Round 2 of the Sussex County Championships saw the St. Bede’s squad in determined mood. The first of the long weekends of competition would see the swimmers challenged hard by the larger clubs anxious not to be upstaged by a squad with only 20 members! The first eight places are crucial as these accrue points for the overall club championship.

Tom Lamb (17) opened his account in fine form with a comfortable victory in the 400m Individual Medley, touching in a lifetime best and lowering his National Qualifying Time to 4.38.38. Stephanie Ketley then blasted away from the blocks to demolish the rest of the field in the 100m Freestyle coming home with the Gold and a National Qualifying Time of 58.70. Ketley also swam a brilliant 400m Freestyle, never challenged, she again took Gold and a National Qualifying Time of 4.21.31.

Andrew Horsfall-Turner made a valuable contribution to the points total with his collection of two golds and four silvers as did Evan Draper with three silvers and two bronze.  The whole squad made their presence felt with swimmers in any final where it was possible, continually picking up points; for good measure the girls relay team won gold in the 4 x 100m Free and the boys team took gold in the 4 x 50m Free. Head Coach Kevin Ayers commented, “The team did so well this weekend and more than made up for the lack of numbers with quality, gutsy performances. They should all be proud of themselves and I’m looking forward to seeing them in action in round 3”.

St. Bede’s are currently in second place in the Championship only a few points behind the very largest club in the County and will be looking to close that gap over the final 2 rounds.

Results (Top 8)

Stephanie Ketley (17): 1^st 100m Free, 400m Free

Mary Carless (15): 1^st 400m Free, 2^nd 100m Breast, 3^rd 100m Free,200m Breast, 200m IM

Jasmin Brennan (14): 3^rd 100m Free, 200m IM

Rebekah Chapman (14): 4^th 200m IM, 5^th 400m Free, 7^th 100m Free

Amelia Mitchell (14): 5^th 200m Breast, 6^th 100m Breast, 7^th 200m IM, 8^th 100m Free

Cristina Richards (14): 2^nd 200m IM, 4^th 200m Breast, 5^th 100m Breast, 7^th 400m Free

Eve Carless (13): 1^st 400m Free, 5^th 100m Free, 8^th 200m IM

Katherine Horfall-Turner (12): 2^nd 400m Free, 5^th 200m IM

Charlotte Chapman (11): 2^nd 400m Free, 3^rd 200m IM, 5^th 200m Breast, 6^th 100m Free

Tom Lamb (17): 1^st 400m IM, 200m Fly, 3^rd 200m Back, 4^th 100m Fly, 7^th 100m Back, 200m Free, 8^th 50m Back

Alex Fenwick (16): 3^rd 200m Fly, 8^th 50m Back, 400m IM, 200m Back

Andrew Horsfall-Turner (15): 1^st 200m Fly, 200m Free, 2^nd 400m IM, 200m Back, 100m Back, 100m Fly

Ben Jones (15): 3^rd 200m Back, 5^th 100m Back, 200m Free, 7^th 400m IM

Will Condron (14): 2^nd 200m Fly, 3^rd 100m Back, 5^th 100m Fly, 7^th 200m Back, 200m Free

Evan Draper (13): 2^nd 100m Back, 200m Free, 100m Fly, 3^rd 200m Back, 200m Fly

Will Brown (12): 3^rd 200m Free, 5^th 400m IM, 200m Back, 100m Back