Park Hill South senior Maddie Kubicki ended her high school wrestling career without a loss and four state titles, embodying the success that the Lady Panthers’ had last winter.
The Park Hill South girls had a historical outing in the winter from having a wrestler 4-peat to being 1-point away from a Class 6 Final Four appearance in basketball to having the best swimming finish in program history.
Senior Maddie Kubicki went a perfect 158-0 in her four years on the wrestling mat, becoming the second girl to do so in MSHSAA history. Having never lost a match, Kubicki brought home four consecutive state titles.
Along with surpassing the 150-win barrier in the backend of her senior campaign, the 145-pound wrestler imprinted her way into the history books. With rare matches having to be decided by a decision – as almost all her wins were by fall – Kubicki was ranked as the top female wrestler in the country.
Kubicki helped lead Park Hill South to 18th place in the Class 2 State Wrestling Championship. Aniya Coleman and Mylee Lentz were the other two state qualifiers.
Addison Bjorn and Ava Miles shined in their freshman campaigns, lifting Park Hill South to uncharted territory. The Lady Panthers’ two leading scorers helped them dominate in the regular season, winning 23 of the 26 games.
Park Hill South lost its first game early on in the Winnetonka Tournament Championship to Truman – who had 22 victories in its first 23 games – before only losing to state champions from that point on in regular season play. The Lady Panthers took a trip to St. Louis at the midway point of the season to take on Vashon and Incarnate Ward Academy, the eventual champions in Class 5 and Class 6, in losing fashion.
Park Hill South freshman point guard Addison Bjorn took the Kansas City Suburban Conference Silver Division by storm, being the player of the year and leading the Lady Panthers to an undefeated record in conference play.
Setting a program record in wins, the future is bright for Park Hill South who had the Kansas City Conference Silver Division Player of the year in Bjorn. The 6’1 point guard is well past halfway to 1,000 career points after scoring 552 in her freshman campaign – good for 18.4 points per game – to go along with season averages of 5.5 rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Juniors Avery Simmons and Regan Williams have started each of the last two seasons and have high potential for their senior campaigns and beyond. Simmons led the team in 3-point percentage and Williams was the best free throw shooter along with averaging a team-high 2.2 steals per game, while both scored in double figures in 2022 and 2023.
With four of the five starters coming back next year – only losing 2023 senior post Tatum Kells – another strong season is likely. After winning the Class 6 District 8 Tournament by a comfortable margin of victory of 27 points per game, the Lady Panthers’ season and 18-game winning streak ended in a 58-57 loss to Rock Bridge in the quarterfinals.
Trailing by 16 points with 6:14 left in regulation, the Lady Panthers clawed back and brought the game within 1-point but failed to complete the comeback, which would have resulted in the first state appearance in program history. Bjorn has been training with USA Basketball Junior National Teams this summer and is in a primed position to lead Park Hill South to the promised land in the future.
The basketball team wasn’t the only Lady Panthers’ squad that had a historical winter as Park Hill South had the best finish in program history in the Class 2 Girls’ State Swimming and Diving Championship. After taking third place in 2022 and a sixth-place finish in 2021, there were some experienced swimmers in 2023.
Park Hill South had three of the top-11 divers, including the top-2 finishers. Megan Wells claimed gold and Brooke Robbins earned silver as Madelyn Stephens ended her senior campaign in 11th place.
Avery Simmons has started the last two years and will join the freshman duo and fellow junior Regan Williams as four of the five starters that will return next season.
The Lady Panthers also dominated in the 50-yard freestyle, led by third-place swimmer Natalie Dunaway in 24.21 seconds and Charlotte Sander who took fifth place in 24.4 seconds. That duo was joined by Hannah Peterson and Alyssa Gordon in the 200-yard freestyle that collected a silver medal.
Freshman Lizzie Landuyt had an impressive state debut, earning sixth place in the 100-yard backstroke and was on the fifth-place 200-yard medley relay team with Peterson, Gordon and Molly Henry. Park Hill South ended state with 202 points, trailing only Parkway South who had 238 points.
For the Park Hill South boys, there was some early season success on the basketball court, starting off 7-2 and being ranked in Class 6 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches’ Association. The Panthers had a couple of rough stretches, losing three straight and a 5-game losing skid with a North Kansas City Tournament Championship in between, where head coach Dan Parra earned his 1,000th career win in the championship.
Cahmai Crosby surpassed 1,000 career points last winter after an impressive 3-year stint starting.
Park Hill South went on to finish the regular season with a 15-10 record before knocking North Kansas City out of the opening round of the Class 6 District 8 Tournament. The Panthers were eliminated in the semifinals by the eventual Class 6 State Champions, Staley.
Senior Cahmai Crosby was the second-highest scorer in the Silver Division of the Kansas City Suburban Conference as he surpassed 1,000 career points on the year. Averaging 17.04 points per game on a 48 percent rate, the 3-year starter will be missed next winter.
Dylan Taylor was the only Park Hill South boy wrestler who made it to state, going 1-2 and being knocked out on the first day. The junior ended the winter with a 24-10 record.