With college quickly approaching, many questions and concerns arise for couples regarding their futures, and with only 2% of high school sweethearts making it, our lancer couples have discussed how they’ll beat these odds.
Audra Fiano and Ben Dubicki have been dating for three years and plan to continue their relationship throughout college. Fiano plans to attend Eastern Connecticut State University, while Dubicki will attend University of Connecticut. Dubicki says they didn’t choose their colleges because of their relationship, but that being “only 15 minutes away is a plus.”
Fiano said, “Good communication is always a good foundation for a relationship. We aren’t going to be that far apart, but I don’t think we will be seeing each other as much as we do now. Facetiming, calling, and texting updates throughout the day is probably what we will be doing most of the time.”
Currently, Fiano and Dubicki participate in similar activities, including sports, and share many of the same friends. College, however, will quickly change that dynamic. Fiano believes this next stage of life will be an important period for personal growth and strengthening their relationship for the future.
Maria Hathaway and Zaydin Martinez are in a similar situation. Hathaway will attend Three Rivers Community College, while Martinez plans to attend University of Connecticut Avery Point and continue playing baseball. The couple has been dating for three years and is excited for this next chapter of their lives.
Hathaway plans to attend as many of Martinez’s baseball games as her schedule allows while still making time to see each other regularly. Currently, Hathaway plays tennis and Martinez plays baseball, but Hathaway does not plan on playing sports in college.
“During both of our spring sports, it is definitely hard to balance everything and still try to find time for each other,” Hathaway said. “I feel like it’ll be easier to balance everything in college because our schedules won’t be overlapping and we will both have more free time.”
Unlike the previous couples, Isabella Diquino and Maya Smith will be living more than 40 minutes apart. Diquino plans to attend Eastern Connecticut State University, while Smith is taking a gap year to work before attending college.
The couple plans to see each other on weekends, and Diquino added that “Maya is planning on attending Eastern, so the distance will shrink.” Diquino and Smith also believe their strong emotional intelligence and communication skills will maintain their relationship.
Valerie Cheng and Evan Conte have been dating for five years and will both attend University of Connecticut in the fall. Cheng said, “We’ve had a long talk about our relationship, and since we’re both pursuing very complicated majors, we’ve decided to pause our relationship to focus on our studies, but still keep in touch and see where things go from there. Depending on what classes we take will determine how often we see each other.”
Wynonna Tuang recently completed her first year of long distance with her boyfriend, Cole Baumgartner. While Tuang attended Waterford High School, Baumgartner attended Wentworth Institute of Technology.
Although the distance was challenging, Tuang said the little things made a big difference.
“When we weren’t together, we would Facetime whenever we could, even if it was only during my 10-minute drive to work,” she said. “We also found ways to do fun things while on call. We would do a Google Meet and screen-share a movie so we could still watch it together. We would also DoorDash each other food and eat together on call, almost like a dinner date.”
Tuang emphasized patience: “Be patient with yourself and with your partner,” she said. “Because of the change, I knew it would take time to figure out what worked best for us. Over time, with effort and patience from both of us, we were able to find routines that made us happiest and made our relationship the best it could be.”
Similarly, Lacey Montanari and Darien Sherwood have been dating for eight months while navigating long distance. Sherwood attends Fork Union Military Academy while Montanari remains in high school.
Montanari said that if she could give advice to anyone beginning a long-distance relationship, it would be to “push through the first couple of months because they will be hard. Being in a long-distance relationship will also allow you to grow and find yourself without all of the pressure of being in a normal relationship.”
In the 2024 edition, only 1 out of the 6 couples endured through the ups and downs. Time to see if our couples will make it or break it.
