Topeka West junior Kadence Jeffries headlines the 2021 All-Shawnee County girls swimming team after posting a pair of dominating wins in the Class 5A-1A state meet. Jeffries in a four-time state champion and two-time first-team All-State pick. [File photo/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Four-time state champion and two-time first-team All-Stater Kadence Jeffries of Topeka West headlines the 2021 All-Shawnee County girls swimming team.
After winning the 200-yard and 500-yard freestyle events as a freshman and having her sophomore season canceled due to COVID-19, Jeffries turned in a dominating junior campaign, repeating her championships in the Class 5A-1A state meet after winning three gold medals in city competition and sweeping her individual events in the Centennial League meet.
Jeffries is joined on the All-City team by junior teammate Blanca Espinosa, a second-team All-State pick, while Seaman, which posted a fourth-place 5A-1A team finish at state, is represented by freshman first-team All-State twin sisters Avery and Tauren Walz and second-team junior All-Stater Gabby Grace.
Seaman freshman Avery Walz, a first-team All-Stater, placed second in the 100 breaststroke and third in the 200 individual medley in the Class 5A-1A state meet, helping lead the Vikings to a fifth-place team finish. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman freshman Tauren Walz earned state medals in four events in the Class 5A-1A state meet, earning first-team All-State honors and helping the Vikings finish fourth as a team. [File photo/TSN]
Sophomore Mara Bare, a second-team All-Stater in 6A, is one of three members of Washburn Rural's city and Centennial League championship team on the All-City first team, joined by sophomore teammate Makenna Pritchard and senior city diving champion Ellie Armstrong, while Hayden is represented by seniors Olivia Kerr, Audrey Kuta and Ainslee Oliver.
Kerr competed throughout the regular season for Hayden as a co-op swimmer before earning second-team 5A-1A All-State honors for Baldwin, while Kuta was a city individual champion and state medalist and Oliver was a top-three finisher in three events for the Wildcats in the city meet.
All-City capsules:
ELLIE ARMSTRONG, Washburn Rural -- A senior, Armstrong was the city champion in the one-meter diving event and finished second in the Centennial League before placing 12th in the 6A state meet. Bare was a member of the All-Centennial League second team and helped the Junior Blues win city and league team titles.
MARA BARE, Washburn Rural -- Bare capped her sophomore season with a strong performance in the 6A state meet, finishing fourth in the 200 freestyle and fifth in the 500 free, earning second-team All-State honors in 6A. Bare placed second in the 500 free and third in the 100 backstroke in the city meet and swam on Rural's runner-up 200 medley and 400 free relays. Bare was second in the Centennial League in the 200 free and 500 free and swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 free relay and third-place 200 medley relay, earning first-team all-league honors.
BLANCA ESPINOSA, Topeka West -- Espinosa, a junior, earned second-team All-State honors in 5A-1A, placing eighth in both the 200 freestyle and the 500 free at state. Espinosa also swam on the Chargers' 12th-place 200 medley and 200 free relays. Espinosa placed second in the 200 freestyle and third in the 100 butterfly in the city meet and helped West win the city title in the 200 free relay. Espinosa swam on West's second-place 200 free relay in the Centennial League, earning second-team all-league honors.
GABBY GRACE, Seaman -- The Seaman junior earned four medals in the 5A-1A state meet, placing fourth in the 100 backstroke and seventh in the 100 free and swimming on the Vikings' fifth-place 400 free relay and eighth-place 200 medley relay. Grace was a city champion in the backstroke and 200 medley and 400 free relays and finished third in the 100 free. She was the Centennial League champ in the 100 back, second in the 100 free and swam on Seaman's runner-up 200 medley and 400 free relays. Grace was named to the first-team all-league team and was a second-team All-Stater in 5A-1A.
KADENCE JEFFRIES, Topeka West -- Jeffries, a junior, swept 5A-1A state championships in the 200 freestyle and 500 free, repeating her double gold-medal-winning performance from her freshman season. A two-time first-team All-State selection in 5A-1A, Jeffries swept the 200 and 500 free events in both the city and Centennial League meets and she also led the Chargers to the city championship and a second-place Centennial League finish in the 200 free relay. Jeffries helped Topeka West add 12th-place finishes in the 200 medley and 200 free relays at state.
OLVIA KERR, Hayden -- Kerr competed for Hayden through the Centennial League championships as a co-op swimmer before reprepresenting Baldwin at state, taking fourth in the 100 breaststroke and fifth in the 200 individual medley. Kerr took second in the city meet in the 200 individual medley and the 100 breast and helped the Wildcats finish second in the 400 free relay and third in the 200 medley relay. Kerr took third in the Centennial League in the 200 individual medley, the 100 breast and the 400 free relay. Kerr was a first-team all-league pick and a second-team All-State pick in 5A-1A.
AUDREY KUTA, Hayden -- Kuta, a senior, won the city championship in the 100 freestyle, was second in the 100 backstroke and helped the Wildcats finish second in the 400 free relay and third in the 200 medley relay. Kuta placed second in the 100 back and third in the 100 free in the Centennial League meet and swam on Hayden's third-place 400 free relay. Kuta earned a 5A-1A state medal with a sixth-place finish in the 100 backstroke and she was 11th in the 100 free. She was a first-team All-Centennial League selection.
AINSLEE OLIVER, Hayden -- A senior, Oliver took second in the city meet in the 100 flystroke and swam on the Wildcat team that finished second in the 400 freestyle relay and third in the 200 medley relay. Oliver helped Hayden finish third in the 400 free relay in the Centennial League meet and she placed 13th in the 100 flystroke in the 5A-1A state meet. She was a member of the All-Centennial League second team.
MAKENNA PRITCHARD, Washburn Rural -- Pritchard, a sophomore, was the runner-up at the city meet in the 100 freestyle and 200 free events and helped the Junior Blues take second in the 200 medley relay on the way to their 18th straight city team title. Pritchard was the Centennial League champion in the 100 freestyle and placed second in the 50 free and swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 free relay and third-place 200 medley relay. She just missed a pair of state medals in the 6A state meet, placing ninth in both the 50 free and 100 free events.
AVERY WALZ, Seaman -- Walz earned first-team 5A-1A All-State recognition as a freshman, earning four state medals. Walz was the state runner-up in the 100 breaststroke, third in the 200 individual medley and swam on the Vikings' fifth-place 400 free relay team and eighth-place 200 medley relay. Walz was the city and Centennial League champion in both the 200 individual medley and 100 breast. Walz helped Seaman win city titles in the 200 medley and 400 free relays and post second-place finishes in the Centennial League meet in both of those events. Walz was a first-team all-league selection.
TAUREN WALZ, Seaman -- Tauren joined her twin sister, Avery, as a first-team 5A-1A All-State honoree as a freshman, earning four stae medals. Walz was third in the 500 free and fourth in the 200 individual medley and swam on the Vikings' fifth-place 400 free relay team and eighth-place 200 medley relay. Walz was the city champion in both the 50 free and 100 butterly. Walz helped Seaman win city titles in the 200 medley and 400 free relays and post second-place finishes in the Centennial League meet in both of those events. Walz was a first-team all-league selection.
ALL-CITY GIRLS SWIMMING
First team
Kadence Jeffries, Topeka West; Avery Walz, Seaman; Tauren Walz, Seaman; Audrey Kuta, Hayden; Gabby Grace, Seaman; Makenna Pritchard, Washburn Rural; Olivia Kerr, Hayden; Blanca Espinosa, Topeka West; Mara Bare, Washburn Rural; Ainslee Oliver, Hayden; Ellie Armstrong, Washburn Rural.
Second team
Jeissca Ndungu, Washburn Rural; Aubrey Fritsch, Washburn Rural; Audrey Cape, Shawnee Heights; Taryn Lemke, Washburn Rural; Ella Teter, Topeka West; Madisyn Landry. Shawnee Heights; Makayla Geil, Topeka High; Georgia Cole, Shawnee Heights; Madeline O’Brien, Washburn Rural; Etta Hall, Washburn Rural; Ella Bombardier, Washburn Rural; Samantha Ingram, Seaman.
