Highland Park Scots
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seven Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Famers, two current NFL players who continue to add to their legacy, and a baseball great who made his mark more than a century ago comprise men's picks No. 11 through 20 on TopSports.news' list of the Top 100 Athletes in Shawnee County history.
The late Fred Slaughter and Steve Tilford, who graduated from Topeka High, Highland Park's Michael Wilhoite, Kyle Weems and James Patrick, Washburn Rural's Aaron Crow and Topeka West's Warren Seitz are all members of the Topeka Shawnee County shrine while former Topeka High star Teven Jenkins and Shawnee Heights/Washburn University great Corey Ballentine have carved out successful NFL careers and the late Elwood "Bingo'' DeMoss made his professional baseball debut in 1905 before going on to an outstanding career in the Negro Leagues as a player and a manager.
Slaughter played on the legendary John Wooden's first national basketball championship team at UCLA, while Tilford was a world renowned cyclist.
Wilhoite put together a seven-year NFL career, including a Super Bowl appearance, while Weems helped lead Highland Park to a perfect 25-0 season basketball season before starring at Missouri State and embarking on a long and continuing professional career while Patrick helped the Scots capture the only Grand State championship in Kansas history.
Crow was an All-American at Missouri and an American League All-Star for the Kansas City Royals while Seitz was a multi-sport standout at Topeka West, quarterbacked the Missouri Tigers and had a stint in the NFL.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
We're down to the top 20 women's picks for TopSports.news' list of the Top 100 Athletes in Shawnee County history and the achievements just keep getting more and more impressive.
Selections No. 11 through 20 include a United States Olympian and a 17-time individual state high school champion as well as a pair of NCAA Division I team champions and a D-I individual champ.
The latest group of picks also includes a multi-sport star who racked up seven state crowns in two sports along with a Final Four participant, an all-time Washburn great and two early trailblazers for local women's athletics.
Here's a look at No. 11-20:
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Men's picks No. 21-30 on the list of TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 Athletes features two local basketball legends, a pair of players who made it to the Major Leagues, five of the county's most recognizable names in football and one of the most accomplished multi-sport athletes in local annals.
The late Ron Paradis and Delvy Lewis led Washburn Rural to a state basketball championship before going on to standout careers at Kansas State and Kansas, respectively, while Duff "Sir Richard' Cooley and former Hayden and Washburn standout Jerad Head made it to the Major Leagues in baseball.
Kyle McNorton (Seaman) was an All-Big 8 linebacker for Kansas and played in the NFL for the Kansas City Chiefs, Trey Lewis (Washburn Rural) was an All-American for Washburn and played for the Falcons, Will Geary (Topeka High) and Wyatt Hubert (Shawnee Heights) were multiple-time All-Big 12 picks for Kansas State and Ky Thomas (Topeka High) finished his prep career as the No. 2 all-time rusher in state history before going on to a Division I career.
Mark Elliott was a multiple sport standout for Silver Lake, was a pick in the Major League Baseball Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers, played quarterback at Washburn and is one of the area's most successful golfers.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The latest women's selections for TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 encompasses a group of athletes who are probably household names for most any local household that has a sports fan.
The group of 10 include a national player of the year (Stacey Slavens), an MIAA player of the year (Jessica Mainz), an All-Big 12 honoree (Crystal Kemp), seven total college All-Americans in five different sports (Slavens, Mainz, Dani McHenry, Shannon Suddarth, Laura Klamm, Latisha Yarnell, JaNelle Wright) and three of Kansas' best ever in high school track and field (Jocelyn Bentley, Lori Green, Wright).
Here's a look at picks No. 21 through 30:
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The latest men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 Athletes (No. 31-40) are a vastly varied group, featuring All-Americans in three different sports as well as the most successful Paralympic athletes in county history.
Shawnee Heights wrestling great Tanner Gardner went on to become Stanford's first three-time NCAA All-American while Hayden two-sport state champ John Tetuan was an All-American pitcher for Wichita State and Highland Park star Dale Cushinberry was a two-time basketball All-American for Emporia State.
Tetuan had a stint as a minor league pitcher while Topeka High product Ted Evans and former Highland Park All-Stater Jahmal McMurray both played professional basketball.
Picks No. 31-40 also include local legends Mark Turgeon and Dan Davis, who helped lead Hayden to undefeated state championships in basketball and football, as well as former Seaman hoops star Johnny Johnson, who put together a Hall of Fame career at Washburn University, and world-renowned Paralympic athletes Dan Cnossen (Shawnee Heights) and Austin Hanson (Seaman).
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The latest men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 are not only a testament to some of the county's all-time greats in six different sports but also provide a bit of a history test for even the most seasoned of local sports fans.
TSN's latest group of 10 Top 100 honorees (picks No. 41-50) includes athletes who achieved the bulk of their athletic greatness in seven different decades covering more than 100 years.
Included are "Dink'' Mothell, who made his professional baseball debut in 1914, while Highland Park's Ed Delk excelled in the 1950s, Seaman and Washburn star Dode Lesser and Washburn Rural grad Tom Bunger made their mark in the '60s, Silver Lake and Shawnee Heights legends Tony Leiker and Marcel Carter ruled the '80s and Seaman's Justin Glasgow was a multi-sport state champ in the 1990s.
Highland Park's Jared Huske was one of the nation's best hurdlers in the opening decade of the 21st century while Hayden's Nick Stringer celebrated an undefeated state football title before going on to an All-Big 12 career at Kansas State.
For fans that prefer more contemporary achievements, Seaman and Kansas star pitcher Ryan Zeferjahn is still blazing his path, currently pitching at the AAA level for the Boston Red Sox.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Five All-Americans, including a national player of the year, headline women's picks No. 41-50 on TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 list.
The late Arica Shepard, a volleyball star at Rossville and a three-time All-American for Emporia State, earned the No. 41 berth on the Top 100 while former Topeka High basketball star Kiki Smith was named the national player of the year in her first college season after helping Hutchinson Community College win the national junior college championship.
Washburn University basketball All-Americans Nikki Olberding (Seaman) and Kelly Jennings (Topeka High) and Fort Hays State All-American Tatyana Legette (Seaman) also earned spots in the latest installment of Top 100 selections as did four-time Class 6A volleyball state champion Alexa Bordewick of Washburn Rural and multi-sport standouts Cierra Ceazer (Shawnee Heights) and Erika Lane (Washburn Rural).
Lauren Mills was a state softball champion at Seaman before a standout career at Wichita State while Ceazer, Jennings, Lane and the late Tisharria Huggins (Topeka West) also won state titles at the high school level.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
As we get closer to the top of the women's selections for TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 list, the list of achievements get more and more impressive.
The latest group of picks (No. 31 through 40) include an individual national champion, six All-Americans, a four-time state high school champ, a two-sport Division I standout, a multi-event state high school record-holder and a three-sport prep All-Stater.
Former Miss Kansas Basketball Carly Bachelor of Washburn Rural led the Junior Blues to a state basketball title and also earned All-State recognition in volleyball and soccer while fellow Rural alum Madeline Hill won a national tennis title for Washburn University and Junior Blues Kelsey Chipman and Jayme Gergen established themselves as two of the school's all-time volleyball greats.
Rossville's Kendra Hurla, the second youngest Top 100 pick, captured four state titles and a team championship as a high school wrestler while former Seaman star Camryn Turner has earned All-Big 12 honors and helped Kansas advance to three straight NCAA volleyball tournaments with a season remaining for the Jayhawks.
Topeka West alum Emily Dicus made her mark as one of Kansas' all-time best swimmers before going on to earn college All-America honors while Shawnee Heights grad Deana Alexander was a Dvision I athlete in both basketball and track and field for Wichita State, winning four javelin Missouri Valley javelin titles, former Topeka High star Kristie Bahner was a 1,000-point scorer for Kansas State basketball, and three-time state softball champ Jaycee Ginter of Shawnee Heights ended her college career as Washburn's all-time leader in multiple categories.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The latest men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 range from a player who competed at the top level of professional tennis to a Major League baseball player who was teammates with legends "Shoeless Joe'' Jackson and Cy Young to local stars who made their mark in various other sports.
TSN's latest group of 10 Top 100 honorees is headed by former Topeka High tennis star Joel Hoffman, who won a pair of state titles for the Trojans before competing at the Division I level for Houston and on the International ATP men's circuit.
Picks No. 51 through 60 also includes Art Griggs, who made his big league baseball debut in the early 1900s, as well as storied amateur golfer Bill McDonald, star swimmer Glenn Trammel, pro bowling history maker Bob Benoit, MLB pitcher Jim Golden, track and field stars Dan O'Mara and Jason Stuke and multiple-sport standouts Duane "Blackie'' Melvin and Scott Leon.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Local greats who made their mark in six sports at the high school, college and amateur level earned spots No. 51-60 on TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 list.
Shawnee Heights product Faith Rottinghaus, No. 51 on the Top 100 list, helped the T-Birds win Class 5A state titles in volleyball and softball before going on to earn first-team All-America honors for Washburn University, which posted a second-place national finish her senior season.
Rottinghaus is joined on the Top 100 by Washburn Hall of Famers Rhonda Matzke (Silver Lake) and Billie Jean Moore (Highland Park), with the late Moore going down in history as a legendary women's basketball coach.
In addition to hoops star Matzke, the latest group of 10 honorees include prolific Rossville scorer Jennifer Perine and Washburn Rural state champion Jamie Blakely, who both went on to standout careers at Emporia State.
Three of the county's most decorated cross country and track performers -- Washburn Rural's Avery Clifton and Jaybe Shufelberger and Seaman's Sydney Messick -- all earned spots in TSN's fifth installment of Top 100 picks as did former Rural multi-time state golf champions Abby Glynn and Megan Lucas, who both went on to Division I college careers.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A pair of athletes who played in the NFL, a Major League Baseball alum and a United States Olympian are part of the fourth installment of men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's latest group of 10 Top 100 honorees is headed by former Topeka High star Lamar Mady, who played for the Raiders before putting together a long and continuing career in professional indoor football, while Washburn Rural and Kansas State alum Will Cokeley also got a taste of the NFL with the Buffalo Bills while also playing in the United States Football League and Canadian Football League.
Picks No. 61 through 70 is top heavy with Topeka High products, including U.S. volleyball Olympian Chuck Nelson, Major League pitcher Ken "Hook'' Johnson, Trojan football stars Levi Lee and Troy Slusser and local softball legends Milo Mitchell and Joe Douglas.
Seaman grad and Washburn University baseball star J.P. Wright, a former NAIA Player of the Year, earned a spot in the Top 100 along with Washburn Rural product Luke Yarnell, who played Arena Football League for 10 seasons after starring at Coffeyville Community College and Southwestern Louisiana.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Five of the best known names in Shawnee County softball earned spots on TopSports.news' fourth group of Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 honorees while spots No. 61-70 also included three local soccer greats as well as swimming and golf stars.
Silver Lake product Brenda Stolle, who helped Emporia State capture a national softball title, earned the No. 61 spot on the Top 100 while the latest grouping also includes former Washburn Rural and ESU All-American Taylor Zordel, Silver Lake star and Washburn University Hall of Famer Kathy Mohler, Seaman state champ and Division I standout Hailey Reed and Rural multi-sport standout and Kansas pitcher Kasey Hamilton.
The group of honorees also includes former soccer national champion Leea Murphy of Shawnee Heights as well as Washburn Rural stars Kaira Houser and Darby Hirsch while Topeka West product Kadence Jeffries won six state swimming titles in as many tries and Topeka High grad Rachel Stous established herself as one of the area's top women's golfers.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A former world record-holder in track, two of Shawnee County's all-time tennis greats, a Major League Baseball alum, a top MLB draft pick, three Division I athletes in basketball and football and a pair of record-setting quarterbacks comprise the third group of men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's group of 10 Top 100 honorees in the No. 71 through 80 spots includes former American and world record-holder Clardy Vinson of Topeka High and Topeka West multi-sport star and Kansas Jayhawk C.B. McGrath as well as four-time state tennis champ Tommy Hunter of Hayden and three-time champ John Grantham of Topeka High.
Picks No. 71 through 80 also include former Division I athletes Bennie Simecka of Rossville and Theron Wilson of Highland Park, former MLB pitcher Rick DeHart and top draft pick David Proctor and former Silver Lake and Rossville stars Shannon Kruger and Tucker Horak.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A group of Shawnee County greats that excelled in five different sports earned spots No. 71-80 on the women's TopSports.news Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 list.
The third installment of the TSN women's picks is widely diverse, including college softball All-Americans Susan Punzo (Shawnee Heights) and Chris Torrez (Topeka West), tennis stars Danielle Knipp of Washburn Rural and Meg Griffin of Topeka West, who went on to excel at Division I Oklahoma and Maryland, respectively, as well as Topeka West star swimmer Kelli Dudley, who helped Truman State win three straight national swimming titles.
The group of honorees also includes Shawnee Heights product Stefine Pease, who put together a Hall of Fame volleyball career for Lipscomb, along with former T-Bird basketball standout Lori Roenbaugh, a 1,000-point career scorer for Washburn University, and former city tennis stars Tonna Rieger (Topeka West), Alex O'Neal (Hayden) and Zebbie Roberson (Hayden), who all won three state high school championships.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A national golfer of the year, a pair of baseball All-Americans, two of Shawnee County's all-time wrestling greats, an individual and state team-champion swimmer and multiple athletes who competed in NCAA Championships are included in the second group of men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's second group of 10 Top 100 honorees (No. 81 through 90) includes former NCAA Division II golfer of the year Andrew Beckler, a Washburn Rural product, as well as former wrestling greats Tagen Lambotte of Rossville and Bishop Murray of Washburn Rural, who combined for seven individual state titles, baseball All-Americans Chris Carlson of Seaman and Shane Wright of Hayden and former Seaman star Zeke Metz, who helped lead the Vikings to the city's first swimming state team championship.
Picks No. 81 through 90 also include former NCAA track and field qualifier Mikey Hoffer of Shawnee Heights, former Highland Park basketball star Lamont Austin, who won high school and national junior college titles and played in the NCAA basketball championships, and multi-sport stars and Division I standouts Rapheal Posey of Highland Park and Duane Zlatnik of Rossville.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seven of Shawnee County's most accomplished athletes in swimming and wrestling are among the second group of 10 women's honorees in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
Picks 81-90, which also includes three local volleyball greats, features five former swimmers who were multi-time state champions, including Hayden's Kristin Strecker, who went on to swim at Nebraska, and Washburn Rural alums Haley Molden and Sammie Schurig, who went on to become standouts at Kansas, as well as former Hayden stars Kristen Carlson and Katie Merriam.
Washburn Rural's Dajia Anderson and Addison Broxterman, who helped Rural establish itself as the state's most dominant girls wrestling program, also earned Top 100 berths along with former county volleyball stars Sandy Werner of Washburn Rural, Seaman's Breanna Lewis and Silver Lake's Alyssa Schultejans.
Both Werner and Schultejans played at Kansas State while Lewis earned All-America honors at Washburn University and is a member of the WU Hall of Fame.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
When high school football practice for the 2024 season begins across the state on August 19, linemen will go back to laboring in relative obscurity.
But Tuesday's Battle of the Bigs lineman challenge at Shawnee Heights, an annual event since 2017, was all about the men in the trenches.
"This is one of our largest ones,'' Shawnee Heights coach Jason Swift said. "And you've got to credit schools like Highland Park and Topeka West who have definitely brought numbers, and then we've got schools from surrounding areas and a couple of Kansas City schools.''
Approximately 90 linemen representing nine city and area high schools took part in the Battle of the Bigs, competing in a variety of drills/activities while vying for individual and team prizes.
"We do this to kind of celebrate the linemen,'' Swift said. "They don't get to do a lot of glorified stuff in the summer so this is an opportunity for them to compete and build some unity together and have fun.
Participating athletes took part in nine measured events:
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Six former state champs, a pair of baseball All-Americans, a Major League Baseball alum and a current Division I football standout headline the opening men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's first group of 10 Top 100 honorees includes athletes who participated in seven different sports, including recent stars Tanner Newkirk of Hayden, Tre Richardson of Highland Park and Desmond Purnell of Hayden, who are currently participating at the college level.
The first men's Top 100 selections also include Washburn Rural product Austin Halsey, one of the city's most decorated soccer athletes, as well as former MLB pitcher Larry Miller, college baseball All-Americans Jordan Cooper (Shawnee Heights) and Ben Carlson (Seaman) and NCAA cross country qualifiers Jacob Morgan (Washburn Rural) and Rob Hays (Topeka West).
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A group of nine former Shawnee County standouts and one rising star who represent seven different sports kick off the TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
From gymnastics, which is no longer offered at county high schools, to shooting, which was never a KSHSAA sport, to more traditional sports like volleyball, golf, track and field and cross country and the state's fastest growing sport of girls wrestling, TSN's first group of 10 Top 100 honorees includes seven individual state champions as well as three state champions, including four-time Class 6A team volleyball champ Kelsey Lewis of Washburn Rural.
The first group out of the gate also features the youngest Top 100 honoree, Seaman track and cross country star Ryin Miller, who has already earned her spot as one of Kansas' all-time bests in just two years of high school.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
On Tuesday, July 9, TopSports.news will kick off its three-week project picking its Top 100 greatest women's and men's athletes in Shawnee County history.
After receiving input from current and past media professionals with more than 100 years of combined experience, TSN will kick things off with its No. 91 through 100 picks on its all-time women's list and will continue posting women's and men's picks 10 at a time before culminating with the Women's Top 10 on July 27 and the Men's Top 10 on July 28.
Topeka sports legend Mike Torrez was a world champion with the New York Yankees and won 185 games as a Major League pitcher in an 18-year career. [File photo]
Former Shawnee Heights star Gary Woodland won the 2019 U.S. Open and continues to compete on the PGA Tour. [PGA Tour]
Topeka High grad Chris Barnes is a PBA Hall of Famer, who also helped the Trojans win a state basketball title. [PBA Tour]
Topeka West state champion Sheri Norris was an All-American tennis player at Arizona State before playing on the pro tennis tour. [File photo]
Former Topeka High star NiJaree Canady received national pitcher of the year and player of the year honors as a sophomore pitcher for Stanford. [Stanford Athletics]
Former Washburn Rural multi-sport star Brooklyn DeLeye is currently a star for Kentucky's volleyball team and a member of the U.S. Under21 national team. [Kentucky Volleyball]
County athletes have made their mark in a variety of sports at the high school, collegiate, national amateur and professional levels over the years and TSN's goal is to recognize as many of those athletes as possible.
The only Top 100 requirement is that eligible candidates must have grown up in Shawnee County or attended one of the county's 10 high schools.
While it's an impossible task to honor all the deserving individuals and not everybody will agree with TSN's selections, we hope that you enjoy this trip down memory lane that recognizes local athletes dating from those born in the 1800s to those just beginning to make their mark.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 ATHLETES TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
July 9 -- Women's No. 91 through 100.
July 10 -- Men's No. 91 through 100.
July 11 -- Women's No. 81 through 90.
July 12 -- Men's No. 81 through 90.
July 13 -- Women's No. 71 through 80.
July 14 -- Men's No. 71 through 80.
July 15 -- Women's No. 61 through 70.
July 16 -- Men's No. 61 through 70.
July 17 -- Women's No. 51 through 60.
July 18 -- Men's No. 51 through 60.
July 19 -- Women's No. 41 through 50.
July 20 -- Men's No. 41 through 50.
July 21 -- Women's No. 31 through 40.
July 22 -- Men's No. 31 through 40.
July 23 -- Women's No. 21 through 30.
July 24 -- Men's No. 21 through 30.
July 25 -- Women's No. 11 through 20.
July 26 -- Men's No. 11 through 20.
July 27 -- Women's No.10 through 1.
July 28 -- Men's No. 10 through 1.
