THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, January 21, 2022 Page 13 MVRCS swimmers turn in fast times and victories T he swim team at Mystic Valley Regional Charter School (MVRCS) opened last week with a home victory over Innovation; MVRCS ventured out of Commonwealth Athletic Conference (CAC) waters, tangling with Reading and then heading to do battle with some of the state’s most formidable foes at the MLK Day Classic. Starting off the meet against Innovation, the Eagles medley relay team of sophomore Jason Yan, senior Matt Loue, junior Ramy Elaafer and eighth-grader Jaden Anthony go things rolling with a sectional cut time and won the event by over 10 seconds. Junior Jeremy Cheng continued his stellar season with a 1:53.44 in the 200 freestyle, which was a state cut time and an in-season personal best for Cheng. In the 200 individual medley (IM), fellow junior Aiden Acuna kept the ball rolling with another state cut and a top 10 all-time swim in Mystic Valley history, coming in at 2:07.50. Junior Armando Indresano added two wins in the 50 and 100 freestyles, both in state cuts. Indresano has yet to lose in either race this year as he continues a phenomenal junior year campaign. In the 100 butterfly, junior Ramy Elaafer and eighth-grader Kevin Sodeyama-Cardoso went 1-2 with in-season best times. Next up in the 500 freestyle, Acuna led an Eagle 1-2-3 finish which included Yan dropping more than 10 seconds off his personal best and freshman Lana Santos dropping eight seconds off her personal best and a top 10 all-time Mystic Valley time. In the 100 breaststroke, eighth-grader Britney Nayiga recorded her fist-ever sectional cut time: 1:16.42. Against Reading, the medley relay team of Cheng, Yan, Elaafer and Anthony got things rolling with a sectional cut time and won the event by over 10 seconds. Directly afterward, Acuna continued his stellar season with a 1:47.69 in the 200 freestyle, which is a state cut time, the second fastest time ever in Eagles history and one of the top times in the state this season. In the 200 IM, Yan continued to dominate the event with a 2:11.88. “I couldn’t be more happy with the performance. Reading is a phenomenal group of young men who have not only top line swimmers but also depth in many events. Coming out so strong across the board led to a final result that even I didn’t expect,” said Head Coach Andrew DiGiacomo following the win over Reading. “The younger swimmers on this team are taking on the challenge of filling out our lanes and improving every meet. Aiden, Jeremy and Armando continue to show that we may have the strongest junior class in the whole state. Britney, Lana, Isabella and Crystal show that the future is very bright for the Eagles.” In the 100 butterfly, Cheng, Elaafer and Kevin Sodeyama-Cardoso combined for a 1-2-3 finish – essentially wrapping up the meet. Next up in the 500 freestyle, Acuna led the Eagles to a 1-2-4 finish along with eighth-grader Thomas Sodeyama-Cardoso and Santos. Thomas Sodeyama-Cardoso’s time was a six-second drop from his previous best and is one of the fastest times by an eighth-grader in school history. Cheng notched another first-place finish in the 100 backstroke, and Nayiga dropped another full second off her personal best in a 1:15.04 in the 100 breaststroke. MLK Invitational on Jan. 17 The Mystic Valley boys’ varsity swim team wrapped up a phenomenal weekend of swimming at the MLK Invitational held at the Wayland community pool. The boys competed against some of the top competition in the state as this was a quad meet between Mystic Valley, Wayland, Framingham and Triton. The MVRCS boys came out of the meet winning two of the three meets, besting Triton and Framingham, while falling to host Wayland. The Eagles knew they would have their hands full with these three impressive teams – made ever so clear by the medley relay. The MVRCS team of Cheng, Yan, Acuna and Indresano managed to finish in their in-season best of 1:44.16 but finished in third to both Wayland and Framingham. Immediately after, Acuna crushed the competition in the 200 freestyle by more than three seconds to reel both Wayland and Framingham back in. In the 200 IM, Yan continued his stellar sophomore campaign with a second-place finish and lifetime best time of 2:10.63; Jason was out touched by only .09 of a second to a Wayland senior captain. Indresano added a second-place finish in the 50 free, while also winning the 100 free by a half second. In the 100 butterfly, junior Cheng, Elaafer and Kevin Sodeyama-Cardoso made a huge impact in turning the tide in a very close meet with Framingham. Overall, the trio placed second, seventh and eighth; but against Framingham placed first, third and fourth, which changed the tide of the dual meet with them. Next up in the 500 freestyle, Acuna led the Eagles with an overall first-place finish by more than 20 seconds to the second-place finisher. Acuna’s time is the second fastest in MVRCS history (only to himself). Thomas Sodeyama-Cardoso followed Acuna in an overall fourth-place finish, but picked up valuable points against Framingham. Thomas Sodeyama-Cardoso’s time is one of the fastest for an eighth-grade swimmer in school history. Cheng delivered with the meet on the line in the 100 breaststroke, posting a lifetime best in 1:03.06 for a first-place finish and leading the way to ensure that all Mystic Valley would need to do to win the meet against Framingham was to win the 400 freestyle relay. In that last event, the quartet of Cheng, Acuna, Indresano and Anthony secured victory in a season best time of 3:27.69. On the girls’ side, the team tasted victory over Triton yet fell to Wayland. The MVRCS girls jumped at this opportunity and had a great day against some great competition. Leading the way was Santos, who contributed with a third-place overall finish in the 50 freestyle with her first-ever sectional cut in 26.63. Santos followed that up with a second-place overall finish in the 100 freestyle. Nayiga added a sixth-place overall finish in the 50 freestyle and a first-place finish in the 100 breaststroke. Freshman Crystal Tang continued her stellar campaign with a second-place finish in the 200 IM and a second-place finish in the 100 breaststroke. The trio also paired up with eighth-grader Isabella Cirame in the 200 freestyle relay for a first-place finish and the group’s best 200 freestyle relay time of the season. In addition, eighth-grader Khloe Co chipped in with a thirdplace finish in the 100 butterfly in a lifetime best time, along with a second-place finish in the 100 backstroke. Eagle girls’ basketball team finishes week strong L ike their male counterparts, the girls’ basketball team at Mystic Valley Regional Charter School (MVRCS) dropped a pair of contests before ending the week on a positive note by dispatching Notre Dame Cristo Rey High School (NDCR) – their record now standing at 3-4. Playing their third game in four days, the Eagles showed little sign of fatigue, turning away NDCR (50-16). An early onslaught of perimeter shots and strong drives to the basket led the Eagles to a 15-0 advantage. Sophomore Breana Nansamba came out firing in the first quarter much as in the previous night. She hit two three-pointers from the right wing and helped open the interior for in-and-out ball movement. Senior captain Mairead St. Clair complemented Nansamba by playing strong close to the basket and dropping in seven points in the first quarter. The Eagles led 21-3 after the first frame. The second half saw MVRCS play 1-3-1 defense and working on some half court trapping. The defense stifled NDCR; the Eagles had a 12-7 advantage closing the quarter and eventually cruised to victory. At Essex Tech, the Eagles came out of the proverbial gates slowly as they were cold from the field and missed all free throws in first quarter. It rolled into the second quarter in similar fashion – even with many defensive stops, steals and timely rebounds, the Eagles couldn’t convert a basket. The second half saw a more competitive spark, and the Eagles competed hard to get back in the game. Sophomore Ava Green was all over the glass, getting eight rebounds and chipping in two points. Senior Gianna Gray and Tu were the defensive presence up front, getting stops in the second half. Gray led MVRCS with five points, five rebounds and three steals. The Eagles outscored Essex Tech in the second half 14-13 but fell in the contest. The next day, MVRCS left the confines of Commonwealth Athletic Conference (CAC) play to tangle with Maimonides School of Brookline. The Eagles came out firing on all cylinders in the first four minutes, executing offensive possessions and getting one-and-done stops to the advantage of 14-2. The M-Cats hung in tough and made it a 15-8 score after one quarter. Nansamba (14 TOT points) had six and Mairead St. Clair (20 TOT points) six to lead the Eagles’ opening. The Eagles came out in the second quarter with the same emphasis to get the ball inside and finish close range shots to their post players. They kept the lead for majority of the quarter, but foul trouble kept some starters on the bench, and the M-Cats took advantage, tying the game 27-27 at the half. The Eagles – being shorthanded due to some players in COVID-19 protocol – got winded by the third quarter. The M-Cats were aggressive from outside and on the boards and took a 39-31 lead heading to the final frame. Ava Green (12 rebounds – two points) held the Eagles upright, collecting defensive and offensive rebounds all over the paint. MVRCS out-rebounded the M-Cats but could not finish on the offensive end. The M-Cats took advantage, scoring 13 and coming up with a 52-42 win.
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