Otago's Caitlin Deans will go up against the best Australia has to offer in Adelaide next week.
The 16-year-old is the lone South Island swimmer to be picked in the New Zealand team to compete in the Australian age group swimming championships (12-18-year-olds), starting on Monday.
Deans will contest the 100m, 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle, and the 200m and 400m individual medley over the course of the eight-day meet.
The Neptune swimmer leaves for Adelaide today and is one of 12 Kiwis contesting the annual championships.
It will be a good hit out ahead of the New Zealand age group championships in Wellington next month, which double as a qualifier for the Junior Pan Pacific swimming championships, to be held in Hawaii in August.
Deans is coming off a successful weekend competing in the Otago Anniversary meet at Moana Pool at the weekend.
She recorded podium finishes in all eight races she entered, including wins in the girls 16 and over 50m and 200m backstroke, 100m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 200m individual medley.
Her win in the 200m backstroke was particularly impressive, as she powered home to touch the wall in 2min 28.98sec, 7.99sec ahead of second-placed Erin Ford, of Dunedin's Kiwi club.
Deans also finished second in the 100m butterfly and 200m freestyle, and third in the 50m freestyle. Zenith's Stefannie Gillespie (20) denied Deans in the 200m freestyle, while Neptune's Kate Godfrey was too good in the 100m butterfly.
The trio also battled it out in the 50m freestyle, with Godfrey coming out on top to win in 28.57sec, just 0.25sec ahead of Gillespie. Deans finished in 30.11sec.
● New Zealand's Open championships, which double as an Oceania championship qualifier, will be held in Auckland next week.
