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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural's football team is in the midst of a dream 2023 season, and the Junior Blues aren't ready to wake up yet.
Steve Buhler's Junior Blues outscored Wichita East 21-0 in the second half to pull away for a 35-14 Class 6A quarterfinal win Friday night at Bowen-Glaze Stadium, improving to 11-0 on the year while advancing to a home sub-state matchup next Friday with Derby, a 23-21 winner over Manhattan.
JC Heim (25), who scored three touchdowns, and Washburn Rural celebrate Friday night's 35-14 Class 6A quarterfinal win over Wichita East. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn Rural celebrates after being presented with the Class 6A sectional trophy after Friday night's 35-14 win over Wichita East. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"We've just got to keep playing,'' Washburn Rural coach Steve Buhler said. "These guys have been talking about this for a long time. We made a run to this game last year and felt like we could have played a little bit better against Derby last year and these guys just took it and ran. They knew this is where they wanted to be and they've worked hard to get here.''
Washburn Rural, which edged Wichita East 26-25 in the season-opener, was locked in a 14-all halftime deaclock with the Blue Aces Friday night before the Rural defense came up with defensive stands at the end of the first half and a pair of stops in the second half and pulled away down the stretch on three JC Heim touchdown runs.
"We just keep building and every time we go back to work that next Monday we have to stay disciplined and keep going,'' Heim said. "We just need to keep this train going.''
Washburn Rural junior Lafayette Thompson scored Friday's first touchdown on a 70-yard reception from Branton DeWeese. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Rural drew first blood midway through the opening quarter after forcing a Wichita East fumble, with senior Branton DeWeese connecting with junior Lafayette Thompson for a 70-yard touchdown on the Junor Blues' second play from scrimmage (Wilson Miller kick).
Wichita East, which finished its season 8-3, tied the game on a 29-yard run from senior Rayvelle Leak with 2:33 left in the first quarter (Cohen Richardson kick) but Washburn Rural regained the lead on a 6-yard TD pass from DeWeese to senior Titan Osburn with 11:30 left in the first half (Miller kick).
East pulled even for a second time when senior quarterback Daeonte' Mitchell scored from a yard out (Richardson kick) at the 3:56 mark of the second quarter and the Aces reached the Rural 1-yard-line late in the first half before senior Jaren Heim threw Mitchell for a 5-yard loss to end the threat.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball evened its record on the year with win No. 1 of the 2023-24 season on Saturday night, defeating Oklahoma Baptist 69-54 in the final game of the Central Region Crossover in Shawnee, Okla.
Washburn senior guard Aubree Dewey led the way with 20 points as the Ichabods improved to 1-1 with a win over Oklahoma Baptist Saturday night. [Oklahoma Baptist Athletic Communications]
The Ichabods return to action next Friday against McKendree University in the first game of the Quincy Classic in Quincy Ill.
Washburn (1-1) rode a hot start to Saturday's win, with the host Bison (0-2) leading 5-4 with 4:43 to go in the first quarter before the Ichabods finished the quarter on a 13-4 run, fueled by two 3-pointers from senior Mackenzie Gamble and one trey from senior Aubree Dewey, to take the lead for good.
Amaya Davison got the first bucket of the second quarter to push the lead into double digits at the 9:17 mark.
The Washburn lead stayed at 10 or more for the remainder of the half, with the Washburn defense locking in and holding the Bison to 3 of 8 shooting in the second quarter and forcing eight turnovers in the second.
Liz Boyd put in a layup just before halftime to make the score 29-17 in favor of the Ichabods.
Washburn shot a blistering 71.4 percent in the third quarter (10 of 14 shooting), opening the quarter with seven straight points.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Jesiah Bonura
JESIAH BONURA, Cair Paravel Latin
Bonura, a 5-foot-8, 160-pound senior, carried the ball 31 times for 159 yards last Friday as Cair Paravel Latin advanced to the state Eight-Man Division I football semifinals with a 48-23 road victory at Chase County. Bonura scored on a 5-yard run in the game as the Lions improved to 9-2 on the season.
Branton DeWeese
BRANTON DeWEESE, Washburn Rural
A 6-0, 190 senior quarterback, DeWeese completed 12 of 22 passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns as Washburn Rural improved to 11-0 with a 35-14 win over Wichita East in the quarterfinal round of the Class 6A state football playoffs. DeWeese, who also rushed for 38 yards on eight attempts, completed a 70-yard touchdown pass to Lafayette Thompson and a 6-yard TD to Titan Osburn.
JC Heim
JC HEIM, Washburn Rural
Heim a 6-2, 225-pound running back/linebacker, helped lead Washburn Rural to a 35-14 lwin over Wichita East in last Friday's Class 6A state football quarterfinal. Heim rushed for 178 yards and three touchdown on 12 carries, scoring on runs or 12, 95 and 6 yards as the Junior Blues improved to 11-0 on the season.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Eleven Shawnee County players have received All-State recognition from the Kansas Volleyball Association, led by Seaman junior Maegan Mills, who was named the Class 5A player of the year after heping lead Seaman to its first 5A state championship.
Seaman junior Maegan Mills has been named the Class 5A volleyball player of the year after helping lead the Vikings to a 38-6 record and the 5A state title. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman coach Tatiana Dowling was named the Class 5A coach of the year by the Kansas Volleyball Association after leading the Vikings to the state volleyball title. [File photo/TSN]
Mills, a 6-foot-1 outside hitter, was credited with 418 kills on .295 hitting efficiency while compiling a total of 62 blocks. Mills had 51 service aces and 197 digs.
Mills is joined on the KVA All-State 5A first team by Viking senior Brooklyn Gormley while Seaman's Tatiana Dowling was named the 5A coach of the year after leading the Vikings to a 38-6 record, including five straight-set wins in the state tournament.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
For the first time since 2006 Washburn University soccer is heading to the NCAA Tournament and is the No. 1 seed in the Central Region.
All-MIAA pick Khloe Schuckman (11) and the WU soccer team will host a first-round NCAA Tournament game at 6 p.m. Friday at Yager Stadium. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods' second-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament will start with a 6 p.m. first-round game on Friday against No. 8 Ouachita Baptist at Yager Stadium.
The Ichabods enter the national tournament 16-3-1 overall and captured the MIAA regular-season championship.
This is the first time in program history that Washburn is serving as a host for NCAA postseason play.
