Piranhas manhandle Ellington in all strokes for convincing victory

BY DAVID FOLSE II

Sports Editor

LAPLACE-It’s hard to find anything wrong with a meet when you almost beat the team by 400 points.

That’s what happened Thursday night as the Belle Terre Piranhas won their first meet at home, 454-74 over Ellington.

The meet was over really before it began as the Piranhas jumped out to an early 89-19 lead in the freestyle and never looked back.

Belle Terre’s biggest victory came in the breaststroke, where they defeated Ellington, 95-11.

“I’m excited that we were able to win the meet,” Belle Terre coach Monica Scioneaux said. “Coming off of the loss last week we had a really solid week of practice and it showed out there. They swam phenomenal. They really put out their best effort.

“We really tried to work on our starts and finishes during the week of practice. “You could see the positive results out there. We stressed that most races are won and lost in the last 15 feet. We drilled them on starts and turns. You could see out there that it really did make a difference. They were ready for a win and were able to do what it took to accomplish that.”

While many would think that it would be tough to inspire your team to still go at its best in a meet that has gotten out of hand, Scioneaux said she faces no such problem with the Piranhas.

“They all give it their best because they know that we time them,” Scioneaux said. “Every swimmer is timed and they know that the times that they swim determine what they are swimming the next meet.

“They are competing in the meet against the other team, but they are also going up against their own teammates in a particular event. They all want to better their time because they want to get better. They are racing against the clock. They are trying to race and better their times for themselves as well as the team.”

Despite the near 400-point victory, Scioneaux said there is still plenty the Piranhas can improve on.

“(Coach) Kellie Logan and I still think there is always room for improvement,” Scioneaux said. “Especially in starts and turns. That is one of the biggest things, especially with our older team. A huge part of swimming is nailing those flip turns.

“We still have a couple of people that delay off of the start. We still can get better at that. There is always room for improvement and we will continue to do that.”

The big winner for the girls was Kelsey Felton who swept first place in the freestyle, backstroke and butterfly. Cari Jane-Roussel also had a very solid meet, taking home first place in the freestyle, backstroke and butterfly. She also was the second place finisher in the breaststroke.

Laura Bailey also swept first place in three events, taking home the first place awards in the freestyle, backstroke and butterfly.

Blake Gillies was the leader on the boy’s side of things, taking home first place in the freestyle, breastroke and butterfly.