Hebron Academy’s Emma Frumiento won the Class A state title in the 50-yard freestyle in February. She also competed in the 100 butterfly. Ben McCanna/Portland Press Herald

Emma Frumiento said friendships enticed her to swim during the high school season again this winter.

“My friends were doing it this year still, so I decided to swim again this year,” Frumiento said.

The junior is the lone Hebron Academy student who practices with the Edward Little/Leavitt/Poland swim team, which also practices with swimmers from Gray-New Gloucester, Poland, Lisbon and St. Dom’s.

“So the practices have a lot of kids from different schools, but we have gotten to know each other over the years through swimming,” Frumiento said. “It feels like we are all one team. It doesn’t feel like I am on my own team. It feels like I am on the EL, Leavitt, Poland, all the schools.”

Frumiento surprised coach Scott Morrison when she arrived at the first day of practice.

He had talked to her over the summer and again in the fall when he was at Hebron to see Sean McLellan, who grew up Auburn before swimming for the Lumberjacks and setting records for UMaine, get inducted into the Hebron Hall of Fame.

Frumiento told Morrison that her junior year of school was going to be busier and she was going to be involved in more things on the Hebron Academy campus. She didn’t think she’d be able to fit swimming into her schedule.

“The first night of practice,” Morrison said, “she came in with her head down and said, ‘Hey, Coach, can I swim?’

“I said, ‘Of course you can swim, I want you to do what’s in your best interest.'”

Frumiento again had a standout winter. She became a state champion, winning the Class A 50-yard freestyle title with a time of 25.27 seconds. She also has been named the Sun Journal All-Region Girls Swimmer of the Year for the second time. She also earned the honor in 2022.

“I wanted to win the 50 free at states, and I was able to do that,” Frumiento said of her goals coming into the season. “I was hoping to go under 25 in the 50 free time, but I didn’t — that’s OK.”

Morrison said Frumiento improved her technique this season.

“She has spent a lot of time refining her stroke, the mechanics behind it,” Morrison said. “She has gotten better on her starts, she has gotten better turns, and has gotten better with her breathing during the race.”

Along with her state title, Frumiento placed 11th (1:08.54) in the 100-yard butterfly at the Class A championship. She also qualified to race the 100-yard freestyle race.

“It was probably a bad choice on my part, as a coach, to put her in 100 fly because she probably would have finished better in the 100 freestyle,” Morrison said. “It was a toss-up, and because there wasn’t a team championship on the line, I gave her more input in that.”

Frumiento enjoyed the friendly rivalry with Lewiston’s Gabby Roy this season. Roy also swims the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly.

“It’s very friendly, for sure,” Frumiento said. “We have a lot of fun competing against each other. It goes both ways, and we are always supporting each other.”

Frumiento beat Roy at the Lewiston-Edward Little swim meet in the 50 freestyle, while Roy won the 100 butterfly. Roy went on to place third at the Class A championships in the 100 fly and fifth in the 50 free.

In addition to swimming, Frumiento also competed for the revived Hebron Academy varsity basketball team. It was her first time playing organized basketball. It also was the first time the Lumberjacks have had a team in a handful of years.

“We only had a couple of games, and the coaches were pretty flexible with me attending practices,” Frumiento said. “It worked out well.”

Morrison said he enjoys teaching well-rounded athletes.

“Because she’s doing a workout, there’s cardio stuff going on, strength building going on, all those things help improve swimming,” Morrison said.

Frumiento said she plans on competing in both sports again next year.

She said there isn’t too much that translates between the two sports, other than she gets butterflies before swim meets and basketball games.

“Dealing with nervousness, knowing that I have never played in a basketball game before, I was a little nervous,” Frumiento said. “Swimming is always nerve-wracking before you race.”