Platte County qualified three individuals with five total entries and all three relays for the Class 1 MSHSAA Swimming and Diving Championships, scheduled for Thursday and Friday at Rec-Plex in St. Peters, Missouri.
The top 32 in each event make the state field with swimmers limited to two individual events and two relays or three relays if qualified in one or fewer event, meaning those without a top-32 time end up making the field. The top eight times in preliminaries advance to the all-state championship final while the next eight go to the honorable mention consolation final.
Platte County senior Brooklynn Hays leads a contingent of eight total qualifiers for Platte County, positioned to enhance one of the most decorated resumes in program history. She opted for the 100-yard freestyle and 100-yard breaststroke for her individual swims and also will be part of two relays.
In three previous trips to state, Hays earned four all-state medals and six honorable mention showings and looks to join Shannon Banark as the only swimmer for the Pirates to make the finals in three different state meets.
“I’ve definitely been thinking about (my legacy),” said Hays, who became the first all-state freshman in program history in 2020-21. “It’s super sad that I’m leaving, and it’s my senior year. But I’m excited to leave my legacy. I always tell my teammates: be positive and just have fun. That’s kind of what I want to leave behind on this team. Whenever someone comes up to me and asks me what advice I have, I always tell them have fun; don’t worry about it; whatever happens happens.
“If there’s anything I want to leave behind, I want that to be it because some people take it a little too seriously sometimes. It’s a very mental sport, and you have to know how to play the game.”
In addition, Platte County junior Ireland Shank will compete in the 100-yard butterfly for a third straight year, while sophomore Ashleigh Cruce will debut in both the butterfly and breaststroke. Both will also contribute to the relays, and the Pirates have seniors Jayden Benninghoff and Alyson Stone, freshmen Mackenzie Johnson and Ronnie Benford and junior Chloe Pegler available for the three quartets, as well.
Hays, Shank and Benninghoff are the only three of the eight with prior state experience.
A year ago, Platte County’s top two swimmers scored team points in three total events and combined with a pair of consolation finalist relays to push the Pirates into a tie for 16th in the final team standings with 46 points. That marked a step back up after being 21st in 2022.
Platte County then graduated a large, accomplished senior class.
Hays led the way last year, placing sixth in the 100 breaststroke and seventh in the 100 freestyle to earn the second and third individual all-state medals of her career. In previous state meets, she placed eighth in the 100 breaststroke as a freshman and then added honorable mention all-state showings as a sophomore in that same event (11th) plus the 50 freestyle (12th). She qualified in the 50 freestyle as a freshman but did not qualify for the finals.
In addition, Hays was part of Platte County’s all-state 400 freestyle team and qualifying 200 freestyle team as a freshman and then the 13th-place 200 freestyle and 15th-place 400 freestyle in 2021-22. Shank and Hays were on last year’s 13th-place 200 medley relay, and Hays plus three seniors placed 14th in the 200 freestyler relay.
Benninghoff made her state debut and swam a leg on last year’s 400 freestyle team that finished 25th in preliminaries but has not been to a championship or consolation final yet. While Shank made a consolation final as part of a relay, she has not advanced out of preliminaries in either of her individual state swims in the 100 butterfly.
Platte County’s best team showing came in 2021 with both Hays and Banark part of a historic squad that finished ninth in Class 1.
