Kasey Krueger did the Bundaberg Swim Team proud as the only local age championship winner at the 2021 Wide Bay Long Course Titles at Norville Pool on the weekend, taking out the 12 years girls’ gong.
The powerful St Andrew’s of Sunshine Coast produced the most age champions with four – Jack Carr (18 & over boys), Georgia Pendergast (18 & over girls), Sienna Harben (17 years girls), and Jamison Morgan (15 years boys).
Seven other Sunshine Coast clubs also had age champions, Good Shepherd Aquatics, with two – Patrick Elliott (17 years boys) and Teagan McGowan (15 years girls) – while Patriots’ team-mates Hamish Mackellar and Darcy Higgins shared the 13 years boys’ crown, and Riley Richards (Goodlife Community) and Brady Ellison (Cooroy Dolphins) were joint-winners in the 12 years boys’ category.
Mitchell Warren (Eumundi, 16 years boys), Chloe Rowe-Hagans (Cotton Tree, 16 years girls), and Lola Gibbs-Beal (Noosa, 14 years girls) also made the honours list for Sunshine Coast.
Keith Ashcroft (Hervey Bay) and Alix Woods (13 years girls) were the 14 years boys and 13 years girls’ champions, respectively.
Georgia Pendergast took out the prestigious Melanie Wright 100m Freestyle Perpetual Trophy which is presented for the highest FINA points for the 100m Freestyle at the championships.
St Andrew’s had the biggest representation at the meet with a team of 41 among the total of 444 swimmers from 25 clubs competing.
Among their many highlights was their 13 and over male and female 4x50m freestyle A teams breaking Wide Bay records.
They also provided three of the four equal-second placegetters in the 18 & over boys division, Jezze Gorman, Nathan Foote and Andrew Rice, with Declan Eskdale, of the Gayndah club, the other joint runner-up after winning the boys 12 and over 100m breaststroke.
Kasey Krueger confirmed herself as a rising star, winning six events in the girls 12 years division, the 400m freestyle, 100m butterfly, 100m backstroke, 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle and 100m freestyle.
She also partnered Indi Bland, Max O’Brien, and Min Sussens to a superb silver in the mixed 9-12 years 200m Medley Relay, and Indi, Mimi Woods, and Madison Nordberg to bronze in the girls 9-12 years 200m freestyle relay.
Mimi had clinched gold in the girls 12 years 200m butterfly, while Indi and Madison both finished third behind Kasey in the 100m backstroke and 200m backstroke, respectively.
The Warmington sisters Olivia and Isabella were both also among the winners, with the former beating all comers in the girls 14 years 200m butterfly, and the latter coming to the fore in the 200m individual medley (IM), and also picking up silver in the girls 10 years 100m backstroke and 100m freestyle, and bronze in 100m breaststroke.
Ben Cooper was Bundaberg Swim Team’s other victor, in the boys 15 years won 200m IM, also snaring second in the 100m backstroke.
Max also took home two solo bronze medallions, in the boys 12 years 100m butterfly and 200m breaststroke, and he also featured in one further team bronze, together with Min, Angus Caldwell, and Aarj Day, in the boys 9-12 years 200m freestyle relay.
Bundaberg Swim Team had two other individual dual medallists, with Ethan Giles also doing brilliantly in his carnival debut in the higher boys 10 years category after his recent birthday, taking silver in 100m butterfly and bronze in in 100m freestyle, and Charli Pollock gaining bronze medals in the girls 9 years 50m butterfly and 50m backstroke.
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