Frog Hollow swimmers enjoy a solid summer

ERIC SUCAR staff Frog Hollow's Aubrey Deleo competes in the girls 15-18 200-meter breaststroke during the New Jersey Swimming and Diving Conference Championships in South Amboy on Aug. 1.

The Frog Hollow Swim & Tennis Club's swim team posted a fine 6-2 record this summer under coach Georgann Tice.

Last year the South Amboy club went 7-1 and, as a result, moved up a division in the New Jersey Swimming & Diving Conference. With about 50 competitors ranging in age from 6 to 17, Frog Hollow's only losses came against Middlesex, which boasts a team of well over 100 swimmers.

Tice, a sixth-grade art teacher in the South Amboy school district, said her team worked hard for its success, generally practicing five days a week beginning at 8:15 a.m. She also credited her two new assistant coaches, Rachel Abadie and Shannon McKenna, with helping the team succeed. Both assistants also compete for the team.

Maureen McKenna, 14, and Matt Zebrowski, 11, are the team's top competitors. They were among several swimmers who won two events at a meet. McKenna qualified for the YMCA Nationals in Maryland, which is taking place this week, Tice noted.

Other double winners included Jay Zebrowski and Celia Kottakis, both 8; Pat Astarita and Haley Tomaszewski, both 10; Stephen DeLeo and Luke McNally, both 13; and Abadie and Rachel Lutz, both 16.

Other winners are: (8U) Derek Astarita, Paul Tomaszewski, 8; (9-10) Alyxa Dill, Tara Lenahan and Kasper Moczulski; (11-12) Mike Astarita, Megan O'Donnell, Jane Pruszkowski and Robert Seraji; (13-14) Sklyer Lutz; and (15-18) Robert Masterson and Shannon McKenna.

Tice said there's been a lot of interest in the team from younger swimmers, and Anna Kottakis and Libby Dobrynski, both 6-year-olds, are members of the team.

In addition, the coach has started a training group of "mini-frogs," primarily 4- and 5-year-olds, most of whom have siblings on the team. Often the younger children accompany the team to its meets. The mini-frog program is a way to get them more involved, while also building their skills for the future, Tice explained.