photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence's Isabella Paniagua swims the 200-yard individual medley in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

Free State and Lawrence girls swim and dive teams competed in their second meet of the season on Tuesday with an invitational at Lawrence High.

Free State coach Janna Skinner and Lawrence coach Elle Weber saw good things from their teams in Tuesday’s meet, as well as a few key areas for their teams to continue to work on as the season progresses.

“We had a ton of best times from last week, so even in a week the girls are getting better and faster,” Weber said.

For Lawrence, the Lions are a young team, both in high school age and swimming experience.

“We have a bunch of new girls out that have never swam before,” Weber said. “We’ve been working with some girls who are very new to the sport, so that’s been fun.”

While the team has youth, there is also experience at the top. Senior Ashlyn Tell has been a key contributor for the Lions for multiple years, and she will be an important part of the team this season.

“Ashlyn can do it all,” Weber said. “I played around with her a bit last year and put her in a bunch of events — I’ve been kind of doing that same thing. She can qualify for any event. It’s proof she’s a strong swimmer.”

Weber said the team will need a few Lions to “get going quick enough” to compete with Tell and score some points at the Sunflower League meet by the end of the season.

Free State graduated a lot of seniors in 2025, and that class helped create a strong team dynamic. This year’s squad has kept that same team chemistry.

“They’re supportive of each other — it’s a fun team to be around,” Skinner said. “One of our captains was cheering for every single race behind the lanes. We have another captain who is willing to do other races that aren’t her races so that we can have more swims. It’s nice to see girls step into positions to make sure girls feel included.”

Along with veterans at the top, the Firebirds have a strong group of freshmen who have come in and stood out. Skinner said she’s “excited to see how they impact the team.”

In the meet, Free State scored 374.5 points, which was second to Lansing’s 376. Lawrence finished sixth with 113 points.

The invitational started with diving, which included three Free State divers and a Lawrence diver. Free State’s Layla Bailey won the event at 197.95 points, while her teammate Harper Huston took second at 188.10 points. Firebird Natalie Koprince took third at 180.85 points, and Lawrence’s Naomi Klopfenstein scored 146.25 points.

For the swim events, Free State’s team of Ella Marsh, Helena Mattes, Siggi Mattes and Ruby Jiang placed second in the 200-yard medley relay, with a time of 1 minute, 55.14 seconds. The Firebirds had two more relay teams place in the top 10, while Lawrence’s top team of Violet Meinershagen, Keira Wells, Isabella Paniagua and Anna Gordon-Ross finished 11th with a time of 2:32.72.

Bridget Collins from Free State won the 200-yard freestyle at 2:06.90, while Tell from Lawrence was the runner-up at 2:12.00. Free State’s Amelia Rockhold took seventh at 2:39.43, and Lawrence’s Mira Abrams finished 10th at 2:49.53.

Helena Mattes was the runner-up in the 200-yard individual medley at 2:21.45, while Jiang took third at 2:22.07. Free State’s Ashlyn Johnson finished seventh at 2:55.85, while Lawrence’s Isabella Paniagua placed 10th at 3:03.83.

Free State’s Dylan Tenbrink placed fifth in the 50-yard freestyle at 29.05 seconds. Fellow Firebird Maria Fuentes Sanchez rounded out the top 10 at 30.25 seconds, while Firebirds Alina Jones and Penelope All took 12th and 13th, respectively. Sophia Anderson, another Firebird, finished 15th at 32.37 seconds.

Marsh won the 100-yard butterfly at 58.86 seconds, while Siggi Mattes took third at 1:01.56. Jiang came in fifth at 1:04.23, and Tell swam for sixth at 1:07.43. Tenbrink finished third in the 100-yard freestyle at 1:04.04, while Fuentes Sanchez placed fifth at 1:05.64. Firebird Stella Dorssom finished 10th at 1:14.96.

Siggi Mattes won the 500-yard freestyle at 5:28.83, with Collins coming in second at 5:40.10. Rockhold took sixth at 7:04.65, and Lawrence’s Anna Gordon-Ross placed seventh at 7:30.49.

Free State’s 200-yard freestyle relay team placed second at 1:54.54, while Lawrence’s top team placed fifth at 2:04.77.

Marsh later won the 100-yard backstroke, finishing in 1:00.13. Johnson placed seventh at 1:15.20, and All took 10th at 1:20.77. Helena Mattes was the runner-up in the 100-yard breaststroke at 1:13.42, and Firebird Chloe Carnagey finished seventh at 1:29.07.

For the final event, Free State finished as the runner-up in the 400-yard freestyle relay at 3:55.87, while Lawrence’s top team took seventh at 4:43.72.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Ruby Jiang swims the 200-yard individual medley in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Helena Mattes swims the 100-yard breaststroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Cayla McCrary swims the 50-yard freestyle in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Penny Stansberry swims the 50-yard freestyle in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Bella Gragg swims the 100-yard butterfly in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Ashlyn Tell swims the 100-yard butterfly in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Ella Marsh swims the 100-yard butterfly in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Maria Fuentes Sanchez swims the 100-yard freestyle in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Cayla McCrary swims the 100-yard backstroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Violet Meinershagen swims the 100-yard backstroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Ashlyn Johnson swims the 100-yard backstroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State’s Juniper Jones swims the 100-yard breaststroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence’s Keira Wells swims the 100-yard breaststroke in the Lawrence Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Lawrence.