Winter is coming.

The axis of our earth is slowly orienting away from the sun, ushering in three months of ice, snow, and apocalyptic mall traffic. Once again we will have to chisel our windshields with little more than a glorified spatula. Once again all public places will turn into Petri dishes, every moment out of the house a gamble with infection. Once again we will gradually ingest our body weight in ChapStick™.

That’s the bad news.

The good news is, with this soul-wracking seasonal shift comes a new athletic season. This week the winter sports season revs up, so here’s a preview of the varsity teams that will keep us warm in the months ahead.

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Mike Hickey’s boys’ basketball team has a fourth consecutive County Championship in its sights, a feat no other Class C team has ever accomplished. The core looks strong with returners Jyles Etienne, Chester Kayonga, Luke O’Connor, Mac Bohuny, Harry Zhu, Brandon Providence, and Rob Sparacio and will be bolstered by the additions of James Toney, Emil Vaughn, Louis Wang, and John Eshirow. The boys look to continue their success in League VIII where, over the last four seasons they’ve compiled a league-best record of 50-8 and three League Championships.

First home game: Dec. 2 vs. Mercy @ 4:30pm

Jeremy Donovan’s girls’ basketball team, despite losing some key seniors from last year’s squad, looks poised to make some noise with the help of senior Annie Skorobohaty, one of the league’s best shooters. Sam Petersen and Meghan Hutzler will provide veteran leadership and Danielle Graves returns to the team after a year’s hiatus. The additions of Jessica Nwachukwu, Amaiya McDonald, Bri Kilkenny, and Rochelle Vassell round out a promising young team. Rebecca Hollis, sidelined after off-season hip surgery, will provide leadership as one of the team’s captains.

First home game: Dec. 14 vs. Shelter Island @ 4:30pm

Mark Maningo returns a strong group of veterans to the wrestling mat this season. Kyle Broomes, Christian Cataudella, Harry Hou, Tom Hull, Justin Moreno, Jake Tutuska, and David Wadding all return from last year’s squad. Tutuska, who finished 4th in the County as a seventh-grader last year, looks to rise even higher this year.

First home match: Dec. 16 vs. Southampton @ 5:00pm

The boys’ swim team returns to competition after a 12-year absence. Coach Marc Danin spurred on plenty of success with the girls’ team in the fall, and looks to do the same with the boys’ squad this winter. Chris Stange, Jack Thiele, and Tion Wong will lead a good mix of veteran swimmers and new blood.

First home meet: Dec. 16 vs. Central Islip @ 4:30pm

The Blue Fan Group returns for another year of mayhem. The blue-clad army carries an all-time record of 6-1 in their sponsored events into this season and the BFG captains have plenty of new things planned to make Swanson the best home court advantage in the league once again. Here are the Blue Fan Group events for this winter:

• Sat, Dec. 5 – The Silent Night Game – Boys’ Basketball vs. Rocky Point @ 6:00pm
• Wed, Jan. 6 – Boys’ Swimming vs. Deer Park @ 4:30pm
• Fri, Jan. 15 – Boys’ Basketball vs. Wheaton Academy (IL) @ 7:00pm
• Sat, Jan. 16 – Boys’ Basketball vs. St. Anthony’s @ 7:00pm
• Tue, Jan. 19 – Wrestling vs. Center Moriches @ 4:30pm
• Fri, Jan. 22 – Boys’ Basketball vs. Shelter Island @ 6:30pm
• Sat, Jan. 23 – Girls’ Basketball vs. Mattituck @ 7:30pm
• Fri, Jan. 29 – Boys’ Basketball vs. Port Jeff @ 7:30pm
• Tue, Feb. 2 – Boys’ Basketball vs. Pierson @ 4:30pm [Senior Night]
• Fri, Feb. 5 – Girls’ Basketball vs. Southold @ 7:30pm [Senior Night]

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