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Created: 15 September 2021

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural is ranked No. 1 in Class 6A in this week's Kansas Volleyball Association state rankings, pacing three Shawnee County schools in the rankings.

Washburn Rural is top-ranked in this week's KVA Class 6A state rankings, posting a 10-0 record through Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]

Rural, 10-0 after wins over Centennial League foes Hayden and Topeka West on Tuesday, is followed in the 6A rankings by Blue Valley North, defending state champ Blue Valley West, Shawnee Mission Northwest and Free State in the top five.

Shawnee Heights and Seaman earned the No. 6 and No. 7 spots in the 5A rankings.

St. Thomas Aquinas is top-ranked in 5A, followed by St. James Academy, Lansing, Mill Valley and Maize South.

Louisburg is No. 1-ranked in 4A, while other top-ranked teams are Smoky Valley (3A), Heritage Christian (2A), Pretty Prairie (1A Division I) and Hanover (1A Division II).

KANSAS VOLLEYBALL ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS

Class 6A

1. Washburn Rural; 2. Blue Valley North; 3. Blue Valley West; 4. Shawnee Mission Northwest; 5. Free State; 6. Wichita Northwest; 7. Hutchinson; 8 Blue Valley; 9. Blue Valley Northwest; 10. Olathe North.

Class 5A

1. St. Thomas Aquinas; 2. St. James Academy; 3. Lansing; 4. Mill Valley; 5. Maize South; 6. Shawnee Heights; 7. Seaman; 8. Basehor-Linwood; 9. Spring Hill; 10. Newton.

Class 4A

1. Louisburg; 2. Andale; 3. Bishop Miege; 4. Circle; 5. McPherson; 6. Clay Center; 7. Baldwin; 8. Nickerson; 9. Rose Hill; 10. Paola.

Class 3A

1. Smoky Valley; 2. Cheney; 3. Nemaha Central; 4. Beloit; 5. TMP-Marian; 6. Riverton; 7. Hiawatha; 8. Scott City; 9. Eureka; 10. Goodland.

Class 2A

1. Heritage Christian; 2. Garden Plain; 3. Smith Center; 4. Wabaunsee; 5. Jefferson County North; 6. Hillsboro; 7. Sedgwick; 8. Meade-Fowler; 9. Ellinwood; 10. Sterling.

Class 1A Division I

1. Pretty Prairie; 2. Central Plains; 3. Kiowa County; 4. Little River; 5. Lebo; 6. Victoria; 7. Centralia; 8. South Gray; 9. Sylvan Lucas; 10. Pratt-Skyline.

Class 1A Division II

1. Hanover; 2. Attica; 3. St. Francis-Cheylin; 4. Golden Plains; 5. Linn; 6. Dighton; 7. Wheatland-Grinnell; 8. St. Paul; 9. Beloit-St. Johns-Tipton; 10. Logan-Palco.

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Created: 16 September 2021

By KEVIN HASKIN

TopSports.news

Kevin Haskin

Musings at the mid-month:

-- Talk to anyone outside Kansas City about a downtown ballpark and parking gets mentioned first.

-- Talk to those inside Kansas City – I did so this week during a reunion of former Kansas City Kansan sports writers – and parking got mentioned first.

-- As much as anyone wants to dismiss that angle, parking is a concern.

-- The Royals once marketed heavily outside of KC. Now, not so much it seems.

-- Kansas City is a different, and more vibrant place, meaning people in Topeka, or any other place nearby enjoy it even more and still attend games.

-- I don’t go enough to really care, and I won’t feel any tax pinch.

-- Building downtown could make sense and it could be cool.

-- But given when both Kauffman Stadium and Arrowhead were built, designers really did it right. Each have, with modifications, withstood the test of time.

-- Oh, whenever someone advocates shuttles, keep in mind how long shuttles can get bogged down in postgame traffic.

-- Drove with my daughter to the old Kansan building recently and took a picture. Paper went belly up years ago, but the façade remains.

-- A lot of great athletes and great teams in KCK back then.

-- Wyandotte High School graduate Rick Peterson would agree.

-- The Big 12 did what it had to do adding members and I should probably feign excitement about the new grouping, but how long will it last?

-- Especially when Kansas bats a wandering eye toward other leagues and openly acknowledges concerns about dwindling revenue streams.

-- No, I do not know whether the Jayhawks will gain admission elsewhere. Flunked tea reading, which really can’t be streamlined into a pass-fail option.

-- If KU can get into the Big Ten, then it’s proof basketball matters.

-- If it happens, send past and current coaches and ADs a thank you note. Except Jeff Long. He deserves nothing.

-- Rock Chalk could just as easily be a slogan that reflects KU’s steady positioning as a basketball favorite or, ahem, chalk.

-- Yet we tend to take the Jayhawks’ basketball preeminence for granted. Don’t.

-- Comments out of Kansas State, meanwhile, tend to ballyhoo the new Big 12 alignment.

-- This is K-State’s best option and the option is best if the dozen moving forward stick together.

-- Think about these three straight weekends the Wildcats will be on ESPN-plus.

-- Their matchups with Nevada and Oklahoma State absolutely should be cable network options.

-- But you can’t help but think a message is being sent here.

-- By the way, what exactly defines the plus in ESPN’s streaming option?

-- I’ll let you buffer on that answer.

-- Personal memories when I think about the four new Big 12 additions:

-- UCF. Nothing much, except that Wichita State celebrated a move to the AAC, only to watch now as members with strong football programs leave.

-- BYU: Steve Sarkisian as a player, quarterbacking the Cougars against K-State in the Cotton Bowl.

-- Cincinnati: Visiting ancient Nippert Stadium for both K-State and KU games, and now marveling that Cincy somehow gave the place a shiny makeover. That, and young Huggs.

-- Houston: Phi Slama Jama and before that, the Big E winning a big game in a big place, the Astrodome. Game of the Century it got dubbed in 1968 as Houston ended UCLA’s 47-game winning streak.

-- Reminds me that 50 years ago I sat in the den of my sister’s Topeka home, glued to football’s Game of the Century pitting Nebraska and Oklahoma.

-- The anniversary of the 1971 showdown will be celebrated Saturday when the two programs reunite.

-- Reading recollections this week, I can’t help but recall that K-State beat Oklahoma in 1969 and ’70, while the 1968 Kansas team shared the Big Eight title with OU and advanced to the Orange Bowl.

-- Also in ’68, both KU and K-State beat Nebraska. ABC then telecast the Sunflower showdown, a big deal in the age of limited TV for college football.

-- Shortly after Vince Gibson’s death, Pepper Rodgers told me he lamented the rules violations each turned in attempting to gain in-state superiority.

-- Eventually, those blows proved costly for both of the rebuilds.

-- I’ll think of Pepper and Vince on Saturday when watching Boomer and Big Red. And, I’ll be mindful that I miss the Big Eight.

-- FWIW, my sister’s old den now features a collection of golf treasures since the house is now owned by the crafty left-hander, Mark Elliott.

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Created: 16 September 2021

THE PENNANT PLAYER PROFILE

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

When he graduated from Shawnee Heights in 2019 after being a three-sport standout for the T-Birds, Tyce Brown temporarily gave up football to head to Cincinnati and concentrate on a Division I baseball career at Xavier University.

But the lure to return to the football field and the chance to be a two-sport athlete in his hometown was too good for Brown to pass up. 

Former Shawnee Heights standout Tyce Brown has been an immediate contributor for the 2-0 Washburn University football team. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

"I liked (Cincinnati),'' Brown said. "It was a great town and I liked all my teammates and it was a great atmosphere. I kind of just missed football and wanted to come back and get a chance to do that again.

"I talked to my parents about it and I kept watching some high school games and I was like, 'Yeah, I miss that.' I also talked to my high school coach (Jason Swift). We had multiple conversations and he was very helpful to the process, just thinking things through and making sure this was the right decision and making sure this was what I really wanted and not just an impulse decision. I'm glad he was there to do that for me.''

The fact that Washburn football coach Craig Schurig and Ichabod baseball coach Harley Douglas would allow him to play both sports was also a key factor in his decision to transfer.

"That was huge, the fact that both coaches are willing to work with me and willing to let me miss some time and still play,'' Brown said. "I think I can help both teams and I'm glad I get the opportunity to do that. That was a big factor and I'm glad they let me do that.''

The 6-foot, 185-pound Brown, who has four years of eligibility remaining in both sports, joined the Ichabod football team for fall practice in the COVID-canceled '20 season, initially playing defensive back before switching to wide receiver this season.

"I made the switch this summer and I put in the work with Mitch (Schurig, senior quarterback) and Jace (Williams, senior receiver) and they helped me a lot,'' Brown said. "We worked on the playbook and that helped me learn and get a grasp on everything, so when camp rolled around I was ready and wasn't behind. I was up to speed.''

The position switch has paid early dividends for both Brown and the Ichabods, with Brown seeing action in both games for 2-0 WU, catching four passes for 28 yards.

Brown received his first career start in last Thursday's 29-10 home MIAA victory over Central Missouri, with senior quarterback Mitch Schurig finding him for Washburn's first two pass completions of the night.

"I definitely didn't expect to be thrown in the fire but I'm ready when my number is called,'' Brown said. "I didn't even know I was going to get the start, actually. Jace was hurting right before the game and was he was out so they called my number.''

Brown comes from a big sports family, with older brown Trey a senior basketball player for MidAmerica Nazarene and younger sister Tatum a freshman softball player at South Dakota, and said that being back in Topeka suits him.

"I'm a big family guy,'' he said. "Me and my brother and sister and my parents are all close and I enjoy being back here at home with my family and friends.

"This just feels like home. The coaches here brought me in and made me welcome, and all my teammates have made me feel welcome. I'm thankful for them welcoming me like that. It's going great and I'm definitely enjoying my time here.''

Details

Created: 16 September 2021

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Kaylee Manns loves playing volleyball.

But the former Washburn Rural state champion and multi-time Iowa State All-America setter never dreamed she'd still be playing professionally at 33 years old or that the sport would open the doors it has for her around the world.

"I literally remember saying to one of my really good friends that played at KU, 'I don't want to be that girl that's 30 and still playing,' and here we are,' '' Manns told TopSports.news.

But Manns, a three-sport star at Washburn Rural before concentrating on volleyball at Iowa State, has absolutely no complaints, thankful for every opportunity and experience the sport has provided.

Kaylee Manns [auprosports.com]

Manns was named the Topeka Shawnee County overall senior female prep athlete of the year in 2006, is a member of the Kansas Volleyball Association Hall of Fame and has played professionally for more than a decade after finishing a record-setting career at Iowa State, with stints in Turkey, Switzerland, Germany, Brazil, Albania, the Phillipines and Puerto Rico. 

"I didn't even know this was possible,'' Manns said. "I didn't even know you could play overseas. I went to college and I was like, 'OK, I guess I'm going to play volleyball here and I'll see how it goes.' 

"The sport has grown so much that there's a lot more opportunities. I had no idea. Not even a thought in my mind.''

Most recently Manns, who now lives in Grand Rapids, Mich. after getting married to former USA National Team member Graham Mcilvaine this summer, played in the inaugural Athletes Unlimited league in February and March and has re-upped for a second season.

"I definitely still enjoy it,'' Manns said. "I'm done with the nine months, 10 months overseas for sure, but thankfully Athletes Unlimited happened and I can play in the states and it might in Kansas City this year I believe. I think it's between Kansas City and Dallas, so that would be really cool.

"I know the athletes and the season is like six weeks, which is pretty great. You just go really hard for six weeks and you play three matches a week, all over the weekend. It's so nice.''

Manns, who TopSports.news named the top volleyball athlete in Shawnee County history last month, will have another opportunity to celebrate her life in volleyball in late October when she is inducted into the Iowa State Hall of Fame.

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