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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball remained within striking distance most of the way Thursday night, but weren't able to overcome a late run by No. 5-ranked Fort Hays State, falling 59-47 on the road.
Senior Yibari Nwidadah led Washburn with 12 points and nine rebounds in Thursday's MIAA loss at No. 5-ranked Fort Hays State. [File photo/TSN]
With the win the Tigers snapped Washburn's four-game winning streak and avenged their only loss of the season, a 67-64 decision to Washburn on Dec. 6 in Lee Arena.
Washburn senior Yibari Nwidadah opened what would be a low-scoring first quarter with a layup at the 8:56 mark.
After a pair of ties, the Tigers (19-1 overall, 10-1 MIAA) stayed in front the rest of the way as both teams shot a combined 8-31 in the quarter. After ten minutes Washburn (14-6, 7-4) trailed 9-8.
The Ichabods continued to play catch-up to begin the second stanza. They were finally able to string together back-to-back buckets and lead 18-17 after Britany Kogbara got a basket to go with 4:23 left in the half.
Fort Hays State went back in front and led by two with 2:16 left. The hosts were held scoreless from that point on in the quarter as Ichabod senior Aniah Wayne tied the game at 24 heading into the half.
In the opening minutes of the third quarter the Tigers pushed the lead to four points at the 7:24 mark. They were held scoreless for the next four-plus minutes as Washburn was able to go in front on a Gabi Giovannetti 3-pointer at the 3:36 mark, the first 3-pointer of the game for the Ichabods.
Fort Hays State scored the final four points of the quarter to lead 36-33.
Washburn was able to tie the game up on an offensive rebound and putback by Nwidadah with 4:21 left in regulation, but the Tiger offense picked up the pace after that, scoring the next nine points in the game in just over two and a half minutes.
The lead was pushed into double figures as Fort Hays State pulled away for the 12-point win.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The No. 1-ranked Washburn Ichabods rallied to force overtime before pulling away in the extra frame for an 81-73 road win over Fort Hays State Thursday night at Gross Memorial Coliseum, improving to 21-0 overall and 11-0 in the MIAA.
Senior Brady Christiansen led a balanced Washburn attack with 18 points as the No. 1-ranked Ichabods improved to 21-0 with an 81-73 road win at Fort Hays State. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
"It's as good of a win as we've had since I've been here,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard told KTPK Radio. "We've had some good ones, but against that team, which we've got the utmost respect for, in this environment with that crowd ... we didn't flinch, we didn't give in, kept battling, kept fighting and made some plays late when we needed it.
"Just a gutsy, gutsy win for us and I'll remember this one for a long time.''
Washburn led 47-46 with 10:31 to go in regulation before Fort Hays State (15-5, 7-4) went on a 12–3 run, taking a 58-50 lead with 5:13 to go.
Washburn trailed by six with 55 seconds to play before a Bryson Smith layup and a Jeremiah Jones steal and layup cut the Tigers' lead to 66-64 with 29 seconds to go.
The Tigers hit two more charity stripes with 20 seconds left, but again Smith scored on a drive with 14 seconds left.
Fort Hays State drew a foul with 13 seconds to play, leading by two, but missed both free throws, and after a Jones rebound, WU sophomore Dillon Claussen was fouled with 0.9 seconds to play, and he connected on both free throws, sending the game to overtime.
In the extra session, Washburn outscored the Tigers 13–5, holding Fort Hays State without a field goal in overtime while converting 8 of 8 free throws and forcing a pair of turnovers.
Washburn trailed by one at 69-68, but had six points from Smith and five from Jack Bachelor, including a 3-pointer with 39 seconds to play, to push the Ichabod lead to four.
On the Tigers' ensuing possession, Jones swiped another ball and went the distance with a dunk as Washburn would lead 79-73 with 31 seconds left.
Smith wrapped up the scoring with two free throws with 22 seconds to play, sealing the win.
Senior Brady Christiansen led the Ichabods with 18 points going 10 of 12 from the free throw line and adding five rebounds.
Bachelor logged 42 minutes and finished with 17 points, three assists and two steals and Jones recorded his first double-double as an Ichabod with 14 points and 14 rebounds while adding four steals.
Smith tallied 16 points with six boards going 8 of 9 from the free throw line, while Claussen added nine points and seven rebounds.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After jumping out to an early 17-4 lead in Thursday's final first-round game in the Capital City Classic, Shawnee Heights girls hit a temporary road block, with Lawrence battling all the way back to tie the game at the end of the first quarter and take a four-point lead midway through the second quarter.
Junior star KK Emmot scored 29 points with seven 3-pointers in Shawnee Heights' 74-61 Capital City Classic win over Lawrence. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
But after a somewhat stern talking to from veteran T-Bird coach Bob Wells, Shawnee Heights righted its ship en route to a 74-61 victory over the Lions at Topeka High.
"They did (respond),'' Wells said. "It's kind of one of those deals where it is what it is because they're like everybody else in town, fighting the flu and fighting different kinds of stuff and we just had to battle through it.
"And you could tell that sometimes our shots were point-blank misses and I just told them to slow down and be stronger, understand where you're at right now with everything and just be strong and take it up with a little more force and finish, and thank goodness we started doing that.''
Now 11-3 with 10 straight wins, Shawnee Heights advanced to a 7:30 p.m. semifinal Friday to face Derby, a 65-57 first-round winner over tournament host Topeka High.
T-Bird junior KK Emmot had a big night, scoring a game-high 29 points with seven 3-pointers to key the Shawnee Heights victory.
"After we kind of got pretty much like punched in the mouth, as we would say, we realized we had to step it up and start hitting shots and start playing defense,'' Emmot said.
"We just had to adjust. That's the game of basketball, adjusting to it.''
Shawnee Heights rallied to take a 37-34 halftime lead and never trailed in the second half even though the 6-6 Lions got within three midway through the third quarter, with the T-Birds opening up a 15-point advantage down the stretch.
Shawnee Heights senior Imani McGlory scored 15 points with three 3-pointers in Thursday's 74-61 win over Lawrence. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Senior Imani McGlory backed Emmot with 15 points, including three 3-pointers, while junior Sami Baum added 11 points and senior Reianna Vega 10.
Junior post Cami Nauholz led Lawrence with 20 points and 14 rebounds while sophomore Macyn Ramsay added 17 points with five treys and senior Jada Baars-Turner scored 13 points.
Lawrence will play a 4:30 p.m. consolation game on Friday against Topeka High, a 65-57 first-round loser to Derby.
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 74, LAWRENCE 61
Lawrence 17 17 15 12 -- 61
Shawnee Heights 17 20 20 17 -- 74
Lawrence (6-6) – Juelsgaard 2-7 0-0 5, Doleman 3-8 0-0 4, Nauholz 7-16 6-6 20, Ramsay 6-8 0-0 17, Baars-Turner 5-8 1-1 13, Barber 0-2 0-0 0, Simmons 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-49 7-7 61.
Shawnee Heights (11-3) – Emmot 10-21 2-3 29, McGlory 6-14 0-0 15, Carter 2-10 2-4 7, Baum 5-11 0-0 11, Vega 4-9 1-1 10, Brees 0-0 0-0 0, Hamilton 0-1 0-0 0, Schmidt 0-0 2-2 2. Totals 27-65 7-9 74.
3-point goals – Lawrence 8 (Ramsay 5, Baars-Turner 2, Juelsgaard), Shawnee Heights 13 (Emmot 7, McGlory 3, Carter, Baum, Vega). Total fouls – Lawrence 11, Shawnee Heights 10. Fouled out – Juelsgaard. Technical fouls -- none.
Topeka High junior star Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton scored 37 points and reached the 1,000-point scoring milestone in Thursday's 65-57 loss to Derby. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Rayton scores 37, reaches 1,000-point milestone in Trojan loss
Thursday was a bittersweet night for Topeka High junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton and the Trojans.
Rayton scored 37 points and surpassed the 1,000-point career milestone for Topeka High, but the Trojans were unable to get over the hump against No. 3-ranked (Class 6A) Derby, dropping a 65-57 first-round decision to the Panthers.
"We started off slow, but we fought,'' Rayton said. "We fought our way back in and it might have been a loss, but it was a good loss because we fought our hardest.''
"They were going on runs and we'd come right back, several times,'' Topeka High coach Ron Slaymaker said. "I was very proud of that because it's very easy to fold your tent and go home.''
Rayton, who scored 33 points in a Tuesday night win over Atchison, surpassed that total with Thursday's 37-point explosion, hitting four 3-pointers among her 14 field goals while hitting five of eight free throws.
Rayton said reaching 1,000 points was a goal she's had since early in her career.
"It was a goal since freshman year, to get my 1,000 points before I'm a senior and I did it my junior year,'' she said.
"She's an athlete, she's got a lot of skills and she's got a great future ahead of her,'' Slaymaker said.
Topeka High sophomore Hailey Caryl scored 13 points in Thursday's 65-57 Capital City Classic first-round loss to Derby. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Freshman Hailey Caryl added 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds for Topeka High, but no other Trojan had more than three points.
Derby (12-2) rode a balanced attack to Thursday's win, with junior Ahsia Fox scoring 13 points, sophomore Alex Dinsmore 11 points and senior Macayla Askew and junior Maya Harris 10 apiece.
The Panthers never trailed, with just two ties in the opening quarter, and led 18-11 at the end of the first, 29-24 and 46-40 at the start of the final stanza.
Topeka High made numerous runs at the Panthers, getting within a point in the third quarter, but the Trojans were hampered by 20 turnovers on the night.
Topeka High will play a 4:30 p.m. consolation game on Friday against Lawrence, which dropped a 74-61 first-round decision to Shawnee Heights.
The Trojans beat the Lions 65-47 on Jan. 6.
DERBY 65, TOPEKA HIGH 57
Derby 18 11 17 19 -- 65
Topeka High 11 13 16 17 -- 57
Derby (12-2) – Demel 2-5 2-2 7, Fox 6-16 1-2 13, Dinsmore 5-9 0-0 11, Graham 2-7 1-1 6, Askew 5-11 0-0 10, Watie 0-1 0-0 0, Clingan 0-2 0-0 0, Gutzmer 0-0 0-0 0, Carter 4-6 0-0 8, Harris 3-9 1-2 10. Totals 27-66 6-7 65.
Topeka High (5-7) – Short 0-1 1-2 1, Marshall 0-6 1-2 1, Rayton 14-27 5-8 37, Caryl 2-5 9-12 13, Gotru 1-2 0-0 2, Triplett 1-1 0-0 3, Whayne 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-42 16-24 57.
3-point goals – Derby 11 (Harris 3, Damel, Dinsmore, Graham), Topeka High 5 (Rayton 4, Triplett). Total fouls – Derby 23, Topeka High 14. Fouled out – Short. Technical fouls -- none.
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By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural swimming ran its string of Topeka City Boys Championships to seven Thursday, running away with the city meet at Capitol Federal Natatorium.
Washburn Rural boys swimming celebrates in the Capitol Federal Natatorium pool Thursday after winning its seventh straight city team title. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
The Junior Blues were so dominant they claimed all but two of the 11 All-City first-team slots. They racked up 609 points, topping Seaman with 371.
The performance prompted second-year coach Bob Burdick to say that the rebuild from a Class 6A State third-place finish in 2024 is ahead of schedule.
“We lost a lot of seniors (from 2024), and they were really fast seniors. So, we had a rebuild year last year,” Burdick said. “That rebuild went way faster than expected because we got a lot of great swimmers. We’re going to lose 12 seniors this year, but we’re still looking just as solid next year because of all the new freshmen and sophomores coming in as well as the team that will return.
“They’ve got a great attitude and they’ve meshed totally as a team. We don’t have anybody with ego problems or anything like that. So that’s carrying the whole team.”
Daniel Allen won two individual events and swam on two winning relays as Washburn Rural dominated Thursday's city championships. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Braeden Montgomery was a double individual champion Thursday and swam on a winning relay as Washburn Rural won its seventh straight city team title. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Daniel Allen and Braeden Montgomery led the Junior Blues by taking first in two individual events while Thomas Appuhn, Castle Wallace and Davin Potts each collected one win.
Seaman's Kinser Barbosa won the 50 and 100-yard freestyle in Thursday's city swimming meet. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Kinser Barbosa highlighted the Seaman performance by taking first in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races.
“I was able to push past my limits and break those benchmarks in my individuals and was able to maintain it in both relays too. So, I feel great,” Barbosa said. “This is a special meet where you get to compete with your friends, but also where everyone has that great mindset to push past your limits. Each race is a great race because they all have the same mindset.”
Will Stewart was named to the All-City first team for placing second in two events and for also helping lead Topeka High relay teams to two third-place finishes.
Allen returned to the Junior Blues for his junior year after devoting last season solely to club competition. Burdick knew what he was getting in Allen because, as a freshman, he placed seventh at the state meet in the 500-yard freestyle and also contributed to a relay team that placed third at state.
“Adding Daniel is the anchor for the relays, so we know we’re going to be strong there, but we also have a lot of good swimmers supporting him,” Burdick said. “His attitude is really great for the team. That helps motivate a lot of people and gives us a great role model in the pool.”
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 1-ranked Washburn University men's basketball team hits the road for a three-game stretch, beginning with Thursday's 7:30 p.m. MIAA tilt at Fort Hays State.
Sophomore Dillon Claussen and the 20-0 Washburn Ichabods will face Fort Hays State on the road Thursday night. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn, 20-0 overall and 10-0 in the MIAA, is one of just two remaining undefeated teams in NCAA Division II along with Cal State East Bay after the Ichabods beat Missouri Western 90-78 last Friday.
Fort Hays State is 15-4 overall and 6-3 in the MIAA, having won its last five in a row after turning back Central Oklahoma 58-53 last time out.
The Ichabods defeated the Tigers on Dec. 6 in Topeka, 73-66, with the 73 points a season-low for Washburn this season.
Washburn has the No. 1-ranked scoring offense in the MIAA with 89.2 points per game while the Ichabods have the No. 2-ranked scoring defense at 61.8 points per game behind Fort Hays State's 59.9 average.
The Tigers are averaging 71.6 points, ranking 13th in the MIAA.
FHSU is 9-1 in home games this season, with the lone loss coming on Nov. 16 to Concordia-St. Paul in a 78-68 defeat. Since then the Tigers have won their last eight home games in a row.
The Ichabods have recorded 32 20-win seasons in program history and six under Ichabod coach Brett Ballard in his nine seasons.
Washburn leads the nation in scoring margin at plus 27.4 points per game and is ranked first in field goal percentage at 52.8 percent and second in rebound margin at plus 12.2.
Washburn has not been out-rebounded in a game this season and has only been tied twice (Lubbock Christian and Emporia State).
Ichabod sophomore standout Dillon Claussen is sixth in the nation in field goal percentage at 65.9, which also leads the MIAA.
Junior Jeremiah Jones leads the nation in total steals with 66 and is ranked third in steals per game at 3.30 per contest.
Junior Jack Bachelor is 12th in the nation in assist to turnover ration at 3.14 to 1.
The Ichabods' 20-game winning streak is the longest in the nation, ahead of Cal St. East Bay's 18-game winning streak.
The 20-game winning streak by the Ichabods is the third-longest in program history.
