The 2026 All-City girls swimming and diving team -- Front, from left: Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden; Riley Strother, Seaman; Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High; Rhiannon Good, Washburn Rural; Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights. Back, from left: Avery Skinner, Topeka High; Megan Strobel, Seaman; Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights; Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural; Ava Von Lintel, Wasnburn Rural; Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural senior Rhiannon Good, a two-time Class 6A state diving medalist, and senior 16-time city and Centennial League individual champion Audrey Appuhn headline the 2026 All-City girls swimming and diving team.
Good returned from ACL surgery late in the season to post her second straight top-five finish in the 6A state meet while Appuhn, a multi-time state medalist capped her oustanding career by finishing eight of eight in career individual races in both the city and Centennial League meets.
Rural, which won its 23nd straight city title, put a city-high four swimmers on the All-City first team, which is determined by performances in the city meet.
Washburn Rural put Appuhn, Good and senior repeat picks Sophie Heinen and Ava Von Lintel on the first team while Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo joins Appuhn as a four-time All-City first-team pick.
Shawnee Heights is represented on the All-City first team by junior repeat picks Kaitlyn Aldridge and Clara Sobba while Seaman is represented by senior Megan Strobel and sophomore Riley Strother after the Vikings finished second as a team in the city meet.
Junior Kaelyn Gerdel, a two-time city and Centennial League champ, represents Hayden on the All-City first team while Topeka High freshman city champ Avery Skinner joins Del Castillo on the first team.
All-City first-team capsules:
KAITLYN ALDRIDGE, Shawnee Heights -- A junior, Aldridge earned All-City first-team honors for the second straight season, winning the city title in the 100-yard butterfly, placing second in the 200 individual medley and helping Shawnee Heights post runnerup finishes in the 200 medley relay and the 200 free relay. Aldridge placed third in the United Kansas Conference in the 200 individual medley and fifth in the 100 butterfly and swam on the T-Birds' fifth-place 200 free relay.
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural -- Appuhn, a senior four-time All-City honoree, placed in multiple events in the Class 6A state meet for straight three seasons and capped her career with an eight of eight performance in individual wins in the city and Centennial League meets. Appuhn won four golds in the city meet (200 individual medley, 100 free, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay) as Rural won its 23rd straight team title and three golds in the Centennial League meet (200 IM, 100 backstroke, 400 free relay), earning first-team all-league recognition.
HARA DEL CASTILLO, Topeka High -- Del Castillo earned All-City honors for the fourth straight season as the Trojan senior won the city title in the 100-yard backstroke and finished third in the 50 freestyle. Del Castillo finished second in the Centennial League titles in the 100 backstroke and finished fourth in the 50 freestyle, earning first-team all-league honors. Del Castillo competed in two events in the 6A state meet last weekend.
KAELYN GERDEL, Hayden -- A junior, Gerdel captured city individual titles in the 200-yard freestyle and the 100 backstroke and also won the 200 free and 100 breaststroke in the Centennial League meet, earning first-team all-league recognition. Gerdel advanced to the 'B' final in a pair of events in the Class 5A-1A state meet, finishing 13th in the 200 freestyle and 16th in the 100 breaststroke.
RHIANNON GOOD, Washburn Rural -- Good posted top-five Class 6A state finishes in one-meter diving as both a junior and senior. After finishing third in 6A as a junior, Good returned from ACL surgery late in the season to finish fifth at the state meet last weekend. Good won her first city title this spring and finished second in the Centennial League meet behind three-time state champion Allisyn Weiss of Emporia, earning second-team all-league honors.
SOPHIE HEINEN, Washburn Rural -- Heinen, a senior, finished second in the 50-yard freestyle and 500 free in the city meet and also swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 medley and 400 free relays as Rural won its 23rd straight city team title. Heinen finished second in the Centennial League in the 50 freestyle and third in the 500 free and swam on Rural's winning 400 free relay and second-place 200 medley relay, earning a spot on the all-league first team.
AVERY SKINNER, Topeka High -- Skinner won the city individual title in the 500 freestyle and finished second in the 100 backstroke to earn her place on the All-City first team. Skinner finished second in the 200 free and 500 free in the Centennial League meet to earn a spot on the all-league first team.
CLARA SOBBA, Shawnee Heights -- A junior repeat pick, Sobba won the 50-yard freestyle in the city championships and finished second in the 100 freestyle while also swimming on Shawnee Heights' second-place 200 medley and 200 free relays. Sobba finished fifth in the United Kansas Conference in the 50 freestyle and 100 free and swam on the T-Birds' fifth-place 200 medley and 200 free relays.
MEGAN STROBEL, Seaman -- Strobel, a senior, finished third in the 100-yard backstroke and helped Seaman post a second-place finish in the 400 free relay and a third-place showing in the 200 medley relay in the city championships as the Vikings finished second in the team standings. Strobel swam on Seaman's fifth-place 400 free relay team in the United Kansas Conference championships.
RILEY STROTHER, Seaman -- A sophomore, Strother swam on Seaman's city championship team in the 200-yard free relay and also swam on the Vikings' second-place 400 free relay and finished third in the 100 freestyle as Seaman finished second as a team. Strother finished sixth in the United Kansas Conference in 50-yard freestyle and swam on the Vikings' fourth-place 200 free and fifth-place 400 free relays.
AVA VON LINTEL, Washburn Rural -- A senior repeat pick, Von Lintel finished second in the city championships in the 200-yard freestyle and also swam on the Junior Blues' winning 400 free relay as Washburn Rural won its 23nd straight city team title. Von Lintel swam on Rural's winning 400 free relay in the Centennial League meet and finished fourth in the 200-yard freestyle and 500 free, earning second-team all-league recognition.
The 2026 All-City girls swimming and diving second team -- Front, from left: Jurnee Jessepe, Seaman; Jenna Zimmerman, Seaman; Kaci Hodgson, Washburn Rural; Lilly Charvat, Hayden. Back, from left: Manuela Diaz, Seaman; Marleigh Frazier, Seaman; Tenley Wessel, Seaman; Jayde Kinsch, Shawnee Heights; Resego Mackenzie, Washburn Rural; Sophie Reffett, Seaman. Not pictured: Avery Rosenow, Cair Paravel Latin/Hayden. [Photo by Rick Peterson.TSN]
ALL-CITY GIRLS SWIMMING
First team
Kaitlyn Aldridge, jr., Shawnee Heights; Audrey Appuhn, sr., Washburn Rural; Hara Del Castillo, sr., Topeka High; Kaelyn Gerdel, jr., Hayden; Rhiannon Good, sr., Washburn Rural; Sophie Heinen, sr., Washburn Rural; Avery Skinner, fr., Topeka High; Clara Sobba, jr., Shawnee Heights; Megan Strobel, sr., Seaman; Riley Strother, so., Seaman; Ava Von Lintel, sr., Washburn Rural.
Second team
Lilly Charvat, jr., Hayden; Manuela Diaz, sr., Seaman; Marleigh Frazier, Seaman; Kaci Hodgson, jr., Washburn Rural; Jurnee Jessepe, so, Seaman; Jayde Kinsch, Shawnee Heights; Resego Mackenzie, sr., Washburn Rural; Sophie Reffett, so., Washburn Rural; Avery Rosenow, fr., Cair Paravel Latin/Hayden; Makenna Russell, jr., Topeka West; Tenley Wessel, so., Seaman; Jenna Zimmerman, so, Seaman.
