The 2023 girls’ state championships for prep swimming and diving are Thursday and Friday in Gillette.

Here is a breakdown of some of the favorites for individual events and relay races. Plus, a look at how the team race stacks up. Class 4A competes on Thursday and Friday. Class 3A is on Friday and Saturday.

Class 4A

This division features more parody, in terms of the number of top-end swimmers.

Kelly Walsh senior Chayse Schierkolk is the favorite in both sprint freestyle races. She is the defending champ in both events, and those are her specialty. Schierkolk has the fastest times in both events at 24.41 seconds in the 50-freestyle race and 53.63 seconds in the 100-freestyle race.

Jackson’s Amaya Olivieri has the top time in three events entering the state championships. The question is which two will she swim? The sophomore has the fastest time in the 100-backstroke at 1:01.22, the 100 butterfly at 59.48 seconds, and the 200 IM at 2:13.37. Olivieri is the defending champ in the backstroke race.

Fellow sophomore teammate Maren Tattersall will contend for titles in the two distance freestyle races. She has the top time in the 200 free at 1:59.44 and second-best time in the 500 free at 5:25.22.

Both Olivieri and Tattersall could swim in a variety of events. It’s all up to their coach.

Another defending champ is Cheyenne Central senior Izzy DeLay. She will be the favorite for another title in the 100-breaststroke race. Her time of 1:01.84 is the fastest in 4A in that race this season.

Senior teammate Emily Mears is the defending champ in the 100-butterfly race. She has the fourth-fastest time in that event at 1:02.09.

Other swimmers that have chances at titles include Madi Zach from Thunder Basin in the sprint freestyle races, but she could also swim in the butterfly race. Cheyenne East senior Sydni Sawyer will be right there in the distance freestyle events. She has the best time in the 500-freestyle race at 5:20.21. Campbell County’s Zoe Gallion, Haily Creary, and Addie Rehard also will be in contention in various events.

On the diving board, Laramie junior Maggie Turpin enters as the favorite, but as we’ve seen in past years that doesn’t also equate to a win at the state championships. Junior teammate Rowyn Birdsley, as well as, Jackson’s Camila Mendez, Anna Sorensen from Rock Springs, Colette Danby from Jackson, and Sheridan’s Emily Walton will be in the mix.

In the relays, the medley favorite is Jackson. Kelly Walsh and Jackson look to be in a battle for the 200 free relay, and Cheyenne Central and Jackson will battle for the 400 free relay title.

The team race seems to be a tight one with a handful of teams in the mix. Laramie has won six straight titles, and the Plainsmen are one of the contenders. Kelly Walsh, Jackson, Cheyenne Central, and Campbell County could all vie for the top spot depending on how they fare over the two days of the championships.

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Class 3A

Green River sophomore Tavia Arnell will be a favorite in whichever two individual events she competes in. She has the best time among 3A swimmers in seven of the eight events. The only one she doesn’t is the 100-breaststroke race, where Arnell has the third-best time. She is the defending champion in the IM and butterfly races.

Senior teammate Brianna Uhrig and Douglas senior Payton Yost will be battling for the 100-breaststroke title on Thursday and Friday. Those two are separated by .34 seconds in that event.

Green River junior Tanith Smith is the defending champion in both sprint freestyle races. She enters the state swim meet with the third-best time in the 50 free and second-best in the 100 free.

Lander sophomore Katy Anderson is the defending champion in the 100-backstroke race. She has the second-fastest time of the season at 1:01.12.

Other contenders include Kylie Price from Kemmerer in the sprint freestyle races. Green River’s Courtney Clark looks to be the favorite in the 500 free. The 200 free top contenders could include Cody’s Summer LaVigne, Lander’s Lara Robertson, and Green River’s Hailey Clevenger. Powell’s Patricia Christensen and Kiyoko Hayano and Lander’s Emily Anderson are also contenders this weekend.

The diving board could be an interesting contest. Senior Olivia Maertens from Buffalo has the most experience among the chief contenders, but as last year proved, you must execute your dives to bring home a title. Maertens took third in 2022. Evanston freshman Rachel Johnson has the best 11-dive score of the season. Right behind her is junior teammate Allyssa Sepos. Rawlins senior Ava Westfall placed fourth in 2022 and could be a factor in 2023. There could be a surprise like last year over Friday and Saturday’s action on the board.

As for the relays, Green River has the top times across all three relays. The question is, how will Coach Seiloff stack those relays? Lander, Cody, and Douglas are next in line in the medley relay. Douglas and Lander are second and third in the 200 free relay, while it’s Lander and Cody chasing GR in the 400 free relay.

Green River is the favorite to regain the Class 3A title. Their top-end, combined with their relays and depth, might make it hard to beat the Wolves. Lander pulled off a great state swim meet last year, and the Tigers are the defending champions. They will be in the mix. Powell and Douglas are also trying to put together two good days to get on the podium.