This week’s notebook highlights swimmers/divers from Abington, Souderton and Norristown.
National Conference
Abington’s O’Neill golden at SOLs - A change can do you good..jpg)
Abington’s Emma O’Neill switched up one event at the Suburban One League National Conference championships and left the meet with not one but two gold medals.
The senior successfully defended her conference title in the 500-yard freestyle with her time of 5:20.36 and also won the 200 freestyle in 1:58.36.
“It was awesome,” O’Neill said of her double victories. “I’m really happy with how I swam and to come out with two wins, especially in the 500 That was quite a battle so it was nice to win it.”
She gave up the 100 butterfly to swim the 200 freestyle.
“I made the move to the 200 and I think it was good for me,” she said. “I like it so much better and I think I swam well. It’s nice to switch things around a little bit sometimes and it helps me to see what events I can go for in districts.”
She is unsure which events she will swim at the District One Class AAA meet.
“It’s nice to have choices though,” she said.
“I don’t really have a specific goal in mind for myself for districts. I just want to put it out there and see how far I can go and what I can do. I’ve been working hard all year so I’m optimistic.”
She hasn’t chosen a college yet.
“I’m waiting until after the season to see where I stand,” she said.
Out of the water, O’Neill is involved with buildOn, an organization that builds schools in lower income communities.
“I went to Haiti to help build a school there and it was an awesome experience,” she said.
Continental Conference
Souderton's Flandro looking to finish strong - Zeke Flandro has been diving since the summer before his freshman year at Souderton.
Now a senior, he has come a long way.
“I did a lot of other sports,” he said. “Soccer, baseball, basketball, football, wrestling, all of them. Once I
started diving that’s what I focused on.”
This year he finished sixth at the Continental Conference championships.
“That was a good finish for me,” he said.
At last year’s District One Class AAA meet, Flandro finished ninth. The top eight advance to the PIAA meet.
“I was the first alternate but I didn’t get to go to states,” he said. “This year I think if I dive my best I can get to states. My first year I didn’t get all the way through and my second year I was 13th so each year I’ve improved.”
In addition to diving, he also plays water polo for the Indians.
“I started doing that my sophomore year and it’s the best sport ever,” he said. “I really love it.”
He is part of Link Crew at Souderton, an organization that assists incoming freshman with the transition into high school.
“It’s a great program,” he said. “We help the freshmen adjust to high school and we’re there if they have any questions or need someone to talk to. As the year goes on and the freshmen get the hang of it we focus on school spirit.”
He also enjoys skateboarding.
He hasn’t chosen a college yet, but would like to major in music production.
“It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do,” he said. “Also my older brother went to Australia for two years on a mission trip and that’s something I’m looking into as well.
American Conference
Norristown’s Harrity puts her name in record books - Carley Harrity is new to diving.
But the Norristown senior has made her mark.
This year Harrity became the Norristown record holder for both six and 11 dives, breaking records that had been in place since 1980. Her six dive score is 253.40 points and her 11 dive is 347.75.
“That was a big goal,” Harrity said. “I broke the six dive record during the season and the 11 dive at leagues.”
As is the case with many divers, Harrity started out as a gymnast.
“I didn’t start doing that until eighth grade, which is pretty late,” she said.
She began diving after her freshman year.
“It was a good thing for me because I broke two bones in my foot so I couldn’t do gymnastics anymore but I could still dive so I continued with that,” she said.
Even diving had its problems. A concussion sidelined her early in her sophomore year so she did not complete a full season of diving until her junior year, qualifying for the District One Class AAA meet.
“That was my first really big meet,” she said. “I didn’t get out of the preliminaries but I learned a lot.
“Last year we made some mistakes with my diving list. We didn’t have enough of my best dives early enough so I didn’t score enough points to keep going. This year we’re going to place the dives more strategically to give me a better chance of advancing.
“I’ve been working hard and I’m really looking forward to the meet. I can’t wait to see how I do.”
In addition to diving, Harrity is the vice president of the Class of 2016 at Norristown and is a member of the National Honor Society.
She has not chosen a college yet but is considering Widener or West Virginia and wants to become a nurse.
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