Every contribution from Friday and Saturday — even Thursday — mattered in the Suburban Conference White Division Championships.
Platte County swimmers and assistant coach Alexis Utz sway back and forth during the finals march for the 200-medley relay in the Suburban Conference White Division Championships on Saturday at Belton High School in Belton.
In what was expected to be and definitively became an extremely tight two-team race, Platte County totaled 521 points and bested Grain Valley by a margin of just 16 points. The Pirates plumbed new depths to earn a sixth straight conference title — the first four in the Blue Division and now two straight since moving up to the White Division.
Grain Valley won five individual races and two of three relays over three days of competition at Belton High School but finished as runnerup for the second year in a row. Belton finished a distant third in the five-team field with 408 points.
“Definitely a lot of nerves,” said Platte County senior star Brooklynn Hays, who won a second straight conference title in the 100-yard breaststroke, a first in the 100-yard freestyle after taking the 200 freestyle crown last year and also swimming a leg on the winning 200-yard medley relay. “This was the first year we’ve actually had to work hard for conference. It was really close. … The past couple years have always been pretty easy for us, but this year, was a lot different. And we all knew it was coming, and we all knew we had to get down to business.”
Platte County senior Brooklynn Hays swims her leg of the 200-yard medley relay during the Suburban Conference White Division Championships finals at Belton High School in Belton.
Hays accounted for Platte County’s only two individual victories and contributed to a big moment to open Saturday’s finals. The Pirates medley relay team of Hays (breaststroke), senior Jayden Benninghoff (backstroke), junior Chloe Pegler (freestyle) and sophomore Ashleigh Cruce (butterfly) finished in 1 minute, 58.54 seconds, edging Grain Valley by just 0.12 of a second.
From the time Fast Life Yungstaz’s Swag Surfin’ started the finalist march to the finish, the first race provided an energy indicative of the result.
Platte County entered with a slightly faster time from preliminaries, but with relays accounting for more points than individual races, a flip could have provided momentum for Grain Valley. Instead, the Pirates set a season-best and move up to the No. 12 qualifying consideration time for the Class 1 MSHSAA Swimming and Diving Championships.
“That ultimately is what really set the tone,” Hays said. “We knew that if we had lost that relay it would be a lot closer. Because we won, I really think that set the tone.”
Grain Valley then won the first four individual races before Hays broke up the run with a victory in the 100 freestyle (55.23). While well off her career- and season-best time, she comfortably held off runnerup Kate Epple by more than a second with the Eagles accounting for second, third and fourth place.
Platte County junior Chloe Pegler swims her leg of the 200-yard freestyle during the Suburban Conference White Division Championships finals Saturday at Belton High School in Belton.
Platte County maintained a slim edge after eight events, and the focus shifted to avoiding disqualification in both the 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle races. The Pirates swam conservative in both to avoid any slipups in the leg exchanges and still barely missed a season-best in the 200 freestyle with a team of Hays, Pegler, Cruce and junior Ireland Shank and then placed third in the 400 freestyle with Benninghoff, Shank and freshmen Mackenzie Johnson and Ronnie Benford.
Depth of A finalists — the top eight in each individual preliminary race — became the key.
With a maximum of four entrants per school, Platte County and Grain Valley accounted for the majority, including having all eight in the 100 freestyle. Swimmers could only compete in a maximum of two individual events apiece plus two relays.
In addition to Hays’ titles, Cruce added runnerup finishes in the 100 butterfly (career-best 1:03.66) and 100 breaststroke (career-best 1:15.90). Hays won the latter event in dominant fashion at 1:09.46.
Platte County sophomore Ashleigh Cruce swims in the 100-yard butterfly final during the Suburban Conference White Division Championships on Saturday at Belton High School in Belton.
One of the big keys for Platte County ended up being the contributions of senior Addison Sloan and freshman Thais Thompson in Thursday’s 1-meter diving competition. The duo accounted for 29 pivotal points in the race with Grain Valley. A year earlier, the Pirates went into Saturday’s finals already facing a deficit.
A first-year member of the program, Sloan made significant progress throughout the season, and she and Thompson completed 10 of 11 attempts to assure points.
“I’m really proud of them, especially Addison,” Hays said. “Coming into a sport your senior year inexperienced can be really scary and intimidating, but she went all in and she left with no regret. I’m just so proud of her. Her and Thais both did so much for our team.
“I couldn’t be more grateful.”
Platte County showed mettle under first-year coach Britt Johnson after losing an accomplished and deep senior class plus a former honorable mention all-state performer who opted not to return. The Pirates’ other individual medal winners (top six) included Benford (third, 200 freestyle and third, 500 freestyle), Mackenzie Johnson (third, 200 individual medley and fourth, 500 freestyle), Shank (third, 100 butterfly and fourth, 200 individual medley), Pegler (fourth, 50 freestyle and sixth, 100 freestyle), junior Izzie Grell (fifth, 50 freestyle), senior Alyson Stone (fourth, 100 backstroke and fifth, 100 butterfly) and Benninghoff (third, 100 backstroke and fifth, 100 freestyle).
Platte County senior Jayden Benninghoff swims in the 100-yard backstroke finals during the Suburban Conference White Division Championships at Belton High School in Belton.
Britt Johnson also noticed that the majority of Platte County swimmers set season- and/or personal-bests at conference. Now, the attention shifts to the Class 1 state meet scheduled for Thursday and Friday, February 15-16 at Rec-Plex in St. Peters.
Platte County qualified all three relays with the medley team leading the way in terms of qualification position. The Pirates sit 22nd in the 200 freestyle list and 23rd in the 400 freestyle.
In addition, Hays owns top times in both the 100 breaststroke (fifth) and 100 freestyle (12th), while Cruce moved into position to earn her first individual state berth, currently sitting 31st in Class 1 for the 100 butterfly and No. 41 in the 100 breaststroke. In addition, Shank (No. 58, 100 butterfly) and Mackenzie Johnson (No. 93, 200 freestyle) have hit individual state cuts but likely end up squeezed out due to the qualification procedures.
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 could still 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.
Pending additional competitions this week, Platte County seniors Emilee Handke (eighth, 100 backstroke and ninth, 200 IM) and Sloan finished their careers at conference. Hays and Benninghoff will lead the Pirates back to state off of last year’s 16th-place team finish, while Stone will serve as a relay alternate.
The state field will be announced Sunday, and the lists will help determine Platte County’s three relay lineups.
