CAMBRIDGE — The Warriors needed all hands on deck on Sunday to overcome their familiar foes and defend their state title.
Wayland boys swimming & dive successfully fended off Weston and Mystic Valley Charter to win the MIAA Division II boys swimming & dive state championship.
Wayland clinches its eighth state title in program history, scoring 291 points as a team at the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center at MIT. The Warriors pulled away from its Dual County conference rivals towards the end of the meet, with Weston finishing second (263.5), narrowly ahead of Mystic Valley (262).
“Each (title) is special in their own way, they’re all unique,” Wayland boys swimming & dive coach Mike Foley said. “My younger son was here today, scoring points for the team, so that’s the first time that’s happened (for him), my oldest son graduated last year.
“We graduated a ton of guys last year, we didn’t think we’d still be standing here, but the seniors really rallied the troops and brought this team together. We didn’t lose hope as the season went on, they just got more confident and stronger, making everyone believe we got a shot to do it again.”
Luke Kroncke put in a dominant performance for the Warriors, powering himself to two first-place finishes in the 50-yard freestyle (21.25) and the 100-yard freestyle (46.66). The junior also swam the anchor leg of the Warriors’ second-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay (1:38.15) and the opening leg of their first-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay (3:18.83).
“I dropped so much time from the beginning of the year, like from this meet (compared) to last week, I dropped so much time,” Kroncke said. “I’m so happy because I just broke (Wayland’s) varsity record. I’m stoked, just amazed at myself that I was able to do that.”
But Kroncke was hardly the only Warrior to medal on Sunday. Senior Kevin Jia earned a second-place finishes in the 200-yard IM (1:55.26) and in the 100-yard breaststroke (58.15).
Freshman Jack Galalis placed fourth in the 500-yard freestyle (4:53.80) and fifth in the 200-yard IM (2:00.29). Senior David Ryu earned a third-place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke (58.86) and a sixth-place finish in the 200-yard IM (2:00.66).
The Warriors took home 11 individual medals as a team and medaled in all three relays.
“I’m so happy (because) everyone’s put in a ton of work and we’ve come this far, we’ve made so many friendships along the way ― and the hard work has paid off,” Kroncke said.
“I’m excited to be a senior, I’m looking for that 50-yard freestyle record next and just to lead the team and see if we can win next year, too.”
The Warriors win back-to-back state titles for the first time since winning four consecutive titles from 2017-2020, following their first two titles in 2009 and 2010. The Warriors were runners-up to Weston from 2022 to 2024, the most illustrious program in Division II with 25 state titles.
“The Dual County league, where we swim, is so strong,” Foley said. “Weston’s in there with us, Westford Academy was second in the Division I meet today, Concord-Carlisle ― so all throughout the season, if you’re going to survive in our league, you have to reload a little bit.
“All that tough competition all year really helps prepare all of us for this (and) I think that plays a big role too, that every week during the season, we got to get up and race hard. We swim Mystic Valley (as well, our athletic director) has done a great job, we look for some outside competition to help keep us going and we try to set ourselves up for success at the end.”
Belchertown narrowly beats East Longmeadow for fourth
Two Western Mass. teams fought valiantly at the top of the standings on Sunday, with the Orioles narrowly outperforming the Spartans.
Belchertown placed fourth with a score of 141, edging past East Longmeadow with 139 for fifth-place.
The Orioles’ earned key points with their second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:30.64) and their third-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay (1:38.36).
Ryan Shea and James Zlogar each had a second place for the Oriorles; Shea taking second in the 50-yard freestyle (21.99), while Zlogar finished second in the 100-yard butterfly (52.38). Ryan Gould picked up two medals, placing fourth in 100-yard backstroke (55.09) and fifth in the 50-yard freestyle (22.35).
As for the Spartans, their seventh-place finishes in all three relays added significant points to their total.
Thomas Carlone placed fourth in the 200-yard freestyle (1:46.92) and the 100-yard freestyle (48.46). Brendan Schmidt placed seventh in the 500-yard freestyle to earn himself a medal, as did Jeffrey Carlone with his eighth-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke.
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