BE swimming displays solid showing at state championships

The Bishop England High School swimming teams both fared well during the annual High School League State Championships, which commenced last Saturday with girls’ competition and concluded Monday with the focus on the boys.

 

The Bishop boys claimed third place in Class AAA after finishing as runners-up in 2020. St. Joseph claimed first place in front of a good crowd at the North Charleston Aquatic Center with 386.5 points while Oceanside Collegiate Academy (OCA) was second with 369 points and Bishop England third with 447. Philip Simmons finished in 14th place.

 

In the girls’ meet, OCA won its third consecutive state title with 405 points. St. Joseph was second and Christ Church third. Bishop England held down fifth place with 280 points and Philip Simmons finished in 18th place.

 

The Bishop boys were led by sophomore standout Justin Hafner, who happens to be a two-sport star in the fall. He also runs cross country and missed the Coaches Classic meet over the weekend to focus on swimming.

 

It was the same approach that coach Tony Colizzi used last year with Hafner and the state swim meet. Last year, Hafner collected medals and all-state accolades in the pool. A few weeks later, Hafner finished second overall in the state cross country championships to help the Bishops claim their fifth state championship, and their first since 2018.

 

Hafner collected a bronze medal in the 500-yard freestyle and was fourth in the 200-yard freestyle. He was a member of the gold medal-winning teams in the 200-yard medley relay and the 400-yard freestyle relay.

 

Other members of the medley relay team include Owen Fritts, Matthew Picard, and Asher Western.

 

Fritts claimed a bronze medal in both the 200-yard IM and 100-yard breaststroke. 

 

Picard won a silver medal in the 200 freestyle and fourth in the 100 breaststroke. 

 

In the girls meet, Jill Smiley capped off a big week with her fourth gold medal at the state level, winning the 100-yard butterfly. She also finished third in the 200-yard medley, fifth in the 200-yard freestyle and was a member of the 400-yard freestyle relay team that captured fourth place.

 

Lindsay Burbage claimed a pair of medals, capturing silver in the 200 individual medley and 100-yard breaststroke. Sophomore Zoe Dewitt was fifth in the 100 freestyle and was a member of the 400 freestyle relay team.

 

Coaches Classic

 

The Bishop England boys’ and girls’ cross country teams competed in the annual Coaches Classic over the weekend at Hillcrest High School.

 

The boys finished 11th out of 61 teams in a meet that featured 903 runners. Hank Linder led the Bishops with a 28th-place finish with a time of 17 minutes and 19 seconds over the 5-kilometer course.

 

The BE girls’ team also finished in 11th place as 55 teams and 688 girls ran in the prestigious race. Norah Brahim led the Bishops with a 13th-place finish with a time of 19:46. Nini Clarke finished in 49th place.