By JOHNNY PEPPO

Sports Editor

LAPLACE — The end of the Belle Terre at Riverlands swimming meet for the River Parish Swim League this Thursday had more than just the swimmers holding their breath.

After pulling into a dead heat entering the relays, it all came down to the free relay where Belle Terre took the final couple of races for a total of 15 points to get a 285.5 to 260.5 win in a meet dubbed the Country Club Cup.

It was close all the way throughout the meet as the Stingrays pulled ahead in the first event with about a 10 point lead. Belle Terre countered in the backstroke competition, outscoring Riverlands 65-43 to make the advantage theirs. After that, the two teams went neck and neck throughout the individual races to bring it to 219 to 187 in favor of Belle Terre. Riverlands started a push with the medley relays where they closed the gap to 25 points. It looked as though the Stingrays would make the rally complete when they took five of the first seven relays in the

closing races, but Belle Terre preserved the win by sweeping the final three races to ensure their victory.