Reading pair Holly Tanner and Ellie Wood missed the Reading Easter meet to tackle the Welsh age group and youth championships at the national pool in Swansea – Tanner, 17, in her last season as a youth swimmer and Wood, 12, in her first meet at this level.
Swimming with second club City of Cardiff, Tanner had one of her best meets ever and picked up three golds and two silvers in the 16/17 age group.
A career-best 200 fly time of 2.24.54 – her first sub-2.25 – was two seconds inside the meet record, but was topped by Kingston's outstanding Alys Thomas who swam 2.19.95 to set a mark which looks like standing for some time.
Tanner was a narrow second to Cardiff's Bethan Thomas in the 400 free in a further NQT time and won the 200 and 100 backstroke under little challenge, these three all career second-bests, as well as missing the summer national mark by just 0.19 in the 400 IM. Her 100 fly and free heat times both yielded B finals and first and second places respectively.
Wood, meanwhile, featured strongly in big fields in the 12/13 age group and looks like challenging for medals in her second season in the same age bracket next year.
Wood's top performances came in the 100 fly and free. A comfortable B final win in the fly in 1.11.75 beat four 13-year-olds and she was pipped by just 0.01 in the 100 free after leading from the start.