With Limited Numbers, Nauset Swim Emphasizing Personal Success

SANDWICH – No phrase better captures the essence of the Nauset swim team than quality over quantity.

The oft-repeated notion is, in this case, precisely emblematic of how the boys and girls teams are approaching their seasons. With limited roster numbers hindering their ability to earn the most points at meets, the Warriors are prioritizing personal successes over wins and losses.

By that measure, they’re excelling. 

Take, for example, the story of junior Dee Stewart, who had never swam before her first day of practice with the team for the 2025-26 season. Stewart went from learning how to swim to just last week competing in her first race. And a few days later at a meet against Martha’s Vineyard last Friday, she swam in two relays plus the 50-yard freestyle.

“Her swimming that race is a success on its own,” head coach Justin Bohannon said.

Eight Nauset swimmers competed in the meet Friday compared to the dozens that suited up for Martha’s Vineyard, a disparity that makes it impossible for the Warriors to participate in every single one of the more than 20 events and therefore win (Martha’s Vineyard won the girls meet 111-30 and the boys meet 89-54). 

Even so, the individual victories were abundant. Stewart dove into the pool to start a race for the first time. Senior Laura Kaser won the girls 500-yard freestyle with a sectional-qualifying time, and sophomore Clancy Desmond won the 100-yard breaststroke.

The Nauset boys (senior Loring Eldred, senior Jack Hopkins, sophomore Thomas Olean and eighth grader William Olean) won the 200-yard medley relay. The elder Olean won the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard backstroke, while the younger Olean won the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly. Eldred won the 100-yard freestyle.

In several events, Martha’s Vineyard fielded multiple swimmers or teams to Nauset’s one. Four events saw zero Nauset swimmers. That allowed the Vineyarders to pick up points for finishes and races that the Warriors had no way of getting themselves. That’s been the state of their competitions all year, though the boys did overcome once with a 67-57 win against Barnstable on Jan. 6. 

The Warriors knew numbers would be an issue this year and leaned into it. Their goal has just been to have personal bests. Bohannon encapsulated the idea in a message to the team at the beginning of the season.

“We're probably not going to win a lot of meets, but I want to leave meets with the other team saying, ‘If they just had more people, they'd be dangerous,’” he said.

The sentiment was clearly retained by the swimmers. Thomas Olean remembered Bohannon telling them the directive at the start of the year.

“We don't have a lot of people, but if we come out of meets having the other team say, ‘If they have more people, they'd be scary,’ that's a good thing to have, so that's kind of our goal this year,” he said.

Also, in winning the 100-yard backstroke Friday, Olean qualified for states in his sixth event this season (he had already qualified for the 100-yard butterfly, the 200-yard individual medley and the 50-, 100- and 200-yard freestyle). Kaser has qualified in two events for states and is vying for a third. 

Chalk it up as more personal successes for the Warriors.