BY CAMILLE JOHNSON
In a season of improvement for the girls on the swim team, they hold a 2-3 record, their best in three years, with outstanding finishes throughout their roster.
The team started their season with a 99-64 victory against Sayreville with first place finishes by Brianna Pagliuca in the 200 Individual Medley, Kerri Domena in the 100 Butterfly and 100 Breaststroke, and Rachel Nagy in the 100 Freestyle and 100 Backstroke. “[The season highlight is] winning our first meet of the season, which was against Sayreville, because it was a great way to start the season,” said Kerri Domena, who has three first place finishes so far.
The 200 Medley Relay team, consisting of freshman Carly Harte, juniors Madison Blasco and Tessa Sapienza-Vanasco, and senior Elizabeth Tchia finished an impressive 21 seconds before the rest of the competition. “The highlight of the season was our first win against Sayreville,” said Tchia, who has had three first place finishes so far. “It’s the team’s first win in three seasons after all.”
The 400 Freestyle Team, including sophomores Marin Pollock and Nagy, and juniors Pagliuca and Domena, also completed their swim 90 seconds before the opposing Sayreville team. “We support each other at practice and during meets by cheering one another on and always encouraging each other,” noted Nagy.
After suffering a tough 127-43 loss to East Brunswick, the girls came back and defeated Lacey 96-71. Tchia, Nagy and freshman Zailey Ross had first place finishes in their individual races. The 200 Freestyle Team comprised of Domena, Pollock, Harte and Zailey Ross finished first. “The highlight of this season was our meet against Lacey, and both boys and girls won,” mentioned Ross.
Following the graduation last year of standout swimmer Madelyn Hopkins, the girls credit coaching and new additions to the team for their success. “It’s definitely hard to find someone to fill her shoes, but we got a lot of club swimmers this year,” expressed Tchia.
Freshmen swimmers Zailey Ross and Carly Harte have also had a positive effect on the team. “We compensated with alot of new freshman that are really good,” said junior Signorile.
Support from new coaches, Fallon Quiles and Andrew Borriello, and teammates has built confidence within the swimmers to perform their best and win meets. “The key to the team’s success would be that the coaches are new, and they’re really good at leading us to victory,” said Signorile. “The team is supportive, too.”
Support the girls as their season continues at GMCs this Saturday morning at the Raritan Bay YMCA.
Posted on January 22, 2026
Photos by Riley Cadet, Laila Mohamed-Ali, and Lisa Tooley
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