For the fourth straight season, the Stevens Point Area Senior High girls swimming team are Wisconsin Valley Conference champions.
The Panthers won the title, the 14th in school history, scoring 439 points last Friday at Marshfield. The four-peat is the second in SPASH history - the 1975-1978 teams also won four consecutive Valley championships.
SPASH took an early lead, winning the 200-yard medley (Kara Martin, Andrea Olson, Megan Golla and Callie Wild) in 2:00.04. Liz Potter (2:03.78), Martin (2:05.59) and Heather Wallner (2:08:71) then finished first, second and third, respectively, in the next event, the 200 freestyle. After those two events, the Panthers already held a 58-point lead.
"The meet got off to a good start when the A medley relay was able to avenge an earlier loss up in Rhinelander, taking the 200-yard medley relay in our season-best time," SPASH coach George Klingbail said. "In the very next event, three seniors took all three top honors in the 200-yard freestyle. We were able to hold the lead the entire meet after our quick start."
Heather Wallner had SPASH's other first-place finish, winning the 500 freestyle.
The Panthers had four more second place finishes. Potter (100 freestyle), Martin (100 backstroke) and Olson (100 breaststroke) were runners-up in individual events while the 400 freestyle relay of Potter, Golla, Liz Herder and Wild also took second.
Hillary Loomis (100 butterfly), Wild (50 freestyle) and the 200 freestyle relay of Potter, Golla, Wild and Erica Prince finished in third place.
The Panthers head to their WIAA Sectional, at Menomonee, Saturday and hope to send a contingent to the WIAA state meet in Madison the following weekend.
"We need to pair down to 18 individuals and only one relay team per relay event," Klingbail said. "This will really hurt us because we are the kind of team where everyone contributes as they did in this conference victory. I couldn't be prouder of their efforts all season and especially (Thursday)."