Long Beach girls swimming's Vivienne Zangaro repeats as state champion in 200, 500 freestyle events
Vivienne Zangaro, middle, claims the girls 200-yard freestyle victory at the state swimming championships at the Webster Aquatic Center on Saturday. Credit: Nick Soccocio
WEBSTER — Long Beach junior Vivienne Zangaro didn’t just successfully defend her state titles in the girls swimming state championships at the Webster Aquatic Center on Saturday — she elevated them.
The University of Georgia commit won the 200-yard freestyle in 1:48.18, dropping more than a second from last year’s time of one minute and 49.54 seconds, where she placed first in the state, but second in the Federation. Her time this year won for both public schools and the Federation.
“It feels even better because technically I finished second last year because of the Catholic schools,” Zangaro said. “So to officially get first out of everyone feels amazing.”
In Friday’s preliminaries, Zangaro broke the Nassau County record in the 500 freestyle in 4:46.76, surpassing Jessica Foschi, of Friends Academy, who swam 4:46.97 in 1995, according to Long Beach coach Lynn Volosevich.
Zangaro shattered it again in Saturday’s final, winning in 4:44.60.
“I’ve struggled with trying to drop time in this event,” Zangaro said. “So to drop six seconds already this season, I feel very happy and proud.”
“It never ceases to amaze me just how fast she is, and she has such a great head about it,” Volosevich said. “She was .01 away from matching the NYPHSAA record, but she wasn’t even trying to.”
Her dominant weekend earned her recognition as the meet’s Most Outstanding Swimmer.
Long Beach’s medal haul continued with sophomore Una Diaz winning the 200 individual medley in 2:01.98. Syosset senior Madison Lin finished second in 2:04.65.
“I’m really, really happy,” Diaz said. “I didn’t expect this outcome at all, but all of my hard work has definitely paid off.”
Diaz later added a runner-up finish in the 100 backstroke (54.94).
“It couldn’t have happened to a nicer kid,” Volosevich said. “Humble, hardworking, never loses sight of her goals, and just has fun with it.”
Long Beach capped its day with a second-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay (3:30.12) with the team of Zangaro, Diaz, Finella Moriarty and Jessica Bassett.
Hauppauge/Smithtown wasted no time making a statement, as its 200 medley relay of sophomore twins Julia and Sarah Lucca, Ellianna Esposito and Olivia Chiofolo powered the program's fourth straight state title in the opening event. The team won in 1:43.43, cutting nearly two seconds off last year’s mark.
“We practice relays all year long, but the experience is huge,” coach Sean Montalvo said. “Most teams took a break yesterday, but we had a practice. In a meet like this, it really pays off.”
Sarah Lucca also earned her second consecutive state title in the 100 butterfly (54.72). Port Washington-Roslyn’s Carina Dai finished third (55.06), and Herricks’ Natalie Wu took fourth (56.17).
“I was really nervous going into it because it feel like everybody is so much faster this year,” Sarah Lucca said. “I wanted to just have fun with it, and it led to a really good race.”
Julia Lucca followed with a championship in the 100 backstroke, posting an All-American automatic time of 54.06.
“It was a really great time, and honestly not what I was expecting,” Julia Lucca said. “So to be able to finish first and see all my friends around me on the other side of the pool, it just made it extra special.”
The Lucca twins, Avery Wilcox and Olivia Chiofolo shattered the Webster pool record in the 200 freestyle relay, finishing in 1:34.72 to surpass the 2014 record of 1:35.38. They also broke the county record that they had set last season (1:35.79).
“I’m just so proud of this team,” Julia Lucca said. “All of the hard work we do, it’s amazing to get recognized. We are always excited to come up here and compete.”
