LENEXA — For the third straight season, Sabra Brueggen left the Class 5-1A state swim meet with some hardware.

The Louisburg junior showed why she is among the state’s best as she earned a fourth place medal in the 200-yard individual medley — her first ever state medal in that event — Saturday at the Shawnee Mission Aquatic Center.

The 2-day meet provided a lot of ups, and some downs, for the Louisburg swim program, but for Brueggen it was nice to return to the medal stand.

“I was very happy and content with my 200 IM swims last weekend,” Brueggen said. “Not only did I set a new personal best time, but I also walked away with fourth place in an event that is not one of my primaries.”

Brueggen, who shaved six seconds off her previous best time of the season after the preliminaries Friday, sat with the fourth-best time going into the finals.

Then on Saturday, she followed it up with her best swim ever as she set a personal best time of 2 minutes and 11.95 seconds to take fourth.

Brueggen continued her strong performance in the 100 backstroke prelims Friday as she recorded a time of 58.56 seconds — her best of the season — and had the second fastest time going into the finals.

She had a medal all but wrapped up it seemed, however Saturday met with disappointment for Brueggen. She was disqualified after she surpassed the 15 meter mark underwater.

The 100 backstroke was an event she had medaled in the last two seasons, but a mistake stopped an attempt at three straight.

“I was very excited going into day two ranked second in the 100 back,” Brueggen said. “However, finals did not go as planned. After medaling my past two seasons in this event, getting disqualified in it was very tough mentally and was not the way I wanted to end the successful weekend. By surpassing the 15 meter mark with my underwaters, I forfeited my ultimate goals to end the season with two state medals and making the all-state team.”

It made it difficult for Brueggen as she still had one race left to swim — the 400 freestyle relay. On Friday, the team of Brueggen, Cadence Weichert, Ella Bockelman and Janie Harth dropped nearly two seconds off their best time and qualified for the consolation finals in 14th in 4:07.92.

In the consolation finals, the team ended up finishing 15th overall in 4:08.70.

Weichert, Brueggen, Harth and Bockelman also made the consolation finals in the 200 medley relay. In the prelims on Friday, the team dropped more than four seconds off their best time to take 12th in 2:03.02. 

In the finals, the four Wildcats swimmers finished in 12th again in 2:03.75. It was a memorable meet all around for the Louisburg team.

“The success that came through our relays this past weekend allowed for lasting memories to be made,” Brueggen said. “To be able to swim at the state level with these teammates was truly an unforgettable experience. Making it back to the consolation finals in both these relays was also very exciting and I can’t wait to see how much relay success we can have next year at the state level, hopefully leading to everyone bringing home a state medal.”

The Wildcats also swam in a pair of other events on Friday in prelims.

Harth competed in the 50 freestyle and took 24th overall in 27.78 seconds, while Harth, Weichert, Bockelman and Talen McMurray swam in the 200 freestyle relay and finished 22nd in 1:56.

The Louisburg girls swim team is becoming more and more of a fixture at the state level and the Wildcats will be well-represented again at the Class 5-1A state meet this weekend.

Five Wildcats will compete among the best the state has to offer as they try to bring home state medals. Juniors Sabra Brueggen, Janie Harth and Cadence Weichert, along with freshmen Ella Bockelman and Talen McMurray, will hit the waters at the Shawnee Mission Aquatic Center in Lenexa beginning Friday morning.

“The level of anticipation is crazy at this point,” coach Mary Argeropoulos said. “We are so proud of these hard working ladies. They have pushed and pushed this season, and in previous seasons, to put themselves in the place they find themselves. It’s certainly not by accident.”

Brueggen has the most state experience in the group as this will be her third state meet. Last season, she came home with two state medals and earned another one as a freshman.

She will swim in the preliminaries of the 200-yard individual medley, along with the 100 backstroke — an event she has medaled in the last two seasons.

“I am so excited to compete at state again this year, and I am even more excited to see how much success we can put together in our three relays that are competing,” Brueggen said. “This weekend I am hoping to swim personal best times in all of my events as well as medal top eight in my individuals and maybe even a relay.”

As for Harth, she will just be the second Wildcat in school history to participate in an individual event as she qualified in the 50 freestyle in 27.22 seconds.

Harth, along with Weichert, participated in the state meet last season in a pair of relays with Brueggen. They will do the same again this season.

Brueggen, Harth, Weichert and freshman Ella Bockelman will swim the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay. They are currently sitting with the 22nd and 17th fastest times, respectively.

McMurray will join Harth, Weichert and Bockelman in the 200 freestyle relay as they are currently 19th.

“We have been laser-focused in these last few weeks, nailing down all the fine details of our swims and relay pieces,” Argeropoulos said. “We are expecting fast swims with beautiful exchanges as Cadence, Janie and Sabra introduce the freshmen girls to state competition. We are right within striking distance for relays to place in the top 16 and will want each swimmer to put together their best during prelims.  

“It’s truly thrilling to have Janie join the fastest girls in the state in the 50 Free and we’d love to see an all time personal best from her on Friday. Sabra is capable of repeating on the medal podium in both of her events this weekend and we look forward to another great backstroke race and can’t wait to see how she puts together her new try at the 200 IM.”

Although Brueggen has experienced a lot of success individually at the state level, she is looking forward to seeing what she can accomplish with her teammates.

“I am so excited for all five of the Louisburg girls to get experience and swim at the state meet,” Brueggen said. “We worked hard all season to get these state cuts and to actually accomplish them means that we now have the opportunity to make lasting memories together at this competitive meet.”

Prelims begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, with the finals and consolation finals beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week eight of the spring sports season, sponsored by Dr. Laura’s Orthdontics.

SABRA BRUEGGEN, JUNIOR, GIRLS SWIMMING

Louisburg junior Sabra Brueggen has put together another memorable swim campaign as she hopes to make a lot of noise at the Class 5-1A state swim meet this Friday. Last week, Brueggen won the ILC league title in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke as she helped the Osawatomie-Paola-Spring Hill-Louisburg swim team to a third place finish.

On the season, Brueggen qualified for state in eight individual events. Along with that, she will join Janie Harth, Cadence Weichert and Ella Bockelman as the Louisburg quartet also qualified for state in all three relays. At the league meet last week, Brueggen was also member of the 200 medley relay that won a league title, and swam a leg of the 200 free relay that finished as a runner-up.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the spring season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Jack Anderson

Week 2: Nathaniel Lamm

Week 3: Derek Frederick

Week 4: Izzy Moreland

Week 5: Maddy Carpenter-Ross

Week 6: Jaden Bentz

Week 7: Cooper Wingfield

OSAWATOMIE — In what was the last regular season meet of the season, Sabra Brueggen closed it out in style.

Brueggen qualified for state in the 500-yard freestyle last Wednesday at the Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill Invitational that was held at the OZone in Osawatomie.

Not only that, but the Louisburg junior has now qualified for state in every individual event and will have her choice of two to compete in at the state meet later this month. She has also qualified in all three relays for the Wildcats as well

On top of it all, the Miami County team also won their home meet with 491 points as it edged Independence (485) and Fort Scott (450) for the title.

“The swimmers are doing a great job managing the middle of the season hump,” coach Mary Argeropoulos said. “They continue to push themselves in practice to be their best everyday and that hard work is showing itself in the pool with gains.”

Brueggen earned a pair of gold medals as she won the 500 freestyle with a time of 5 minutes and 34 seconds. She won the 100 breaststroke in 1:13.71.

Louisburg junior Janie Harth improved her state consideration time in the 100 freestyle as she took third in 1:01.37. She was also third in the 200 individual medley in 2:48.33.

Another junior, Cadence Weichert, took gold in the 100 butterfly in 1:13.23 and was fourth in the 100 breaststroke in 1:29.

Freshman Ella Bockelman took third in the 100 backstroke in 1:15.87, while fellow freshman Talen McMurray was sixth in the 200 individual medley.

The Miami County team also did well in the relays. Brueggen, Weichert, Harth and Spring Hill’s Camden Strickland won the 200 medley relay in 2:04.

Bockelman, Maryanne McNally, Meg Johnson and Weichert were second in the 200 free relay in 2:03, while Strickland, Harth, McNally and Brueggen won the 400 free relay in 4:12.

Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill will now compete in the Independent League Championships at 4 p.m. today and will be held at the OZone in Osawatomie.

OVERLAND PARK — Although the program is still relatively new, the Louisburg girls swim team made school history Saturday at Blue Valley Southwest.

The Wildcats qualified their third relay for state as the 200 freestyle relay team of Sabra Brueggen, Cadence Weichert, Janie Harth and Ella Bockelman had a state qualifying time of 1 minute and 51.75 seconds and took fourth overall. It is the first time in school history that they will send all three relays to the state meet.

As a team, Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill finished fifth overall with 131 points in the 9-team meet.

Brueggen led Louisburg with a pair of third place medals. The Wildcat junior took third in the 50 freestyle in 26.02 seconds and third in the 100 freestyle in 56.51 seconds.

Harth, another junior, also earned a medal as she took third in the 100 backstroke in 1:13.

Harth, Weichert, Brueggen and Spring Hill’s Camden Strickland took third in the 200 medley relay in 2:06.94. Weichert also took sixth in the 200 individual medley in 2:45, while Spring Hill’s Maryanne McNally medaled third in the 500 freestyle.

As a team, the program also recorded 27 personal best times.

The Miami County team also had a lot of success on April 23 at the Topeka West Invitational.

They recorded 25 new personal best times and finished second overall with 301.5 points in the 10-team meet.

Brueggen won a pair of gold medals and also earned a state qualification time in the 100 backstroke as she won in 1:02.38. The Louisburg junior also captured the 50 freestyle title in 26.21 seconds.

Harth went on to finish third in the 100 freestyle in a season-best time of 1:02.16 and also took fifth in the 100 backstroke. Weichert was fourth in the 100 butterfly with a personal best time of 1:12.

Brueggen, Harth, Weichert and Bockelman also helped the 200 freestyle relay to a fourth place finish in 1:53.69.

Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill returns home today as the team competes in its home invitational. Events begin at 4 p.m. at the OZone in Osawatomie.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Louisburg girls swim saw its state qualification list grow quite a bit this past week and that included a pair of relays.

At the Turner Invitational on Tuesday, the Wildcat quartet of Sabra Brueggen, Janie Harth, Cadence Weichert and Ella Bockelman qualified for state in the 400-yard freestyle relay after they finished second in the event in 4 minutes and 9.80 seconds. They shave five seconds off their previous personal best time.

A week earlier, the same four swimmers competed at the Blue Valley Northwest dual and qualified another relay. They finished second in the 200 medley relay in 2:07.38.

Brueggen also qualified for state in the 50 freestyle at Blue Valley Northwest as she took first in 26.54 seconds.

At Turner, Brueggen won the 200 freestyle in a season-best time of 2:05.79 to earn a state bid in the event. She did the same in the 100 butterfly as she took second in 1:05.23.

The Louisburg group is also close to qualifying a third relay as they earned a state consideration time in the 200 freestyle relay at Turner with a first place finish of 1:54.49.

“We are so proud of Sabra for her continued state qualifications and new personal best times,” coach Mary Argeropoulos said. “We are also proud of those Louisburg relays. We have discussed many times that on paper their times should add up to a qualifying time, but each swimmer has to do their part to coordinate that great race. 

“The 200 relay continues to improve but that magical moment hasn’t landed just yet. We mixed up the traditional order of swimmers for the 400 relay at Turner, and boy, did that magic show up. A state qualifying leadoff leg, followed by all new PRs all around, was a recipe for a great time. The excitement on their faces after was priceless and they are ready to zip up all three relays for state.”

The Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill team finished third overall as team in what was a challenging Turner meet. They recorded 32 new personal best times.

Harth finished second in the 50 freestyle in 27.71 seconds and was third in the 100 freestyle in a new personal best time of 1:02.79. Bockelman also took third in the 100 backstroke in a personal best time of 1:15.55.

Weichert finished fifth in both the 200 freestyle and 50 freestyle.

The Miami County team lost the dual to Blue Valley Northwest last week, 503-433, but earned 38 new personal best marks. 

Bockelman finished second in the 200 freestyle and fourth in the 100 backstroke. Harth was fourth in the 200 individual medley. 

Weichert took second in the 100 butterfly and was sixth in the 100 backstroke.

On Wednesday, the team concluded what was a busy week with a meet at Topeka-Hayden and took fourth with just six swimmers. Harth led the Louisburg side with a runner-up finish in the 100 butterfly and was third in the 100 backstroke.

The team is back in action this Tuesday at the Topeka West Invitational. 

OSAWATOMIE — In what was its first traditional meet of the season, the Louisburg girls swim team already punched its ticket in a couple different events.

Louisburg junior Sabra Brueggen qualified for the state meet in two events as she helped the Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill team to a fourth place finish in its home meet last Wednesday at the OZone in Osawatomie.

The team finished with 357.5 points to take fourth as Piper won the meet with 455. Fort Scott was second with 392.

“We had 51 personal best times and every single one of our 17 girls bested their times,” coach Mary Argeropoulos said. 

Brueggen earned a pair of first place finishes as she won the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2 minutes and 19.51 seconds.

She also finished first in the 100 breaststroke in 1:13.79 and qualified for state in both events. Brueggen also led the 400 freestyle relay of Cadence Weichert, Camden Strickland and Ella Bockelman to a second place finish in 4:11.

Louisburg junior Janie Harth put together a strong showing as she finished second in the 50 freestyle in a personal best time of 27.46. It was more than second better than her previous best mark and earned her a state consideration time in the process.

Harth would also finish third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:28. Weichert was third in the 500 freestyle in a time of 6:46, which was 13 seconds better than her previous best time. She was also fourth in the 200 freestyle with a personal best of 2:27.

Bockelman, a freshman, had a pair of fifth place finishes in the 200 IM and 100 backstroke. Another freshman, Talen McMurray, was ninth in the 200 freestyle.

The Miami County team is back in action Tuesday as it travel to the Blue Valley Northwest Invitational. Events begin at 4 p.m.

For the second year in a row, the Louisburg girls swim team ended its season at the state meet and the Wildcats are primed to make a run at a third straight.

Louisburg, which competes on a co-op team with Osawatomie, Paola and Spring Hill, has earned state medals the last two seasons thanks to junior Sabra Brueggen.

The Wildcats return Brueggen, along with juniors Cadence Weichert and Janie Harth, who completed in relays at state a year ago. They will be joined by freshmen Ella Bockelman and Talen McMurray.

It is a small, but experienced group as Louisburg hopes it can finish the season with some state hardware.

“Cadence and Janie are showing stronger in the pool already,” coach Mary Argeropoulos said. “We’ve had some inter-squad time trials and these two ladies are quickly approaching their season best from the end of their sophomore seasons. Both ladies have times that are close to the state consideration bar, so we will be pushing to see those times come into reach.  

“Louisburg also brings in two exciting freshman swimmers, Ella and Talen. Both of these ladies bring swim experience and are stepping into their individual events well and setting up the all-Louisburg relays with a great chance for another state berth.”

Brueggen is the most experienced Wildcat. After earning a state medal her freshman season, she responded last year with sixth place finish in the 100-yard backstroke and was eighth in the 50 freestyle.

“Sabra returns to the high school pool with a great offseason experience behind her,” Argeropoulos said. “She is in top form and we are hopeful for a spectacular season. As the season progresses, we believe she will qualify for state in numerous individual events and lead her relay partners to state times as well.  

“She should have her pick of events in postseason competition again and we look forward to seeing her hard work pay off.  We really cannot say enough about this athlete’s work ethic and dedication to her craft.”

Spring Hill, which joined the co-op team this season, will feature nine swimmers, including junior Maryanne McNally and freshman Camden Strickland.  

Paola has two swimmers, including returner Elsie Blackmore and Osawatomie has one on the roster.

“The ladies are getting to know one another and working hard,” Argeropoulos said. “We are focusing on strength and stamina this season and our workouts have been geared towards building and developing the skills we will need for a successful season.”

Louisburg will begin its 2024 campaign Saturday when the Wildcats travel to Lansing. Events begin at noon.

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week 10 of the winter sports season, sponsored by Landmark National Bank.

COLTON PRETTYMAN, JUNIOR, SWIMMING

Louisburg junior Colton Prettyman helped the Wildcat boys swim team to an historic finish last Saturday the Class 5-1A state meet in Topeka. Prettyman and the 200 medley relay team of Colin Brown, Andrew Jamison and Noah Sharp medaled sixth overall as they shaved more than five seconds off their personal best time. The four Wildcat swimmers also finished ninth in the 200 freestyle relay.

Prettyman also swam individually in the 50 freestyle, made the consolation finals and took 13th overall in a season best time of 23.35 seconds. He also competed in the 100 breaststroke at state. Prettyman scored points in three events and helped Louisburg to an eighth place team finish.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the winter season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Myles Vohs

Week 2: Andrew Jamison

Week 3: Nathan Parker

Week 4: Elias Pugh

Week 5: Ashton Moore

Week 6: Colin Brown

Week 7: Ashlyn Kuhlman

Week 8: Brady Hickey

Week 9: Leola Eslinger

TOPEKA — The Louisburg boys swim program is still relatively new compared to other teams around the state, but the Wildcats made its presence felt Friday and Saturday at the Class 5-1A state meet in Topeka.

Louisburg had its best postseason finish in its young history as the Wildcats finished eighth overall in the team standings with 104 points thanks in part to just four swimmers.

Two of those athletes — Colin Brown and Andrew Jamison — each brought home individual medals. Brown, Jamison, Colton Prettyman and Noah Sharp also medaled in the 200-yard medley relay.

“This year felt like a whole new experience from last year,” Jamison said. “From me making it into an ‘A’ Final and our medley relay making it to an ‘A’ final, brought the competition to a whole new level. Everything felt more intense and felt like we had more pressure on us to preform well but it was still a fun and overall positive experience. Getting the team into the top eight with only 4 swimmers was a big accomplishment for us especially going up against teams that have up to three times as many people.”

Almost every time a Louisburg swimmer hit the pool, whether it was in the preliminaries or the final, a new personal best time was recorded.

That was certainly the case for Brown, who was the team’s lone returning state medalist from a year ago as a freshman. He was able to triple his medal count this season.

Brown competed in the 100-yard butterfly and finished fourth overall with a personal best time of 53.84 seconds, which was nearly two seconds better than his seed time.

He did the same in the 100 backstroke as he medaled fifth in 55.53 seconds, which was another personal best.

“I am very satisfied with how I did in both of my individual events,” Brown said. “They were both personal records and I had a lot of fun swimming both of them. To medal for a second straight year, not only in one event this year but two was a surreal feeling that I hope to repeat next year.”

Jamison also picked up two individual medals after making the consolation finals last year as a freshman. 

He shaved two seconds off his personal best time in the 200 individual medley to take fifth in the finals after finishing seventh in the prelims. 

Jamison then went on to take sixth in the 100 breaststroke in 1 minute and 1.88 seconds, which was another personal best time by more than a second.

“I was very pleased with my races this past weekend,” Jamison said. “My 200 IM exceeded my expectations in time and placement. My 100 breaststroke goal this season was a 59, and that was a very tough goal, but I am still pleased with what I swam. 

“Getting a medal individually was a really cool experience. It did add a lot of pressure in prelims to secure that ‘A’ final spot and once I did there was a moment of relief, but then the pressure of preforming set in. Even with all that it was still an amazing experience I will never forget.”

The Wildcats started the meet by competing in the 200 medley relay, and it set the stage for what was to come.

Brown, Jamison, Prettyman and Sharp shaved more than five seconds off their seed time to medal sixth overall in 1:42.93, after finishing seventh in the prelims.

The quartet nearly medaled in another relay, but just missed out in the 200 freestyle as they took ninth in a personal best time of 1:34.66.

“The relay swims were probably my favorite part of the meet, and to be in the first relay to make an ‘A’ final in Louisburg history is an honor,” Brown said. “With everyone in the relay returning next year I am hoping for even better results.”

Although he didn’t reach the medal stand, Prettyman still scored team points for Louisburg. He made the consolation finals in the 50 freestyle and finished 13th overall in 23.35, which was another personal best.

He also competed in the 100 breaststroke and took 20th in 1:07.50.

Other members of the Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill team competed at state. Osawatomie’s Luke Hebert finished 15th in the 50 freestyle and 16th in the 100 butterfly.

Paola’s Landen Terflinger was 21st in the 200 freestyle and 23rd in the 50 freestyle. Spring Hill’s Dylan Mabe was 19th in the 100 backstroke.