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A Winning Season
Mary Virginia Swain '77C

Winter is known for being cold, but Saint Mary's winter athletics teams have been nothing but hot in a 2018-2019 season of success in the pool and in the gym. The winter teams elevated their games to achieve numerous milestones and to represent the school with excellence in competition and grace in sportsmanship.


Saint Mary's varsity swim team brought home the runner-up trophy from the 2019 North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association (NCISAA) swimming state championships held Feb. 11 at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. Thirteen members of the team competed in the state meet, with nine making the finals. The Saints placed second to Cary Academy, among 17 teams in NCISAA Division One. Abby Arens '20 and Caroline Crouse '20 won individual state championships – Caroline in the 200 freestyle and Abby in the 200 IM (state record) and the 100 breaststroke (state record). Many school records were set, and it was a great day in the pool for Saint Mary's swimming. See complete results and times here.

The Aqua Saints finished the season with a 14-1 regular season record and runner-up honors at both the Triangle Independent Schools Athletics Conference (TISAC) and NCISAA state championship meets. Junior Abby Arens '20 was named the Most Outstanding Swimmer at the TISAC conference meet.

The varsity basketball team finished the regular season with a winning 12-10 record, placing the Saints seventh in the NCISAA 4A MaxPreps standings. The Saints finished third among six teams in the TISAC conference. Highlights of the season included conference wins over Durham Academy, Cary Academy, Wake Christian Academy, and non-conference wins over St. David's School, as well as Charlotte Country Day School and Charlotte Christian on a December weekend swing through the Queen City.

Saint Mary's hosted first round action in the NCISAA 4A state playoffs, Feb. 12, and improved to 13-10 on the season with a decisive 59-36 tournament victory over Wake Christian Academy, playing to a packed house in Bacon Gym. With the big win, the Saints advanced to the second round traveling to Greensboro Day School, Feb. 14, where they finished the season with a 13-11 record.

The junior varsity basketball team had its share of victories as well, including conference victories over Cary Academy and Wake Christian Academy, and the future looks bright for Saints basketball with a competitive crop of JV players in the ranks of the program for the next few years.

"This winter saw some great performances by our swimming and basketball programs," says Athletic Director and Head Varsity Basketball Coach Rob Weltz. "A key component to this success is our girls believing in themselves and holding each other accountable. The coaches have set goals and expectations that raises the bar to compete daily in practice to be properly prepared for the competition throughout the state. The increased competitive regular season schedule has also allowed our programs to gain a better understanding of what it takes to compete at the highest level. The girls have taken pride in our athletic program and have represented Saint Mary's well as we continue to develop the competition excellence. As a mentor of mine would often tell me, 'a rising tide raises all ships.' This tide is our belief as an athletic program that we can achieve greatness through dedication, perseverance and commitment to our goals."

Another highlight of the season was the launch of a new athletics logo, which has been well received. The logo, featuring the school letters SM, was created with the input of student-athletes, coaches, the athletics director, the school administration, the marketing and communications office, and Clean branding and advertising agency. The stylized logo is classic yet contemporary, clean and crisp, elegant and bold. The goal is for this logo to become the iconic athletics logo for many years to come.

Congratulations, to the players, coaches, athletic director, and trainer, who put in the long hours of practice and hard work to make the winter athletics season successful and thrilling for the fans! Go, Saints!

Visit the athletics website for complete information, rosters, and scores.