The best thing that has happened to Vivian Moulson in swimming so far was her commitment to the University of Wisconsin.
As the Andover High senior said, “Through the recruiting process, I really loved it there. I love the team so much. When I went on a visit there, I didn’t want to go home.”
It goes without saying that after three years of eschewing high school swimming, Moulson’s decision to join the Warriors this year has been one a gigantic boon for Andover High School.
Saturday afternoon, with Moulson slicing through the water to a pair of blowout individual wins, the Warriors captured the girls Division 1 title at the Merrimack Valley Conference Championships.
Moulson has been a sensation on the national front for much of 10 years in the pool. She just had never chosen to wear the Blue-and-Gold until this fall, with her college decision in the books.
“I didn’t do it before, because my club coach suggested not to,” said Moulson, who swims for Crimson Aquatics out of the Greater Lawrence Tech pool.
That choice, she said, helped her make massive improvements in her times over the past three seasons.
But it came with the expense of her not being able to experience the joy that high school swimming brings – until this fall.
“It’s my first time doing the high school season, and I’ve really enjoyed the team aspect of it,” Moulson said. “It’s really fun to be around the girls. Everything you do feels like we’re doing it for the team.
“It’s just been so much fun, the practices, the meets, the bus rides. I know now as we move on to the meets you have to qualify for, I’m going to miss everyone. I’m just very happy I did it.”
On Saturday, Moulson smashed an MVC mark in the 200 freestyle set by Haverhill High legend Heidi Hannenian in 1987. The original mark was 1:52.79 and Moulson touched the wall in 1:50.39 for the new mark.
And she wasn’t done. In the 100 butterfly, she clocked in at 54.48, not only winning by over five seconds but taking down the 2010 MVC record of 55.26, set by Andover’s Rachel Moore.
“It’s been wonderful having her on the team. She’s been a real positive on the pool deck,” said Andover coach Patty Barrett. “She’s obviously extremely talented, and she’s a great teammate. She brings a level of confidence to the others, too.”
MVC Championship nuggets
Moulson’s Warrior teammate Emi Hukkanen was also a double winner, scoring victories in the 200 IM and the 500 freestyle. …
Haverhill High, the undefeated regular-season MVC Division 1 champion, took third place overall.
The Hillies swept the diving led by Julia Plassman’s win. Freshman Ali Story had a huge double, scoring wins in the 50 and 100 freestyle. Molly Jordan won the 100 backstroke. Kathryn Papageorgiou barely nipped teammate Sophia DeFrank as the Hillies went 1-2 in the 100 breaststroke. …
North Andover claimed the MVC Girls Division 2 championship, led by Noor Abdelal with wins in the 200 and 500 freestyle. Juliette Bene and Natasha Secan also had big days for the Knights. …
On the boys side, North Andover scooped up victories with Ethan Ackerman-Vallala in the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke, and Ryan Wolfe in the 50 freestyle. Methuen/Tewksbury’s Jesse Torres won the diving and Ethan Corthell scored in the 100 free and 100 backstroke.