The Dalers capped off the 2011-2012 season with an 8th place finish at the Nassau County Championships on Saturday, Feb. 10. Amidst a number of very strong individual performances, six Farmingdale swimmers joined diver James Mangione as selections to the All-Conference team (see list below).
Among the highlights was the swim by the 200-Free Relay team of Jimmy Barnola, Matt Crow, Nader Golsahr, and Vinny Mattei who finished 4th overall, just missing All-County honors. Barnola split a 24.1 off the lead leg, followed by Crow’s 23.2, Golshahr’s 23.4, and Mattei’s personal best 22.8 coming right out of the 500 Free.
They finished as Conference Champs in the event, and their time of 1:33.73 was a mere eight tenths of a second off the school record of 1:32.99 set by James McCabe, Kyle Blyman, Greg Padden, and Dom Boccio in 2005. That relay was one of the fastest in NYS that year and earned All-Long Island recognition.
Just before the relay, Mattei turned in what was perhaps his best swim of the year with a 5:07.23 in the 500 Free. That was good for 12th place overall and was a nearly four and a half second drop from Friday’s personal best 5:11.64, which was a five second drop from his 5:16.58 a week ago at Divisions.
Other top swims included Crow’s personal best 23.67 in the 50 Free, good for 14th place – a five-spot jump from his Friday night finish. Crow was also 12th in the 100 Free, earning all-conference honors in the event. Barnola (200 Free, 100 Back), Golshahr (100 Free), Kris Harris (100 Breast), and Logan Smalling (100 Breast) also did a good job of holding their times and places to help the Dalers move from 11th place to 8th on the final day.
As many of you know, this has been a long and trying season at times. Faced with the loss of one state qualifier and All-County swimmer, and four other swimmers who earned postseason honors to graduation, the Dalers were seeded 13th heading into the season. But a facilities breakdown forced the team to be without a pool for nearly five weeks and unable to swim. Once back in the pool, they squeezed in three practices before facing a daunting early season non-conference schedule that included County Runner-Up Garden City, Top 5 Plainview, and Suffolk power West Islip.
A second loss of pool time around New Year’s presented yet another challenge. However, the team’s late season surge is a testament to the perseverance and determination of the boys. Their hard work resulted in the team moving up five spots in the final rankings despite the loss of a third of their season. That’s a tremendous accomplishment, and we’re confident that the foundation has been set for Farmingdale’s return to the top of the swimming rankings in Nassau County beginning in 2013.
All Conference
Jimmy Barnola (200 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Back, 400 Free Relay)
Matt Crow (50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Nader Golshahr (200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Jon Gonzalez (1-meter Dive)
James Mangione (1-meter Dive)
Vinny Mattei (500 Free, 200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Chris McGlynn (1-meter Dive)
Conference Champion
200 Free Relay, 1:33.73 – Jimmy Barnola, Matt Crow, Nader Golshahr, Vinny Mattei
All-Division
Jimmy Barnola (200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Matt Crow (200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Nader Golshahr (200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
James Mangione (1-meter Dive)
Vinny Mattei (200 Free Relay, 400 Free Relay)
Division Champion
1-Meter Dive, 346.10 – James Mangione
