State meet goes swimmingly for Battling Bishops

The Bishop England swimming teams fared well during the 2020 season, a schedule contested with a careful eye cast toward the coronavirus pandemic.

 

The Bishop boys finished second in the team standings as St. Joseph’s posted a 410-373.5 victory in the Class AAA state championships. Swimming was the first sport to crown a state champion since the coronavirus pandemic shut down high school sports in the Palmetto State in March.

 

It marked the fourth time in the program’s history that the Bishop boys finished second overall. The Bishops’ only state championship came in 2016.

 

The meet was held at the new North Charleston Aquatic facility. The girls’ and boys’ were held separately on Oct. 10 and 12 respectively due to coronavirus pandemic regulations. 

 

The Bishop boys didn’t take gold in any races, but used great depth for the silver team trophy.

 

The Bishops relied on some experienced veterans and got a glimpse of the future as some younger swimmers made a splash.

 

Freshman Justin Hafner had a big meet. He was on the silver-medal 200 medley relay team that also consisted of Ethan Griffith, Matthew Picard and Quinn Dewitt.

 

Hafner was second in the 200 IM and was also a member of the 400 freestyle relay team that captured silver. Hafner also scored a silver medal in the 500 freestyle.

 

Griffith capped off an impressive BE Career. The senior was third in the 200 IM and finished second in the 100 breastroke. He also was a member of the silver-medal 400 freestyle team.

 

Dewitt also had a big day. In addition to being on the silver-medal 200 Medley team, he was ninth in the 50 freestyle and 10th in the 100 freestyle

 

Jill Smiley and Lindsay Burbage shone the brightest for the Bishop girls, winning gold medals in the 100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke, respectively.

 

The Bishops girls finished fourth in the team standings. 

 

BE Cross country

 

The Bishop England cross country teams dominated the competition during the Region 8-AAA championships, which were contested Oct. 14.

 

The boys swept gold, silver and bronze in the individual 5k run to post a 19-53 victory over Academic Magnet. Oceanside Collegiate Academy claimed third with 79 and Hanahan was fourth with 87.

 

In the girls’ run, the Bishops posted a 24-43 victory over Academic Magnet, Hanahan tallied 85 points and OCA was fourth with 90.

 

Mark Richter led the Bishop boys with the gold medal, while Hank Linder claimed second place. Matthew Sawyer was third, Justin Hafner fourth and Dominic Coffman ninth. All top-10 finishers earned all-region status.

 

In the girls’ run, the Bishops’ Nora Braham won gold, while Kimber Keene was fourth. Bo Rosato was right behind in fifth place.

 

Kayla Vroman and Mary Wallace also earned all-region honors by finishing in the top 10.

 

The Bishops will run in the state qualifier on Oct. 30 and then it’s on to the State Championships on Nov. 6. Both events will be held at the Clemson Research Center.

 

The Bishop boys have won four state titles in the program’s history and are seeking their second title in three years. The girls’ team has won four state titles. Their last championship was celebrated in 2007.