Seton Hall Prep swimming team splashes to its 25th straight Essex County championship

WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Seton Hall Prep swimming team captured its 25th consecutive Essex County Swimming Championships with 345 points at New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark. 

The Pirates won five events, including a meet-record performance by junior Richard Poplawski in the 200-yard individual medley in 1 minute, 52.15 seconds. Senior Kyler Alcebar finished in second place in 2:01.01. 

Poplawski said, “Getting that record felt good and I am definitely happy.”

In the 200-yard medley relay, Poplawski, along with sophomore Karl Burghardt, Alcebar and junior Aryan Kapoor, won in 1:37.19. In the 200-yard freestyle relay, the Pirates won in 1:29.95 behind Kapoor, Burghardt, senior Vincent Wong and junior Cormac Rouse. In the 400-yard freestyle relay, the Pirates won in 3:16.56 behind Poplawski, Rouse, sophomore Connor O’Neill and junior Patrick Miller. In the 100-yard freestyle, Rouse finished in first place in 47.65 while Kapoor finished in third place in 48.40. 

Seton Hall head coach Joe Alexander said after the meet, “I am very happy with today. We haven’t had too many opportunities to put everything together. This sets the table for the second half of the season.”

Other SHP top-five finishes were:

• 200-yard freestyle: third place, sophomore Kyle Phillips, 1:50.78.
• 50-yard freestyle: second place, Rouse, 21.70.
• 100-yard butterfly: fourth place, Wong, 54.82.
• 500-yard freestyle: second place, Poplawski, 4:34.77, and fourth place, Phillips, 4:58.34.
• 100-yard backstroke: third place, Burghardt, 54.71, and fourth place, Miller, 55:36.
• 100-yard breaststroke: third place tie, Kapoor and Alcebar, 59.70.

  Seton Hall Prep swimming