Preview: Park Hill South Girls Swimming will compete to be KC's top team

Their ninth straight conference championship season left them with a 12-1 dual meet record and an eighth place finish at state including some of their relay teams being the top out of metro competition. Hoping to pick up where they left off they return a solid portion of that team this season in what Coach Tim Busenhart considers to be one of the strongest teams he's coached in his 11 years.

It's no surprise the Panthers' top priority is placing higher in the state meet than they did a year ago and the swimmers they have coming back are no strangers to competing on a high level. Lyndsay Ryan and Mary Cate Reinert have been on the All-State team three times along with Rachael Norfleet and Mariah Bryant who have been members twice. This strong group of swimmers will lead the way for Park Hill South. Newcomers Olivia McLain and Shannon Brouk will also add talent to their already accomplished teammates.

One thing Busenhart thinks will give them an edge this year is the depth on their team. A good problem to have, they just need to harness that depth to their advantage. They'll try different line-ups throughout the season to see which swimmers to strategically place in what positions so the Panthers have the strongest shot to place high at state.

"It's really just about figuring out who fits best where," Busenhart said. "We are strong across the board, but we're trying to find the right combinations."

While Park Hill South has faired well against Kansas City metro area competition over the years, in the realm of Missouri swimming, St. Louis is where many of the top teams come from. An opportunity to face some cross-state competition, the Panthers will travel to St. Louis and participate in a meet with MICDS followed by the Flyer Invitational the weekend of December 17-18. Other big invitationals include the Park Hill Invitational in early January along with the Raytown Invitational two weeks later.

Once again, they will be the ones to beat in their conference as it doesn't seem like an obvious contender stands out to seriously challenge the Panthers.

"We're probably the heavy favorite," Busenhart said.

In the end, the dates Busenhart and his team are looking towards is February 18 and 19 when they'll travel to St. Peters for the state meet where they hope to not only top their eighth place finish from last year, but possibly contend for the title itself.