Trojans’ boys, girls teams look strong

BAR HARBOR – There was nothing exciting about a recent Mount Desert Island swimming practice. Coach Tony DeMuro gave the Trojan boys and girls squads their instructions, the swimmers dove in, and DeMuro gave them a good-natured earful, picking apart stroke technique and exhorting his sprinters to pick up the pace.

But MDI has plenty to be excited about. The boys are a heavy favorite to win their third straight Class B state title, while the girls will contend, too.

“This is probably the deepest boys and girls team we’ve ever had,” said DeMuro, who was named the Penobscot Valley Conference Boys Coach of the Year last season. “We don’t have a lot of weaknesses. We don’t have a ton of breaststrokers, but other than that we’re pretty solid.”

The conference teams in both Classes A and B jump into the season tonight at the PVC Relay Carnival at the University of Maine’s Wallace Pool. The meet starts at 6 p.m.

The MDI boys are much more than solid. They return 10 of the 11 swimmers who scored at states last year.

The senior class includes Eric Eaton, Josh Radford and Kevin Staples, who each scored in the top six in two individual events and two relays. Junior Frank Carbone did the same thing, while classmate Reid Swanson provided top-six finishes in two individual events and a relay.

Senior Sam Burne and junior Aaron Rourk swam on the 400 free relay in the championship heat, and sophomore Justin Gilmartin helped out in the butterfly.

There are also eight freshmen.

“Most our depth will be underclassmen,” DeMuro said. “[Almost] all of those freshmen guys made state cuts as eighth-graders. They have a long way to go, but they’re pretty good for 14-year-olds.”

If that wasn’t enough, the Trojans also have Sargent Pepper on the team again. As a sophomore Pepper scored in four events at states – the 50 and 100 free and the 200 and 400 free relays – but last year he was living with his family in North Carolina.

“The guys have done it without it him but they all get along,” DeMuro said. “He and Josh are best buddies.”

The MDI girls will likely get a test from Falmouth at the state meet in February, but the Trojans will pose a big threat to the Yachtsmen.

Senior Iris Meehan, who scored at states in the 200 IM and 100 back and swam on the second-place 200 medley relay and third-place 400 free relay teams, will lead a strong senior class.

Eight other Trojans who scored at states return to the team, including Brenna Crothers, Angela Haskell, Caroline Wilson, Marian Dorr, Amy Harrison, Lila Miller, Chelsea White, and Julia Macauley.

As a freshman, Macauley finished in the top six in the 200 and 500 free events and two relays.

Seniors Sydney Kase and Sarah Zirnkilton, who both scored for MDI in the past but did not swim last year, are both back. Kase spent last year in Brazil and Zirnkilton was focusing on tennis, DeMuro said.

“We have a lot of depth,” DeMuro said. “We have nine freshman girls and they can all swim. We should be a lot deeper than we were.”