Demarest

Coming within a fingernail of not one, not two, but three meet records could send anyone home to sulk, wondering what more they could have done. Not John Kilduff.

He didn’t break any records and his team didn’t extend a championship winning streak.

But what the Demarest senior did at the Bergen County Meet of Champions was quiet, simple and unassuming. His career best performance made him one of the two most decorated swimmers of the meet.

Kilduff, who will continue his swim career at Cornell, walked away from the pool with three gold medals. Only Bergen Catholic’s John Om could say the same.

And after some careful consideration, it was something the Demarest star could be proud of, despite the fact that those meet records slipped through his fingers.

“After a day of reflection, I still feel like I swam well for in-season,” Kilduff said. “The team did perform very well — we won two relays, which we didn’t expect at all. When I come up short of a goal, I think failure is a great opportunity to learn from.”

Kilduff opened the meet with the field’s fastest backstroke split (23.73) in helping Demarest win the 200-yard medley relay in 1:37.61, just 0.6 seconds off the meet record which Bergen Catholic set last season. It was the first relay victory for a public school since 2013 when Demarest won the 200 freestyle relay.

Kilduff then broke the meet record in the 50 freestyle with an outstanding mid-season time of 21.54. The problem was that BC’s Om beat him to the wall with a 21.52, so the record and the gold medal belonged to the Crusaders senior.

“When I was swimming, I thought I was a little bit ahead, but I guess he had the faster touch into the wall,” Kilduff said. “We both pushed each other.”

The breakthrough for Kilduff came in the 100 backstroke, where he captured his first county title with a 50.57. But as with any talented athlete, they are always looking for more — Kilduff was just .19 seconds off the meet record which Bergen Catholic’s Josh Sembrano set last season.

“I wanted to get the county record in the back, but I didn’t have Josh there, because last year we had each other to push,” Kilduff said. “It was frustrating, but in the end I have to be happy overall.”

Kilduff rounded off his performance by splitting 48.05 for the leadoff leg of the 400 free relay, which won in 3:15.02. His split was the fourth fastest of the field, and the relay victory made Demarest the first public school to win two relays since Tenafly did it in 2012.

“Once I got over not getting the records, I could look back and be happy for the team winning those relays, and I finally got a county title,” Kilduff said. “You can say I was very pleased with what I accomplished.”

Kilduff is back in the pool Thursday, when the Big North Conference, Patriot Division kicks off at 5 p.m. in Hackensack.

NOTE: Due to the inclement weather, the divisional schedule has changed. The Patriot Division boys and girls will now compete together on Thursday at Hackensack.