Arguably the most dominant Rockhurst High School sports program does not exactly call 9301 State Line Road home. Instead, you have to travel south and a little bit east to the Goppert Rock Plex to find the headquarters of the Aquahawks, Rockhurst’s swim and dive team, winners of four straight state championships and 15 titles overall this century. With that storied history, this year’s team has a lot to live up to as they attempt to win a fifth consecutive championship starting on Thursday.
While there are many factors playing into the great success of the team, two of the largest factors for the 2024 team come in the form of senior swimmer Andy Baklanov and legendary head coach Paul Winkeler.
Ranked fifth in Missouri and first in Kansas by points in competitions, Baklanov is the No. 1 swimmer on the team. In-season and out, Baklanov puts in work to dominate competitions. For instance, Baklanov placed first in the 100 yard backstroke and second in the 200 individual medley at state for the Rockhurst team in 2023, and crushed club competition in the Missouri Valley Swimming region by setting a record for the 200 backstroke this past March.
“Andy is by far one of the most accomplished athletes I’ve ever coached,” Winkeler said. “He’s the complete package….leadership, determination in the water, an extremely hard worker.”
While Baklanov is undoubtedly a huge asset to the team, he gives most of the credit to Winkeler.
“He does so much for us,” Baklanov said. “From late nights planning sets for workouts, to just supporting us in competitions, he does it all.”
Winkeler took over the program in 1999, and has coached them for 22 of the 25 seasons since. During that time, he built the Aquahawks into the dominant swim and dive team in the state. Its 15 state titles are the most for any school in Missouri. Winkeler has has coached 79 All-Americans, 77 Academic All-Americans, and 44 individual or relay State Champions. Last year, Winkeler was named the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) 2022-2023 National Coach of the Year for boys swim and dive.
“He’s just an amazing coach,” Baklanov said. “One thing that he does a really good job of is valuing every member of the team. That goes a long way.”
Baklanov says other members of the Aquahawks community also deserve some credit for the team’s accomplishments.
“I definitely attribute a lot of our success to Coach Winkeler, but also a lot of it to the parents. They do a lot more for us than people know,” he said.
Back in the pool, the Aquahawks are ranked first in Missouri heading into state after dominating most of the meets they competed in this year. Baklanov solidified his status as the No. 1 swimmer on the team, bringing in the most points from competitions this year, 679.25.
Yet, if they are to bring home their fifth straight title, the “dive” portion of the swim and dive team will certainly play a sizable role, in particular senior Joseph Douglas. Douglas is the team’s No.1 and a four-year varsity diver, making it to state each of his years as well. In those state meets, Douglas placed 13th as a freshman, 3rd as a sophomore and 4th as a junior, all high enough to earn him three consecutive years as an all-state finisher.
This year, Douglas is heading into state with some momentum. He placed first at the team’s final regular season meet, the Springfield Invitational, with 414 points. He also was named the Rockhurst Athlete of the Week on Monday, Oct. 28.
In addition to Douglas, the diving Hawks also have strong leadership in coach Steve Robbins. Robbins joined the staff in 2019, helping with every one of the state championships on the team’s current streak.
With the help of Robbins, Douglas and the rest of the divers, the overall Aquahawks team is in good shape for title number five in a row.
“This has been just a really great season,” said Douglas. “I feel like we’re more ready than ever to bring home another championship.”
Even with their own success, the divers still attribute much of what the team has accomplished this season to Baklanov and Winkeler.
“(Wink) has been doing this for a while, and by now he really knows his stuff. I would really have to attribute a good amount of our success to him. He just does a great job motivating us and getting us ready to go,” Douglas said. “And of course Baklanov is great. He really loves his team and he is really dedicated to swimming. Yeah, he’s really freaking fast.”
All of these assets give the swim and dive team an edge in the water, but they know it takes more than speed and skill to make a state-winning team.
“There are a million other things you take care of before winning….details, preparation, mindset, relationships, discipline….after those remain your priority, the winning is the residue,” Winkeler said. “The key to coaching a state team is not to focus on state, it’s about focusing on being better everyday and developing into the best version of yourself. The key is to be prepared when state arrives.
“Of the 15 state championships that our program has been blessed to win, we’ve been favored to win less than half. It’s all about mindset.”
