MANCHESTER — The Manchester Swim Team Rapids hosted the Manchester LCM Invitational Swim Meet at Raco Theodore Pool this weekend, but for a group of the team's seniors, the event was about more than achieving personal best times.

This weekend's meet, the first of their summer season, marked the twilight of a bright era of swimming for high school graduates Christina Denbow, Kelsey Ewing, Cole Hogg and Milan Sandhu. All of them will cherish these years fondly as they rip up collegiate lanes this fall.

“I had a great four years at Central, I've been with MST since I was 8, and I've been swimming competitively with Kelsey since we were 6,” said Middlebury College recruit Denbow. “I love (coach) Steve Van Der Beken and the team but I'm really, really excited for a new level of competition, a new perspective of coaching, new and better training, and just a new level of swimming overall.”

Denbow's thoughts resonate throughout the four seniors, who are using their final season with MST to hone their craft as they gear up for their respective freshman seasons. However, the overwhelming theme of the day was that the grads want to enjoy their waning time with a group of teammates that has become a second set of relatives.

“I'm excited to train under a new coach, but I'm really going to miss this team. It's definitely my family,” said Hogg, who was a Union Leader All-State selection following his senior season at Manchester Memorial and will swim at Keene State College in the fall. “We're having fun but we're all working out really hard at practice and we're still hoping that we get some best times at Open Championships or the Granite State Swimming Association meets in August.”

It seems to be working, as Hogg took first in the 200 individual medley with a long-course (50-meter) time of 2 minutes, 24.23 seconds, and first in the 200 backstroke at 2:23.53 on Saturday and second in the 800 freestyle at 9:43.85 on Friday.

Hogg's peers were just as successful, as Sandhu was right behind him with a 2:38.59 (sixth) in the IM, Ewing took first in the IM (2:40.74) and 400 IM (5:46.62), and Denbow touched the wall at 2:45.28 in the IM to finish second.

For most of these seniors, the debate over which level of swimming would be next in their careers came down to a combination of education and personal swimming goals.

Sandhu, for instance, will attend Division I Yale University in the fall to study molecular biology with hopes of entering the pre-med program, but wants to continue his swimming career and will get in the pool as a walk-on.

“It's going to be quite a different set of workouts and it'll be difficult,” said the Bedford High graduate, who will be leaving for a trip to Italy and England this week in hopes of seeing Michael Phelps at this summer's Olympic Games. “I'll give it a shot for a year and decide if I want to stick with it after that.”

On the other hand, Ewing, who could have succeeded at a Division I level, chose instead to swim Division III to receive more personalized focus from her coaches in order to reach her own set of goals.

“I love to swim so much and I'm really looking forward to swimming in college,” said the Bedford grad and Connecticut College recruit. “I wanted to swim D-III because I figured I'd get more focused and personal training than I would at D-I. EIther way, I can't wait.”

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Pat DeCola may be reached at pdecola@unionleader.com.