MONROE — Led by a pair of first-place efforts by Zoe Petertonjes and featuring several other strong efforts, Newtown High School's girls' swimming and diving team placed fourth in the South-West Conference Championships at Masuk High on November 1.

Petertonjes took first in the 200 yard freestyle race in a time of 1:56.01, better than two seconds faster than the next finisher and at least six seconds faster than everyone else. Petertonjes also won the 100 yard butterfly race in 59.24, the only competitor to clock in under a minute.

"It was a lot of hard work (Head Coach Lisa Irving and Assistant Coach Ryan Eberts) really push us a lot," she said. "It feels good to know my hard work in practice paid off."

"She swam her race. We told her to treat it like training and she did. It was a very mature swim," Eberts said of Petertonjes' 200 freestyle race victory in the second event of the meet.

Then winning the 100 butterfly, just three events later, was the icing on top and in impressive feat given there was not much time for rest in between, not to mention she was part of Newtown's relay in the first event of the meet.

"Very impressive. Zoe just has real tenacity when it comes to racing," Irving said.

The team scored 283 points to earn fourth among ten conference foes. Pomperaug of Soutbury was first with 467, narrowly defeating Weston (456), and Brookfield took third with 410.50.

"We're very proud of how the girls swam, Eberts said.

"This is the culmination of a lot of hard work from them. I'm really happy with how we placed as a team," Irving added.

The Nighthawks have a smaller roster this year than in previous seasons and did not have the depth to rack up enough points to contend for the title. They made the most of what they have and took home some impressive swims and dives. Aliyah Reuther was seventh in the diving competition held Oct. 29 at Pomperaug High in Southbury; she had a score of 183.

Newtown was third in the 200 medley relay race, the first event of the day, as Sierra Marx, Maddie Marcisz, Petertonjes, and Indigo Land completed the race in 1:56.82.

In the 200 individual medley race Marcisz put her versatility on display with four strokes and finished fifth in 2:20.20. Land came in fourth in the 50 free in 26.39. Marx came in sixth in the 100 free in 58.54. Emma Sheehan was 11th in the 500 making her final touch in 6:06.76.

The 200 free relay comprising Land, Marcisz, Marx, and Petertonjes was runner-up in 1:44.26, just a second behind the winners from Weston.

Marx came in ninth in the 100 backstroke race in 1:06.22. Marcisz placed third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:12.66, just a second out of first. Land was ninth in the breaststoke race in 1:17.55.

Newtown's 400 relay contingent of Ella Murphy, Emma Sheehan, Ella Viay, and Reagan Garvin, was fifth in 4:18.07.

Irving said she looks forward to seeing what Petertonjes, Marcisz, Marx, and Land do in individual races as well as what the 400 relay swimmers do in the State Championships.