Ryle coach Jeff Floyd has viewed the psyche sheets and reviewed last year’s results at the KHSAA State Swimming & Diving Championships. He has seen many of the competitors before they take the stage Friday and Saturday at University of Kentucky’s Lancaster Aquatic Center in Lexington. Floyd has watched his own swimmers and divers over and over this season. He knows the score.
And so does Highlands coach Kevin Kampschmidt.
“Our goals are to again finish in the top five on the boys and girls side this year and move up one spot in the combined,” said the Bluebirds’ coach. “It will be really tough to do that. Ryle is experienced and well coached. Eastern from Louisville is also strong this year.”
Last year, it was Ryle 305.5, Highlands 243 atop the final state meet combined team standings. It was a repeat for the Raiders and another northern Kentucky-heavy sprint to the top.
“I feel like the team is representing Ryle really well,” coach Floyd said. “Our swimmers and divers train very hard and we’re looking forward to another trip to state.”
Just four Kentucky teams were able to attain last year’s hard-to-reach state 200-point threshold. The runner-up Bluebirds were 30 points ahead of third-place Lafayette and 36 ahead of West Jessamine in fourth.
No other team scored more than 151 points, Henry Clay’s fifth-place total. That was less than half Ryle’s winning score and nearly 100 points behind Highlands. The Raiders and Bluebirds were that good, and little has changed this year.
“There is a lot of energy and excitement going into this weekend,” said Highlands’ Kampschmidt.
The boys meet is Friday starting with morning preliminary races and concluding with the evening finals. The girls event is Saturday with the same schedule. Diving takes place between swimming prelims and finals each day.
Empire building
When Floyd took over both the swimming and diving programs at Ryle 10 years ago, the Raiders were competitive on the girls side but having a hard time cracking the region’s top‑10 in boys. They were making only small ripples in diving and in the combined standings.
Back then, Covington Catholic was the perennial king of swimming and diving, and Notre Dame Academy ruled the girls. Ryle eventually toppled them both, helping change the local hierarchy. The Raiders finally slipped past CovCath at the Region 7 meet in 2023 after Highlands dethroned the Colonels in 2018. Ryle ended Notre Dame’s two-decade run as regional girls champion with a three-year run in 2020–22.
“What we were able to do was keep our own at Ryle and not watch them go to other schools,” Floyd said. “That and building up our swimming talent and developing the diving program has been very important. We might score more diving points than anyone in the state.”
Floyd said culture plays a role, too.
“That’s what we promote, a great culture for kids and all the great opportunities at Ryle,” the coach said. “I’ve built a club program and sat on the Northern Kentucky Clippers board for several years. I’ve coached for a long time, but I didn’t see this coming. Our kids have done great and there’s more to come. The local club scene is so important, too, and we have that. Triple Crown provides a lot of our swimmers and divers. They’re doing great.”
Floyd indicated more than 30 Ryle swimmers and divers under his direction have gone on to college either for aquatics or other sports. He has about a half dozen current college signees and those with college offers. They include commits Chase Knopf (University of Louisville), Addison Coughenour (William Jewell College) and Gabriella Stephens (Northern Kentucky University). Lydia DiVita is receiving offers, one from Marquette.
Knopf is the second-ranked high school boys swimmer in Kentucky, according to Swimcloud.
Over at Highlands, Kampschmidt is fine‑tuning a program he inherited. “This is the most individual swims we have had at Highlands in Lexington in the three years I have been here,” said the coach.
He also has experience.
“We have strong senior leadership behind Ragan Moore, Noah Gracey and Charlie Herfel,” Kampschmidt said.
Herfel is a weapon and better than his top-45 Kentucky ranking at Swimcloud.
The rest of the local contingent
It’s not just Ryle and Highlands doing all the local work. Northern Kentucky competitors return to this week’s state meet with five of last year’s top 17 in the final combined team standings, or 30% of the elite group. Beechwood placed ninth. Dixie Heights finished 15th and St. Henry was 17th.
Additionally, Notre Dame is the returning girls runner‑up, followed by Highlands (fifth), Ryle (sixth), and Beechwood (seventh). Dixie Heights and St. Henry were in the top 20. On the boys side, Ryle returns after last year’s third‑place finish. Highlands is back after placing fifth. Also in the top 20 was Covington Catholic.
“Swimming and diving in this state is very strong,” said Ryle’s Knopf, the returning runner-up in the boys 500-yard freestyle. “There are more local all-American swimmers and divers coming out of this sport than any other sport in Kentucky.”
Knopf is seeded fourth in the 500 freestyle and fifth in the 200 free, while occupying spots on two seeded relay teams. Ryle teammate Nash Parsons is third in the 200 free, seventh in the 100 free, and also a relay racer. Wes Hempel is seventh in diving.
Ryle girls with top‑10 seeds are Stephens, fifth in the 200 individual medley, and Emma Albertson, ninth in 1‑meter diving. The Ryle girls have one top‑10 seed in the relays.
At Highlands, Herfel is fifth in the boys 500 free and seventh in the 200 IM. Elliot Meyers is eighth in the 200 free. Chanith Abeysinghe is 11th in the 100 free. The three Highlands boys relay teams are all top‑10 seeds.
The Bluebirds’ Keira Kobida is ninth in the girls 200 freestyle. Taryn Ripley is 10th in the 500 free and Addie Tinkler is 10th in diving. Highlands’ girls are top‑6 seeds in all three relays.
“We are going to be aggressive with our swims and expect to see fast swimming,” coach Kampschmidt said.
The area’s top individual qualifiers are Beechwood’s Cono Presti, the No. 1 seed in the boys 200 and 500 freestyles, and Notre Dame’s Clare Herfel, No. 1 and seeking a repeat in the girls 500 free. Presti is sixth-ranked in Kentucky at Swimcloud. Herfel, Swimcloud’s second-ranked Kentucky girls swimmer, is the No. 2 seed in the 200 free. Teammate Savannah Bien is No. 2 in diving. Simon Kenton’s Isaiah Reinhart is No. 2 in boys diving.
So, once again, northern Kentucky arrives at state with enough depth and firepower to shape the meet from the first prelim to the last race. The Ryle–Highlands battle for the combined title is one of the more compelling storylines.
Ever the optimist, coach Kampschmidt knows his Bluebirds’ work is cut out for them, especially trying to topple Ryle.
“We can make this happen, though, with our depth and balance,” the coach said. “Like last year, the boys and girls teams should finish about the same spot. We also have a chance to get all six relays in the top eight. If we can do that, then there is a good chance of improving those finishes. It’s going to be a really exciting meet, and I can’t wait to see our kids race against the best.”