HAC-INSIDE THE DEN SECTIONAL SUCCESS

BY OLIVIA FRIES

A few top athletes rose to top during the winter sports season’s Sectional competitions, and The Howler is very excited to share their success with the AC community. For Indoor Track & Field, Aiden Bouge ‘23 was named Class A5 Section V Champion for the 55-meter hurdle event. With a time of just 9.19 seconds, Bouge earned himself a place in the state qualifier meet. Bouge reflects on his victory: “The season really prepared me for outdoor track. I am really excited about running.” As his final season approaches, the AC community is proud to have a runner such as Aidan representing our school. The next Indoor Track & Field star is Tommy Duver ‘23 who placed third for both shotput and weight throw in the Sectional meet. Duver set two personal records for these events, throwing an impressive distance of 39’ 8.5” for the shotput and 42’ 10.5” for the weight throw. Reports from the meet indicate that Duver would have placed second in these events had it not been for a “seven-foot behemoth with his own student section” who crushed the competition.

On the girls team, Katie Chapados ‘26 placed 3rd in her 1000-meter run with a speedy time of 3:32.8, and 2nd in her high jump (4’ 8”). Her twin, Jessica Chapados ‘26 also rose to the top of the competition, earning 4th place in her 600-meter run event. Together, the dynamic duo were able to shave off around 20 seconds from their 4x800-meter relay event, securing 2nd place for the team. As they are only freshmen, the Allendale Columbia community is excited to have these sister track stars in the HAC athletic program for many more years.

HAC Swimming & Diving also saw great achievements in their 2022-23 season. The girls team scored 8th place out of 12 teams overall in the GRNO Intersectional Championships. Together, the AC student athletes Chloe Terio ‘27, Ella Herberger ‘25, Mollie Klinkbeil ‘25, and Leia Shearer ‘23, scored 5th place in the 200-yard medley relay, and 6th place in the 200-yard freestyle relay out of the 12 participating teams. On an individual level, Tario scored 2nd place out of 16 girls for her 200 and 500-yard freestyle, Herberger scored 8th place out of 18 for her 100-yard breaststroke, Klinkbeil scored 9th place out of 18 for her 100-yard backstroke, and Shearer scored an extremely impressive 8th place out of 36 girls for her 50-yard freestyle.

Overall, the boys team placed 3rd in the Section V Class C Championships, an incredible feat. However, Boys Diving, in particular, stood out this year as Kiran Natarajan ‘24 and his younger brother Kavin Natarajan ‘27 placed first and third respectively in the competition. On Thursday March 2nd, AC even had the honor to send Kiran Natarajan off to compete in the New York State Championship tournament where he ended up being a finalist, earning 13th place. •