In a meet that came down to the final race, Newtown High School's girls' swimming and diving team pulled out a 95-91 win over visiting New Fairfield, on September 21.

Trailing 87-85 going into the 400 yard freestyle relay race, the Nighthawks needed a strong showing and got it with first- and third-place finishes to seal the team win.

The 400 relay contingent of Maddie Carter, Lianna Perazzo, Julia DiMartino, and Mary Hufziger won the event with a time of 3:59.83, beating out New Fairfield's squad by nearly five seconds. The team of Cecelia Schoeni, Alex Ferris, Melissa Nowak, and Elsie Johnson was third in 4:29.37.

"They knew what they had to do and they got into the pool and they did it," Newtown Coach Becky Osborne said of her 400 relay swimmers.

Osborne added that the girls kept it close throughout the first three legs of the race to set up Hufziger with a good opportunity to pull away, which she did. DiMartino gave Newtown the lead in the third leg of the relay and Hufziger finished things off.

"They played that very well. Every single girl in that last relay did an amazing job," Osborne said.

With the win, the Nighthawks improved to 2-1. This was third second straight victory, and their most nail-biting competition of the young season.

"It was a very exciting meet. I was happy we could give that to our crowd, but it makes me a little nervous when it's that close," Osborne said.

The Nighthawks kicked off the meet with a first-place finish in the 200 medley relay race as Hufziger, Carter, DiMartino, and Perazzo finished in 2:02.41. The team of Emma Riebe, Laurie Qiao, Ferris, and Rose Wheway was third in 2:17.74.

Hufziger won the 200 freestyle event in a time of 2:04.33. Newtown had a two-three finish in the 200 individual medley as Carter made her final touch in 2:27.49, and Olivia Renkert finished in 2:33.57. Ferris was second in the 50 free, sprinting to the finish in a time of 29.74.

Newtown divers outscored New Fairfield 11-5 behind strong performances by Hannah Weatherby, Sarah MacMullan, and Kiera Sughrue. The Nighthawks carried a 43-35 lead out of the diving break.

DiMartino was second in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:11.08. Riebe was second in the 100 free, clocking in with a time of 1:02.16. Carter was second in the 500 free in 5:53.51.

Another first-place finish by New Fairfield, in the 500 free, left the score even at 63 apiece. Carter's second-place result in the 500, in which she timed in at 5:53.51, kept the Rebels from jumping in front for the time being.

New Fairfield seized a 71-69 lead after the 200 free relay event with another first-place result. Newtown had a two-three finish in the 200 free relay to keep the score close. The relay team of Riebe, Anastzia Luci-Bernard, Berry, and Olivia Renkert was runner-up in 1:59.13. The team of Keeley Baumann, Abigail Gregory, Laura Carson, and Johnson placed third in 2:04.22. The third-place grouping narrowly edged New Fairfield's relay, which finished fractions of a second behind, in 2:04.35.

Hufziger won the 100 backstroke race, making her final touch in 1:02.50, and Johnson was third in the backstroke event with a time of 1:15.25, helping to put Newtown back in front, 79-77 with two events to go.

New Fairfield finished one-two in the 100 breaststroke race, and Riebe's third-place outcome in 1:22.50, left the Hawks within two points heading into the 400 relay.

Osborne said the team is beginning to figure out where the pieces go, as girls discover they have strengths in areas beyond their usual events, creating versatility depending on needs for meets.

"I'm very pleased. They're working really hard - their times are dropping, which is great," Osborne said. "Everyone did extremely well today so I'm happy."