Northern Lights YMCA swimmer Ava Cowen competes at the Polar Plunge in Iron Mountain. (Courtesy photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — The Northern Lights YMCA Swim Team delivered an impressive performance at its home Polar Plunge meet, showcasing dominant wins, dramatic time drops, and continued growth across all age groups.

“I couldn’t be more proud of how our swimmers performed at home,” said head coach Aimee Tatangelo. “We saw first-place finishes, huge personal bests, and–most importantly–confidence and teamwork. That’s what we work for every day in practice.”

The 15 & Over division saw standout swims from Tucker Williams, who swept all of his individual events. Williams placed first in the 100 back (1:06.65), 100 fly (1:04.29), 100 free (59.04), 50 back (30.85), 50 fly (27.84), and 50 free (24.04).

Scarlette Edwards also captured gold in the 15 & Over 50 free (35.62), while Jaliyah Macha-Helker won the 50 back (46.26) and 50 breast (1:01.27).

In the 13-14 girls division, Cira Windell had a dominant meet, winning the 200 IM (2:47.00), 50 breast (36.71), 50 fly (32.08), and 50 free (28.76), and placing second in the 100 free (1:06.36).

Aubrey Dixon claimed first in the 1000 free (14:04.71).

On the boys’ side, Dominic Tatangelo placed first in the 100 back (1:17.62) and 50 breast (44.95), while adding a second-place finish in the 200 fly with a nine-second improvement.

The 11-12 division was particularly strong for Northern Lights.

Ella Murphy had a spectacular meet, winning five individual events: 100 fly (1:17.68), 100 free (1:02.01), 50 back (31.69), 50 fly (31.27), and 50 free (28.20). Her 100 fly showed a massive 19.73-second improvement.

Sierra Tatangelo took first in the 500 free (6:46.67), dropping nearly 23 seconds, and added strong finishes in the 50 free and 100 free.

Sebastian Tappy delivered one of the biggest improvements at the Jan. 31 meet, winning the 100 fly (1:28.59) with a 27.43-second drop and the 200 free (3:45.52), while also cutting significant time in all his events.

Ella McLaughlin added a first-place finish in the 200 free (3:10.70).

The 9-10 group showed growth and grit.

Catherine Majors led the way with victories in the 100 fly (1:42.84), 50 back (41.20), and 50 fly (41.05), along with a second-place finish in the 50 free.

Greyson Williams captured first in the 1000 free (16:55.96) and 50 free (33.85), while adding runner-up finishes in the 100 free, 50 back, and 50 fly.

Forest Koprowski placed second in the 100 IM and third in the 50 free, while George Fornetti earned two second-place finishes in the 100 breast and 50 free.

Dillon Okerlund took first in the 200 free.

The youngest Northern Lights swimmers brought both excitement and speed.

Mackenzie Kowalczyk swept the 25 back (23.59), 25 breast (29.49), and 25 free (18.67), while adding two second-place finishes in the 50 events.

Jack Krznarich won the 100 IM (2:02.93) and 25 back (23.67).

Alivia Bunker, Ava McLaughlin, Ayla Harrand, and Augustine Tappy each recorded significant time drops, highlighting the depth of the program’s youngest group.

Across the board, Northern Lights swimmers recorded substantial personal bests. Standout improvements included Sophia Hayes dropping 28.69 seconds in the 100 free and Ava Cowen trimming 12.46 seconds in the 100 IM.

“Our focus is always on improvement,” Tatangelo said. “Seeing swimmers drop 10, 20, even nearly 30 seconds shows how hard they’re working. But just as important is watching them cheer for each other and represent Northern Lights with pride.”