1:24.41.
In other races, Brian Dougherty won the 200 IM in 2:59.40 and Adam Shamouil and Sancic finished 1-2 in the 200 free with Shamouil finishing in 2:38.35 and Sancic touching in 2:42.35.
In the relays, Sholander, Dougherty, Chan and Fiorenzo won the 200 medley relay in 2:10.92 and the Knights finished 1-2 in the 400 free relay as Sholander, Fiorenzo, Nick Rafanelli and Chan won the race in 4:246.48 with Sancic, Shamouil, James Dean and Dougherty second with a time of 4:58.61.
Knights open season with 99-71 win over Mount Olive
ROCKAWAY - Morris Hills freshmen William Fiorenzo, Matt Chan and Doug Sholander made their high school varsity swimming debuts successful ones as they led the Knights boys to a 99-71 opening-day victory over Mount Olive at the County College of Morris in Randolph Township on Thursday, Dec. 3.
The Knights won all 11 races on the card.
Fiorenzo won both freestyle sprints, touching first in the 50-yard event in 26.30 and winning the 100-yard race in 1:00.65. Chan won the 100 fly in 1:01.09 and the 100 breaststroke in 1:11.53 and Sholander captured the 500 free in 5:56.17 and the 100 back in 1:05.00.
Freshman Alex Sancic won the 200 free in 2:21.34 and freshman Brian Dougherty won the 200 IM in 2:34.85. Second-place finishes were turned in my Nick Rafanelli, who swam a 1:03.50 in the 100 free, and Dougherty, was turned in a 1:15.77 in finishing second to Chan in the 100 breaststroke.
The Knights also swept all three relay races.
Sholander, Dougherty, Chan and Fiorenzo teamed to win the 200 medley relay in 2:10.92; Rafanelli James Dean, Jerry Smith and Sancic swam a 1:52.84 to win the 200 free relay; and Sholander, Fiorenzo, Chan and Dougherty teamed up again and this time won the 400 free relay with a time of 3:59.11.
