Newtown High School’s boys’ swimming and diving team begins the campaign with several strong returnees in the lineup, but lots of positions open for rising competitors and newcomers.

The Nighthawks lost seven key postseason point-getters, including Richard Huffman — who set three school records — to graduation.

“We’re a younger team this year,” said Coach Zach Gauvin, adding that he’s interested to see what his freshmen newcomers bring to the table.

Newtown placed third in the South-West Conference and was sixth in the Class LL state championships a year ago. Gauvin expects the usual suspects, Pomperaug of Southbury, Brookfield, and Weston — always among the best not only in the SWC but also in the state — to present the toughest conference competition again this winter. All three of those teams won state championships in each of the past two seasons, and Pomperaug and Brookfield also won Class L and M titles, respectively, in 2012, when Weston was runner-up in Class S.

Despite the loss of some key swimmers and divers, Gauvin is hopeful his team can be in the mix among the best in the conference. “We try to be top three every year,” Gauvin said of his team’s SWC goal.

Captains are Mike Poulter (backstroke), Andy Braun (distance freestyle), Matt Argraves (butterfly), and Matt Marini (breaststroke). Other key team members include Tommy Horan, a versatile swimmer who is particularly strong in the backstroke event, and Seth Barrett, a solid breaststroke competitor.

Gauvin expects the breaststroke race, individual medley event, and distance freestyle races to be his team’s areas of strength to begin the campaign. He adds that the team will continue to swim a lot of laps, but that emphasis will be put on sprinting to help build both endurance and speed.

Newtown was scheduled to host Pomperaug on December 17. After a December 22 visit to Masuk of Monroe (at 4 pm) and a brief holiday week break from competition, the Nighthawks are slated to host three straight meets to begin the 2015 calendar year, beginning with a 6 pm visit from Bunnell/Stratford on January 6.