McCormac Twice in Top 5 at State Boys Swimming Meet

March 23, 2019

Ethan McCormac, who in December was named by the Old Montauk Athletic Club as the first recipient of the William O’Donnell memorial swimming scholarship, did well indeed at the state boys swimming meet at the Nassau County Aquatics Center this past weekend.McCormac, a captain of the East Hampton High School team that was its league’s undefeated champion and the league meet champion as well, placed third in the state’s 100 freestyle final, in 46.23 seconds, fifth in the 200 free, in 1 minute and 42.35 seconds, and, with his younger brother, Owen, Aidan Forst, and Ryan Duryea, placed 18th in the 200 freestyle relay. His leadoff leg of 21.15, a personal best, would have placed him sixth had he competed in the 50 freestyle race.Craig Brierley, East Hampton’s coach, said in an emailed account that the team had finished 23rd among the 151 schools that competed, and that the Suffolk squads placed fifth among the state’s 12 sections.“It was a great experience and a very fast meet,” Brierley went on to say. “The boys represented themselves and their schools with great pride. East Hampton-Pierson-Bridgehampton swimming is very strong, with a bright future for our sport in both our boys and girls programs.”Given his performances, Ethan McCormac made the all-state team, as did East Hampton’s 200 free relay team given its top-20 finish. Moreover, McCormac made the all-county team, as he did last year. The aforementioned relay team was all-county as well.All-leaguers from East Hampton included the 200 medley relay team of Joey Badilla, Jack Duryea, Colin Harrison, and Owen McCormac; Ryan Duryea in the 200 individual medley; Harrison and Owen McCormac in the 50 free; Edward Hoff in the 100 free; Badilla in the 100 backstroke; Ryan Duryea in the 100 breaststroke, and the 400 free relay team of Fernando Menjura, Hoff, Forst, and Ethan McCormac.In other postseason news, Ryan Fowkes, East Hampton’s record-holding long-distance runner, placed 11th in the state meet’s 1,000-meter race on Staten Island Saturday, somewhat of a disappointment because he found himself boxed in at times and was unable to break free. His time was nevertheless a creditable 2 minutes and 35.37 seconds, not far off the school-record 2:34.75 he ran recently at the county small schools meet.Fowkes is to attend George Washington University in Washington, D.C., in the fall. Like Ethan McCormac, he too was an OMAC honoree in December, the club having named him as the high school’s male athlete of the year.Rebecca Kuperschmid, who was OMAC’s high school female athlete of the year, is among 60 baseball-playing girls attending Major League and USA Baseball’s MLB Grit invitational this week in Dallas and Arlington, Tex. “The inaugural event, which is scheduled during Women’s History Month, will feature a special opportunity for these young high school baseball players to play a game in Globe Life Park, the home of the Texas Rangers, and to play games at the Rangers’ MLB Youth Academy,” a news release said.“The roster of participants features high school baseball players from 21 states, Washington, D.C., Canada, and Puerto Rico, including players who competed with Team USA, Canada, and Puerto Rico in the Women’s Baseball World Cup last summer,” the release continued.“Some of the nation’s top female baseball figures, including players and coaches from the USA Baseball women’s national team and former Major League players will serve as team coaches. . . . [These] events are designed to support and provide exposure for girls playing baseball.”The following received winter sports awards at the high school this past week: in bowling, Samantha Schurr, most valuable, Matthew Rosario, most improved, and Sylanious Webb III, coach’s award; in boys basketball, Malachi Miller, most valuable, Jeremy Vizcaino, most improved, and Max Proctor, coach’s award; in girls basketball, Paige Cordone, most valuable, Jessica Gualpa, most iproved, and Connie Chan, coach’s award.In cheerleading, Kayania Hermol, most valuable, America Hernandez, most improved, and Judellidis Perez Palma, coach’s award; in dance, Alison Fioriello, most valuable, Daniela Zamora Serrano, most improved, and Rose Littman, coach’s award; in boys swimming, Ethan McCormac, most valuable, Thor Botero, most improved, and Ryan Duryea, coach’s award.In boys winter track, Ryan Fowkes, most valuable, Matt Maya, most improved, and Kevin Ayavaca, coach’s award; in girls winter track, Lillie Minskoff, most valuable, Megan Fowkes, most improved, and Ava Engstrom, coach’s award, and, in wrestling, Santi Maya, most valuable, Caleb Peralta, most improved, and Brian Barrera, coach’s award.