LENEXA — A state championship can change a program forever. For Lansing girls swimming, it changed everything in a single Saturday afternoon. 

For years, the Lions had never climbed to the top of the podium at the Class 5-1A State Swim and Dive Championships. They had never crowned an individual state champion. Never celebrated a relay title. By the end of Saturday at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center, Lansing had checked off all three — and made school history in unforgettable fashion. 

Behind a dominant performance from sophomore Piper Kobs, clutch swims from a senior class that had spent years building toward this moment and two relay state championships, Lansing captured its first-ever state title with 290 points, edging Blue Valley Southwest (279) in a dramatic finish. 

“It is incredible,” Lansing coach David Bresser said. “To be honest, in all my years at Lansing, I never thought we would be in this position. I knew that with this group of seniors that came up that we could have something special, but I didn’t know it could be this special.” 

For Bresser, the title represented years of growth for a program that had steadily climbed the state ladder. Two years ago, Lansing missed out on a trophy after a relay disqualification. Last season, the Lions broke through with a third-place finish — the best in school history at the time. 

 

This year, they made the ultimate leap. 

“I still didn’t think we would be standing here as state champions, but here we are,” Bresser said. “Our seventh state championship at Lansing is now swimming. Those girls are going to have their picture on the wall and I can’t wait to walk that hallway and see their picture there every day.” 

The Lions wasted no time announcing they were serious contenders. 

Lansing opened the meet by winning the 200-yard medley relay as Kobs, seniors Mary Archambault and Avila Verzola and junior Katelyn Johannes teamed up for a school-record time of 1 minute, 48.73 seconds. 

Bresser believed that moment changed the tone of the meet. 

“I really think us winning the 200 medley relay to start the meet really set the tone for us,” he said. “It was a great race and set the girls up knowing what they needed to do.” 

 

Even after Blue Valley Southwest answered with big points in the individual medley and diving, Lansing kept finding ways to respond. 

Kobs emerged as one of the stars of the meet. 

After placing seventh in both the 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke a season ago, the sophomore turned those lessons into championships. Kobs won the 200 freestyle title in 1:53.37, holding off Basehor-Linwood senior Jadyn Bruch — a close friend and training partner who practices in the same pool throughout the year. 

Before the race, Kobs admitted the emotions were overwhelming. 

“I was so scared of Jadyn, I was shaking and I almost threw up,” Kobs said. “I was thinking to myself that I couldn’t beat her and all my teammates said, ‘Yes you can.’ They are really good at being there for me.” 

 

Later in the meet, Kobs struck again in the 100 backstroke, winning in 55.84 seconds. She set school records in both races at state during the prelims. 

“Piper has been amazing,” Bresser said. “She was seventh in both of those events last year. The work that she put in to not only win them, but win them convincingly, was great to see. I think she came into this year with a different mindset and trained really hard for this moment.” 

Kobs credited confidence and her teammates for helping spark her breakout performance. 

“Honestly, I worked a lot harder and I gained a lot of confidence,” Kobs said. “I didn’t have much confidence in myself last year. To come into this meet with so much confidence, I think that gave me the upper hand because I knew I could go these times.” 

 

While Kobs delivered individual gold, Lansing’s senior class helped anchor the historic effort. 

Verzola, Archambault, senior Makaila Hayes and Johannes won the 200 freestyle relay title in another school-record performance at 1:41.51. Hayes also turned in a standout individual meet, finishing second in the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.85 and fourth in the 100 butterfly (59.59). 

“When I first started out, doing something like this (team title) seemed so unachievable,” Hayes said. “ We had a competitive team, we are competitive girls and a lot of us swim club, but it seemed out of reach with the depth that all these other teams have and have had in the past. I am so behind proud of these girls for getting us to this point. We have all worked so hard for this moment. It is really nice to see it all come together at the perfect time.” 

Archambault added a fifth-place finish in the butterfly (1:00.61), while Verzola medaled sixth in both the 50 freestyle (25.14) and 100 freestyle (55.56). Johannes scored valuable points with a fourth-place finish in the breaststroke (1:10.38). 

Senior Kylee Walter delivered perhaps some of the biggest hidden points of the meet. After narrowly missing the championship finals, Walter won the consolation finals in both the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke to boost Lansing’s title chances. 

“I can count on all these seniors to perform,” Bresser said. “Kylee didn’t have the year she was hoping for, but when it mattered most she really stepped up.” 

Sophomore Caylee Ford also contributed with an eighth-place medal in the 100 butterfly (1:03.32). 

Still, the state title came down to the final event. 

With Blue Valley Southwest closing in, Lansing entered the 400 freestyle relay needing at least a second-place finish to secure the championship. Kobs, Hayes, Walter and Archambault answered the call, taking second in a school-record 3:39.54 — just one second behind Blue Valley Southwest — to clinch history. 

 

“Coach told us before that all we needed was second place and we were good,” Hayes said. “That brought comfort to us, but we all worked so hard.” 

For Hayes, a senior who has spent nearly 12 years in the sport and will not swim in college, the championship carried even deeper meaning. 

“It really means everything,” Hayes said. “I am still having trouble processing it all. I have known Coach Bresser for a long time and he is the one that got me into swimming when I was like 8 years old. This whole thing of winning a state title is just insane and it is just hard to put into words how much this means to me. 

"I really wanted to leave Bresser with a win,” Hayes added through some tears. “There is nothing I wanted more. He has changed swimming for me. I quit club over a year ago now, and coaches really make or break the sport for kids. Every time I go back to high school swim, I just fall back in love with it. It is all thanks to him and these girls. I just wanted this for him and that made me work so much harder.” 

As tears began to flow after the meet, Kobs reflected on sharing the moment with teammates she has grown up swimming beside. 

“Most of these upperclassmen I have swam with since I was six or seven years old,” Kobs said while holding back tears. “It is such a blessing to see them do so well at state and it is such a good way to end the season.”