Team News

The Northgate/Avonworth swim team opened their 2022-2023 season Friday night with a victory over the Hopewell Vikings. Both boys and girls squads put up fantastic swims to kick off the season. There were multiple swimmers that achieved WPIAL qualifying times as well last night which is always great to see so early in the season. Head over to the WPIAL qualifying times and qualifiers tab to see who earne their cut times! Next up the team will head across the river to swim off against the Cornell Raiders on Tuesday the 13th at 4:00 PM.

This past Friday, sophomore divers Ryan Hartle and Lilia MacKenzie, along with Coach Jess McKelvey traveled to North Allegheny high school for the 2022 WPIAL diving championships. Last year Hartle was the first ever diver for the Northgate/Avonworth team and this year Lilia is the first ever diver for the girls team. Both divers exceeded expectations earning top spots in their respective diving events. Lilia placed 4th overall in the girls AA section with a total score of 320.55 while Ryan earned 2nd overall in the boys AA section with a total score of 315.10. Both Lilia and Ryan will now move onto the PIAA state championship diving competition being held at Bucknell University March 17th-19th. Additionally, the points earned by both divers will be added to the girls and boys overall team scores during the WPIAL championship meet being held this Thursday and Friday at the University of Pittsburgh’s Trees pool. The action will start at approximately 3:00pm on both Thursday and Friday and you can watch it live on the TribLive High School Sports Network

The swimmers from Northgate/Avonworth were back in the water Tuesday night as they traveled to North Hills High school for another non-section meet against their first AAA opponents, the North Hills Indians. Looking to add some additional meets to their schedule, the team went outside of their AA bracket and found some more competition swimming against some of the bigger schools in AAA. This would be a good test for the boys and girls to see how they stack up against schools that traditionally have bigger, more experienced swimmers and divers. The flame-a-lopes did not disappoint Tuesday evening as both the boys and girls were victorious over the Indians in both the swimming and diving competitions.

Girls recap:

The opening relay event of the night would see North Hills beating out the girls ‘A’ relay, but the ladies of Northgate/Avonworth would not let that get to them. Kendall McKelvey would touch first in the 200 freestyle event with a time of 2:08.20. Freshman Kacey Lavelle captured fourth place in the event as well with a time of 2:21.04. In the 200 IM, North Hills would again take first place with Catrina Raich taking second place with a time of 2:20.82, and Ameila Hardiman earning third place with a time of 2:23.80. Senior Anna Neiss would take another shot at earning a WPIAL qualifying time in the 50 free and this time she earned it. Neiss finished second in the event Tuesday night with a time of 24.91 and a spot at WPIALs. Senior Anna Kohler would finish fourth with a time of 27.68, and freshman Ella Bounos would place sixth with a 31.90 finish time. Lilia Mackenzie would spring off the diving board to earn a top score of 196.60 beating out all of the North Hills divers for the evening. Lilia’s score has earned her a spot in the WPIAL diving championships, a first in ladies Northgate/Avonworth swim history! The ladies were not done just yet, as Elise Nardozzi and Catrina Raich finished first and second in the 100 fly. Nardozzi finished with a new NGHS record time of 58.32, and Raich finished with a 1:01.97. The girls would earn another top finish in the 500 free event with Kendall McKelvey placing first with a time of 5:39.56. Claire Boughton placed third with a time of 6:33.13, and Reese Theobald took fourth place with a 6:35.04 finish time. In the 200 free relay, the ladies would again take the top spot with the ‘A’ relay consisting of Anna Neiss, Anna Kohler, Amelia Hardiman, and Elise Nardozzi finishing with a time of 1:46.20, just shy of another WPIAL qualifier. The ‘B’ relay team of Katie Petrina, Kacey Lavelle, Claire Boughton, and Lorelie Gourley would finish with a time of 1:58.64 earning third place in the event. The girls continued to put the pressure on North Hills as Elise Nardozzi and Amelia Hariman took the top two spots in the 100 backstroke. Nardozzi earned a qualifying time with a finish of 1:01.02, and Hardiman finished second with a time of 1:05.98. The ladies would wrap the night up with a solid 400 free relay first place finish. Anna Neiss, Catrina Raich, Kendall McKelvey, and Elise Nardozzi finished with a time of 3:44.85 securing the ladies victory for the night.

Boys recap:

The boys would start their night similar to the girls with North Hills taking first place in the opening 200 medley relay. The NGHS relay team consisting of Isaac Stoeckle, Nate Campbell, Ryan Ehmann, and Caleb Gratner earned second place with a time of 1:58.62. Relay team Eli Kline, Alambir Goraya, Brayden Rollins, and Ryan Hartle would secure third place with a time of 2:12.84. Matthew Purcell would give the team another qualifying time and a first place finish in the 200 freestyle event with a time of 1:48.17. The boys would take spots two, three, and four in the 50 free event with all three boys posting season best times. Isaac Stoeckle placed second with a time of 24.52, Caleb Gratner finished third with a time of 26.10, and Ryan Ehmann took fourth place with a time of 26.56. Next up was Ryan Hartle taking first place in the 1 meter diving competition. Hartle scored a 193.55 surpassing his previous best of 189.39. The NGHS boys continued to chip away at North Hills as Sam Kohler, Ryan Ehmann, and Brayden Rollins earned places two, three, and four in the 100 fly. Kohler finished with a 1:01.36, Ehmann with a 1:03.35, and Rollins touched with a 1:19.46. In the 100 yard free, Zach Schuster secured a first place win and notched a qualifying time with a season best 49.58 time. Matthew Purcell would match Zach Schuster with a first place finish and qualifying time in the 500 free event. Purcell’s qualifying time of 4:52.45 is a season best for him and also a new NGHS team record. Caleb Gratner finished second in the event with a season best time of 5:57.89. The boys were not done for the night as they went into the 200 free relay taking first and third in the event. Matthew Purcell, Isaac Stoeckle, Sam Kohler, and Zach Schuster placed first with a time of 1:37.70. Ryan Frank, Eli Kline, Brayden Rollins, and Alambir Goraya placed third with a time of 1:55.45. In the 100 breaststroke, Zach Schuster took first place again with a time of 1:04.05. Nate Campbell finished in third place with a time of 1:17.61, a season best for him. The boys would cap off the night with an impressive 400 free relay notching a qualifying time in the event. Matthew Purcell, Isaac Stoeckle, Sam Kohler, and Zach Schuster placed first in the event with a qualifying time of 3:30.75. Ryan Frank, Caleb Gratner, Nate Campbell, and Ryan Ehmann would take third place with a time of 4:03.55 helping the boys secure a win for the night.

The final scores on the night were: 98-86 for the girls, and 101-80 for the boys.

The team will be back in the water this Friday night for a home meet against Cornell at Northgate High school. The meet is open to spectators and will be live streamed on the Northgate/Avonworth youtube channel. Masks are required for in person attendance. Follow the links below to visit the teams youtube channel and team web page for updates.

Northgate/Avonworth Swim webpage

Northgate/Avonworth Swim youtube page

With masked parents and friends in the stands, the Northgate/Avonworth swim team opened their 2021-2022 swim season against Quaker Valley this past Friday night at Northgate high school for a non section meet. Both the boys and girls teams were excited to make a splash in front of their in person live crowd as they both earned their first victories of the season. With the season officially underway, swimmers are aiming to earn AA qualifying times throughout the year to have an opportunity to swim at the WPIAL championship meet held this coming March.

Girls Recap:

The girls team wasted no time Friday night showing that they are ready to defend their WPIAL championship title from last year as they earned 1st and 3rd place in the opening 200 yard medley relay event. Amelia Hardiman, Katie Petrina, Anna Kohler, and Kendall McKelvey placed first with a time of 2:03.50, while Kacey Lavelle, Claire Boughton, Brianna Klatzkin, and Reese Theobald finished third with a time of 2:17.86. Elise Nardozzi led the team in the 200 free event with a time of 1.54.99 earning her a spot as a WPIAL qualifier in the event. The girls continued their dominance with Catrina Raich and Amelia Hardiman placing first and second in the 200 yard IM. Senior Anna Neiss came up just shy of a qualifying time in her 50 free event with a time of 25.59, but earned a second place finish in the event for the night. Elise Nardozzi was back in the water for the 100 yard butterfly where she took first place and earned her second qualifying time for the night with a time of 58.42. Senior Anna Kohler finished third in the event with a time of 1:09.81, and freshman Katie Petrina placed fourth with a time of 1:14.79. In the 100 free Anna Neiss and Kendall McKelvey placed first and second. Neiss touched with a time of 56.99, and McKelvey finished with a time of 58.91. The longest event of the evening, the 500 free, sophomore Amelia Hardiman earned a qualifying time to WPIALS with a first place time of 5:30.80. The NGHS ladies also took places four and five in the event with freshman Claire Boughton swimming a time of 6:45.39, and freshman Jeanelle Stiteler finishing with a time of 7:59.99. The girls then went on to earn another qualifying time in the 200 yard free relay with seniors Anna Neiss and Anna Kohler, junior Catrina Raich, and sophomore Elise Nardozzi placing first with a time of 1:43.88. The ladies finished the evening with one more qualifying time in the 400 yard free relay. The relay team of Anna Neiss, Catrina Raich, Kendall McKelvey, and Elise Nardozzi posted a time of 3:47.10 to end the night. It was a great night for the lady flame-a-lopes with a handful of qualifying times achieved, so first time swims completed by the freshman girls, and a great overall showing of how the ladies are not ready to give up their championship title.

Boys Recap:

The boys also got right to business Friday night taking first and third place in the opening 200 medley relay. Isaac Stoeckle, Jack Blaser, Sam Kohler, and Caleb Gratner took first place with a time of 1:54.78, and the relay team of Eli Kline, Nate Campbell, Ryan Frank, and Brayden Rollins earned third place with a time of 2:06.53. The NGHS boys took the top three places in the 200 yard free with sophomore Sam Kohler earning first with a time of 2:03.96, freshman Caleb Gratner taking second place with a time of 2:16.56, and freshman Nate Campbell earning third place with a time of 2:16.68. Junior Matthew Purcell gave the boys team their first WPIAL qualifying time in the 200 IM where he took first place in the event with a time of 2:01.82. In the 50 free, sophomore Zach Schuster came up just shy of a qualifying time with a time of 23.10. Schuster took first place in the event with sophomore Isaac Stoeckle placing third with a time of 25.27, and freshman Eli Kline placing fifth with a time of 28.46. The boys would also continue to dominate the evening with Sam Kohler placing first in the 100 butterfly and Jack Blaser earning first place in the 100 freestyle. The 500 yard free event had Caleb Gratner taking first place with a time of 6:00.92, and Brayden Rollins placing second with a 6:42.38 finish time. The 200 free relay had the NGHS boys again taking first and second place. Zach Schuster, Isaac Stoeckle, Jack Blaser, and Matthew Purcell placed first with a time of 1:38.28. Nate Campbell, Brayden Rollins, Ryan Frank, and Caleb Gratner placed second with a time of 1:51.19. Matthew Purcell would earn a second qualifying time Friday night, this time in the 100 backstroke with a first place time of 54.24. Zach Schuster would follow up Purcell’s backstroke qualifying time with a qualifying time of his own in the 100 breaststroke. Schuster took first place in the event with a qualifying time of 1:03.63. Jack Blaser took second in the breaststroke event with a time of 1:10.03, and senior Alambir Goraya placed third with a time of 1:22.70. To end the evening the boys entered the water for the 400 free relay. The relay squad of Zach Schuster, Isaac Stoeckle, Sam Kohler, and Matthew Purcell placed first with a time of 3:35.70. The boys also had one more qualifier that evening that was not at Northgate Highschool. Sophomore diver Ryan Hartle achieved the necessary points to earn a spot in the WPIAL diving championships. The boys showed they are also ready for the competition this year and want another shot at earning another WPIAL title for the Northgate/Avonworth team.

The team will travel to North Hills high school on 12/14 for a non section meet against the North Hills Indians. They will return to Northgate high school on 12/17 for a home meet against Cornell.

The Northgate/Avonworth Flames will open their 2021-2022 swim season this coming Friday, December 10th, with a non section home meet against Quaker Valley. The team swam in two scrimmages last week where the boys won both meets against Riverside and Blackhawk, while the girls beat Riverside but lost to Blackhawk. The boys and girls are looking ahead to a bright season led by our current seniors along with some new freshman faces to help lead the team to victory.

The team kicked off preseason training in early September with open pool time leading up to the official start of the season. Returning to the team this year as seniors are Anna Kohler, Anna Neiss, Brianna Klatzkin, and Alambir Goraya. Juniors are Matthew Purcell, Catrina Raich, Jack Blaser, Ryan Ehmann, and Lorelie Gourley. Sophomores are Amelia Hardiman, Ryan Frank, Ryan Hartle, Kendall McKelvey, Sam Kohler, Elise Nardozzi, Brayden Rollins, Zach Schuster, and Issac Stoeckle. The team also welcomed a second diver, Sophomore Lilia Mackenzie to the Flame-A-Lopes roster this year. Lilia will represent the girls team as their first ever female diver on the team in Northgate/Avonworth history! She will join fellow diver Ryan Hartle as they compete in the diving competitions throughout the season. The team also welcomed a great group of freshmen to the pool, including Clarie Boughton, Ella Bounos, Nate Campbell, Caleb Gratner, Eli Kline, Kacey Lavelle, Katie Petrina, Jay Shane, Jeanelle Stiteler, and Reese Theobald.

Both the boys and girls teams are looking forward to getting back to work this season to earn WPIAL spots and take their talents to State competition in early 2022. Parents and swim fans can join the action this year in person at Northgate Highschool. School covid protocols will be in place which include mask wearing whenever in the building. You can also follow along on the teams Youtube page, where home swim meets will once again be live streamed. Follow the link below to subscribe to the teams Youtube page. Don’t forget to visit the team webpage too where you can stay up to date on the latest news for the team!

Northgate/Avonworth Youtube

Northgate/Avonworth Swim

After an exasperating couple of months that saw the team’s first three meets being cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns, the Flame-A-Lopes have finally competed in, and won, their first meet of the season. The evening started off by recognizing six of the swimmers during a physically distanced senior night ceremony. Seniors Clark Bernauer, Cooper Groll, Hugo Eadie, Graham Herzig, Danica Raich, and Carly Spahr were accompanied by their parents as their accomplishments were shared with the audience of swimmers.

The meet, held at home against section rival North Catholic, ended with winning scores of 106-64 for the girls and 103-63 for the boys. Contributing to those scores were wins in the girls 200 medley relay (Kendall McKelvey, Danica Raich, Elise Nardozzi, and Anna Neiss), 50 free and 100 free (Anna Neiss), 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke (Elise Nardozzi), 500 free (Kendall McKelvey), 200 free relay (Carly Spahr, Anna Kohler, Danica Raich, and Catrina Raich), 100 breaststroke (Danica Raich) and the 400 free relay (Anna Neiss, Amelia Hardiman, Kendall McKelvey, and Elise Nardozzi). For the boys it also started with a win in the 200 medley relay (Matthew Purcell, Zach Schuster, Cooper Groll, and Clark Bernauer) followed by 200 free and 500 free (Matthew Purcell), 50 free and 100 butterfly (Cooper Groll), 100 free (Clark Bernauer), 200 free relay (Graham Herzig, Hugo Eadie, Andrew Baldauff, and Clark Bernauer), 100 breaststroke (Jack Blaser), and the 400 free relay (Zach Schuster, Matthew Purcell, Clark Bernauer, and Cooper Groll).

Many swimmers also qualified for the WPIAL championships, which are expected to occur in early March…fingers crossed. To qualify for WPIALs, this year in particular, is truly a big accomplishment. Due to the COVID -19 pandemic, the qualifying times were lowered significantly in an effort to limit the number of swimmers who would be in attendance at the WPIAL championship allowing for physical distancing. From the girls team, the WPIAL qualifiers include the 200 medley relay, Anna Neiss (50 free), Elise Nardozzi (100 fly and 100 back) and the 400 free relay team. The boys team also had qualifying swims in the 200 medley relay, Matthew Purcell (200 free and 500 free), Cooper Groll (50 free and 100 fly), and the 400 free relay.

In addition to all of that, swimmers Cooper Groll, Matthew Purcell, and Elise Nardozzi broke team records. Groll broke his own record in the 50 free, Purcell broke Luke Tomczak’s record in 500 free, and Nardozzi broke Karen Siddoway’s 100 fly record. Everyone swam well, especially with the intermittent practice schedule due to COVID issues. There were many impressive first swims and several athletes had personal bests!

The next meet is on Tuesday, January 26, at home against West Allegheny.

NGHS hosted West Allegheny last night to compete in a non-section meet. There were great swims by all, as many of the swimmers are picking up where they left off, close to or already with personal bests this season. In addition to a great team effort, there were numerous WPIAL qualifying times achieved.

Girls Recap:

The second meet of the season started off with the girls winning the 200 medley relay with strong swims by Carly Spahr, Brianna Klatzkin, Amelia Hardiman, and Anna Kohler. The girls went on to sweep West Allegheny in all events with exceptional swims by all of the ladies, and secured a 93 - 38 win. There were multiple WPIAL qualifying cut times made last night for the girls including Elise Nardozzi in the 200 free with a time of 1:57.85, and the 100 free with a time of 54.13. Kendall McKelvey achieved a cut time in the 500 free event with a time of 5:36.81. In the 200 yard free relay: Elise Nardozzi, Kendall McKelvey, Amelia Hardiman, and Anna Neiss captured a qualifying time with a time of 1:45.10. In addition to the WPIAL qualifiers, a number of girls had personal bests Tuesday. In the 200 free Brianna Klatzkin dropped 5.43 seconds for a new best time of 2:21.22 and in the 100 breaststroke she dropped 2.01 seconds for another personal best. In the 200 IM, Anna Neiss dropped 3.74 seconds for a new best of 2:26.62. In the 100 fly both Amelia Hardiman and Anna Kohler dropped times of 0.07 seconds and 0.34 seconds to achieve new personal bests in the event. Lorelie Gourley got personal best times in the 50 free event dropping 1.44 seconds and in the 100 breaststroke dropping 33.30 seconds! Kendall McKelvey also had her best 500 free swim dropping 3.82 seconds for a new best of 5:36.81

Boys Recap:

The boys had their hands full last night with a strong West Allegheny team. While the boys fought hard, they were unfortunately handed a loss 97.5 - 68.5. Though they did not come out on top, there were very strong swims throughout the night. Zach Schuster put up a personal best time in the 200 yard IM with a time of 2:06.21, just shy of the 2:06.00 WPIAL qualifying time. Schuster was also just shy of getting his cut time in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 57.32. Sam Kohler also had a great meet earning a personal best in the 100 yard freestyle with a time of 54.99. In the 500 free event, Nate Hardiman dropped 13.62 seconds for a new best time of 6:25.17. Ryan Ehmann also dropped 1.56 seconds in his 100 backstroke event for a new best time of 1:09.78

The team will travel to Deer Lakes on Wednesday 1/27/21 for a section meet.

The Northgate/Avonworth swim team welcomed section rivals Shadyside Academy to Northgate high school on Thursday evening. Despite a very busy season so far the Northgate/Avonworth team continued to put up impressive times throughout the evening. The girls ended the night with a 111-56 victory, and the boys posted a victory as well, 99-57. Last night’s victories keep both the girls and boys undefeated in their section this season.

Girls Recap:

The ladies of Northgate/Avonworth kicked off the meet in the 200 yard medley relay led by freshman Amelia Hardiman who along with Danica Raich, Elise Nardozzi, and Anna Neiss took first place in the event and captured a WPIAL AA qualifying time with a finish time of 1:56.03. The girls would go on to secure the top two finish spots in a majority of the events Thursday night while also securing one additional WPIAL qualifying time. Amelia Hardiman achieved her qualifying time in the 500 free event with a time of 5:35.05. The night was also filled with some personal season best times for the lady flame-a-lopes. Anna Neiss dropped an impressive three seconds in the 200 yard free event earning a new personal best time of 2:03.55. In the 200 yard free event both Amelia Hardiman and Kendall McKelvey earned new best times with Amelia finishing at 2:04.03, and Kendall finishing at 2:07.27. Brianna Klatzkin earned yet another personal best time last night with a time of 2:36.80 in the 200 yard IM. Senior Danica Raich shaved time off of her 50 yard free for a new personal best of 26.14. Danica also dropped over a second in the 100 yard breaststroke for a new best time of 1:13.71.

Boys Recap:

The NGHS gentlemen also made a splash right from the start Thursday night with the ‘A’ relay consisting of Matthew Purcell, Zach Schuster, Cooper Groll, and Clark Bernauer earning first place with a time of 1:42.63. The ‘B’ relay consisting of seniors Graham Herzig and Hugo Eadie along with Jack Blaser and Andrew Baldauff took second place in the event with a time of 1:48.82. The boys were able to earn three more WPIAL qualifying times last night starting with Matthew Purcell notching his cut time in the 200 yard IM with a time of 2:02.84. Senior Cooper Groll secured a qualifying time in the 100 yard free event with a time of 49.05, and freshman Zach Schuster earned his qualifying time in the 500 yard free event with a time of 5:10.92. As far as personal bests go, numerous boys earned new season best times last night. Senior Hugo Eadie and freshman Sam Kohler finished the 200 yard free event with best times of 2:03.69 for Hugo, and 1:59.61 for Sam. Zach Schuster earned a new best time of 23.78 in the 50 free event while also dropping four seconds in his 500 free event for a best time of 5:10.92. Ryan Hartle dropped four seconds in his 100 yard butterfly for a personal best time of 1:14.46. Andrew Baldauff dropped over three seconds in his 100 yard free event for a new best time of 54.17. Nate Hardiman dropped two seconds in the 500 yard free for a new best time of 6:23.32 while Matthew Purcell earned a new best time in the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 54.81. Jack Blaser and Ryan Ehmann earned new best times in the 100 yard breaststroke. Blaser’s finish time was 1:07.49 and Ehmann finished with a time of 1:20.00.

The Northgate/Avonworth crew will next travel to Riverside this Saturday morning for a section meet.

The Northgate/Avonworth team traveled to Riverside high school Saturday morning, 02/06/21, for a last minute added non section meet. Even with the late minute addition to the season schedule, the boys and girls came prepared and took care of business. Due to Covid restrictions and a smaller than usual pool, the team was not able to travel with their full team however that did not stop either the boys or girls from leaving Riverside with victories. The Saturday morning meet also saw a little bit of history made for the NGHS swim team as freshman Ryan Hartle participated in the 1 meter diving competition. Hartle went on to earn Northgate/Avonworth’s first ever WPIAL qualifying spot in the diving competition with a score of 187.05. The girls won with a landslide 71-11 win, and the boys had some tough competition but came out victorious 62-36.

Girls Recap:

The NGHS ladies ‘A’ relay of Amelia Hardiman, Danica Raich, Anna Neiss, and Elise Nardozzi opened the Saturday morning meet with a first place time of 1:57.65. Freshman Elise Nardozzi and Senior Carly Spahr earned WPIAL qualifying times Saturday morning. Nardozzi in the 50 yard free event earned her qualifying time with a 24.82, and Spahr in the 100 yard backstroke earned her qualifying time with a 1:01.93. The ladies of NGHS cruised through the morning putting up numerous season best times. Kendall McKelvey put up a season best time in the 200 yard free event. McKelvey dropped five seconds for a season best 2:02.96. Kendall also dropped over five seconds in her 100 yard backstroke event for a new best time of 1:06.20. Both Amelia Hardiman and Catrina Raich earned best times in the 200 yard IM event. Amelia finished with a 2:22.28 and Catrina touched with a 2:22.37. In the 50 yard free event, Anna Neiss and Elise Nardozzi took first and second place while also earning season best times. Anna Neiss finished with a 24.69 and Elise finished with a 24.82. Neiss also dropped over four seconds in her 100 yard breaststroke earning a new season best time of 1:16.55 Anna Kohler dropped time in the 100 yard butterfly event with a 1:04.97.

Boys Recap:

The Riverside boys would be by far the NGHS boys toughest competition so far this season. The NGHS boys swimmers (Matthew Purcell, Zach Schuster, Cooper Groll, and Clark Bernauer) were able to capture a first place win with a time of 1:40.30 in the opening 200 yard medley relay. The boys had their work cut out for them in most events Saturday morning but gave it their all to earn a hard fought victory. WPIAL qualifiers included senior Graham Herzig in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 56.58, Jack Blaser in the 100 yard breaststroke with a time of 1:04.69, and Ryan Hartle with the first ever in NGHS swim history WPIAL qualifying score of 187.05 in the 1 meter diving event. The boys ‘A’ relay team of seniors Clark Bernauer, Graham Herzig, Cooper Groll, and sophomore Matthew Purcell clinched their qualifying time in the 200 yard free relay with a time of 1:32.33. The boys also had numerous season best times Saturday morning including Sam Kohler who dropped 1.5 seconds in his 200 yard free event for a time of 1:57.87. Kohler also posted a best time of 53.88 in the 100 yard free. Matthew Purcell posted season best times in the 200 yard IM with a 2:00.63, and the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 53.64. In the 500 yard free event, freshman Zach Schuster dropped an impressive 10 seconds for a new season best time of 4:59.70. Schuster also improved on his 50 yard free time with a new season best of 23.57. Jack Blaser secured a new season best time of 1:04.69 in the 100 yard breaststroke, and Andrew Baldauff earned a new best time of 2:20.17 in the 200 yard IM. Senior Graham Herzig earned a new season best in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 56.58.

The team will return to their home pool for a non section meet again Keystone Oaks on Monday, February 8th. You can watch the team compete via the team youtube channel. Click the link below to subscribe!

NGHS Swim team youtube channel

Monday evening would be the third meet in five days for the NGHS flame-a-lopes as they welcomed Keystone Oaks to Northgate High School for a non-section meet. Both the girls and boys did not miss a beat last night as they continued to improve on their season with improved swims up and down the lineup. The girls won by a score of 85-66, and the boys won by a score of 97-63.

Girls Recap:

The NGHS ladies relay team of seniors Carly Spahr and Danica Raich, along with Anna Neiss and Anna Kohler started off the evening with a first place finish in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:55.88. The relay team finish time is a WPIAL qualifying time which now adds Anne Kohler to the list of qualifiers in this event. There were two other WPIAL qualifying times for the girls last night as Anna Neiss earned cut times in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:00.72, and the 100 freestyle with a time of 55.32. The girls continue to drop time midway through the season as numerous girls posted season best times. In the 200 free Anna Kohler earned a new season best time of 2:09.76. Catrina Raich posted a new best time of 2:03.02 and Amelia Hardiman finished with a best time of 2:02.75. In the 50 free Grace Baldauff earned a new best time of 28.45. Anna Neiss and Catrina Raich captured season best times in the 100 fly event. Neiss finished with a time of 1:00.72 and Raich touched with a time of 1:03.24. The 100 free event had Anna Kohler posting a season best time of 58.79, Kendall McKelvey finishing with a season best time of 56.97, and senior Carly Spahr earning her season best time of 58.68. In the 500 free, Brianna Klatzkin dropped over 15 seconds for a new season best time of 6:24.28. The 100 breaststroke event also saw another large time drop with Carly Spahr dropping over seven seconds in the event for a season best time of 1:20.00.

Boys Recap:

The NGHS gentlemen also showed no signs of being worn out from their busy schedule of meets this past week. Zach Schuster, Jack Blaser, Graham Herzig and Hugo Eadie led the boys opening relay to a first place finish with a time of 1:49.28. From there the boys went on to capture the top two spots throughout the night. In the 200 IM event both freshman Zach Schuster and senior Cooper Groll earned their WPIAL cut times and season best times. Both swimmers fought hard throughout the event with Groll touching first with a time of 2:05.45, and Schuster right behind with a time of 2:05.47. Schuster also went on to earn his qualifying time in the 100 breaststroke event with a time of 1:04.00. There was one additional qualifying time Monday night with Matthew Purcell getting his cut time and season best in the 100 free event with a time of 49.91. The boys also had their share of season best times Monday night. Senior Clark Bernauer posted new best times in his 200 free event (1:58.19), and his 500 free event (5:34.79). Freshman Sam Kohler posted a season best time in the 500 free event with a time of 5:21.84. Matthew Purcell posted an additional best time last night in the 50 free with a time of 23.15. Jack Blaser posted his season best times in the 50 free and 100 free as well. Blaser touched with a 25.51 in the 50 free, and in the 100 free he finished with a time of 55.52. Senior Hugo Eadie posted his season best time in the 500 free with a time of 5:37.05. Andrew Baldauff improved in the 100 fly event with a best time of 1:00.75.

The boys and girls will get a well deserved break for a few days and will then travel to Butler high school on Thursday, 2/11, for a section meet against Knoch.

The boys and girls of Northgate/Avonworth traveled north Thursday evening for a section meet against the Knights of Knoch high school. Both the boys and girls made huge splashes in the water securing dominating victories to continue their undefeated seasons within their section. The girls won by a score of 83-31, and the boys won by a score of 90-16.

Girls Recap:

The 200 medley relay opening event had the Northgate/Avonworth ladies off to a fast start securing first place with a time of 1:56.62. With that time, the ladies added another swimmer to the list of WPIAL qualifiers as Catrina Raich earned a spot amongst the long list of ladies qualified for the relay event. While the ladies did not earn any additional qualifying times, there were continued improvements for the ladies throughout the lineup. In the 200 free event, Lorelie Gourley improved her time by almost five seconds for a season best time of 2:37.96. In the 200 yard IM, Anna Neiss earned a new season best time with a six second time drop for a best time of 2:19.56. Neiss also improved in the 100 yard backstroke event with a new season best time of 1:05.04. Grace Baldauff also had a great swim in the 200 yard IM event dropping four seconds for a new best time of 2:41.21. Anna Kohler posted two new season best times Thursday as she touched with a 1:03.86 in the 100 yard butterfly, and a 1:11.72 in the 100 yard backstroke. Freshman Elise Nardozzi and Kendall McKelvey posted season best times in the 500 yard free event. Nardozzi finished with a time of 5:24.51, and McKelvey finished with a time of 5:24.92. Both times are inching closer to Karen Siddoway’s team record time of 5:23.26. Senior Carly Spahr rounded out the evening with a season best time of 1:01.49 in the 100 yard backstroke.

Boys Recap:

Seniors Hugo Eadie and Graham Herzig along with Jack Blaser and Andrew Baldauff kicked off the evening for the boys as they posted a first place time in the medley relay event of 1:54.87. The boys also took second place in the relay event as Issac Stoeckle, Ryan Ehmann, Ryan Frank, and Zoli Eadie finished with a time of 2:05.60. The boys continued the night with two new WPIAL qualifying times as freshman Zach Schuster earned his cut time in the 200 yard free event with a time of 1:52.17. Cooper Groll earned the second cut time of the evening for the boys in the 500 yard free event with a finish time of 5:04.81. Both Schuster and Groll posted season best times in the 200 yard free event as well with Schuster dropping five seconds for a time of 1:52.17, and Groll dropping four seconds for a time of 1:47.93. Freshman Zoli Eadie earned a season best time in the 50 yard free event with a time of 25.01, while freshman Issac Stoeckle dropped two seconds in the 100 yard backstroke event for a season best time of 1:11.15.

The Northgate/Avonworth team will board the bus once again on Tuesday, 2/16, as they travel to Highlands for a section meet against the Golden Rams.

Tomorrow freshman Ryan Hartle and coach Jess McKelvey will travel to North Allegheny high school for day 1 of the WPIAL swimming and diving championships. Hartle will be the first diver in Northgate/Avonworth swim history to compete in the diving championships. Ryan qualified for the championships with his score of 187.05 at the Riverside meet that was held earlier this month. His points scored this Friday will be added to the swimmers’ points during their meet next Friday, helping the team elevate their overall score. You can catch Ryan tomorrow morning at 9:30AM on the TribLive High School Sports Network. Best of luck to Ryan!!!

To say the 2020/2021 season for the Northgate/Avonworth swimmers has been anything but normal is an understatement. This season had a little bit of all the Covid dramatics including a late season start, modified practice and meet protocols, numerous cancelled meets, and a fair share of other variables that tried to knock the flame-a-lopes off their game. Despite all of the setbacks, the NGHS swimmers did not let it put a damper on another great regular season. Both the boys and girls went undefeated in their section, clinching 2 more section championship titles. Now the team sets their eyes on the WPIAL championship meet this weekend. Typically the meet is held over two days at the University of Pittsburgh but this year, the championship will be swum in its entirety this Saturday, March 6th at Upper St. Clair high school. Both the boys and girls will face their toughest competition this weekend as there are a handful of teams that will push NGHS to give it their all as they aim to place high in the WPIAL championship. The girls will kick off the championship meet at 9:40AM, followed by the boys later in the day at 4:00PM.

The girls led by seniors Carly Spahr and Danica Raich will look to earn points in the relay events as well as the individual events with solid placings overall for each swimmer. The rest of the girls team are likely to make the podium in many, if not all of their events as well with Catrina Raich, Anna Kohler, Anna Neiss, Kendall McKelvey, Amelia Hardiman, and Elise Nardozzi all seeded high in their events. This will put pressure on teams like Mount Pleasant, Quaker Valley, and Elizabeth Forward, also likely looking to grab a WPIAL title. The boys have a promising chance to earn their second WPIAL championship in three years, as they are seeded very well in all of their events. Seniors Cooper Groll, Graham Herzig, and Clark Bernauer will lead the boys into some fierce competition against teams such as Hampton, Riverside, and Indiana, also looking to take the title home. Underclassmen Andrew Baldauff, Matthew Purcell, Jack Blaser, Sam Kohler, and Zach Schuster will join the senior boys as they make a final push this season to capture a championship with their individual and relay swims. Additionally, the boys will go into the swim meet with the points earned last week by freshman Ryan Hartle, who represented the team in diving last Friday, where he placed 12th overall in the AA diving portion of the WPIAL championships.

The results this Saturday will determine if any of our NGHS swimmers will continue onto the PIAA state championships which are scheduled for Friday, March 19th at Cumberland Valley high school. As with local changes due to Covid, the state championships also have seen adjustments that will make getting to the final meet of the year a bit tougher than years past. Pushing it to the limits will be even more important this year for the team. Only first place finishers are guaranteed a place at the state championships with less at large spots than previous years, but the Flame-a-lopes are more than up for the challenge. Both the girls and boys championship meets can be viewed on the TribLive High School Sports Network. Be sure to tune in and share in the excitement. Below are the bookmarks for each of the scheduled broadcasts. Best of luck to all of the NGHS swimmers!!!!

2021 WPIAL Girls Class AA Swimming Championships

2021 WPIAL Boys Class AA Swimming Championships

The Northgate/Avonworth boys and girls teams have worked hard this season despite numerous setbacks. Between the cancellations, covid breaks, and whatever else was thrown at the team, they performed strongly this past Saturday. NGHS boys and girls went in looking to earn two more trophies for the trophy case at the AA WPIAL championship meet. The ladies led the team off in the first session Saturday morning at Upper St. Clair high school where they were tested right from the beginning of the meet.

The relay team of Carly Spahr, Danica Raich, Anna Kohler, and Catrina Raich took a solid fourth place in the opening 200 medley relay event with a season best time of 1:54.81. In the 200 free event, Elise Nardozzi placed second with a best time of 1:55.12, and Kendall McKelvey placed seventh with a time of 2:01.82. The 50 free event saw Anna Neiss placing third overall with a season best time of 24.14 and Danica Raich placing 15th with a time of 26.20. Catrina Raich placed seventh overall in the 100 fly event with a best time of 1:01.91, while Anna Kohler placed ninth in the event with a time of 1:03.95. They closed off the first half of their meet with the 200 free relay event, where the lady flame-a-lopes took second place overall with Elise Nardozzi, Danica Raich, Kendall McKelvey, and Anna Neiss finishing with a season best time of 1:40.82.

After awards, jumping right back into the water were Elise Nardozzi and Anna Neiss who both placed well in the 100 free event. Nardozzi took second place with a season best time of 52.19, and Neiss finished seventh with a best time of 53.87. The teams then moved onto the longest event of the day, the 500 free. Northgate/Avonworth had two freshmen representing the team as Kendall McKelvey placed fifth overall with a time of 5:25.13, and Amelia Hardiman earned ninth place with a season best time of 5:33.87.

The action continued as senior Carly Spahr took sixth place in the 100 backstroke event with a season best time of 1:00.88. Following up the 100 backstroke was the 100 breaststroke where senior Danica Raich placed ninth with a best time of 1:11.19. The last event of the girls meet was the 400 free relay event. The NGHS ladies relay of Anna Neiss, Catrina Raich, Kendall McKelvey, and Elise Nardozzi continued to give it their all and earned a second place finish with a best time 3:39.67. With solid races throughout the entire morning session, the ladies of Northgate/Avonworth went on to earn their second AA WPIAL title in three years with a score of 254 points and a substantial lead over Quaker Valley the second place finisher with 199 points, and third place finisher Mt. Pleasant with 179.5 points.

The boys would ride into Upper St. Clair high school Saturday afternoon looking to do exactly what the girls had done that morning. As expected, Hampton, Riverside, and Belle Vernon were not going to make it easy for the guys to walk away AA WPIAL champions. The 200 free relay opening event would provide a glimpse into the battle the NGHS boys would be up against as Hampton and Riverside placed first and second. The NGHS relay of Matthew Purcell, Zach Schuster, Cooper Groll, and Clark Bernauer would earn a third place finish with a season best time of 1:37.96. Senior Cooper Groll placed second overall in the 200 free event with a best time of 1:43.72 and a new NGHS record in the event. Freshman Zach Schuster also swam in the 200 free event where he placed 10th overall with a best time of 1:49.19. In the 200 IM event, Hampton would again give NGHS a tough time as they earned the first and third place spots. Matthew Purcell finished 4th overall with a best time of 1:57.02 also breaking the NGHS record in that event.

Seniors Cooper Groll and Graham Herzing would help the men flame-a-lopes earn some much needed points in the 100 fly event. Groll placed third overall in the event with a best time of 51:38 grabbing another NGHS record, and Herzig earned 11th place overall with a best time of 56.03. The 200 free relay would be next up and Northgate would again earn needed points that gave them a bit of a cushion. The relay team of Graham Herzig, Sam Kohler, Andrew Baldauff, and Clark Bernauer took home sixth place with a time of 1:33.81. Senior Clark Bernauer would be right back in the water for the next event, the 100 free. Bernauer put up his best time of the season with a 50.56, earning him a seventh place finish.

Freshman Zach Schuster would be the only boy for NGHS swimming in the 500 free event. Schuster earned eighth place overall in the event with a time of 5:00.25. In the 100 backstroke event, the battle between NGHS and Hampton would continue as Matthew Purcell swam hard against two of Hampton’s boys. Purcell would take third place in the event out touching both Hampton boys with a season best time of 52.45 and taking the NGHS team record. Going into the last two events of the day, the NGHS boys would be neck and neck with Hampton. The 100 breaststroke event had Jack Blaser earning a 12th place finish with a time of 1:04.71. The battle raged on. The final event of Saturday was the 400 free relay, always an exciting event at the AA championship. The boys relay team of Zach Schuster, Clark Bernauer, Matthew Purcell, and Cooper Groll dropped an incredible 10 seconds for not only a second place win in the event, but also a new boys team record with a time of 3:15.83. The Hampton boys would finish right behind NGHS in third place which would give the Hampton boys the needed points to beat out the Northgate/Avonworth boys.

The NGHS boys ended the evening taking home the second place runner up trophy with a score of 201.5. While not exactly what the boys wanted, they truly gave it their all with some impressive times and walked away proud to have shown up and competed despite all the challenges the 2020-2021 season threw at them.

Next up on the swim agenda will be the state championships which are scheduled for March 19th at Cumberland Valley high school. Since only first place finishers were guaranteed spots in the state championships, the Northgate/Avonworth crew waited to see if their times earned spots in any of the events. The team made quite a few spots, even with the more challenging circumstances. Representing Northgate at the PIAA swimming championships will be the boys 200 medley relay and 400 free relay as well as the girls 200 free relay and 400 free relay. Cooper Groll will swim the 200 free and the 100 fly, Matthew Purcell the 200 IM and the 100 back, Anna Neiss the 50 free, and Elise Nardozzi the 200 and 100 freestyle events. Congrats to the NGHS ladies and gents on their stellar WPIAL championship and all the best as you make the journey to the PIAA championship!!!