East Aurora Advertiser

Swimming Bombers Past and Present Celebrate 50 Years of Wins



The first mention of the streak arrived innocently enough, with this notice in a December 1969 issue of The Advertiser: “Last Saturday, in the opening meet of the season, the East Aurora High School boys’ swimming team, coached by Thomas Fahrenholz, defeated Iroquois 60-34.”

The article goes on to mention names like Art Aungst, Eric Kuhn, Dale Bove, Tucker Crowell, Rennie Selkirk, Warren Jacobus, Tom and John Lawson, Jim and Chris Oubre, who all had a hand in the victory. The writer of that article could not have known that the win over the Girdle Road neighbors began the first in what would become 50 straight years of ECIC victories. Fifty years—not 50 meets, which would be remarkable, too—without a loss in a dual meet against ECIC divisional opponents.  A thousand—give or take a few—high school swimmers involved. It’s a school record not just for swimming, but for any interscholastic sport. It’s a fair bet that 50 years is an ECIC record, too, if not a state or national milestone, as well, although we may never know since the research would present such a daunting challenge.

Past and current swimmers and coaches gathered to celebrate the 50th year of undefeated league meets for the East Aurora bombers swim team.
Photo by Amy Baase

You can understand the hoopla surrounding the Springville-East Aurora dual meet last Tuesday as the 50th year came to a close. The stands at the high school’s pool were full of parents, students, several members of the 1969-70 team and later years, coach Fahrenholz, officials from the state high school athletic association in Albany, television reporters and two reporters from the Advertiser. The Bombers, a team name given to the swimmers by original swim team coach and Ithaca College alumnus Jack Fisher, entered the pool area proudly carrying two torpedoes that serve as mascots—the original torpedo that was stolen in 1971 and mysteriously returned a few years ago (visit www.rickohler.com/columns ”The Bomb” for the whole story), and its replacement. The boys, in their traditional bleached blond hair, bellowed out the chants that go back even more than 50 years. Each swimmer in his turn tapped the torpedoes for good luck and saluted fourth-year coach Chris Musshafen.

Charlie Wangelin powers along in the 200 IM. He was first with a time of 2:17.16 during last week’s meet over Springville.
Photo by Amy Baase

In what has become a regular occurrence, fourth-year coach Musshafen’s aquamen dispatched their opponents in convincing fashion. Parker Brod, co-captain Charlie Morris, Chad Egloff and Tom Zagrobelny started with a win in the 200 medley relay. Ezra Webster took the 200 freestyle and Charles Wangelin followed by winning the 200 individual medley. Morris earned his second first in the 50 freestyle and Michael Vanner bested his Griffin opponent by 28 points in diving. Britton Hatch and Webster won the 100 butterfly and 100 freestyle, respectively, and co-captain Calvin Roberts swam 20 lengths of the pool in 5:24:57 for the 500 freestyle win. Hatch, Zagrobelny, Roberts and Webster returned to the podium in the 200 freestyle relay, and Chad Egloff won the 100 backstroke.  Morris took home his third gold medal in the 100 breaststroke, setting the stage for the Bomber sweep of the meet with a 400 freestyle relay win by Webster, Hatch, Roberts, Morris.

The results were so lopsided in the Bombers’ favor that, out of respect for the visiting athletes, officials stopped posting the score. Suffice it to say that the result was, as the old coach used to say, “a lot to not very many.” What’s even more encouraging than the results is the Bombers’ roster, which shows only two seniors and 18 underclassmen. Extending the streak to fifty-one years seems a very real possibility.

To make sure there is no confusion, understand that the Bombers are undefeated only in ECIC competition, not in all competition. Their record overall is 583 wins, 76 losses and one tie with Fahrenholz’s teams amassing a 439-69-1 record from 1970 -2004. Not bad. Many of the losses came in multi-team meets involving much larger schools in upper ECIC divisions and against schools from out of the area that were known to offer substantial challenges.

Nicola Gnecco prepares to launch in the air during the diving competition at last week’s swim meet against Springville.
Photo by Amy Baase

And this streak isn’t the first impressive string of victories. Sports Illustrated noted in its “Faces in the Crowd” feature on February 15, 1965, that “Jack Fisher, who launched the swimming team at East Aurora (N.Y.) High School eight years ago, coached it to seven division championships, celebrated his 100th win and 73rd straight dual-meet victory.” There but for a very few losses went a streak that might have stretched 60 years.

Trying to understand the reason for such a winning streak is as difficult as comprehending Cal Ripken’s 2,632 consecutive Big League baseball games played or Ken Jennings’s 74-game winning streak on Jeopardy! You’d think that somewhere along the line, Fate or a flat tire or the flu would intervene to cause a single loss. And if getting one’s head around something that’s 50 years long is hard for those of us who were alive when it started, imagine what it’s like for present-day Bombers, who weren’t born until the streak was 30-some years old.

But if you have to give credit, start with Jack Fisher and the Aquatic Club, later to be known as East Aurora Swim Team, or E.A.S.T., run by the Town of Aurora. Young swimmers begin the E.A.S.T. program as early as age six. Fahrenholz, his long-time assistant Walt Lyons, Musshafen, High School athletic director Matt Librock, former Bombers and parents all credit the early years program for developing so many high-quality competitors.

“If you start swimming with qualified, caring coaches when you’re six,” said a former E.A.S.T. instructor, “by the time you’re 16, you’re ready for anything the competitors can bring.”

Added legendary Orchard Park swim coach, present-day EA girls coach and team captain of the ’69-’70 Bombers Aungst, “Swimmers are a tough breed. I wasn’t tough enough to swim all year, so I took a season off and played football.”

The high school swim program has been blessed with a string of outstanding coaches: Fahrenholz, Lyons, Matt Greene, Andy Gonzalez, Rob Gipe (who still keeps score for the Bombers), and now Musshafen, who runs the Town Recreation Department and E.A.S.T. in addition to coaching boys and girls swimming. Assisting Musshafen this year are longtime E.A.S.T. coach and Columbia University Hall of Famer Anna Davidson and Alex Christie.

Librock put it all in perspective as he celebrated the team’s accomplishment.

“The success of the program is due to several factors including a great feeder program through E.A.S.T., dedicated student-athletes, committed families, knowledgeable coaches, and proud alum. All of this put together results in a successful program,” he said. “Often times a program may have some great athletes that come through and allow for a few years of success. To be this dominant for 50 years shows that there is a rich culture within the swimming program that breeds success.” 

There is no rest for the weary, however, as the Bombers prepare to compete in ECIC-wide meets and sectional competition leading to state championships on Long Island.

Jayson Kitson swam the 200 IM time in 2:33.47 for East Aurora last week.
Photo by Amy Baase

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