The BSSC Arena League team are still on track for promotion after a resounding win in round 2! Back at the Hertfordshire Sports Village for a rematch against Hertford and Hoddesdon along with new clubs Broomfield Park, Verulam and Ware, the BSSC team won their round 2 gala with 212 gala points (5 short of their round 1 total) and were 54 points ahead of Broomfield Park in second place. They had top 3 finishes in 28 of the 34 individual events (15 victories!) and five 1st and three 2nd placed relay teams.
The 15 swimmers getting to the top of the podium were:
- 10/11 Yrs: Lois Fields 50m Butterfly
- 13/Under: Molly Greatbatch 100m Breaststroke
- 15/Under: Alice Longman 100m Freestyle, Ella Greatbatch 100m Breaststroke, Jacob Hayes 100m Backstroke, Kirsty Neill 100m Butterfly
- 16/Over: Callum Cox 100m Freestyle, Callum Davis 100m Butterfly, Emma Fields 100m Butterfly, Jago Derrington 100m Backstroke, Jake Lloyd 200m IM, Laura Burgess 100m Freestyle, Lauren Gore 100m Breaststroke, Niamh James 200m IM & 100m Backstroke
The third and final round happens early December with the top six teams in the division competing for promotion and BSSC racing head to head for the first time with Enfield, who have also won their first two galas. The clubs have joint first position in Division 2 based on league points, but Enfield have the edge after two rounds with 464 overall gala points compared to Stortford’s 429. Joint third are Saxon Crown and Broomfield Park (352 and 304), fifth Hoddesdon and sixth Harpenden swimming club. A top two finish in the round 3 gala will guarantee promotion, a third place would require a count back on points across all rounds, so it’s all to swim for!
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1st 4x50m Freestyle, 2nd 4x50m Medley Relay
Thanks to all who supported the team on the night, in particular coaches Benoit Grattepanche, Laure Grattepanche & Joe Collins, Team Managers Sarah Neill & Kat Gore and officials Claire Fields & Steve Burgess.
Full squad:
9-11 Yrs: Adeline Chan, Millie Cass, Lois Fields, Guy Spearman-Baines, Noah Conroy, Zackary Haslett Fossey
13/Under: Felice Chan, Molly Greatbatch, Zoe Opiyo, Dylan Davenport, Elliot Hall
15/Under: Alice Longman, Ella Greatbatch, Imogen Tang, Kirsty Neill, George Grimwood, George Taylor, Jacob Hayes, Robert Gor
16/Over: Emma Fields, Laura Burgess, Lauren Gore, Niamh James, Callum Cox, Callum Davis, Jago Derrington, Jake Lloyd