When the Cranston East boys’ swimming team came out of nowhere to win the Division II meet last season, it was an unexpected step forward for a young group.

Now a year later, the ’Bolts aren’t as young and they certainly won’t be coming out nowhere. With just about everybody back in the fold, they’re among the favorites in the division and have a few swimmers who could make some noise at states.

“Expectations are pretty high,” head coach Bob Bouchard said. “Our expectation is to do as well at least as we did last year and to improve on the times that we had. We lost a few kids, but the bulk of the team is back.”

The ’Bolts got off to the start they were hoping for last Thursday when they cruised to a 62-31 victory East Providence in their season-opener.

East got contributions up and down the lineup and won all but two events.

“We won last year because we peaked at the right time,” Bouchard said. “We had a lot of kids that got involved and scored in the big meet. We were able to put it all together for that division meet. These kids are working hard again.”

Though the ’Bolts’ depth will be a big source of points during the regular season, its top swimmers are what makes the team a legitimate threat come postseason time.

That group is headlined by senior John Lovelace. Lovelace finished in seventh place in the 100 backstroke at last year’s state meet, and also picked up a ninth in the 100 butterfly.

On Thursday, Lovelace won the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke, and he was a part of two winning relay teams.

“John Lovelace is obviously our big wig,” Bouchard said.

But he’s not alone.

The ’Bolts also have two other front line swimmers in juniors Jake Gorelikov and Hector Maya. Gorelikov is the team’s top distance man, while Maya is its best sprinter.

“All three of them have tons of potential,” Bouchard said. “They’ve just got to work.”

If the cards fall right, they could be among the state’s best.

“Our goal is always to get them into the top eight, into the finals,” Bouchard said. “I think all three of them have a shot to do that. That’s what our goal is for them.”

Aside from those three, East also has some others that are making an impact.

While junior Sam Cavas and sophomore John D’Alfonso are both out with injuries at the moment, the ’Bolts are turning to some newcomers. Freshman Justice Brown-Duso has entered the mix, as has freshman Austin Harris.

“I’m happy with the new kids that are coming in and filling the gaps,” Bouchard said.

Other mainstays like junior Max Cavas and sophomore Mike Vannini are working hard as well.

And East is going to need contributions from all of them to keep their status as the top team in Division II.

“We feel good, but there are some good teams out there,” Bouchard said. “Lincoln is going to be good. Westerly is always good. East Providence, they’re a little down this year. South Kingstown’s always strong. Portsmouth’s going to be good.”

East girls on the rise

At last year’s meet against East Providence, the Cranston East girls’ swimming team didn’t come close to pulling out a victory.

It was quite a different story this time around.
Last Thursday, the ’Bolts easily took care of the Townies 57-37 to open the season 1-0 and perhaps give a glimpse of things to come.

“Our girls lost to these girls last year, by a bunch,” Bouchard said. “So I think they stepped up a little bit this year, and had some good swims. We really finished strong in some of the events.”

East returns just about every contributor off last year’s team that qualified for states and placed in two relays as well as one individual event. That team went just 4-4 in Division II, but this year’s team is anticipating a little bit more.

“We want to do better than last year,” Bouchard said. “The boys won it, so it’s always a little thing. And we want to qualify more kids for the state meet.”

Thursday was a good start. East won all but two events, and it got the type of performances it was expecting.

Five different girls won events, and that doesn’t include the two relays the ’Bolts also won.

“We just had a little bit more depth than them coming down the stretch,” Bouchard said. “It was a good meet overall.”

At the top of the lineup are senior sisters Kristen and Erica Bachand. Both competed at states last year, and Kristen won the 100 fly on Thursday, while Erica won the 100 free. They were also both on the winning relay teams.

“Kristen is our go-to,” Bouchard said. “She’s one of our captains. And her sister Erica, is right up there.”
Junior Annie Clarkin is also a big piece of the team, as she captured the 200 freestyle at the dual meet and came in second in the 500 free.

“She doesn’t usually do those two events together, so that was good for her,” Bouchard said of Clarkin.

Sophomore Julia Lawson has taken a step forward, and she picked up a win in the 100 breaststroke.

“Julia Lawson had a really nice breaststroke,” Bouchard said. “I think she’ll be strong.”

Also standing out was sophomore Kaileen Field. Field was injured for most of last year, but bounced back to start this year with wins in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke.

Sophomore Danielle Perrotta is also making some noise, as she was on the winning 200 free relay team.

With that core, the East girls hope they can join the boys at the top of Division II.

“I’ve definitely seen the improvement,” Bouchard said. “Some of them have kept themselves in shape and come in here pretty good. We’ll see what happens. They’ve got to work. They’ve got to keep on working at it.”