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Wildcats ride balanced attack past SM West, 75-63
By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
Coming off a second straight Baldwin Invitational championship, the Hayden Wildcats welcomed the winless Shawnee Mission West Vikings to the Ken Bueltel Activity Center on Wednesday, building a big halftime advantage en route to a 75-63 non-league win.
Hayden senior Connor Hanika scored a team-high 17 points in Wednesday's 75-63 non-league win over Shawnee Mission West. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Wildcats, who lost three games at the start of January, have since won five of their last six.
Hayden would get things started Wednesday with senior Makhi Kidd scoring the Wildcats' first two baskets to take a 4-3 lead.
The only lead changes of the night would come in the first quarter as the Wildcats and the Vikings would answer each other with six lead changes until Hayden senior Connor Hanika would give his team the lead and score two of his team-high 17 points as the Wildcats would go on an 8-0 run before the Vikings would get a basket with a free throw to make it 14-8.
The Vikings would keep digging and make it a two-point game at 19-17 late in the first quarter before the Wildcats would close with two 3-pointers to make it 25-19 at the end of the first.
Senior Makhi Kidd scored 16 points in Wednesday's 75-63 Hayden non-league win over Shawnee Mission West. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The second quarter would get started with Hayden senior Kade Mitchell, who before the game accepted his invitation to play in the 2026 Kansas Shrine Bowl, would find the basket followed by Kidd, who would score his eighth point of the night on the way to a 16-point night.
Hayden would outscore the Vikings 18-10 in the second quarter to go into halftime with a commanding 43-29 lead.
The Vikings would come out on fire and go on a 7-0 run to make it 43-36 before Wildcat junior Mason Becker would make his second of four 3-pointers on the night to stop the Viking run.
“The same message that we've had all season is our energy and effort have to be consistent,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Anthony said. "And that has to be something that doesn't waver and sometimes we get into the funk of letting that waver.”
After receiving a message from Anthony the Wildcats would go on a 13-0 run to blow the lead to 57-41 and Hayden would close the third out with a 61-47 lead.
Kidd would continue staying hot in the third quarter as he would score six points in the quarter.
“When I would cut, my teammates would give me the ball,'' Kidd said. "My teammates were getting tip passes. I was coming up with them, getting putbacks, doing everything I can to help the team win, really.”
“Makhi is having a good year,'' Anthony said. "And the crazy thing is, I really believe that Makhi has even more that he's going to show us before the season's over because he's just really a strong kid. He has really good skills and he's starting to learn how to play in some areas that may have been uncomfortable for him before. He's really doing a good job.”
Hayden junior Carter Compton scored 16 points Wednesday night against SM West, one of four Wildcats in double figures [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Wildcats would have four players in double figures, with juniors Carter Compton and Mason Becker scoring 16 and 14 points.
“That's the vision I have for this program,'' Anthony said. :You know, if we play basketball with a certain pace and the way that we do, it should be easy for guys to get easy buckets into being double figures a lot more than sometimes they are.”
“It's huge,'' Kidd agreed. "If you look at the games we've won, that's that's how we do it. We have multiple people in double figures and that really pushes us to be great when we're sharing the ball and getting everybody touches because everybody on the floor can score.”
Chargers pull away late for 67-57 UKC win over T-Birds
By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
The No. 2-ranked Topeka West Chargers, coming off a Topeka Invitational Tournament championship and winners of five straight games, would welcome crosstown rival Shawnee Heights T-Birds on Friday and rallied down the stretch to take a 67-57 United Kansas Conference win.
Junior Prince Lassiter scored 22 points to lead Topeka West in Friday's 67-57 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [File photo/TSN]
The Chargers would get the game started with junior Prince Lassiter getting to the rim for the first basket of the game and they would follow that up with senior Keimani Paul hitting a 3-pointer to make it 5-0 West right away.
Ken Darting's Heights team would get on the board when senior Jaimarion Cook would find the hoop to make it 5-2 West and would go on a 6-0 run with junior Cam Ross scoring five of his game-high 26 points to make it 10-10.
West would answer with a 9-0 run of its own to make it 19-10 before Ross found the basket to kill the run.
West would then go on a 10-0 run to make it 29-14 as the T-Birds would battle foul trouble and Ross on the bench with three fouls.
Heights would out-score the Chargers 8-3 in the final minutes of the half to go into halftime chasing West, 32-22.
At halftime Heights would be in huge foul trouble, with four players that had three or more fouls.
The third quarter would see each team counter each other before the T-birds would go on an 18-0 run, with Ross scoring 11 points and tying the game and taking the lead and freshman Quincy Dixon would hit a 3 at the buzzer to give the T-Birds a four-point lead going into the fourth quarter after out-scoring the Chargers 24-10 in the third.
But that would be all the T-Birds would have in the gas tank as they would come out in the fourth quarter flat.
The Chargers would get things started with a Lassiter corner 3-pointer. Heights' Ross would answer with a basket but that would be all as the Chargers would go on a Paul-led 12-0 run in which he would score five of his 20 points in the fourth to help his team put the game away.
“He's a Topeka West stalwart,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "The kid is a basketball coach's dream. The kid just does everything in his power we ask of him. He is 6-foot-6, long, lanky, but can seize the court really well, cuts well. And he's just growing, and in terms of basketball knowledge. So it's really fun to see.''
Bond takes reins of Cair Paravel Latin football program
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
After 13 seasons under the leadership of Doug Bonura, the Cair Paravel football program will have a new head coach. Longtime junior high coach Randall Bond will take over for the 2026 season, the school recently announced.
Longtime Cair Paravel Junior High football coach Randall Bond has been promoted to be the Lions' head varsity coach for the 2026 season. [Photo by Jan Pabitzky]
The promotion of Bond to the varsity head coaching position ensures a high degree of familiarity and continuity. Bond has worked closely with Bonura over the years, installing the offensive and defensive systems run at the high school level and promoting similar character traits among the junior high players.
“I think it’s going to be a great transition, and I think he’s going to do a great job,” Bonura said of his successor. “He’s been around the game for a long time. He’s very personable. He loves the boys and really wants to help them grow and mature. The kids know him and trust him. It’s a great opportunity for him to become a head coach.”
Bond is a theatre and choir teacher at Seaman High School. He brings extensive experience to his new coaching position. Prior to joining the Cair Paravel football staff seven years ago, he coached junior high football at Holton for 14 years, where he collaborated with varsity head coach Brooks Barta, a former Kansas State star and son of Kansas coaching legend Roger Barta.
Bond said he is excited to build on the foundation laid by Bonura and to further the relationships he forged with the students as junior high head coach.
“I was lucky enough to coach up at Holton and you talk about a community that is invested in the kids,” Bond said. “It’s not the same here because we’re not a small town, but it has that feel. The parents are invested in the kids. They want what’s best for the kids, and this kind of culture is just hard to find. For me, it’s the best situation to come into. I’ve already coached most of the boys and it’s just a welcoming, supportive community.
“I’ve learned a ton from coach Bonura. He’s a phenomenal leader. He coaches and teaches the boys the right way, has super high expectations for both players and coaches.”
Bonura guided the program as it earned membership in KSHSAA and transitioned to two seasons of 11-man football. The team will return to the 8-man level for 2026. During Bonura’s tenure, the team won Kansas Christian Athletic Association championships in 2013 and 2021, the school’s last year prior to participation in the KSHSAA playoff system.
The decision to resign now was not easy for Bonura, who noted that the team returns a lot of talent for the upcoming season.
“When you have something that you’ve invested in for 13 years and you want to see it continue to grow, it was a very difficult decision for me,” Bonura said. “But I think it was the right decision at this time. And it helps for it to not become my idol. I don’t want it to become about me.”
Family was a motivator for Bonura to coach football at Cair Paravel, and it was a motivator to call it quits. His youngest son was a senior on the 2025 team.
“I have seven kids, so there is a lot of life going on outside of Cair Paravel for me. So, it was the right move for me to be able to do the things my family needs at this time,” Bonura said.
“When I started, I just wanted to have fun with my boys, giving them a chance to play football and to develop a program that honored the Lord and in which young men can learn how to grow up in a world that can be difficult. That’s what football teaches.”
Bonura recalled a situation early in his tenure that illustrated that character development. His team had its undefeated season interrupted by a 50-6 thumping at the hands of Heartland Christian School from Colby. The two teams met again in the playoffs.
“We had a real gut check,” Bonura said. “I told them, ‘You guys were scared.’ There were only 12 boys on that other team, but they were tough as nails. I challenged our guys, that ‘suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope’ from (the Biblical book of) Romans.”
In the rematch, Cair Paravel lost 62-58 in what Bonura calls one of the best games during his time at the school.
“Our boys really grew from that experience,” Bonura said. “And when I see those guys we still talk about that game. They knew that they fought back and weren’t afraid of those guys anymore.”
Bonura thanked Jeff Brown and Ron Thornburgh who coached the team prior to his assumption of head coaching duties for facilitating a smooth transition and laying a solid foundation. He also credited the assistant coaches who have been on his staff over the years.
“I’ve worked with great people along the way,” Bonura said. “Great men committed to help young men grow in their walk regardless of wins and losses. That’s hard to do, because you want to be successful in the wins column.”
Cair Paravel athletic director Gary Cleverdon said Bonura would not be easily replaced, but that the process that ultimately led to Bond’s promotion had been a positive one.
“Doug took over a program that was just getting started in the eyes of many. Football at this school was not the big item on the block,” said Cleverdon. “It was always more than just football for Doug. He put his blood, sweat and tears into it, every ounce he had. We would have loved to have him until he just couldn’t coach anymore. But he knew the time was right.
“Turning a program over to anyone else is going to be big shoes to fill. We feel like we have the right person who has been with Doug for many years. It’s been a fantastic transition so far and I think it’s going to be a really good situation.”
