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By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
There was no letdown for the Shawnee Heights boys Tuesday night.
Jaret Sanchez led the way with 21 points as Shawnee Heights improved to 9-2 with an 82-30 UKC win over Leavenworth Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The T-Birds followed up their thrilling Shawnee Mission West Viking Classic championship with a blowout of Leavenworth 82-30 at Shawnee Heights.
The T-Birds picked up where they left off last weekend, drilling their first seven shots Tuesday. But it was the Shawnee Heights defense that was the catalyst. The T-Birds made such a routine of turning over the Pioneers, they only permitted the visitors 29 shot attempts in the game.
The turnovers converted to fast break attempts at the other end, which senior Jaret Sanchez said is precisely the plan.
“Coach (Ken Darting) said at the beginning of the season that he wants like 65 to 70 percent of our points to be in transition on turnovers,” Sanchez said. “All of us are just buying in, knowing that if we go for a passing lane and miss, we have our teammates behind us to back us up and they’re going to get a stop.”
The T-Birds bolted to a 27-9 first quarter lead and continued to pile on. They held the Pioneers to just three points in the second period and led 44-12 at intermission. Darting substituted liberally in the second half, which was quickened by a running clock in the fourth period.
Deacon Pomeroy scored 13 points in Shawnee Heights' 82-30 win over Leavenworth Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Ontarius Emmot scored 10 points in Tuesday's 82-30 UKC win over Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Nine T-Birds scored in the game. Sanchez led Shawnee Heights with 21 points. Deacon Pomeroy contributed 13, while Da’Quan Lee and Ontarius Emmot each scored 10. Players off the bench got in the act, including senior Andrew Ledell, who drilled three shots for eight points.
“It’s the best feeling seeing your friends that you grew up with go out there and get buckets and make plays,” Sanchez said. “We put hard work in every day at practice and then just see everybody shine.”
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka High senior diving star Jaxon Cowdin has been playing a little bit of catchup while working through a lingering ankle injury he suffered last summer.
Topeka High senior Jaxon Cowdin won the diving title in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational. [File photo/TSN]
But with his bid for a fourth straight city title coming up on Thursday, followed by Centennial League and Class 6A state competition, Cowdin served notice in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium that he's rounding into form just in time for his stretch run.
In his first 11-dive competition of the season, Cowdin bested the field of nine divers with a score of 394.00, while Free State's Gavin McIntosh was second with a score of 351.75.
"It's more like a test of for one, stamina, and two, consistency, and three, who's got all their stuff put together,'' Cowdin said. "You see a lot of dudes crash and burn on 11 dives. I felt pretty decent, but there's still a lot to clean up.''
Cowdin hurt his ankle back on July 3rd, but his recovery from that injury has last a lot longer than he ever expected.
"It was not healing and it was bad for like a couple of months and then I finally started doing stuff on it, rehabbing it and everything like that and it's almost back to 100 percent now,'' Cowdin said.
Cowdin felt like he was a little bit behind at the start of the season, but is feeling good about where he is now.
"I think (the injury) definitely played a factor, but now that I'm starting to really kind of get into my groove of things, everything's getting better,'' he said.
Nex up is Thursday's city meet and Cowdin's shot at a perfect four for four city run.
"I really try not to think about it a whole lot,'' Cowdin said. "I try not to psych myself up or make myself nervous and I don't think I'm going to be nervous going into it at all.
"We're going to see what happens and obviously I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure I don't get beat, but if I do, hopefully it's by one of my teammates.''
Topeka High's Dawson Blankenship posted a win in the 100-yard butterfly in Tuesday's 12-school Topeka High Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka High also got a win from Dawson Blankenship in the 100-yard butterfly in 59.04 seconds while Blankenship posted a third-place finish in the 200 individual medley (2:25.96).
Lawrence Free State won the team championship by a 538-339 win over Lawrence, with Seaman third with 243 points.
Peyton Holmes anchors Seaman's 200-yard free relay to a win in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Seaman's foursome of Kinser Barbosa, Jeremiah Moylan, Theron Carlson and Peyton Holmes posted a win in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:36.03 while Barbosa finished third in the 100 freestyle (51.96) and third in the 100 backstroke (1:03.33).
Hayden finished sixth as a team, one point ahead of Topeka High (188-187).
Palmer Heskett finished fourth for the Wildcats in the 200 IM (2:29.52) while Ryan Carson was fourth in the 100 butterfly (1:03.79).
Thursday's city meet at Cap Fed will get under way at 1:30 p.m.with the diving competition, followed by swimming competition at 5 p.m.
TOPEKA HIGH INVITATIONAL
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Even the casual local football fan knows the name Ky Thomas, but it may have been awhile since you've heard as much about the former Topeka High legend.
Former Topeka High superstar running back Ky Thomas is back home for his final collegiate season, transferring to Washburn University. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
That will change this fall, with the 6-foot, 200-pound running back coming home to play his final collegiate season for Zach Watkins' Ichabods after previous stops at Minnesota, Kansas and, most recently, Kent State
"It feels good, it feels great,'' Thomas told TopSports.news. "Coach Watkins, speaking to him and seeing his vision that he had for this offseason and the season and for me moving forward and everything he has planned, it was easy to trust and easy to come back home and be a part of this.''
A 2020 Topeka High graduate, Thomas finished his prep football career for the Trojans in 2019 as the city's all-time rushing leader and the No. 2 rusher in state history with 7,703 yards, including 3,009 yards as a senior, when he was named the Gatorade Player of the Year.
Thomas began his college career at Minnesota, where as a redshirt freshman he led the Gophers with 824 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 166 carries and capped his Minnesota career with 144 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries, earning offensive most valuable player honors in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix.
Former Kansas running back Ky Thomas scored a pair of TDs in the 2022 Liberty Bowl. [Photo by Sarah Carson/Special to TSN]
Thomas then transferred to Kansas for the 2022 season, rushing for 162 yards and two touchdowns on 53 carries while catching five passes for 39 receiving yards and a TD. Thomas scored two touchdowns, on a 29-yard pass reception and a 2-yard run, in Kansas’ 55-53 triple-overtime loss to Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kameron Badura
KAMERON BADURA, Rossville
A senior, Badura scored 21 points Saturday as Rossville downed Perry-Lecompton 49-41 to cap off its championship run in the Valley Falls Invitational. Badura averaged 17 points in the tournament as the Bulldawgs went 3-0 on the week to improve to 8-3 on the season.
Mason Becker
MASON BECKER, Hayden
Becker, a sophomore, scored 20 points with five 3-pointers on Saturday as the Wildcats won the tournament championship in the Baldwin Invitational with a 63-49 win over the host Bulldogs. Becker helped Hayden cap a 3-0 run in the tournament as the Wildcats improved to 7-5 on the season.
Kailyn Hanni
KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake
A junior guard, was named the Most Outstanding Player in last week's Burlington Invitational after helping lead Silver Lake to the tournament championship. Hanni scored 22 points in the Eagles' 70-60 win over Labette County in the championship game and scored 64 points in the tournament for the Eagles, No. 3-ranked in Class 3A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association.
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' boys wrestling team bested a 21-school field on Saturday to win the team championship in the Gerald Sadowski Tournament at Holton.
Hayden junior Jude Krentz remained undefeated on the season while earning the 175-pound title in the Gerald Sadowski Tournament at Holton. [File photo/TSN]
The T-Birds got a title from sophomore Brody Brown and six top-three finishes on the way to winning the title by a 188.5-177 margin over Spring Hill.
Brown, now 24-6 on the season, clinched the 138-pound championship with a second-period pin (3:54) over Colton Ball of Chapman.
Shawnee Heights also got third-place individual finishes from freshman Mason Moore (126), sophomore Dallas Owens (132), junior Gavin Hartman (150), junior Evan Johnson (157) and senior Kael Westgate (165).
Topeka High finished sixth as a team with 124 points, getting an individual title from senior Nick Davis at 165 pounds. Davis, now 21-2, recorded a 17-1 technical fall over Brodie Pipkin of Spring Hill.
The Trojans also got third-place finishes from sophomore Jose Gomez (106) and senior Cooper Martin (190).
Hayden posted an eighth-place team finish (76.5 points), led by junior 175-pounder Jude Krentz.
Krentz, now a perfect 29-0 on the season, earned the 175 title with a pin at the 2:30 mark over Nick Allen of Rock Creek.
