IMAGES: No. 3 B-R, No. 10 Cherry Hill East Advance to Girls Swimming Group A Championship

In two meets that featured top-20 matchups, No. 3 Bridgewater-Raritan topped No. 17 East Brunswick 100-70 and No. 10 Cherry Hill East eked past No. 12 Passaic Tech 88-82 in the NJSIAA Girls Swimming Group A semifinals on Feb. 19, 2026 at Passaic County Technical Institute.

B-R managed wins in only four of the 11 events, however, a full team effort down the individual event standings proved to be the difference for the Panthers against East Brunswick.

Merah DeRosa and Mila Daniels led the way for Bridgewater-Raritan individually.  DeRosa had two of the Panthers’ first place finishes, taking the top spot in the 50 and 100-yard freestyle, while Daniels placed first in the 200-yard freestyle and second  in the 100-yard breaststroke.

Katherine Kennedy and Lainee Su were the individual leaders for East Brunswick.  Kennedy took top honors in the 200-yard individual medley and 200-yard breaststroke, and Su was victorious in the 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard backstroke for the Bears.

The first six races between Cherry Hill East and PCTI were a back and forth affair, but the Cougars took the lead for good after the seventh event by winning 11 points in the 500-yard freestyle.

Laura Merch won two races to lead Cherry Hill East.  Merch took the top spots in the 200-yard IM and 500-yard freestyle for the Cougars. 

Charlize Macaranas led the way for Passaic Tech winning both the 50-yard freestyle and 100-yard backstroke for the Bulldogs.

With their wins, Bridgewater-Raritan and Cherry Hill East will face off on Sunday for the Group A State Championship at the Rutgers Aquatics Center at the Sonny Werblin Recreation Center in Piscataway at 9:00 a.m.