Bowling:
In only its fourth year in existence, the Blue Valley Girls Bowling Program is readying for another great season, having had a strong showing in eight competitive events last year.
Coach Mark Mosier said tryouts to form this year’s squad will give attendees plenty of games and will form the teams over two days.
“Prospective team members will bowl two to three games each of those days, and the top six averages will be the initial varsity team,” Mosier said.
Mosier said members may move between JV and varsity based on their in-season results.
“As the season progresses, if people have increased or decreased averages, they may go back and forth between the varsity and JV,” he said.
Tryouts were Dec. 8 and 10 at Olathe Lanes East.
Boys Swimming and Diving
Last season, the boys swim and dive team finished the season eighth out of 21 teams at the State competition. However, the team hasn’t been dry since the off-season began in late February.
Senior Cade Blackburn said the team has stayed in shape through hard work and competition with club teams.
“A lot of the swimmers work hard in the off-season on club teams,” Blackburn said. “In addition to the teams, many people showed up to preseason practices held by the school.”
He said proper diets have been important for fitness.
“Eating healthy is always very important in the off-season,” he said.
The team opened the season on Dec. 9, competing in the Jaguar Invitational Meet at Blue Valley West.
Boys Basketball
This season, the Tiger boys basketball team will have plenty of shoes to fill — literally.
After a painful 46-45 playoff loss to the Shawnee Mission East Lancers, the season concluded with a record of 10-11.
Several new and relatively untested players will have to step up to taste success this season, with the team having graduated a majority of the starting lineup.
Junior guard Will Brennan has high hopes for the season and said the team has worked hard during the off-season to prepare.
“We went outside to the track, and we also did some work in the gym on a lot of defensive stuff,” Brennan said. “It’s all about conditioning for the season, and we’re looking forward to having a great year.”
The team opened its season Dec. 11 against Kansas City East Christian.
Girls Basketball
The Tigers finished last season with an 11-10 record, but it ended with a crushing 48-47 defeat to Shawnee Mission West.
However, the returning players are ready to move on and improve.
Senior Gabby Gunnerson said the team worked before school started to prepare for the season.
“We’ve been practicing really hard, and we worked a lot in the summer,” Gunnerson said.
Coach Ryan Mahoney said he has a positive outlook on the upcoming season.
“I’m very excited about this year’s team,” Mahoney said. “We have a good mix of youth and experience.”
Mahoney also added that the returning members have set goals for the year.
“They decided this team is going to be about toughness, trust, hard work and each other,” he said.
The team’s hard work paid off on Dec. 4, with the Tigers starting the season strong in a 37-30 road victory over the Gardner-Edgerton Trailblazers.
Wrestling
Last season, the wrestling team churned out 17 individual State qualifiers and two State placers, setting the bar quite high for this year.
At the State meet, the team finished 17th place, right in the middle of the pack.
Although practice began back in mid-November, the team trained hard during the long off-season.
Senior Austin Crawford said the team put in time in the weight room to get ready for the season.
“We’ve been working hard every day in the weight room,” Crawford said. “We’ve been getting quicker, faster and stronger — all the essentials.”
The team started the season in dominating fashion, going 5-0 in duals at the Spring Hill Meet.
