Sayreville still looking for first win of season
Bombers no longer competing as a coed swim team
BY WARREN RAPPLEYEA Staff Writer
The Sayreville High School swim team has a new look this season: the Bombers are competing as separate boys and girls teams after years as a coed squad.

"It's a big step in the evolution of our program," said coach Sarah Magaw. "We've come a long way in the past few years and we now have 33 swimmers in the program. We also had a good turnout of freshmen."

"This is a great sport to be involved with, and I really love working with the kids," she said. "It teaches them the value of working hard and practicing, because they can see the results."

Last season the Bombers were 5-5 competing as a single team. Thus far, the boys are 0-2, having lost to both East Brunswick and St. Joseph's. The girls are 0-1, with the loss coming against East Brunswick.

Still, there's plenty of optimism in Sayreville. One reason is the presence of junior Alex Ratajczyk, who won both the 50- and 100-meter freestyle sprints at the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) meet last year.

Ryan Behr, a freestyle sprinter, should also have a major impact this season. However, the senior suffered a broken hand and won't return to the lineup until the holiday break.

Other members of the boys squad include hard-working Justin Calimari, who enters his fourth varsity season.

He'll compete in the breaststroke, an event he won in the St. Joe's meet. Seniors Mike Batko, Steven Libretti and Kevin Santos all compete in freestyle events and relays. John Mellilo, another senior, will handle the backstroke and distance freestyle events.

Junior John Deverin competes in the butterfly, while freshman Skyler Lutz will swim the breaststroke events and individual medley.

On the girls' side, seniors Aketa Shah and Dara Zaleski and junior Rachel Lutz are the team leaders. Shah competes in freestyle and breaststroke events, Zaleski in the 500- meter freestyle, and Lutz in individual medley and 100-meter butterfly.

Shannon McKenna is coming off a strong freshman season where she displayed speed in the 200- and 500-meter freestyle events. Freshman Maureen McKenna, Shannon's sister, is expected to make her mark in both the 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter backstroke.

Three other sophomores will all play prominent roles this season. They include Brianne Behr, a freestyle and breaststroke competitor; Gabby Grzybowski, who competes in butterfly and relay events; and Dana Quinn, who handles the individual medley and also competes in the breaststroke.

"Our swimmers are still getting used to competing as separate teams, and that's a big change for them," Magaw said. "We do have some very talented swimmers this year, and I think more and more people will realize that as the season progresses."