YORK swimmer Jane McDermott has powered her way to a national title.

The 16-year-old Fulford School pupil, who suffers from cerebral palsy, took gold in the Disability Sport England BT Swimming Championships at Darlington.

The Wheldrake teenager also won four silvers in the 100metres backstroke, 50m butterfly, 100m and 200m individual medley and bronze in the 50m freestyle.

McDermott also finished fourth in the 50m breaststroke.

Eleven-year-old Teresa Carr, of Ebor School, in her first competition, competed in the 50m breaststroke.

York City Baths Club returned from the Scottish National Championships at Glasgow's Tollcross Pool with a clutch of medals.

Philip Graves slashed 11 seconds off his best 400m freestyle swim to take silver in the 12 years age group and also made the British age group national qualifying time.

Silvers also went to Christopher Burns in the 11yrs 200m breaststroke in a personal best time, also a British age group national qualifier, and Alice Sunderland in the 11yrs 100m butterfly.

Mandy I'Anson smashed through the 30 second barrier in the 50m butterfly for the first time to take bronze. Her time of 29.78secs was a British senior national qualifier. She also made the 100m butterfly final, doing a personal best in the heats, and finished eighth.

Jenny Hoggard was the only other senior to make a final, going well in the 200m butterfly where she was up against several swimmers who will be in action at this summer's Commonwealth Games in Manchester.

She lopped 2 seconds off her best in the heat which she improved by a further 0.8 of a second to finish seventh in 2.30.12 - a British national age group qualifying time.

YCBC's Eilidh Macdonald snatched silver in the 14yrs 100 backcrawl at the Kippax Gala at the Leeds International Pool.

Tom Davies, who recently joined York, he won his silvers in the 15yrs 100 freestyle and butterfly. He was also sixth in the 100m backcrawl. All three swims were personal best times.

Four New Earswick swimmers returned from Kippax with personal best times.

The highest placed swimmer was Andrew Clapham, who sliced two seconds off his previous best to finish third in the 12yrs 100m backstroke final. He was also seventh in the 100m breaststroke,.

Another pb in a final earned fifth place to the youngest competitor in the group, Jennifer Welsh. in the 10yrs 50m freestyle.

Twelve-year-old James Richards touched in sixth place in the 100m backstroke in a pb and Mark Baldry, 14, finished in the reserve finalist position despite also swimming a pb in the 100m freestyle.

Updated: 11:00 Saturday, March 09, 2002