PHS swimmers aim for 12th straight title

To say the Park Hill South Men’s Swim and Dive team is dominant might not be enough to describe the team’s success over recent years. Last year marked the 11th consecutive time the Panthers captured the conference championship. To top it all off, they tied the best finish in school history by placing fourth at state.

Head coach Steven De La Piedra seems confident his team will start where they left off last year with returning seniors Austin Cade, Grant Libra, and Kyle Gourley. All swam in the three relays that placed in the top eight at state last year. This earned them All State honors. Additionally, Cade placed 7th in the 100 meter butterfly and Libra finished 15th in the 100 meter backstroke. Sophomore Daniel Day qualified in the 500 meter freestyle and 200 meter individual medley. Kristian Harman also qualified in the 500 meter freestyle at state.

Look for all of them to be at the state level this season as well. Also watch out for freshman Liam Huffman to join them.

De La Piedra gives credit to his swimmers, “I’m lucky to have a group of boys that are disciplined enough to work out during the offseason and want to achieve higher goals than previous years.”

The team’s goals this season are without a doubt, to win another conference title and place in the top four at state once again.