Wollongong Diocesan Swimming Championships
On 12 March St Patrick’s sent a very strong swim team to contest the Wollongong Diocesan Swimming Championships. St Patrick’s has been the Champion Girls’ School for the last 4 years however some significant rule changes implemented at the end of 2014 meant that it was going to be tough for us to regain the trophy for a 5th straight year. Our strength at this carnival was the depth and consistency of our swimmers, however the fact that we could only enter one student per race was going to play a crucial role in our title defense.
St Patrick's Diocesan Swimming Team
Our depth across all age groups was again highlighted by our outstanding relay results. We were able to finish on the podium in our junior intermediate and senior 4x50m freestyle relays as well as our 4x50 medley relays. We also finished a close second to St Mary’s in the All Age relay.
At an individual level there were again some outstanding performances with Alexandra S, Joanne S and Kayla G all winning individual races. Jarian H, Tia B, Lauren B and Niamh G were also strong with each girl picking up a top 3 finishes in their events. These individual results contributed significantly to the overall points score as well as Individual Age Champion points. At the conclusion of the carnival, Alexandra S was named 17 years Overall Age Champion, Jarian H was 3rd place overall in the 13 years division and Lauren B was also 3rd overall in the 15 years division.
The team was ably led by Alexandra S in her last Diocesan swimming carnival. Leading from the front, Alex entered every event she could and was a great support to the younger girls in the team. We will seriously miss this champion but fortunately we have a number of girls willing to step up and take her spot. Thank you for your effort and dedication to the team over the years.
The St Patrick’s swim team consisted of Lauren B, Tia B, Niamh G, Taylor J, Charlotte M, Chloe S, Caitlyn O, Joanne S, Alexandra S, Jasmin W, Laura W, Jermaine D, Kayla G, Jarian H, Emilee O, Gabrielle P, Mikaela Z and Samantha J.
I would like to acknowledge the support of our parents who attended on the day and also Mr Lord for his expert management of the team.
Congratulations to the following girls who will now go onto represent the Diocese of Wollongong at the NSW Combined Catholic Colleges Championships: Kayla G, Jarian H, Tia B, Niamh G, Alexandra S and Joanne S.