Kings Point saw its six-year streak of Midwest Swim Conference championships come to an end, but it was hardly a disappointing season for the Stingrays.
At the conference meet, held July 23 at O'Fallon, Kings Point had 1,592 points but had to settle for third place behind O'Fallon (1,830.5) and Hilltoppers of Dupo (1,770.5). O'Fallon, which won in 2004, was the last team other than the Stingrays to claim the title.
In the regular season, Kings Point was 8-0 in dual meets, extending its unbeaten string to seven years. But first-year Stingrays coach Scott Gardner knew that winning a seventh straight conference meet would be a lot tougher.
"We had a great season, especially the last dual meet against Hilltoppers," Gardner said. "They're obviously a much-improved team and we were wondering if we were going to be able to take them, but we did by 71 points. That's not a whole lot, but I'm so proud of my kids and the way they stepped up.
"The conference meet is a different animal compared to a dual meet. You get to enter four kids per event as opposed to three in a dual. You got 20 points at conference for winning an individual event and you get five in a dual meet. That point spread alone kind of evens it out.
"In the past we've dominated because we had a lot of year-round swimmers, but we lost a few families and that definitely affected our depth. But these kids compete against each other respectfully and they compete against their opponents respectfully. Win, lose or draw, they always offer to shake their hands."
While the team is losing some of its older swimmers, it still has Cole Junker, who turns 11 this month.
"He's probably in the top 100 in the country," Gardner said. "The whole Junker family has some super swimmers. Ellie (13) is at the bottom of her age group now and Brooke is only 7, but they both score a lot of points for us.
"In 8-and-under boys, we have two outstanding swimmers in Patrick Lee and Tommy Dibadj. The 11-12 boys and girls have been key age groups for us. We're not quite as strong as in the past, but they've really improved."
The conference meet was the last for four Kings Points swimmers: Maria Effinger, Ali Trickey, Bubba Britt and Bret Birch. Another standout, Lori Lynn, 17, was unavailable because she was competing in a long-course event.
"I've really got to hand it to the older kids because they helped me so much with the younger kids," Gardner said. "Our 15-18 boys were dominant this season and the 15-18 girls were excellent.
"We missed having Lori Lynn at the meet, but I completely understand it. Summer leagues are fun, but she's one of the premier swimmers in the United States and she's looking toward a college scholarship."
