BonnerSprings.com

The Bonner Springs girls are in the swimming pool, and that is a good thing for co-coaches Lynn LaNoue and Jaye Shaer.

LaNoue coaches the BSHS boys, and Shaer replaces Tierney Thompson after spending four seasons as an assistant coach on the girls’ team.

Bonner Springs lost six swimmers from a year ago but returns the other six. Five new competitors also have jumped into the water to give the squad an even balance of experience and youth.

“Losing six swimmers is difficult, but we are excited to have six back and to add five new girls,” Shaer said. “We would like to grow the team numbers because it gives the girls a better chance at winning. But the good thing about swimming is that it is about individual success, as well as team success. When you yourself improve, the whole team improves.”

Among the returners are senior Emily Herre and sophomore Toni Stock. Both have extensive club swimming experience. Both performed well last year and have hopes to qualify for state consideration this year.

Herre is close in terms of time. Last year she missed out on state by half a second. She said her strongest strokes are the breaststroke, 50 freestyle and the 100 backstroke. She hopes that one of those will land her a spot at the state championships in Topeka in May.

Stock is Bonner Springs’ record holder in the butterfly and hopes to shave some time off to be considered for state by the end of the season, but Shaer said there was a lot of hard work ahead for the sophomore in order for her to get to where she wanted to go.

Most of the girls are swimming every event they can. Shaer said that should help bring her swimmers closer together as a group and improve their chances of overall success. Shaer also said she thought the multiple events would help her swimmers know what it took to get through each race during meets.

The Bravettes are a spirited team. Shaer said that her team’s major strength was their ability to cheer each other on.

“Standing at the end of the lanes and cheering their friends on — that is what they will remember 20 years from now,” Shaer said.

The success in the pool has not really showed yet. Through two meets, the Bravettes only have two top-three finishers. Stock took third in the 100 butterfly at Blue Valley West in 1 minute, 17.69 seconds. Herre placed third in the 100 breaststroke at the same meet in 1:25.21. The Bravettes had no top-five finishers at the Topeka meet on Thursday, April 1.

Bonner Springs was back in the water on Wednesday at the District PE Center against Shawnee Mission East, Turner and Lansing. Results were unavailable at press time.

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