The Pine Bush girls’ swimming team finished the season right where they left off in 2019, going undefeated through the 2021 Fall 2 season, and then winning Saturday’s virtual Section 9 championship meet by nearly 200 points on Saturday.
Pine Bush, which won five of the 12 events, finished with a total of 426.5 points, far outpacing second-place Washingtonville’s 254.5 points. Valley Central was fifth with 204 points and Wallkill was 13th with 57.
Pine Bush also placed multiple swimmers in the top 10 in five of the nine individual events, and they won two of the three relays, as they finished second in the 400-yard freestyle relay.
“I know we had a great seven weeks,” Pine Bush coach John Barth said. “That’s our third win in a row and they just keep getting better. I don’t know if we can keep getting any better, but they sure were very good today.”

This year’s meet added a new wrinkle for Pine Bush, as they weren’t sequestered in their own pool like they were for most of the season. They swam at Valley Central, along with the Vikings. It was the first time either team had competed with another team in the pool area since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
“Swimming in that pool, which is a much nicer pool than we have in Pine Bush because it’s newer, it has eight lanes and the blocks are better, it’s nice,” Barth said. “I think it was also a little bit strange for some of the kids because they hadn’t had to compete with anybody but their own teammates.”
The top four finishers in the 100-yard freestyle came from that very pool as Antonia Licardi and Elishka Hajek took first and second with respective times of 55.33 and Valley Central’s Rian Dickman was third with Pine Bush’s Samantha McKee finishing fourth.
The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Hajek, McKee Licardi and Mackenzie Gula broke its own meet record, lowering the mark to 1:38.18. Hajek, Gula and Licardi teamed with Cora Mance on Nov. 17, 2019, to set the previous mark of 1:38.38.
That was also a new pool record at Valley Central.
Mackenzie Gula probably had the best day of all the Pine Bush swimmers winning two events (200-yard individual medley, 100-yard breaststroke) and was on both winning relays (200-yard medley, 200-yard freestyle).
They also got a win from Antonia Licardi (100-yard freestyle).
“I was just hoping to have a good season,” Barth said. “I’ve been thinking that they may be able to match their times that they’ve been swimming when you’re in a 14-week season instead of a seven-week season. But the girls really stepped up. They’re a hard-working, nice group of kids.”
Valley Central finished the meet winning the 400-yard medley relay behind Dickman, Grace Wienckowski, Grace Satriano and Cali White. Dickman won the 200-yard freestyle.
Wallkill’s top finisher was Andi Psilopoulos, who finished second in the 200-yard individual medley.

Section 9 Championships
Local Results
Teams: 1. Pine Bush – 426.5; 2. Washingtonville – 254.5; 5. Valley Central – 204; 13. Wallkill – 57.
200-yard medley relay: 1. Pine Bush (Hajek, Gula, Licardi, McKee) – 1:49.01; 10. Valley Central (Thompson, Vohl, Wieczorek, Bonitz) – 2:04.98; 12. Wallkill (Psilopoulos, T. Bonner, K. Bonner, Salemo) – 2:05.98
200-yard freestyle: 1. Rian Dickman (VC) – 1:55.66; 2. Samantha McKee (PB) – 1:58.24; 6. Madaghan O’Shea (PB) – 2:01.17; 7. Grace Wienckowski (VC) – 2:01.81; 8. Sarah Ippolito (PB) – 2:02.64; 9. Katie Webster (PB) – 2:03.64; 13. Cali White (VC) – 2:05.41.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Mackenzie Gula (PB) – 2:14.98; 2. Andi Psilopoulos (W) – 2:15.50; 6. Sadie DeGeorge (PB) – 2:20.28; 11. Trinity Vohl (VC) -2:25.19.
50-yard freestyle: 2. Elishka Hajek (PB) – 24.38; 3. Antonia Licardi (PB) – 24.48; 5. Cora Mance (PB) – 25.14; 7. Sophia Licardi (PB) – 25.46; 10. Grace Satriano (VC) -25.68.
Diving: 10: Abigail Malara (VC) – 180.05; 16. Anita Licata (PB) – 165.75
100-yard butterfly: 12. Ashley Martin (PB) – 1:05.69.
100-yard freestyle: 1. Antonia Licardi (PB) – 53.39; 2. Elisha Hajek (PB) – 53.80; 3. Rian Dickman (VC) – 53.87; 4. Samantha McKee (PB) – 53.97; 6. Katie Webster (PB) – 56.03; 7. Cora Mance (PB) – 56.26; 9. Grace Satriano (VC) – 57.04; 15. Abigail Pearson (PB) – 1:00.20.
500-yard freestyle: 2. Grace Wienckowski (VC) – 5:23.96; 5. Madaghan O’Shea (VC) – 5:28.63; 7. Sara Ippolito (PB) – 5:29.84; 10. Andie Psilopoulos (W) – 5:37.40; 15. Kaidyn Thompson (VC) – 5:55.33.
200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pine Bush (Hajek, McKee, Licardi, Gula) – 1:38.18; 2. Valley Central (Dickman, Satriano, White, Wienckowski) – 1:42.43; 13. Wallkill (Salemo, MacEntee, Lang, T. Bonner) – 1:59.41.
100-yard backstroke: 3. Sophia Licardi (PB) – 1:01.59; 13. Amanda Eagan (PB) – 1:06.94; 15. Nina Camacho (PB) – 1:07.41.
100-yard breaststroke: 1. Mackenzie Gula (PB) – 1:07.40; 6. Sadie DeGeorge (PB) – 1:13.50; 12. Trinity Vohl (VC) 1:15.91; 13. Brooke Hornbeck (PB) – 1:16.69; 14. Taylor Bonner (W) – 1:16.93; 15. Lilyan Bonitz (VC) – 1:17.14; 16. Ashley Martin (PB) – 1:17.21.
400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Valley Central (Dickman, Wienckowski, Satriano, White) – 3:43.71; 2. Pine Bush (Mance, Webster, O’Shea, Licardi) – 3:43.92; 11. Wallkill (K. Bonner, Lang, MacEntee, Psilopoulos) – 4:14.22.