Seniors, sophomores lead EHS girls
When nobody can remember exactly the last time a specific event took place, odds are it’s been a long time. Such is the case for people trying to remember the last time that Emmaus beat Parkland head-to-head in girls swimming.
While few people are completely sure of the year, it’s generally agreed that it’s been at least a decade, and most likely a couple of years longer since the Lady Hornets beat their Parkland counterparts.
Emmaus fans hope that this year’s team started a new trend in the rivalry and that years from now, people will be trying to remember the last time that Emmaus lost to Parkland in a head-to-head meet.
As things stand now, it’s 2017 when Emmaus beat Parkland 100-86 to cap an undefeated season in the EPC and win the EPC Championship.
Through their first four events, Emmaus held a pretty healthy 39-23 lead over Parkland. At that point, Emmaus head coach Tim O’Connor was not resting comfortably.
“It’s going to get tighter,” said O’Connor as he walked past the media area at the meet.
He was right.
Parkland’s dominating girls diving team swept the top three spots in girls diving to close the gap, narrowing the Emmaus lead to 42-36. From there, the Emmaus girls simply went back to work and opened things right back up.
In the 100 butterfly, the first event after diving, the two teams traded finishes and the lead stayed at six points for Emmaus. The next girl’s event, the 100 freestyle would prove to be where Emmaus started to turn the tide once again, and it happened with a senior and a sophomore coming up big.
Sophomore Abby Heilenman worked her way to a decent lead in the event and finished first, .53 seconds ahead of Parkland’s Zoe Sheridan. Meanwhile, Marissa Decker, a senior, also made a late push on the second lap to finish .67 seconds ahead of freshman Laurel Krause to finish third. The finishes gave Emmaus a two-point edge in the event, as the Hornets started to stretch their lead.
“Abby and I are sprinters together and she always helps me get through my nerves,” said Decker. “I always get so nervous, but I almost feel like I need to be nervous to have enough energy and motivate myself to keep going.”
The two continued to push the Emmaus lead when they teamed with Chelsea Gravereaux and Reilly King in the 200 freestyle relay, winning the event by less than one-third of a second. The win helped Emmaus push its lead to 12 points and from there, the Hornets locked things up, with Katie Champagne winning the 100 backstroke. In the final event, Gravereaux, Heilenman, King and Champagne won the 400 freestyle relay, making the win official.
“I knew going into the 100 that it was going to be a pretty big event,” said Heilenman. “I just tried to encourage her and we just wanted to be strong for our team. I had a decent start, but was happy with how I was able to come back and finish.
“I was tired after the 100 free and our 200 freestyle relay wasn’t our best showing, but we kept things together and we knew that was a big win.”
Emmaus swimmers now prepare for districts and another showdown with rival Parkland. The Emmaus girls will again look to snap a long dry spell in the District 11 Championship coming up on March 3-4 at Parkland High School. The girls team hasn’t won a district title since 2007 and would love to come out on top in their next battle with Parkland.
“It feels amazing because we’ve all worked so hard to get here and been pushed through so many tough practices,” said Decker. “I’m so proud of my teammates and how the young swimmers have come through for us this season. It’s great. Now we can go into districts and hopefully come out with another big win to wrap up my senior season.”