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TopSports.news' 2025 Shawnee County girls cross country runners to watch
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Ali Gerber, Silver Lake
ALI GERBER, Silver Lake
Gerber, a junior, earned All-Shawnee County honorable mention last fall after posting a sixth-place finish in Class 3A regional competition and narrowly missing a 3A state medal with a 23rd-place finish in the state meet. Gerber medaled in seven meets last season and ranks No. 9 on Silver Lake's all-time list. Gerber was a first-team all-county pick in track this past spring.
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural
EMILY GRAF, Washburn Rural
Graf, a senior, was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick last fall after helping Washburn Rural sweep city, Centennial League and Class 6A regional team championships before Rural tied for the 6A team title and finished second on a tiebreaker. Graf posted a fourth-place finish in the city meet, a fifth-place showing in the Centennial League and 6A regional meets and a 14th-place finish at state, earning her second straight state medal. Graf was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick in track this past spring, running on Rural's second-place 6A 4x800 relay.
Sofia Harper, Hayden
SOFIA HARPER, Hayden
A junior, Harper has a career-best five-kilometer time of 20:01 and received All-Shawnee County honors for the second straight season. Harper earned a fifth-place finish in the Wamego Invitational and placed 10th in the city meet before battling illness late in the season. As a freshman Harper posted a second-place finish in Class 3A regional competition and finished 32nd at the 3A state meet.
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural
KENZIE MADDOX, Washburn Rural
Maddox, a senior, was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick last fall after helping Washburn Rural sweep city, Centennial League and Class 6A regional team championships before Rural tied for the 6A team title and finished second on a tiebreaker. Maddox finished ninth in the city meet, placed 12th in the Centennial League, 29th at regionals and 51st at state. Maddox had a season-best five-kilometer time of 19:41. Maddox was also a first-team all-county pick in track this past spring.
Ryin Miller, Seaman
RYIN MILLER, Seaman
A senior, Miller was named the Gatorade Kansas Cross Country runner of the year after sweeping city, United Kansas Conference and Class 5A regional individual championships and posting a runnerup finish at state. A three-time state placer, Miller ran the fastest five-kilometer time in Kansas history at 16 minutes, 32.62 seconds. Miller, who has orally committed to Arkansas, is the reigning two-time Gatorade Kansas Runner of the Year in track, winning the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 in the 2025 state meet.
TopSports.news' 2025 city boys soccer players to watch
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
CARLOS ACOSTA-MARTINEZ, Topeka High
Acosta-Martinez, a junior, was a second-team All-Centennial League selection last season for the Trojans while also earning All-City honorable mention.
Draden Chooncharoen, Washburn Rural
DRADEN CHOONCHAROEN, Washburn Rural
A senior midfielder, Chooncharoen received first-team All-Centennial League honors last fall as the 15-3-3 Junior Blues won their 30th straight league title (outright or shared) on the way to a third-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament. Chooncharoen also received All-6A and All-City honorable mention and is a two-time 6A state track champion in the 4x400-meter relay.
Miles Cook, Washburn Rural
MILES COOK, Washburn Rural
Cook, a senior goalkeeper, helped 15-3-3 Washburn Rural win its 30th straight Centennial League championship (outright or shared) en route to a third-place finish in Class 6A. Cook received second-team Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association All-6A and All-Centennial recognition as well as All-City honorable mention.
JUDAH CONGDON, Cair Paravel Latin
A junior, Congdon earned All-Class 4A-1A honorable mention from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association last season and also received All-City honorable mention.
Valentin Del Real, Topeka West
VALENTIN DEL REAL, Topeka West
Del Real, a sophomore midfielder, had a big freshman season for the Chargers last fall as Topeka West posted a breakout 13-4-1 campaign. Del Real earned first-team All-City recognition and also was a first-team All-United Kansas Conference pick.
NERI DIAZ, Highland Park
Diaz, a senior midfielder, earned first-team All-City recognition for Highland Park in the 2024 season and was one of the top players in the Meadowlark Conference.
Juan Garcia, Shawnee Heights
JUAN GARCIA, Shawnee Heights
A senior, Garcia received All-Class 5A honorable mention from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association last season while also receiving All-City honorable mention.
Diego Gonzalez-Talavera, Topeka West
DIEGO GONZALES-TALAVERA, Topeka West
A junior forward, Gonzales-Talavera helped lead the 13-4-1 Chargers to a breakout season in 2024, earning All-City and All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition.
Camden Granado, Shawnee Heights
CAMDEN GRANADO, Shawnee Heights
Granado, a senior forward, received All-Class 5A honorable mention from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association last season while also earning first-team All-City and All-United Kansas Conference recognition. Granado was also a standout kicker for the T-Bird football team last fall.
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights
MASON HAAS, Shawnee Heights
Haas, a junior midfielder, received All-Class 5A honorable mention from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association last season while also earning first-team All-City and All-United Kansas Conference recognition.
Brandon Hamiton, Washburn Rural
BRANDON HAMILTON, Washburn Rural
A senior defender, Hamilton received second-team All-Class 6A honors from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association while also earning first-team All-City and All-Centennial League recognition for the 15-3-3 Junior Blues, who finished third in 6A after winning their 30th straight league championship (outright or shared).
Finnesy looking to end six-year Ichabod football career on a high note
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University standout safety Jordan Finnesy has gone through just about everything a player can experience in his previous five years with the Ichabods.
Washburn senior safety Jordan Finnesy (1) is looking to cap his six-year Ichabod career with a banner 2025 season. [File photo/TSN]
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Plainville native began his time in Topeka with a 2020 season wiped out by COVID-19, was part of a WU team that advanced to the NCAA Playoffs in 2021 and helped the Ichabods post a solid 7-4 campaign in 2022. But his career also included a season-ending injury in 2023 and back-to-back losing seasons the past two years.
And now, with his sixth and final year in an Ichabod uniform coming up, Finnesy is determined to do everything he can to end things with a bang.
"It's been great,'' said Finnesy, a third-team All-MIAA pick last fall while ranking as the Ichabods' second-leading tackler with 89 stops (49 solo), 3.5 tackles for loss and a pass interception. "A lot of ups, a lot of downs and I'm still here kicking it and working, so it's just been a great experience overall. I love the city of Topeka and all of the coaches that I've been blessed to be able to play for.
"It's just been a great experience and a great growing experience as well. A lot of downs, but you can't grow if you don't have those and experience different things like that, so I'm just grateful for my time here and I'm looking forward to making the most of what I have left.''
Washburn is coming off a 3-8 season last fall, but after a productive summer, Finnesy thinks the Ichabods are ready to bounce back in a big way in their first season under Zach Watkins, WU's former defensive coordinator.
"It's gone great,'' he said. "We had our best attendance by far since I've been here at Washburn. Just the energy levels are off the charts, the buy-in, the commitment, the just wanting to be here and work with your teammates and with your brothers. It's been awesome to see and it's been awesome to be a part of.
"I'm honestly kind of sad that this is my last summer of it, but I definitely made the most of it and I think that this fall we will see dividends from that work this summer.''
