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By VINCE LOVERGINE

TopSports.news

The Rossville Lady Bulldawgs' basketball season came to an end on Tuesday night against Ellinwood in the Class 2A state quarterfinals.

 

Rossville senior star Rylee Dick scored 31 points in her final high school game against Ellinwood on Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]

Before the season began, Rossville coach Derek Dick told TopSports.news that he and the team wanted to enjoy the little moments this year. They envisioned that goal of making it to the state tournament and before it all began, he said the first week of practice was the best he’d had in his 16 years of coaching.

 

While Derek and Rylee Dick only shared the court for two years in the Rossville uniform at the varsity level, it began way before that.

 

Rylee Dick knew she had a dream of playing college basketball some day at the next level and she will be doing that as she’s signed to play with Rockhurst University.

 

After the state quarterfinal game, Derek said it was something he’ll never forget with his daughter, cherishing those small moments.

 

“I made memories with my daughter that will last for a lifetime. We go to the gym every night to practice, I’m going to miss that,” Dick said after a tear rolled down his eye. “I was proud to share that moment with her and I know I was hard on her a lot, but I wanted her on the big stage. I thought she earned it through her work to be here.”

 

Derek Dick did say he was going to be a little lighter on Rylee this season, but they both know it’s out of love and wanting the best for Rylee.

 

“I know she’s my daughter, I’m super proud of Rylee,” Derek said, choking up. “When we were struggling to score or get things going, we put the ball in her hands and let her go and she made plays and gave us a chance, proud of her.”

 

When you look at the resume of Rylee, it’s quite remarkable. She became No. 2 all-time in Rossville scoring history back in January. She eclipsed the 1,500 point mark on March 3 and she nearly scored 50 points in a game, with 47 back in December against Kansas City-Ward.

 

Something people know about Rylee is her sharp shooting beyond the 3-point arc, creating for her teammates and making her teammates better.

 

But something that hasn’t bceen in Rylee’s favor is her height, with Dick listed at 5-foot-9. She recognized that from a young age and she needed to grind and put in countless hours even after practice.

 

“Ever since third or fourth grade, I always said I wanted to play college basketball and that’s definitely not an easy thing to do, especially being short,” Rylee said with a smile. “I know that I’m not that naturally gifted at basketball, so I had to put in a lot of time and effort and take it to where I am today and I knew that wouldn’t happen without being in the gym every night.

 

"I’m grateful for the grind. It’s taught me so much and I can use the skills and hardships I learned for everyday life… you’re not going to be anywhere without hard work. I’m glad that was instilled into me at a young age and so that I can accomplish other things, too.”

 

“I know there’s people all throughout the state that work hard but literally, she’s in the gym every night and with her height… she's a good athlete, not an elite athlete, but she has to do that stuff to give herself a chance. She understands that, she knows that, she’s earned everything she’s got,” Derek Dick said.

 

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By NATHAN SWAFFAR

Topsports.news

WICHITA – For the second straight season, Rossville once again found itself with an opportunity to advance within only two victories of a state title. 

Senior Jakoby McDonnell led Rossville with 14 points in Wednesday's Class 2A quarterfinal loss to Berean Academy. [File photo/TSN]

Unfortunately for the Bulldawgs, the 2026 season ended in the same place it did in 2025.

Rossville’s 17-8 season concluded in the Class 2A boys state quarterfinals once again on Wednesday as Berean Academy took home a 55-38 victory at Friends University. 

As a team, the Bulldawgs shot 40 percent from the field, but their offense struggled to reach the levels it had during the regular season.

Berean (23-2) zeroed in on Rossville senior standout Jack Donovan, allowing him little space and even fewer scoring opportunities. All in all, the Warriors held Donovan scoreless on only eight shot attempts throughout the quarterfinal contest.   

“It’s hard to beat a good team that talk and they did both, kudos to them,” Rossville coach Brandon McDonnell said. “We didn’t make an adjustment on our side and we kind of got flustered. Once you get flustered, it’s human nature; it’s kind of hard to dig yourself out of a hole.” 

The defensive slugfest got going immediately, as the Bulldawgs and Warriors refused to give up an inch of space. However, thanks to a last-second shot at the buzzer from Wyatt Friesen, the Warriors took a 9-7 lead into the second quarter. 

Turnovers became a nagging problem for Rossville over the next eight-minute period. Carelessness and the Warriors’ relentless defense culminated in seven giveaways by the Bulldawgs, directly leading to seven points from those turnovers. They finished the half with nine giveaways and ended the game with 11 total. 

McDonnell said the turnover issues were as much a credit to the Warriors’ defense as they were to careless ball security from the Bulldawgs.  

“This is state, the butterflies are different, the thought process is different, the environment is different,” McDonnell said. “When you mix all that together, you're going to have some slippage. And our problem is that we had too much of the slippage, and then they converted off of it.”   

And Rossville’s struggles on the offensive side were no better, ending the second quarter with only five points with a 22.2 shooting percentage. However, Berean couldn’t take full advantage as it dealt with its own offensive struggles, but still took a 20-12 advantage into the locker room.

Even though both teams shot under 30 percent in the first half, the Warriors had far more offensive opportunities, outshooting the Bulldawgs by 10 attempts.  

Out of halftime, both teams found a better offensive rhythm. Rossville finished the third quarter with a much improved 67.7% mark from the floor, but Berean wasn’t far behind, shooting over 50%.

In addition, the Warriors inflicted greater damage thanks to multiple made 3s and seven made free throws. That extended their lead to double-digits with a 35-24 advantage with one quarter to go. 

Over the final eight minutes, the Bulldawgs struggled to find a way back into the affair. The Warriors kept them at a distance and closed things out to advance to Friday night’s semifinals. 

Jakoby McDonnell led the Bulldawgs with 14 points to go along with three rebounds and assists. Cameron Miller also finished in double figures with 10 points.

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By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

WICHITA -- The Topeka High Lady Trojans were experiencing the state tournament for the first time since 2022 Tuesday, but they certainly didn’t look like a team new to the stage.

Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton led Topeka High with 17 points in Tuesday's 61-58 state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Topeka High gave No. 2 Derby a battle to the very end in the Class 6A quarterfinal at Koch Arena, dropping a 61-58 heartbreaker to finish its season 17-8.

The Trojans lost to Derby (22-3) for the second time on the season after dropping a 65-57 decision to the Panthers in the Capital City Classic back in January.

Both teams came out of the gate Tuesday struggling to find the basket.

Derby opened the scoring with a free throw to make it 1-0, but that would be the only point scored for nearly two minutes.

Topeka High coach Ron Slaymaker called a 30-second timeout and the Trojans responded immediately.

Sophomore Hailey Caryl scored 15 points in Tuesday's 61-58 Topeka High state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Hailey Caryl scored inside, drew the foul, and completed the three-point play to give High an early 3-1 lead.

The teams traded baskets through the rest of the quarter. Derby tied the game at 10-10 with a shot at the rim before Caryl answered with another basket.

Topeka High’s leading scorer, Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, had been held scoreless for most of the opening period, but with 43 seconds left she knocked down a shot to give the Trojans a 16-12 lead.

At the end of the first quarter, Topeka High held a narrow 16-15 advantage.

Derby opened the second quarter with three quick points to take the lead, but Rayton responded with a 3-pointer to tie the game at 19-19.

Late in the quarter, with the Trojans trailing 30-26, Topeka High went on a run.

Sasha Gotru scored inside, Rayton added a basket and Caryl knocked down two free throws. Gotru then scored again with just 0.3 seconds left before halftime, capping an 8-0 run that gave the Trojans a 34-30 lead at the break.

Derby came out of the locker room on fire, opening the third quarter with a 6-0 run to reclaim the lead at 36-34.

Senior Keimara Marshall had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in Tuesday's 61-58 Topeka High state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

High's Keimara Marshall answered with a basket in the paint to tie the game. The Trojans then responded with a 7-0 run to push their lead to 41-36.

Derby star Macayla Askew went to work, scoring five quick points to cut into the deficit.

Topeka High held on to a slim 48-46 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Derby opened the final period with five straight points to take a 51-48 lead.

The Trojans tied the game at 51-51 before Askew hit a 3-pointer to give the Panthers another advantage.

With 43.5 seconds remaining, Caryl attacked the rim and was fouled. She calmly sank both free throws to cut the deficit to 59-58.

Topeka High was forced to foul, and Derby knocked down both free throws to extend the lead to three, 61-58.

The Trojans still had one last chance. Marshall brought the ball up the floor but didn’t have a clean look and passed to Trisha Short.

Short swung the ball to Rayton, who appeared ready to launch a potential game-tying three.

However, the buzzer sounded just before she could get the shot off, ending the Trojans’ season as Derby advanced to Thursday's semifinals.

Topeka High relied heavily on its starters throughout the game. Marshall and Caryl each played all 32 minutes, while Rayton and Short played 30 minutes apiece. Despite the heavy workload, they still had energy in the final moments.

“We have asked a lot of those five all year,” Slaymaker said. “They’ve had to play major minutes in every game because we are not deep.

"I'm very, very proud of their effort. I’ve been proud of them for 11 games in a row. We damn near got this one.”

Slaymaker reflected on the team’s journey throughout the season.

“We dug a hole early. We were 0-4 to begin the season, and Caryl had a pretty bad ankle sprain,” Slaymaker said. “A lot of teams start 0-4 and end up 0-8, thinking their season is over. But we didn’t think that way.

"After our tournament in January we had a meeting -- not a chewing type meeting -- just telling them we could still do this. And then we went on that 11-game run against some pretty good competition.''

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