High Crest Hurricanes win league title
WEST MILFORD. Swim team captures its first North Jersey Small Lakes League title since 2014.
| 20 Sep 2023 | 01:21
Timers, judges and coaches await the finish of a key race at Lake Wallkill. (Photo by Lori Kane)
The High Crest Hurricanes hoist the NNJSLL trophy at the championship meet. (Photo by Laura Seltenrich)
From left, Coach Tyler Roer, Owen Kane, Coach Zach McKatten, Mikey DeMarco and Sam McKatten celebrate a hard-earned victory as they clinch the league title. (Photo by Jason Roer)
The High Crest Lake swim team, the Hurricanes, won its first league championship in nearly 10 years this summer.
In the North New Jersey Small Lakes League, each swimmer may swim in three of the four individual events, plus a relay, in each of the six dual meets.
Three swimmers completed “perfect seasons,” going undefeated in all three of their events in every meet of the year.
“We want to congratulate everyone on the team, with a special shout-out to Liam Christian, Maddie Stitzel and Tristan Roer each for achieving this incredible feat in their respective divisions,” said coach Zachary McKatten.
“Having these three kids win every race certainly helped us to win.”
McKatten and Tyler Roer, both 16, were the head coaches this year. They first joined the Hurricanes at age 7.
McKatten also set a new 15-18 league record in the 50 meter backstroke at the league championship meet this summer.
“We have a group of swimmers that have been friends for many years. Some are coaches, some are lifeguards, but all compete as a team, with the same goals,” he said. “We have stuck together and now we are able to succeed by sharing all we have learned with the rest of the team.”
The Hurricanes faced powerhouses from Glenwild Lake, Lake Wallkill and Awosting. After some wins at the beginning of the season, the team tied Lake Wallkill in the first of a home-and-home meet, raising the stakes for the league title.
“We all have so much fun strategizing, coaching and cheering on our kids,” Roer said. “Everyone has put their hearts into this season, and they work so hard.
“We would not have had this success had we not gotten the full commitment from every swimmer and parent on the team ... every race, every point, every position matters. We don’t have the biggest team, but we can rely on everyone to do their part.”
Now that school is back in session, team members will be competing against each other. McKatten, Roer, Samantha McKatten, Mikey DeMarco and Eliana Macaluso swim for Passaic County Technical Institute while Jacob Price, Sienna Franklin and Molly Kane are on the swim team at West Milford High School.