Walsh, Bentley girls’s swimming & diving able to embark on new chapter

WALTHAM, Mass. – For the primary time in practically 30 years, there is a new face on the helm of the Bentley girls’s swimming & diving program. But the expectations stay as excessive as ever. Bentley head coach Kevin Walsh enters his first yr with the Falcons. He inherits a program that has completed second within the Northeast 10 Championships for 4 consecutive years.

Walsh succeeds the legendary Mary Kay Samko, who led the Bentley swimming & diving program for 29 years. She introduced her retirement following the 2024-25 season. Samko was inducted into the Bentley Athletics Hall of Fame this previous September.

Skyla Lang is already extremely completed as she enters her junior season. Last yr, Lang received Northeast 10 gold medals within the 200-IM and 200-breaststroke, and he or she took silver within the 400-IM. Lang was additionally on three NE10 silver medalist relay groups.

Two years in the past, Lang was named the NE10 Women’s Swimming Rookie of the Year. She received 4 NE10 medals throughout her first-ever convention championship, together with particular person medals within the 200-breaststroke and 100-breaststroke.  

“Skyla put in a huge amount of work over the summer,” stated Walsh. “She has set some big goals, all of them within reach based on how she’s been training.”

Senior Taylor White can be counted on for her veteran management, and for her prowess within the freestyle. Lang took NE10 bronze within the 1,000-freestyle throughout final yr’s convention championship. She additionally claimed silver in three completely different relays. Fellow senior Grace Motisi will even be counted on for her expertise and management.

Junior Isabella Montanari was a two-time NE10 silver medalist final yr. She was on the completed 400-medley and 200-medley relay groups.

Among Bentley’s 9 freshman, Walsh had notably excessive expectations for Fenya Anastasiadou. “Fenya is a robust newcomer who has regarded strong in follow and is able to make an influence in meets.

Bentley’s 2025-26 season begins with a twin at Wheaton Friday, Oct. 17. The Falcons’ first residence meet is a twin in opposition to Assumption, Nov. 2. The NE10 Championships are scheduled for Feb. 12-15 at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.