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THE PENNANT PLAYER PROFILE
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The grass, or in the case of college football, the turf, isn't always greener elsewhere and Washburn University star receiver/returner James Letcher Jr. is thankful he figured that out before making a life-changing decision.
Washburn star receiver/returner James Letcher Jr. is having another banner season for the 4-2 Ichabods, who host Northwest Missouri on Saturday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
There was a recurring rumor this past spring and summer that Letcher was mulling over the possibility of entering the NCAA Transfer Portal and trying to make the jump to a Division I program.
The rumor wasn't that hard to believe, considering the fact that Letcher was coming off an All-MIAA year in 2019 and that the transfer portal had became the 'in' thing to do for players all over the country.
But while the former Piper star admits that he did consider all his options during the Ichabods' long layoff due to COVID-19, he also knows he made the right decision in staying right where he was.
"A lot of it was just talk, a lot of it was looking at things,'' Letcher said. "I got pulled into a bit of the conversation because my roommate, Collin Wilson, ended up entering the transfer portal. Since we were so close and we were kind of feeding off each other back in 2019, I could see why people thought that.There were some long talks I had with a few of my teammates and my family back home and I feel like we all made the right decision for me to stick it out here.
"This is definitely home and it's right down the street from my personal home. I've been here so long I've got good connections with the coaches and the players and it was the right decision for me to stay.''
There were several family and football factors that entered into Letcher's decision to remain at Washburn.
For one thing, Letcher wanted to be close to home to help his father, a former football star himself, recover from serious health problems.
"He ended up getting sick right before COVID hit with his gallbladder,'' Letcher said. "He had to get that removed and he ended up having a lot more complications with that. He ended up having two massive strokes and went into a coma, but he's doing much better now. He's getting back to his old self and walking a lot better than he was and he's getting his feet back under him.''
Over the summer Letcher spent a lot of time in Kansas City, Kan. doing what he could to help out.
"That's one of the main reasons I stayed home, so he could see me working hard and I could see him getting better and better.every day.''
Washburn star James Letcher Jr. has caught 34 passes for 559 yards and six TDs for the 4-2 Ichabods. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Another major consideration was the fact that Letcher knew the 2021 season could be a big one for himself and the Ichabods.
That is proving to be true thus far, with Washburn taking a 4-2 record into Saturday's home tilt with undefeated and second-ranked Northwest Missouri State (1 p.m. kickoff) while Letcher has caught 34 passes for 559 yards (16.4 yards per catch) and six touchdowns and ranks 13th in the nation in all-purpose yards with 158.8 yards per game.
Letcher and the Ichabods are coming off a big 23-20 overtime win over Fort Hays State, with Letcher hauling in the 19-yard game-winning touchdown pass from senior quarterback Mitch Schurig. On the day Letcher had five catches for 56 yards and two TDs.
"It was great, it felt amazing,'' Letcher said. "It's always good to get another 'W' under our belts, especially coming off a hard loss (35-30 at Emporia State). It's good to get the momentum back and we've got to keep it going.
"Me and my teammates know it's going to be a dogfight every game and we're going to have to fight to the best of our ability.''
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Topeka West's boys soccer team has been looking for its elusive first win all season and the Chargers came oh so close Thursday on Senior Night at Hummer Sports Park before dropping a 1-0 overtime decision to Centennial League rival Hayden.
The Chargers have shown signs of improvement from week to week and heads were held high after Thursday's close call.
Hayden midfielder Nick Padilla was the hero for Hayden, taking the ball off a throw-in with 7:14 left in the fiirst overtime and drilling it in the goal from midfield.
The first half was all defense, with Hayden’s Ty Schroeder, Michael Sandstorm, Tyler Broxterman, Ethan Christy and Daxton Ham preventing the Chargers from getting any open space in Wildcat territory.
On the flip side, West also did its part in shutting down Hayden in the first half. Isaac Gonzalez, Carmelo Foy, Caleb Noonoo and Jackson Snyder were flying all over the field, keeping the Wildcats silent offensively.
The second half remained a stalemate for the Chargers and Wildcats.
Outstanding efforts from Hayden goalkeeper Gabe Rankey and Topeka West goalkeeper Giann Perez kept the scoreboard empty, forcing overtime.
Hayden goalkeeper Rankey was a wall all night long that Topeka West couldn’t get through, earning the shutout.
HAYDEN1, TOPEKA WEST 0
Hayden (9-5) 0 0 1 -- 1
Topeka West (0-13-1) 0 0 0 -- 0
Hayden -- Goal: Padilla. Shutout: Rankey.
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TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' football team is officially hot.
After losing their first three games of the 2021 season by a total of 11 points, the T-Birds have bounced back to win three of their past four games, including a 23-7 road victory over Blue Valley Southwest Thursday night.
Veteran Shawnee Heights football coach Jason Swift and his T-Birds have a lot to smile about after winning three of their last four games, including a 23-7 road win over Blue Valley Southwest Thursday night. [File photo/TSN
The 3-4 T-Birds will have the opportunity to post a .500 regular-season record with a home win over Kansas City-Turner next Friday at Wetter Field.
Shawnee Heights trailed the 2-5 Timberwolves 7-0 at the end of the opening quarter, but that would prove to be Southwest's final points of the night.
Heights recorded a safety to cut its deficit to 7-2 with 8:22 remaining in the first half and the T-Birds took a 9-7 halftime advantage on a touchdown pass from senior quarterback Callan Carver to senior Jarin Sanders with 32 seconds left in the half.
After a scoreless third quarter Sanders scored on a short run to put the T-Birds in front 16-7 with 8:55 left in the game and Carver connected with sophomore Jacob Malcolm with 6:57 remaining to account for Heights' final margin.
With Thursday's win Shawnee Heights has already tripled its win total from the 2020 season.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural's volleyball team has climbed to No. 8 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association/USA Today Super 25 National Rankings, released Wednesday.
Now 32-0 after wins over Olathe West and Topeka High Thursday night, the Junior Blues are one of just five undefeated teams in the Super 25.
Washburn Rural beat Olathe West 25-8, 25-11 on Thursday and beat Topeka High, 25-7, 25-5.
Rural, ranked No. 1 in the Kansas Volleyball Association Class 6A rankings, is 5-0 on the week, taking wins over Hayden, Lawrence and Manhattan on Tuesday at Hayden.
The Junior Blues will close out their regular season Saturday in the Emporia Invitational.
Washburn Rural's volleyball team, celebrating a point earlier this week, is ranked No. 8 nationally in the American Volleyball Coaches Associaiton/USA Today National Volleyball Rankings. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
American Volleyball Coaches Association/USA Today Super 25 Volleyball Rankings
Rank | High School
1. Marymount High School (Los Angeles, Calif.)
2. Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, Calif.)
3. Flower Mound High School (Flower Mound, Texas)
4. Ponte Vedra High School (Ponte Vedra, Fla.)
5. Cathedral Catholic (San Diego, Calif.)
6. Brandeis High School (San Antonio, Texas)
7. Berkeley Prep (Tampa, Fla.)
8. Washburn Rural High School (Topeka)
9. Penn High School (Mishawaka, Ind.)
10. Papillion-LaVista South High School (Papillion, Neb.)
11. Marin Catholic High School (Kentfield, Calif.)
12. Wayzata High School (Plymouth, Minn.)
13. Skyview High School (Nampa, Idaho)
14. Sacred Heart Academy (Louisville, Ky.)
15. Highland Park High School (Dallas, Texas)
16. St. Thomas Aquinas High School (Overland Park, Kan.)
17. Marian High School (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.)
18. Cherry Creek High School (Greenwood Village, Colo.)
19. Martin High School (Arlington, Texas)
20. Mira Costa High School (Manhattan Beach, Calif.)
21. Iolani School (Honolulu, Hawaii)
22. Assumption High School (Louisville, Ky.)
23. Liberty North High School (Liberty, Mo.)
24. Eaton High School (Ft. Worth, Texas)
25. Santa Fe High School (Alchula, Fla.)
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THE PENNANT PLAYER PROFILE
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Freshman Trenton Brehm came to Washburn University to play baseball, but almost on a lark decided he might as well try to double up in football.
The Ichabods are sure glad he did.
"I wanted to play baseball in college, that's what I wanted to do,'' said Brehm, a native of Papillion, Neb. "But then I was like, 'Maybe I should just try kicking in college, too.' I asked the baseball coach (Harley Douglas) if I could get the football coach's number and see if I could come play for the team. I texted coach (Zach) Watkins (WU assistant) and I came down on a visit and this is where I ended up.''
Trenton Brehm
A second baseman in baseball, Brehm had impressive kicking credentials in high school for Papillion La Vista South, making nine of 12 field goal attempts as a senior, including a long of 52 yards.
But with the Ichabods returning standout Kameron Lake, the plan was for Brehm to redshirt this season and then most likely serve as Lake's backup.
That all changed when Lake started experiencing problems with his leg early in the season.
Despite the pain Lake handled Washburn's kickoff and placement duties through the first two weeks of the season, but in Week 3 Brehm was installed as the Ichabods' kickoff man for the road game at Nebraska-Kearney.
"About midway through the week of preparation for Kearney, coach (Craig) Schurig came up to me and asked I would be OK with traveling to Kearney and doing kickoffs,'' Brehm said.
The move caught about everybody by surprise, including Brehm's family.
"My dad didn't believe me the first week when I said I going to go play,'' Brehm said. "I was a little nervous getting thrown out there. It was in my home state that first game, so that was kind of cool, but I was definitely pretty nervous going out there for my first college game.''
The next week, against Missouri Western, Brehm handled all of Washburn's place-kicking duties, a role he has filled the past three games for the 4-2 Ichabods.
"When I started doing everything, that's when the real nerves kind of kicked in,'' Brehm said.
True freshman Trenton Brehm has turned in a solid performance as Washburn's place-kicker after taking over for injured starter Kameron Lake. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Brehm has connected on two of three field goal attempts and 10 of 12 extra-point tries and is coming off his best game in last Saturday's 23-20 overtime win over Fort Hays State, kicking a 35-yard field goal and going two 2 of 2 on extra points.
"I feel like I'm doing pretty good,'' Brehm said. "I feel like I've gained a lot of confidence over the weeks and everyone's been super supportive of me getting thrown in there. I feel like I've definitely gotten a lot better and have continued to progress throughout this year.
"I feel a little more confident going out there each and every time.''
Schurig is quick to praise Brehm for how he's handled a challenging situation.
"He's just handled it beautifully,'' Schurig said. "I think that whole (kicking) unit has handled it well, and Kam has been very supportive. (Brehm's) done a tremendous job and we're thankful.''
"It's fun,'' Brehm said. "It's really fun.''
