Washburn Rural Junior Blues

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After fighting through a lingering leg injury for nearly nine months, Seaman senior track superstar Ryin Miller chalked up Thursday as a win as soon as she stepped on the Washburn Rural track.

Seaman five-time state champion Ryin Miller (right) returned from an injury Thursday to win the girls 800 meters in the Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

The fact that she took control on the final lap to win the girls 800-meter run in the Jerry Beardslee Invitational was a bonus. 

"I felt good,'' said Miller, a five-time Class 5A state champion. "This injury (IT band) is kind of weird. If I get some speed it doesn't seem to bother me too much and I'm just tired of not racing, so I was like, 'You know what, I'm just going to jump in here, I'm not going to warm up, I'll just do some strides and try to warm my body up without taking a warmup jog and step in and see what happens.' ''

The Arkansas signee ran with Mill Valley junior Audrey Howard through much of the race before taking the lead down the home stretch and pulling away for the win in 2 minutes, 23.65 seconds while Howard was second in 2:25.17.

"I feel really good about it,'' Miller said. "It was a good race. Obviously, eventually I want a lot, lot more of myself, but you have to learn to celebrate the small wins along the way and I've been working so hard this winter and year in just different ways, so I have to come out here and even just toeing the line, I have to be proud of that.''

Just being on track marked a return to Miller's happy place.

"It means everything to me,'' she said. "I was definitely nervous, but I was kind of reminding myself that it is such a gift to be nervous and it's way better than not being nervous and watching other people be nervous, so I was trying to embrace it and take the load off.

"I was like, 'I have literally nothing to lose, everything to gain. If I start, that's a win,' so I tried to take all the pressure out of it and run and enjoy it.''

Senior Brody Anderson shattered the Seaman school record in the 1,600-meter run by nearly six seconds in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Anderson shatters school record

After flirting with the Seaman school record in the 1,600-meter run in the season-opening Topeka High Invitational, Viking distance star Brody Anderson knew that the record was there for the taking in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational.

And Anderson left no doubt about who is the best metric miler in school history, shattering the previous record by right at six seconds in a winning time of 4:11.94 while winning by nearly 14 seconds.   

"I went into today knowing that it was very possible and was there,'' Anderson said. "I didn't know it was going to happen, I didn't want to force anything, but it came natural and felt really smooth and I just shattered it.

"I definitely didn't think it was going to happen by six seconds at this point in the year, but it was a fun jump to take for sure.''

Anderson came back later in the evening to post a second impressive performance, winning the 800 meters by more than three seconds in a time of 1:56.49 and is now a perfect four for four on the season.

Other meet highlights:

•  Washburn Rural senior multi-time Class 6A state champion Liam Morrison opened his 2026 season with a sweep in the hurdles races on Thursday.

Washburn Rural senior state champion Liam Morrison (right) won the 110 and 300-meter hurdles in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Morrison won the 110-meter highs in 14.43 seconds before coming back later to take a win in the 300s in 38.74.

The Junior Blues also got boys wins from junior Christian Hartman-Babb in the 200-meter dash (22.78) and from the 4x800 relay team (8:38.13).

• Washburn Rural's girls posted wins in two of the three throws in Thursday's meet while also adding a pair of runnerup finishes.

Rural junior Kailyn Petersen won the shot put with a throw of 36 feet, 11 inches and finished second in the discus (121-2) while junior Morgan Ray won the javelin with a throw of 144-4 while her Junior Blue teammate, Katie Smith, was second (120-5).

Washburn Rural senior Emily Graf cruised to a victory in the girls 3,200 meters in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

• Washburn Rural also got a win from senior Emily Graf, who won the girls 3,200 in 11:25.73 while Seaman's boys won the 4x100 relay in 43.84. 

JERRY BEARDSLEE INVITATIONAL

At Washburn Rural

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

JURNEE COLE, Highland Park

Cole, a senior, was one of the city's top sprinters last spring, ranking second in the 100-meter dash (12.75 seconds) and fifth in the 200 (26.68). An All-Shawnee County honorable mention pick in 2025, Cole opened her 2026 season in last Friday's Topeka High Invitational with second-place finishes in the 100 (12.72) and 200 (27.34) and a third in the 400 (66.88). 

KARYS DEITER, Silver Lake

A sophomore state champion in volleyball and basketball for the Eagles, Deiter received All-Shawnee County first-team recognition last season after posting an eighth-place finish in the Class 3A state meet in the 100-meter hurdles in 16.74 seconds. Deiter ranked No. 3 in Shawnee County in the 100 dash and the 100 hurdles. Deiter also helped lead Silver Lake to the Class 3A volleyball title last fall and the state basketball championship this past season. 

RYLEE DICK, Rossville

Dick, a senior, was an All-Shawnee County first-team selection last season after finishing eighth in Class 2A in the 100-meter hurdles in 16.77 seconds. Dick ranked fourth in Shawnee County in the 100 hurdles and third in the 300 hurdles. Dick was also a first-team all-county pick in basketball.    

ALI GERBER, Silver Lake

A junior, Gerber, earned All-Shawnee County first-team honors in track last spring and was an all-county pick in cross country last fall. Gerber teamed with Ellen Doty, Jaylie Whitehead and Ella Bolan to finish sixth in the Class 3A 4x400-meter relay last spring in track and placed 35th in state cross country last fall. Gerber was a member of Silver Lake's 3A state championship 4x400 relay team in the 2024 state meet (4:06.64).

EMILY GRAF, Washburn Rural

An All-Shawnee County selection in both cross country and track, Graf teamed with then-seniors Rylee Ismert, Brooklyn Nolte and Payton Fink finished second in the Class 6A 4x800 relay (9:29.84) in the 2025 state track meet. A three-time first-team All-Shawnee County pick in cross country, Graf garnered the individual city title last fall before finishing eighth in the Centennial League, fifth in a 6A regional meet and 30th at state. 

SOFIA HARPER, Hayden

Harper, a junior, is a three-time first-team All-Shawnee County pick in cross country and received all-county honorable in track last spring. Harper posted a seventh-place individual finish in the city cross country championships last fall, placed 16th in the Centennial League meet and 12th in Class 4A regional competition and was 44th at state. Harper opened her 2026 track season in Friday's Topeka High Inivitational with wins in the 200-meter dash (27.00) and 400 (62.39). 

ALYSON HINCK, Washburn Rural

The Washburn Rural freshman was the individual runnerup in the city cross country meet for the team-champion Junior Blues and placed sixth in the Centennial League, eighth in Class 6A regional competition and a team-high 25th in the state meet.

KENZIE MADDOX, Washburn Rural  

Maddox, a senior, is a two-time first-team All-Shawnee County pick in cross country and was an all-county first-team honoree in track last spring. Maddox finished fourth last fall in the city cross country meet before placing 14th in the Centennial League, 16th in a Class 6A regional and 49th in the 6A state meet.

Keimara Marshall, Topeka High

KEIMARA MARSHALL, Topeka High

A senior, Marshall has established herself as one of the area's top sprinters, earning first-team All-Shawnee County honors and sweeping the 100 and 200-meter dashes in the 2025 Joe Schrag City Championships. A former Class 6A state medalist, Marshall helped lead the Trojans to 6A state quarterfinals in basketball.

Ryin Miller, Seaman

RYIN MILLER, Seaman 

Miller, who has been recovering from an injury that limited her to just one cross country meet last fall, has won five Class 5A state track titles over the past two seasons, sweeping the  3,200 meters in 10 minutes, 19.53 seconds, the 1,600 meters in 4:57.33 and the 800 in 2:11.14 in the 2025 state meet and adding a fourth state medal when she anchored the Vikings' 4x400 relay to a fourth-place finish (4:03.44). Miller made her 2026 debut Thursday with a win in the 800 at Washburn Rural.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural baseball followed up a strong weekend in Kansas City with a home Centennial League doubleheader sweep of Topeka High Tuesday to improve its record to 5-0.

Senior Gavin Payne threw a three-hit shutout Tuesday in Washburn Rural's 14-0 first-game win over Topeka High. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

The Junior Blues got a five-inning shutout from senior Gavin Payne in the opening contest, then rolled out three pitchers who one-hit the Trojans in the nightcap as Washburn Rural collected wins of 14-0 and 12-0, both of which lasted five innings.

Last Saturday Washburn Rural defeated Kansas City, Mo.-Rockhurst 8-1 and Olathe South 3-0. Junior Blues coach Jay Mastin complimented his team’s performance in those contests.

Mastin said Payne’s work against Topeka High was so good, the coach had to tweak his game plan.

“He did a great job. He did everything we asked from him today,” Mastin said of Payne. “Our plan was to throw two or three guys (in the first) game, but he was pretty efficient in his innings, so we just stuck with him.”

Payne permitted Topeka High a single in each of his first three innings. He was the beneficiary of inning-ending double plays in the fourth and fifth innings. His final line included three hits, three walks and four strikeouts.

“I was just working my pitches, working the zone,” Payne said. “I’ve got a great defense behind me, so I just throw strikes and they’ll back me up.”

Washburn Rural senior Drew Moore slides safely into base in Tuesday's double-header sweep over Topeka High. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 

After a scoreless first inning to start the day, the Junior Blues put up four, four and six runs in their next three innings. Austin Ditch provided a bases-loaded double that plated three in the second. Drew Moore led off the third inning with a triple. Dominic Nimz collected two hits, including a fourth-inning double.

Payne admitted getting that kind of run support is a lift.

“Everything feels a lot better,” Payne said. “You’ve got more confidence going into each inning. It really helps out there.”

Washburn Rural junior Kyran Smith struck out five batters in two innings in Tuesday's double-header sweep over Topeka High. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 

For the second game, Mastin ran out three pitchers, with dominating effect. Isaac Ansley started the game and recorded three strikeouts in two scoreless innings. He gave way to Kyran Smith, who struck out five in two frames. Cody Stafford slammed the door, striking out all three Trojans he faced in the fifth inning. Following a leadoff single to start the game, the Junior Blues allowed only a walk in the third inning.

“We like the momentum that we’ve got going,” Mastin said. “We couldn’t start the season better than this all the way around. Our pitchers have done a great job. Our defense has been solid, and offense has been putting the pressure on the other team by getting some big hits and being aggressive on the bases.”

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Brody Anderson, Seaman

BRODY ANDERSON, Seaman

Seaman senior Brody Anderson placed third in the Class 5A 800 meters in 1 minute, 55.52 seconds last spring, earning All-Shawnee County first-team recognition. Also a three-time all-county pick and former 5A state medalist in cross country, Anderson opened his 2026 track season with a sweep of the 1,600 (4:22.82) and 3,200-meter runs (9:27.73) in Friday's Topeka High Invitational.

DRADEN CHOONCHAROEN, Washburn Rural 

Chooncharoen, a senior, is a two-time Class 6A state champion, running on the Junior Blues' winning 4x400-meter relay team as a sophomore and a junior and earning a spot on the 2024 and 2025 All-Shawnee County first team. The Junior Blues set a 6A state meet record in the 4x4 last season, clocking a time of 3:16.23. Chooncharoen also helped lead Rural to the 6A state soccer championship last fall. 

JACK ESSER, Seaman

A junior, Esser earned All-Shawnee County first-team honors last season after tying for fourth in the Class 5A high jump at 6-foot-2. Esser finished second in a 5A regional at 6-2 and won the city high jump championship with a personal-record jump of 6-5.

CHRISTIAN HARTMAN-BABB, Washburn Rural

Hartman-Babb, a junior, was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick last season after turning in a solid season for the city-champion Junior Blues in the sprints and high hurdles. Hartman-Babb ranked second in the county in both the 100-meter dash and the 110 hurdles in 2025.

Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural  

BROOKS KEHOE, Washburn Rural

Kehoe, a senior, is a returning Class 6A state medalist, placing fifth in the 3,200 meters in 2025 in a time of 9:20.97 and earning All-Shawnee County first-team recognition. A three-time all-county pick in cross country, Kehoe helped lead the Junior Blues to the 6A state team title by a single point (100-101) over Blue Valley last fall. Kehoe won the Centennial League individual title and finished second in the city meet before posting a 25th-place finish at state.

Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 

HENRY LAUBACH, Washburn Rural

Laubach, a sophomore, had a breakout season as a freshman in both cross country and track before returning from an injury to help lead the Junior Blues to the Class 6A state cross country championship last fall by a 100-101 margin over Blue Valley. Laubach led Washburn Rural with a 22nd-place individual finish. Laubach is a two-time All-Shawnee County honoree in cross country and received honorable mention in track last spring. 

KELTON MEIER, Hayden

A junior, Meier earned All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season after leading Shawnee County in the javelin. Meier was the city champion in 2025 and opened his 2026 season with an outstanding winning throw of 197 feet, 2 inches in Friday's Topeka High Invitational, winning the event by more than 49 feet. Meier is also a bowling standout for the Wildcats, placing sixth in Class 4A-1A with a 717 series.   

JOEL MILLER, Silver Lake

Miller, a senior, earned a spot on the 2025 All-Shawnee County first team after teaming with then-seniors Trent Rollenhagen and Evan Scheid and then-junior Braxton Rupp to post a third-place finish in the Class 3A 4x100-meter relay in 42.57 seconds.

Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural

LIAM MORRISON, Washburn Rural 

Morrison won the Class 6A championship in the 300-meter hurdles in 37.68 seconds before teaming with then-seniors Isaiah Terry and Matthew Houser and then-junior Draden Chooncharoen for a 6A meet-record time of 3:16.23 in the 4x400 relay. A three-time All-Shawnee County pick, Morrison also helped win the state 4x4 title as a sophomore in 2024. Morrison placed sixth in the 6A 110 hurdles (14.52) last spring.

BRAXTON RUPP, Silver Lake

A senior, Rupp earned a spot on the 2025 All-Shawnee County first team after teaming with then-seniors Trent Rollenhagen and Evan Scheid and then-junior Joel Miller to post a third-place finish in the Class 3A 4x100-meter relay in 42.57 seconds.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Brody Anderson 

BRODY ANDERSON, Seaman

Anderson, a returning Class 5A state medalist, opened his senior track season with a pair of dominating individual wins in Friday's Topeka High Invitational at Hummer Sports Park. Anderson posted a 24-second win in the boys 1,600 meters in 4 minutes, 23.82 seconds and posted a 36-second win in the 3,200 in 9:27.73.

Brynn Anderson

BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural

A freshman multi-sport standout for the Junior Blues, the 6-foot Anderson was voted by Centennial League girls basketball coaches as the league newcomer of the year and a first-team all-league pick. Anderson averaged 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals while hitting 41 3-pointers.

Carsyn Broxterman

CARSYN BROXTERMAN, Hayden

Broxterman, a senior soccer standout for Hayden, scored five goals and had an assist in Friday's season-opening 8-0 road victory over Cair Paravel Latin at the Bettis Family Sports Complex. As a junior Broxterman helped lead the Wildcats to a second-place finish in the Class 4A-1A state tournament.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

DRAYDEN ACCOSTA, Topeka High

A senior, Accosta earned second-team TopSports.news All-Shawnee County recognition for the second straight season and was named to the All-Centennial League second team as a utility player.  

Isaac Ansley, Washburn Rural

ISAAC ANSLEY, Washburn Rural

A senior pitcher, Ansley earned first-team TSN All-Shawnee County recognition last season and was a second-team All-Centennial League pick after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 15-12 record and a Class 6A state tournament berth.

Mason Becker, Hayden

MASON BECKER, Hayden

Becker, a junior, earned second-team TSN All-Shawnee County and Centennial League recognition last season after helping the Wildcat post a 23-1 record.

Axton Brewer, Seaman

AXTON BREWER, Seaman

A junior, Brewer was a TSN All-Shawnee County first-team pick, earned All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition as a pitcher and designated hitter and was a Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches All-Class 5A first-team honoree at designated hitter and a second-team pitcher.

BRADY DEUTSCH, Hayden 

Deutsch, a senior catcher, was a second-team All-Centennial League pick for the league-champion Wildcats, who went 23-1 last season. Deutsch receive All-Shawnee  County honorable mention.

Austin Ditch, Washburn Rural

AUSTIN DITCH, Washburn Rural

A senior infielder, Ditch was a first-team TSN All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League pick last spring after helping Washburn Rural post a 15-12 record and advance to the Class 6A state tournament.

TYLER EDMISTON, Washburn Rural

Edmiston, a junior pitcher, was a second-team All-Centennial League and All-Shawnee County selection last season for the 15-12 Junior Blues, who earned a berth in the Class 6A state tournament.

 Cambren Floberg, Shawnee Heights

CAMBREN FLOBERG, Shawnee Heights

Floberg, a senior, was named the United Kansas Conference pitcher of the year last season after helping the 21-8 T-Birds advance to the Class 5A state tournament. Floberg received second-team All-Class 5A honors from the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches.

CAEL HORGAN, Rossville 

A junior, Horgan was a first-team All-Big East pick last spring after helping Rossville advance to the Class 2A-1A state tournament in 2025.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

London Backman, Topeka High

LONDON BACKMAN, Topeka High

A sophomore infielder who attends Cair Paravel Latin and plays for the Trojans through a co-op agreement, Backman received TopSports.news All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League first-team recognition and was named the co-county and co-Centennial League newcomer of the year last season after helping 19-10 Topeka High advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decisiont to 6A champ Olathe West. Backman received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.

Adda Boleski, Washburn Rural  

ADDA BOLESKI, Washburn Rural 

Boleski, a sophomore infielder, was an All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League second-team pick a year ago as a freshman after helping the Junior Blues post a 22-8 record and a second-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with Washburn Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game.    

Reagan Chapman, Washburn Rural

REAGAN CHAPMAN, Washburn Rural

A senior pitcher/third baseman, Chapman was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team for the third straight season after helping lead the Junior Blues to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in Class 6A last spring, with Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game. Chapman was a first-team All-Centennial League honoree.

JOSIE CARLGREN, Washburn Rural

Carlgren, a senior outfielder, is a top returner for Washburn Rural, which posted a 22-8 record and finished second in the Class 6A state tournament last season, dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the title game. Carlgren received All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League honorable mention in 2025.

Falyn Clurman, Rossville 

FALYN CLURMAN, Rossville 

Clurman, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County honoree last season as a freshman for the Bulldawgs, who posted a 17-12 record in 2025. The Bulldawgs were a Class 2A-1A regional runnerup to state champion Oskaloosa. 

ADDISON COOPER, Shawnee Heights

Cooper, a senior outfielder, was a first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection and a second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament in 2025. The T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual state champion St. Thomas Aquinas.

Campbell Dawson, Topeka High  

CAMPBELL DAWSON, Topeka High

A junior pitcher/outfielder, was a first-team All-Centennial League selection and second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping the 19-10 Trojans advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decision to 6A state champ Olathe West. Dawson received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.  

LYDIA DREHER, Seaman

Dreher, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County selection and a second-team All-United Kansas Conference pick as a freshman last season after helping the Vikings earn a berth in the Class 5A state tournament. Dreher helped Seaman post a 20-9 record last spring, with the Vikings dropping a 3-2 17-inning decision to Maize South in the state quarterfinals.

Cianna Graves, Shawnee Heights  

CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights

A senior catcher, Graves received second-team All-Shawnee County recognition in 2025 after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament before the T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual 5A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas. Graves is also a 2026 5A state wrestling champion.

Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake                        

KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake

Hanni, a senior left-fielder, earned first-team All-Shawnee County and first-team All-Big East League recognition last spring for the second straight season after helping Silver Lake post a 25-7 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 3A state tournament for the second straight season, with the Eagle falling 2-1 to Frontenac in nine innings. Hanni was named to the All-Class 3A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association. Hanni also led Silver Lake to the 3A state basketball title this past season.

Oliva Koch, Washburn Rural

OLIVIA KOCH, Washburn Rural 

A junior pitcher/outfielder, Koch was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team and was named the Centennial League player of the year last season after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with the Junior Blues dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the state title game. Koch was named to the All-Class 6A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.

Carly McAllister, Hayden

CARLEY McALLISTER, Hayden

McCallister, a sophomore, received second-team TSN All-Shawnee County recognition a year ago as a freshman while also receiving All-Centennial League second-team honors.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

City schools swept All-Centennial League girls basketball individual honors, led by Topeka High junior player of the year Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton.

 Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High

Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural

Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson was picked by league coaches as the Centennial League's top newcomer and also earned first-team recognition while Hayden's Carvel Reynoldson was tapped as the league coach of the year after leading the Wildcats to the Class 4A state championship.

Rayton, who helped Topeka High win the Centennial League championship, is joined on the all-league first team by sophomore teammate Hailey Caryl while Hayden is represented by sophomore Hailey Schmidtlein.

Manhattan's Kat Ball and Delaney Larson round out the all-league first team.

Topeka High senior Keimara Marshall, Hayden sophomore Blakely Walter and Washburn Rural seniors Ella Hirschi and Josie Carlgren were all named to the All-Centennial second team while Hayden senior Ella Foster and Washburn Rural senior Hallie Walker received honorable mention.

ALL-CENTENNIAL LEAGUE GIRLS BASKETBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

More times than not over the last several years, the Centennial League softball title race has come down to the early-season doubleheader between Washburn Rural and Topeka High.

And while Washburn Rural coach Joy Marie Galliart would rather play the showdown against High later in the season than in the Junior Blues' Centennial League openers, Friday's 11-1, 7-3 wins at Hummer Sports Park gave Rural an early leg up in its quest for another league crown.

Washburn Rural softball celebrates after closing out a Centennial League sweep over Topeka High Friday night at Hummer Sports Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"I actually talked to (Washburn Rural athletic director Charlie Nimz) about trying to get this later in the year and it just wouldn't work from their end,'' Galliart said. "I'm not a fan of playing league games the first week you start playing, just because you're not sure of where you're going to be.

"But when you come out and you're able to get two wins it does give you a lot of confidence and a little bit of momentum rolling into the rest of your season.'

Washburn Rural, now 4-0 overall, jumped out in front 3-0 in the top of the first in the opener and added a run in the third, two in the fourth and and five in the top of the fifth en route to a five-inning win via the 10-run rule.

Senior Reagan Chapman pitched a five-inning four-hitter in Washburn Rural's 11-1 first-game win over Topeka High Friday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Senior Reagan Chapman pitched a complete-game four-hitter for the Junior Blues while senior catcher Henley Rapp and sophomore Emma Duran both tripled and Duran also had a double. 

Junior Campbell Dawson drove in the Trojans' lone run in the opener with a fourth-inning double.

The nightcap was tied 1-1 after the first inning and stayed that way through three innings before the Junior Blues scored a pair of runs in the top of the fourth and three in the fifth to go up 6-1.

Topeka High (2-2) got back in the hunt with a pair of runs in the sixth, but Rural added an insurance run in the top of the seventh on a run-scoring single from sophomore Adda Boleski and Junior Blue junior pitcher Oliva Koch ended the game with a one-two-three seventh.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Senior co-players of the year KaeVon Bonner of Seaman and Dayne Johnson of Silver Lake headline the 2026 TopSports.news All-Shawnee County boys basketball team.

KaeVon Bonner, Seaman

Dayne Johnson, Silver Lake

Bonner is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after leading the Vikings to a 23-5 record and a third-place finish in the Class 5A state tournament while Johnson was an all-county repeat pick after leading the Eagles to a second straight third-place state finish in 3A and ending his high school career as Silver Lake's all-time leading scorer, eclipsing the record previously held by the legendary Lon Kruger.

Rossville senior Jack Donovan is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 honoree and is joined on the first time by Rossville senior point guard Jakoby McDonnell after the Bulldawgs advanced to the Class 2A state tournament for the second straight season.

Topeka West, which won the United Kansas Conference championship in a tiebreaker over Seaman and placed fourth in Class 5A is represented on the all-county top 10 by seniors Malakyah Duncan and Keimani Paul and junior Prince Lassiter.

Also earning Top 10 honors were Hayden senior Connor Hanika, Shawnee Heights junior Cam Ross and Topeka High senior Bryson McComas.

Quincy Dixon, Shawnee Heights

Shawnee Heights freshman Quincy Dixon was named the county newcomer of the year after averaging 12.4 points and helping the T-Birds advance to the Class 5A state tournament.

Chip Kueffer, Cair Paravel Latin

Robbie Sanders, Topeka High

Cair Paravel's Chip Kueffer and Topeka High's Robbie Sanders were named the Shawnee County co-coaches of the year after leading their teams to 12-win improvements in 2025-2026.

Kueffer led CPLS to a 22-3 record, including 19 straight wins and the Flint Hills League championship while first-year coach Sanders led Topeka High to a 13-11 record in '25-'26 after the Trojans posted just one win in the previous season. 

All-Shawnee County capsules:

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

The Washburn Rural baseball team gave coach Jay Mastin his 200th career victory in a 14-1 home romp over Gardner-Edgerton in the Junior Blues’ season-opener Tuesday.

Washburn Rural baseball coach Jay Mastin picked up career win No. 200 in Tuesday's 14-1 win over Gardner-Edgerton. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

Rural senior pitcher Isaac Ansley spun five efficient innings, which were a sharp contrast to the opponent. The visiting Trailblazers’ parade of hurlers were crippled by free passes and balks, compounded by shaky defense behind them. The Junior Blues produced 14 runs on just eight hits, only one of which went for extra bases.

The all-time leader in wins at Washburn Rural with 175, Mastin kicked off the season with his 200th career win, which the team and fans celebrated after the game. Starting his 14th season at Washburn Rural, Mastin racked up his first 25 victories during three seasons at Perry-Lecompton.

“I’ve had a lot of great players here over the years. I have a great, great coaching staff,” Mastin said. “And I’m very fortunate. We have had great support. We’ve got a first-rate facility, a lot of support from administration, a lot of support from parents, and just a great group of kids to be able to coach.”

Ansley worked around a double in the first inning, then came out for the second frame with a 3-0 lead. He allowed just one walk in the second, then saw his team put up three more runs. The Junior Blues’ pitcher gave up two hits which produced the Trailblazers’ only run in the third. When he came back for the fourth, he was working with a 12-1 lead.

“It helps, 100 percent,” Ansley said of the run support. “First inning, you get three runs, you can just pitch with the lead, start out on top, get outs and trust your defense. Then they kept putting up crooked numbers each inning and just helped me a lot.”

Ansley faced just 20 batters and used just 47 pitches to get through five innings. He allowed four hits and one walk.

“I had location, pitch selection, got on top,” Ansley said. “The catcher helps. He called the game. Defense helped me out with some great plays and I always trust them.”

Senior Austin Ditch spearheaded the Junior Blues’ offense with two singles. Junior Dominic Nimz cracked an RBI double in the fourth.

Mastin was happy to get the milestone victory out of the way and put one in the win column to start 2026.

“You don’t know (what you’ve got),” Mastin said of opening games. “You always feel like you could use another practice or two. But on the other hand, we’re ready to play and ready to compete. When you have Gardner-Edgerton as your opener, you know that’s no guarantee. They are a quality program. So, this is a good win.”

Ansley praised the preparedness of the senior-led Junior Blues, a group which qualified for the Class 6A state tournament a season ago.

“I feel this team is ready to go from the beginning,” Ansley said. “A lot of guys coming back, and this team is really fun, having a lot of fun energy.”

“We’ve got a good, tight group of seniors, a lot of them got a lot of playing time last year,” Mastin said. “And we’ve got a group of juniors right behind them who are going to push and compete this year.”

WASHBURN RURAL 14, GARDNER-EDGERTON 1

Gardner-Edgerton (0-2) 001 00— 1 4 6

Washburn Rural (1-0)    336 2x — 14 8 0

Ansley and Newberry. Hart, Cassida (2), McCall (3), Kohl (4) and Lewis. W -- Ansley. L -- Hart. 2B -- Gardner-Edgerton: Swaim 2, Washburn Rural: Nimz.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Silver Lake senior point guard Kailyn Hanni has been tapped as the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County girls basketball player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state championship in three seasons.

Silver Lake senior Kailyn Hanni has been named the TopSports.news Shawnee County girls player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state title in three seasons. [File photo/TSN]

A three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick, Hanni helped lead Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and a third straight trip to the 3A state championship game, with the Eagles sandwiching titles in 2024 and this past season around a second-place finish in 2025.

Hanni is one of five repeat picks on the All-Shawnee County Top 10, including four-time honoree Maddie Gragg of Seaman, junior repeat selections KK Emmot of Shawnee Heights and Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton of Topeka High and sophomore repeat pick Hailey Schmidtlein of Hayden.

Schmidtlein helped lead Hayden to the 4A state championship while Emmot helped Shawnee Heights post a fourth-place state finish in 5A and Rayton helped Topeka High advance to the state quarterfinals in 6A.

Also earning All-Shawnee County Top 10 spots are Rossville senior Rylee Dick, Shawnee Heights junior Pearmella Carter, Topeka High sophomore Hailey Caryl, Silver Lake sophomore Karys Deiter and Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson. 

Anderson was also named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year, while state-champion coaches Kyle Porter of Silver Lake and Carvel Reynoldson of Hayden were named the co-county coaches of the year.

All-Shawnee County capsules:

Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural

BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural -- Anderson was named an All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick and the Shawnee County newcomer of the year for 2025-2026 after averaging 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals and canning 41 3-pointers for the Junior Blues. Anderson was also a first-team all-county selection in volleyball. 

Pearmella Carter, Shawnee Heights

PEARMELLA CARTER, Shawnee Heights -- After starring for two seasons at Highland Park, the 5-foot-9 junior had a big season in her first year at Shawnee Heights, helping the 22-6 T-Birds win their first United Kansas Conference championship and post a fourth-place finish in Class 5A in Heights' first trip to state since 2011. Carter, a second-team all-county pick as a sophomore, averaged 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds for Heights while shooting 56 percent from the field on two-point attempts. 

 Hailey Caryl, Topeka High

HAILEY CARYL, Topeka High -- A 5-foot-10 sophomore, Caryl moves up to the All-Shawnee County Top 10 this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman. Caryl averaged 14.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists this past season while shooting 57 percent from the field from two-point range, helping lead the Trojans to a 17-9 record, the Centennial League championship and a quarterfinal berth in the Class 6A state tournament. 

Karys Deiter, Silver Lake

KARYS DEITER, Silver Lake -- Deiter, a 5-foot-6 sophomore, helped Silver Lake post a 28-1 record and win the Class 3A state championship this past season. Deiter moves up to the All-Shawnee County first team this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman and also earned first-team All-Big East honors. Deiter was also an all-county pick in volleyball after helping Silver Lake win the 3A state title.   

Rylee Dick, Rossville

RYLEE DICK, Rossville -- Dick, a 5-foot-8 senior, helped lead the Bulldawgs to a Class 2A state tournament berth for the first time in 20 years this past season, averaging 20.6 points on the season. A unanimous All-Big East League selection, Dick finished her high school career with 1,578 points, which ranks No. 2 on Rossville's all-time list. Dick scored 31 points in Rossville's quarterfinal state loss to Ellinwood.  

KK Emmot, Shawnee Heights

KK EMMOT, Shawnee Heights -- Emmot, a 5-foot-8 junior, is a two-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after earning second-team honors as a freshman. Emmot, who helped lead the T-Birds to a 22-6 record, the United Kansas Conference title and a fourth-place Class 5A finish, earned first-team All-United Kansas Conference honors for the second straight season after averaging 16.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 3.0 assists while connecting on 67 3-pointers and shooting 82 percent from the free throw line. 

Maddie Gragg, Seaman   

MADDIE GRAGG, Seaman -- A 5-10 senior, Gragg is an All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection for the fourth straight season. Gragg, also a four-time All-United Kansas Conference first-team pick, averaged 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.4 steals while hitting 32 3-pointers. Gragg helped the Vikings win the Class 5A state championship in 2024 and finish second in 2025.

 Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake

KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake -- Hanni, a 5-7 senior, was named the Shawnee County player of the year after leading Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and the Class 3A state championship this past season. Hanni also played a major role in the Eagles' 26-0 state championship run in 2024 and a runnerup state finish in 2025. Hanni is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection as well as an All-Big East first-team pick.

 Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High

AHSIEYRHUAJH RAYTON, Topeka High --Rayton, a 5-7 junior All-Shawnee County repeat pick, averaged a city-high 23.6 points on the season for the 17-9 Trojans while also averaging 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals and shooting 52 percent from two-point range and 37 percent on 3-point attempts. Rayton helped the Trojans win the Centennial League championship and advance to the Class 6A state tournament.

Hailey Schmidtlein, Hayden 

HAILEY SCHMIDTLEIN, Hayden --Schmidtlein, a 6-0 sophomore, earned first-team All-Shawnee County recognition for the second straight season after helping lead the Wildcats to a 22-6 record and Hayden's first Class 4A state championship since 2004. Schmidtlein averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.7 steals, 2.5 assists and 2.0 blocked shots. 

2025 TSN ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS BASKETBALL

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

Hayden senior Connor Hanika and Topeka High senior Bryson McComas have been named to the 2026 All-Centennial League boys basketball team, selected by league coaches.

Connor Hanika, Hayden 

Bryson McComas, Topeka High

McComas moves up to the first team after being a second-team selection as a junior while Hanika was a first-team pick after receiving honorable mention in 2025. 

McComas averaged 15.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists this past season with 31 made 3-pointers while Hanika averaged 14.6 points and 6.3 rebounds. 

Earning second-team all-league honors were Topeka High senior Elisha Guest, Hayden junior Carter Compton and Washburn Rural senior John Hoytal, 

Washburn Rural's Brooks Ballard and Simon Rowley, Topeka High's Jalen Aldridge, Ajalon Ross and Octavian McFadden and Hayden's Mason Becker received all-league honorable mention.

ALL-CENTENNIAL LEAGUE BOYS BASKETBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights

KAITLYN ALDRIDGE, Shawnee Heights

A junior, Aldridge earned All-City first-team honors for the second straight season in 2025, winning the city title in the 500-yard freestyle, placing second in the 100 butterfly and helping Shawnee Heights win the 200 free relay and finish third in the 400 free relay. Aldridge placed fourth in the United Kansas Conference in the 100 fly and fifth in the 500 free and swam on the T-Birds' fourth-place 400 free relay. Aldridge competed in the Class 5A-1A state meet.

Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural

AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural

Appuhn, a senior three-time All-City honoree, placed in multiple events in the Class 6A state meet for the third straight season last spring, taking third in the 100-yard breaststroke and sixth in the 200 freestyle to lead Rural to an 11th-place team finish. Appuhn won four golds in the city meet (200 free, 100 breast, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay) as Rural won its 22nd straight team title and four golds in the Centennial League meet (200 free, 100 breast, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay). Appuhn was a second-team All-State honoree in 6A in 2025.

Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High

HARA DEL CASTILLO, Topeka High

A senior, Del Castillo earned All-City honors for the third straight season in 2025 as the Trojan junior finished second in the city meet in the 100-yard backstroke and third in the 100 freestyle. Del Castillo won Centennial League titles in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and swam on the Trojans' fourth-place 200 medley relay. Del Castillo competed in the 6A state meet last season.

KAILYN GERDEL, Hayden

Gerdel, a junior was an All-City second-team pick last season after placing third in the city meet in the 200-yard freestyle and swimming on the Wildcats' runnerup 200 medley and 200 free relays. Gerdel finished third in the Centennial League in the 200 freestyle and swam on Hayden's second-place 200 medley and 200 free relays.

Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural

SOPHIE HEINEN, Washburn Rural

Heinen, a senior, finished second in the 500-yard freestyle in the city meet and also swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 medley and 400 free relays. Heinen finished second in the Centennial League in the 500 freestyle and swam on Rural's winning 200 medley and 400 free relays. Heinen swam on the Junior Blues' 11th-place 200 medley and 400 free relays at state.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Cale Deutscher, Washburn Rural

CALE DEUTSCHER, Washburn Rural

Deutscher, a senior, teamed with Dylan Willingham to finish seventh in Class 6A doubles last spring. Deutscher and Willingham won Centennial League and regional doubles championhips after finishing second in No. 1 doubles in the city meet. Deutscher was an All-City repeater in 2025, winning the city No. 2 doubles title as a sophomore.

Cole Fay, Cair Paravel Latin

COLE FAY, Cair Paravel Latin

A sophomore, Fay finished off his freshman season with a 10th-place singles finish in the Class 3A-1A state tournament last season. An All-City pick, Fay qualified for the state tournament with a regional championship, helping the Lions win the regional team title, and finished fourth in the city in No. 1 singles.

Drew Fay, Cair Paravel Latin

DREW FAY, Cair Paravel Latin

Fay, a senior, teamed with foreign exchange student Eric Buchenau to finish second in doubles in the 2025 Class 3A-1A state tournament. Fay and Buchenau, who went 29-2 on the season, captured the city championship in No. 1 doubles and also won a regional title. Fay is a three-time 3A-1A state qualifier, posting a fourth-place singles finish as a sophomore. He is a two-time All-City pick.

Greyson Jones, Washburn Rural

GREYSON JONES, Washburn Rural

Jones, a earned a spot on the 2025 All-City team with the No. 2 singles championship in the city tournament and also posted a fifth-place singles finish in the Centennial League tournament. Jones helped the Junior Blues capture team championships in city, Centennial League and regional competition.

Tres Lassiter, Topeka High 

TRES LASSITER, Topeka High

A senior, Lassiter captured the city title in No. 1 singles in his first season of high school tennis last spring. Lassiter also posted a runnerup singles finish in the Centennial League and Class 6A regional tournaments and posted a 2-2 singles record in his first Class 6A state tournament.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

AUSTIN BEAN, Hayden

A senior, Bean helped Hayden post a runnerup team finish in the Class 4A state tournament last season, earning second-team All-Shawnee County recognition. Bean finished 10th in the 2025 city championships with a 27-hole score of 127 and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament. He tied for 12th in 4A regional competition with an 81 as the Wildcats finished second as a team. 

CALEB CLEVERDON, Topeka High/Cair Paravel Latin

Cleverdon, a senior, competed for Topeka High during the regular season before competing for High's co-op partner, Cair Paravel, in postseason. Cleverdon tied for sixth in the Class 2A state tournament with a 36-hole total of 155 (76-79), leading the Lions to a fourth-place team finish. A second-team All-Shawnee County pick, Cleverdon finished 10th in a 2A regional (83) for team champion CPLS. 

Jack Donovan

JACK DONOVAN, Rossville

A senior, Donovan was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick for the second straight season last spring after earning a state medal for the second straight year with a tie for sixth in the Class 2A state event with a 36 hole score of 155 (76-79). Donovan was a 2A regional medalist, shooting a Rossville school-record 68 to win the individual championship by 12 strokes.

Peyton Goehring

PEYTON GOEHRING, Washburn Rural

Goehring is a top senior returner for Washburn Rural, which captured its 15th straight city team championship last season and advanced to the Class 6A state tournament as a team with a third-place team finish. Goehring carded a 27-hole score of 129 in the city tournament, missing the top 10 by two strokes and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament and finished 23rd at regionals.

Higgins Hawks

HIGGINS HAWKS, Washburn Rural

Hawks, a senior, earned his first All-Shawnee County first-team honor for the Junior Blues last season. Hawks tied for fifth in the city tournament with a 27-hole score of 124 as Rural won its 15th straight city championship. Hawks shot an 80 at regionals to tie for 10th as the Junior Blues earned a Class 6A team berth with a third-place finish and tied for 36th at state with a 36-hole score of 156 (75-81).

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural three-time Class 6A state champion and four-time finalist Landen Kocher-Munoz headlines the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County boys wrestling team.

TopSports.news' All-Shawnee County team is based on overall records, postseason results and city coaches' All-City selections.

Landen Kocher-Munoz, Washburn Rural [Photo by Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Kocher-Munoz was named the Shawnee County wrestler of the year after winning the 144-pound championship to wrap up a 39-4 season as Washburn Rural a third-place team finish.

Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]

Kocher-Munoz is one of eight Washburn Rural wrestlers to earn spots on the All-Shawnee County team, including junior 215-pound state champ Jadyn Baum, who went 29-4 on the season. 

Also earning all-county first-team honors for Rural were 106-pound freshman Hayden Broxterman (36-16), 113-pound freshman Andrew Peterson (26-11), 120-pound senior Ryder Harrison (28-7), 138-pound senior Cooper Stivers (34-7), 150-pound junior Brodye Kocher-Munoz (31-8) and sophomore 285-pounder Kaiden Marshall (19-4).

Harrison, Stivers, Brodye Kocher-Munoz, Landen Kocher-Munoz, Baum and Marshall are all first-team repeat picks.

Andrew Peterson, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]

Ryder Harrison, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]

Peterson, named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year, Harrison and Stivers all advanced to 6A championship matches and posted second-place finishes while Brodye Kocher-Munoz finished third and Broxterman and Marshall fifth in 6A.

Jude Krentz, Hayden [File photo/TSN]

 Paxton Willett, Silver Lake [Photo by Rick Peterson Jr./KSHSAA Covered]

Hayden senior Jude Krentz (40-4) was the 4A runnerup at 190 pounds and is an all-county first-team repeat pick while Silver Lake senior Paxton Willett (41-11) was the 3A-1A state runnerup at 190 pounds.

 Krentz is joined on the all-county first-team by Wildcat junior 175-pounder Caleb Menke (41-5) while Silver Lake senior 120-pounder Bryce Cormier (33-10) joins Willett on the first team.

Cormier posted a third-place state finish in 3A-1A while Menke finished fourth in 4A.

Seaman put junior 150-pounder Deegan Frazier (38-12), senior 165-pounder Landen Miller (35-14) and junior 285-pounder Henry Reichart (41-14) on the All-Shawnee County first team, with Frazier and Reichart both posting third-place finishes in the 5A state tournament. 

Hayden coach Jacob Torrez was named the Shawnee County coach of the year after also being picked by his city coaching counterparts as the City Coach of the Year.

ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY BOYS WRESTLING

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Class 5A senior state champion Cianna Graves headines the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County girls wrestling team while third-place teams Heights and Washburn Rural combined for 12 spots on the first team.

Cianna Graves, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

TopSports.news' All-Shawnee County team is based on overall records, postseason results and city coaches' All-City selections.

Graves, the Shawnee County wrestler of the year, is a four-time state medalist and capped her career with the state championship at 155 pounds, finishing off a 35-2 season.

Brinnley Morris, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Olive Jones, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Graves was one of three T-Bird state champions, with freshman Brinnley Morris (21-3) winning the 120-pound title title and sophomore Olive Jones (39-1) taking the 135-pound crown as Shawnee Heights earned the third-place team trophy for the second straight season.

Morris was tapped as the Shawnee County newcomer of the year.

Lacey Middleton, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]    

Emme Blanco, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN] 

Elia Smith, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]

Washburn Rural put a county-high seven wrestlers on the TSN All-Shawnee County first team, led by the senior Class 6A state runnerup trio of 125-pounder Lacey Middleton (39-7), 145-pounder Emme Blanco (40-4) and 170-pounder Elia Smith (35-4), who led the Junior Blues to a third-place team finish for the second straight season in 6A after Rural won back-to-back state titles in 2023 and 2024.

In addition to the three second-place finishers, Rural also put freshman 105-pounder Aliyah Tangpricha, senior 140-pounder Madi Blanco, junior 190-pounder Lily Davis and sophomore 235-pounder Emma Mehl on the first team. 

Tangpricha (30-6) and Madi Blanco (40-5) both placed third in 6A while Davis (37-12) finished sixth and Mehl (25-16) was a state qualifier.

Madi Blanco and Smith are both three-time first-team all-county honorees while Middleton and Emme Blanco are repeat picks.

Shawnee Heights also put senior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens and sophomore 110-pounder Bianca Juarez on the all-county first team.

A multi-time state medalist, Stevens (33-6) finished third at 145 pounds and Juarez (26-14) was a state qualifier. 

Shawnee Heights' Chad Parks was named the county coach of the year after the T-Birds won the United Kansas Conference championship and finished second at regionals before their third-place finish at state.

Makayla Cadet, Highland Park [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/TSN]

Highland Park senior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet (23-3) is a first-team repeat all-county honoree, posting a runnerup 5A state finish this past season after winning the state championship as a junior.

Nora Mitchell, Rossville [Photo by Rick Peterson Jr./KSHSAA Covered]

Rounding out the all-county first team are Rossville sophomore 105-pounder Nora Mitchell and junior 145-pounder Madelyn Wonnell.

Mitchell (37-12) was the 3A-1A runnerup and and Wonnell (38-6), a two-time state medalist, finished third this past season after finishing fifth as a sophomore.

ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS WRESTLING

By NATHAN SWAFFAR

Topsports.news

WICHITA – Washburn Rural hadn’t seen an individual boys state bowling champion since Blake Massey rolled his way to a title back in 2018.

Washburn Rural senior Cody Spangler captured the Class 6A individual state championship by five pins with a 756 three-game series Wednesday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN] 

That was until Wednesday. 

 With a three-game series of 756, Junior Blues senior Cody Spangler took home the Class 6A boys individual bowling title on Wednesday at Wichita’s Bowlero Northrock.

Spangler needed every bit of his score as he edged out Blue Valley North’s Eli Nathan by only five pins. 

“It’s kind of surreal, I wasn’t expecting to do this,” Spangler said following his victory. “I’m kind of speechless right now.”   

Spangler, who finished eighth at regionals, started his series off with a strong 245 in his first game. He rolled a slightly lower score of 223 in the second game.

The frustration was visible on Spangler, but he knew he needed to rebound in his final game. 

“I was like, ‘I know I need to focus for my team, I still got a game to go and I just need to lock in,’ ” Spangler said. “I have a line and I really needed to keep the mentality of, I’ve got to get my team a score.' ” 

Not only did Spangler come through for the Junior Blues, but his final game was the difference in the individual title race. 

As the frames flew by, the pins continued to vacate an empty spot at the end of the lane as Spangler threw strike after strike.

After 10 straight strikes, the perfect game was in sight, but the streak came to an end on his 11th throw. But with a 288, it was just enough to squeeze by Nathan to claim the title.  

With a 300 score in his career already, the choice between the perfect game and the state title was pretty easy for Spangler. 

“I’m going to have to go with the state title,” Spangler said. “I’ve already got the 300 on my resume, you can’t get a lot of [state titles].” 

“He’s worked hard,” Rural coach Jo Ricard said. “As a sophomore, he was down here by himself and did very well. He had some struggles last year and he’s come back, put it together again and held his own. Just to see him stay focused in on what he needs to do, to come through with what he got, that’s a big deal.” 

Spangler’s effort spearheaded Rural’s second straight fifth-place team finish with 3,412 total pins, trailing behind fourth-place Olathe South (3,524), third-place Maize (3,623), second-place Derby (3,652) and team title winner Wichita Northwest (3,890).

Washburn Rural senior Zachary Hancock shot a 652 series to finish 21st in Wednesday's Class 6A state bowling tournament. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN] 

Elsewhere in the individual standings, Rural senior Zachary Hancock came up just short of a medal in 21st place with a 652.

Junior Brecken Garrett (619) and senior Jackson Keller (611) also posted top-35 finishes. 

Washburn Rural junior Megan Glinka finished second in the Class 6A state bowling tournament Wednesday with a 726 series, leading the Junior Blues to a second-place team finish. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Glinka, Washburn Rural girls post runnerup finishes 

It looked as if the Junior Blues might claim both the boys and girls Class 6A individual titles as the afternoon progressed. But for Rural, and especially junior Megan Glinka, the tiniest of margins was the difference. 

Glinka’s 726 individual score came up just a pin shy of tying Mill Valley’s Layla Gonzalez at the top of the leaderboard, giving her the silver medal.

But Ginka’s strong individual performance went a long way toward the Junior Blues’ second-place team finish with a 3,318 total. Campus took home the team crown with a score of 3,420.  

And like Spangler a few hours before, Glinka came up just shy of a perfect game.

After she rolled a 204 in her first game, she went on a roll in her second. As the strikes accumulated, it looked like the perfect game was inevitable, but in a similar fashion to Spangler again, she came up just short at the very end, finishing with a 288.

She finished it out with a 234 in the last game and looked to be well in contention for the title. However, that single pin made the difference as Gonzalez’s 727 was just enough to take home the crown. 

“It’s about finding that pocket spot, that target where you need to be and just drilling it in there,” Ricard said of Ginka’s performance. “She’s grown and matured with that from year to year. That’s good for us even leading into next year, thinking ahead a little bit.” 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After eking out a pair of one-point regular-season wins over city and Centennial League rival Washburn Rural, Topeka High coach Robbie Sanders knew his Trojans faced a tough task against the Junior Blues in Wednesday's Class 6A sub-state semifinal in The Dungeon.

Senior Bryson McComas shared team-high honors for Topeka High with 14 points in Wednesday's 57-50 sub-state win over Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Topeka High senior Elisha Guest had 13 points with four 3-pointers in Wednesday's 57-50 sub-state victory over Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

But for the third time this season High was good enough to get the job done, taking a 57-50 victory to give the Trojans a three-game sweep over the Junior Blues by a total of just nine points.

"We gutted it out,'' Sanders said. "It was tough to beat those guys once, let alone three times.

"They're always so well-prepared and (John) Hoytal's such a physical presence and Cooper (Schmidt). It's just an interesting challenge that they give us, but I'm really proud of the way the guys handled it tonight.''

With the win No. 8 seed West seed Topeka High, now 13-11, is headed to a sub-state championship game Saturday at No. 1 seed Maize after winning only one game and failing to make into the 6A sub-state field in 2024-2025.

Washburn Rural, which finished the season 11-12, jumped out to a 5-0 advantage Wednesday, but Topeka High rallied to lead 18-13 by the end of the opening quarter.

The Trojans continued to fight off Washburn Rural in the second quarter en route to a 29-24 halftime advantage and led 40-35 at the end of the third stanza, ending the quarter with a 3-pointer from senior Ajalon Ross.

Topeka High got 13 points from senior Ajalon Ross in Wednesday's 57-50 Class 6A sub-state semifinal win over Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Ross's trey began a 9-0 run as the Trojans opened up their biggest lead of the night, 46-35, on two free throws from senior Jalen Aldridge with 5:31 remaining.

Topeka High eventually went up by 12 points (54-42) at the 2:03 mark on a free throw from junior Dae'Veon Campbell and the Junior Blues got no closer than the final margin the rest of the way.

Senior Bryson McComas led Topeka High with 14 points while senior Elisha Guest had 13 points with four 3-pointers and Ross also had 13 points, including a pair of traditional three-point plays and his 3-point basket.

"I didn't want my final game to be tonight,'' Ross said. "I wanted to go to practice tomorrow.''

"Ajalon's been through everything,'' Sanders said. "He had to wait his turn at Topeka West and he transferred over here. He started off really hot and he had some trials and tribulations but he never gave up.

"He shows up to work every day and he showed up when we needed it the most tonight.'' 

Senior John Hoytal scored a game-high 24 points in Wednesday's 57-50 Washburn Rural loss to Topeka High. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Hoytal, a senior, kept Washburn Rural in the hunt with a game-high 24 points, including a seven of eight performance at the free throw line.

By VINCE LOVERGINE

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural girls basketball is off to a Class 6A sub-state final after taking down Wichita South, 60-32, at home Tuesday night.

Junior Maddie Vickery scored a game-high 18 points in Tuesday's 60-32 Washburn Rural sub-state win over Wichita South. [File photo/TSN]

The Titans only had seven players suited up for Tuesday's game and Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick wasn’t shy in giving them praise.

“We were hoping we could wear them down, but I was impressed with the energy and stamina those girls had, I thought they played hard all the way through,” Bordewick said. “I thought our defense wasn’t as intense as it needed to be, I don't think at the start. We weren’t in a good offensive flow, but then once we got a couple of boards we ran some fastbreak, and I thought our offense looked a lot smoother.

"We talked about that at halftime that we’re more seamless in transition. We had a lot of good interior touches and that definitely opens up our outside shooting.''

 Wichita South jumped out to a 5-1 lead to begin but Rural climbed back to tie it at five as senior Hallie Walker scored the first five for Rural.

Wichita South kept pace, leading 8-7, but that would be the last lead the Titans would have.

Rural freshman Brynn Anderson nailed two 3-pointers and Kansas State commit Maddie Vickery put home a jumper as the Junior Blues' advantage grew to five (14-9). The Junior Blues led 18-13 after one quarter.

In the second quarter senior Josie Carlgren scored the first five points to push the Rural lead to 10 (23-13), and then Vickery went on a scoring run of her own, helping Washburn Rural to its biggest lead of the game (33-16) after two free throws. The Junior Blues took a 35-18 lead into the break.

It was a slow moving third quarter to begin with, but the Junior Blues kept building its lead, as Rural freshman Kamryn Smith scored four of the first six points in the quarter. Vickery had an and-one opportunity, missed the free throw but Walker cleaned up the miss and kissed it off the glass for two, making it 45-22. Walker ended the night with 15 points.

Anderson continued her solid performance, converting an and-one and then capped off the quarter with a trey in the corner before the buzzer, pushing the Rural lead to 56-28. She finished with 13.

Eight different players scored in the game.

“We’ve been really aware of getting paint touches and Hallie has really come along a lot, especially the second half of the season about finishing plays on the inside,'' Bordewick said. "Just getting Maddie back is another dimension that adds an inside-out, Brynn is an inside-out and we left quite a few points on the floor by not finishing free throws, layups or two foot shots.

"Ella (Hirschi) and Josie are good shooters and they didn’t get enough to get going but when they do, we can be a pretty potent offense.''

Washburn Rural only needed two more points for the running clock in the fourth quarter and got it with two free throws (58-28) at the 6:33 mark from Vickery, who finished with a game-high 18 points as the Junior Blues went on to improve to 16-8.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural earned nine of 11 spots on the 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving team, led by Class 6A state champion Daniel Allen, after the Junior Blues capturned their seventh straight city team championship.

The 2026 All-City boys swimming first team -- Front, from left: Alexander Jeffries, Washburn Rural; Davin Potts, Washburn Rural; Braeden Montgomery, Washburn Rural; Benjamin Allen, Washburn Rural; Andres Morao-Jaspe, Washburn Rural. Back, from left: Kinser Barbosa, Seaman; Daniel Allen, Washburn Rural; Thomas Appuhn, Washburn Rural; Zain Chaudhry, Washburn Rural; Castle Wallace, Washburn Rural; Will Stewart, Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

The 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving second team -- Front row, from left: Quenten Jessop, Washburn Rural; Henry Sterling, Cair Paravel/Hayden; William Toland, Topeka High; Wyatt Ratteree, Topeka High; Jackson Wills, Topeka High; Owen Gann, Shawnee Heights. Back row, from left: Patrick Luke, Hayden; Joseph Jensen, Washburn Rural; Miller Reid, Hayden; Camp LeDuc, Seaman; Theron Carlson, Seaman. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Allen capped his junior season with the state title in the 100-yard butterfly while also placing third in the 100 backstroke and swimming on the Junior Blues' fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.

Sophomore Thomas Appuhn also earned four medals in the state meet, posting fourth-place finishes in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and swimming on Rural's fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.

Junior Andres Morao-Jaspe and sophomore Castle Wallace also earned 6A state medals as Washburn Rural placed sixth as team and are joined on the All-City team by Benjamin Allen, Zain Chaudhry, Alexander Jeffries, Braeden Montgomery and Davin Potts. 

Appuhn, Morao-Jaspe and Wallace are all first-team All-City repeat honorees while D. Allen made the team as a freshman before sitting out his sophomore high school season.

Seaman's Kinser Barbosa and Topeka High's Will Stewart are also repeat first-team All-City selections.

All-City capsules:

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Jack Donovan

JACK DONOVAN, Rossville

A senior boys basketball player, Donovan scored 47 points on Friday as Rossville opened postseason with a 90-28 Class 2A sub-state home quarterfinal victory over McLouth. A returning All-Shawnee County pick, Donovan hit 17 of 28 shots on the night with nine 3-pointers while also going 4 of 4 at the free throw line and topping the 40-point mark for the second time this season.

Brecken Garrett

BRECKEN GARRETT, Washburn Rural

Garrett, a junior boys bowler, shot a 739 three-game series last Wednesday in a Class 6A regional tournament at Royal Crest Lanes in Lawrence to capture the individual championship and lead the Junior Blues to the team title by a 3,614-3,341 margin over Mill Valley. Garrett bowled games of 216, 258 and 265. 

Cianna Graves 

CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights

A senior 155-pound girls wrestler, Graves captured her first Class 5A individual state championship Saturday in Park City, capping a 35-2 season with a second-period pin in the title match while helping lead the T-Birds to a third-place team finish for the second straight season. Graves finished her high school career as a four-time state medalist. 

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

The Washburn Rural girls lost their regular-season finale Friday night at home to Manhattan, 61-46, which ensured the Indians would share the Centennial League crown with Topeka High.

Freshman Brynn Anderson led Washburn Rural with 13 points in Friday's 61-46 loss to Manhattan. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

After tying the game at 20, the Junior Blues fell off the pace late in the second period. They trailed 30-24 at the half and 44-33 after three periods. Washburn Rural crawled back to within seven, 49-42, midway through the final period, but ran out of gas at that point.

The Indians needed a win to split the league title with Topeka High, which finished its season on Tuesday. Both teams finished the season with 8-2 league marks.

“Manhattan is a really good team. I told (Indians coach Scott Mall) I’m not sure that’s not his best team since they won state in 2017,” Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick said. “We were just kind of off balance all night. We didn’t help ourselves turning the ball over so much, especially in the first quarter. But they are really, really good.

“We had our chances. We were able to keep it close, but we didn’t execute very well under pressure when they did apply the pressure they did, and that was a little disheartening.”

Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson knocked down all four field goals she attempted – all three-pointers – to lead the team with 13 points. Senior Hallie Walker hit all three of her field goal attempts as well. But the rest of the Junior Blues struggled mightily from the field, connecting on just eight of 33 shots from the field.

Senior Ella Hirschi added 10 points for Rural with a pair of 3-pointers.

Still feeling her way back from ACL surgery, junior Maddie Vickery missed all nine of her shots and scored just six points, all from the free throw line.

Despite the loss to close the regular season 15-8, 5-5 in the league, Bordewick was upbeat about the overall direction of the Junior Blues. Washburn Rural played three freshmen in critical points in the game Friday, and in just the last eight days began working Vickery back into the rotation.

“With this group doing what they’ve done so far this year, it seems to me somewhat miraculous,” Bordewick said. “Just the way they’ve come together and played together. And we’re still getting Maddie mixed in a little bit, too. So, it’ll take a little bit. It takes a little while to get used to a new player, even though she’s a two-year starter.”

Washburn Rural now awaits the Class 6A sub-state schedule to find out where it will play on Tuesday. While the regular season didn’t end like they wanted, the Junior Blues are getting a lift by the addition of Vickery – a Kansas State basketball commit – at playoff time.

“I tell you what, she’s looked so good in practice this week. I saw really great things from her in practice,” Bordewick said of Vickery. “Now, she wasn’t shooting it well tonight. But she knows what to do to correct that. So, I’m not too worried about her.”

MANHATTAN GIRLS 61, WASHBURN RURAL 46

Manhattan         16 14 14 17 -- 61

Washburn Rural   8 16 9 13 -- 46

Manhattan (18-5, 8-2) – Larson 3-5 0-0 7, Depusoir 2-2 1-2 5, Ball 4-6 5-6 14, Busch 5-7 5-8 17, Banks 6-12 1-2 16, Ingram 0-5 0-0 0, Becket 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 21-38 12-18 61.

Washburn Rural (15-8, 5-5) – Rutherford 0-2 0-0 0, Hirschi 4-12 0-0 10, Walker 3-3 1-3 7, Anderson 4-4 1-2 13, Carlgren 3-6 0-0 7, Vickery 0-9 6-7 6, Smith 1-3 0-0 3, Hinck 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 15-40 8-12 46.

3-point goals – Manhattan 7 (Banks 3, Busch 2, Ball, Larson), Washburn Rural 8 (Anderson 4, Hirschi 2, Carlgren, Smith). Total fouls – Manhattan 14, Washburn Rural 17. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none. 

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

When Washburn Rural’s Kiefer O'Connor drained a 3-pointer to tie Manhattan 58-58 with 5.1 seconds remaining in overtime Friday, elation was mixed with trepidation. That was too much time, particularly when Manhattan senior Vince Doering received the inbounds pass and raced up court.

Senior John Hoytal led Washburn Rural with 23 points in Friday's 60-58 overtime loss to Manhattan. [Photo by Doug Walker/TSN]

Doering had been hitting big shots all night, and the senior dribbled the length of the floor, pierced the Junior Blue defense and flipped in a layup for the 60-58 win just as the buzzer sounded.

Doering’s heroics foiled a valiant battle by the Junior Blues on their Senior Night. Trailing by six points with 4:52 left in regulation, Washburn Rural put together a 7-0 run to take a 41-40 lead with 3:11 remaining. But they couldn’t hold it and needed a shot by senior John Hoytal to send the game to overtime tied 46-46.

The Junior Blues never led in overtime, but tied it on O’Connor's three to give themselves a chance. After a timeout, they loaded up to defend the inbounds pass, with coach Alex Hutchins' instructions fresh in their minds:

“’Don’t get beat off the dribble. Don’t let them get downhill,’ Hutchins said. “That’s pretty much the only thing we said was, ‘Don’t let them get downhill.’ And then we did.”

Having already locked up sole possession of the Centennial League crown in their previous game, Manhattan was playing for Claaa 6A sub-state positioning. When Doering’s shot fell, the entire Indians’ team celebrated in the corner of the gym while the Junior Blues shuffled off.

“Tough to tell how everybody’s doing. I’m sure we’ve got a lot of guys that are hurting,” Hutchins said. “We’ve been in this scenario a lot this year, and too often we’ve not found a way to make the final play and get it done. We say we keep learning and we’re knocking on the door, and hopefully at some point we will kick the door down. Unfortunately, tonight wasn’t that night, but hopefully it’s the next one.

“I thought we did a pretty darn good job defensively most of the night and gave ourselves a chance. We coughed the ball up and turned it over way too many times. But the fact we are still within striking distance is a testament to the defensive end.”

Hoytal led the Junior Blues with 23 points, the only member of the team to crack double figures. Washburn Rural fell to 11-11 on the year, 4-6 in the Centennial League.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

OVERLAND PARK -- Two Washburn Rural boys wrestlers brought home gold medals at the Class 6A State Championship at AdventHealth Sports Park in Overland Park Saturday, leading the squad to a third-place team trophy.

Washburn Rural senior star Landen Kocher-Munoz jumps into the arms of coach Josh Hogan after capturing his third Class 6A state championship Saturday in Overland Park. [Photo by Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Washburn Rural junior 215-pound state champion Jadyn Baum helped the Junior Blues post a third-place team finish Saturday in Overland Park. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN] 

Washburn Rural scored 180 points, which trailed Maize with 235 and Manhattan with 192.5.

“I thought it was going to be a tall order to beat Maize. They are probably one of the deeper teams that Kansas has ever seen in the history of the state tournament,” said Washburn Rural coach Josh Hogan. “It would have been nice to beat Manhattan, but you know, you can’t win them all. It just came down to a couple of matches.”

Senior Landen Kocher-Munoz won gold in the 144-pound weight class and junior Jadyn Baum took first in the 215-pound class.

Three other Junior Blues made the final round, placing second -- freshman 113-pounder Andrew Peterson, senior 120-pounder Ryder Harrison and senior 138-pounder Cooper Stivers.

“I’m happy for the guys to be able to bring a trophy home, especially our seniors,” Hogan said. “They worked so hard, some of them from the time they were six years old until now to get where we’re at.

“I really attribute this to our commitment to togetherness and our commitment to believing in each other and trusting each other and forming the bonds that let us go through the highs and the lows together.”

Kocher-Munoz claimed his third gold medal in four final-round appearances at state. He won first in the 120-pound class as a freshman. He took second wrestling in the 138-pound class as a sophomore. He returned to win that weight class as a junior.

“Last year was my revenge tour,” Kocher-Munoz said. “This year, it’s all about being with my guys, being with my team, being with the family. I am so grateful for everyone that’s been in my life that’s trained me for this moment.

“It’s very sentimental. I told each and every one of my coaches, like an hour ago, I was like, ‘No matter what happens out here tonight, I’m so grateful that you guys trust me enough to come put on a Rural singlet.’ And I’m just so happy right now.”

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

OVERLAND PARK -- The Washburn Rural girls wrestling team added yet another state trophy to the school’s increasingly crowded case Saturday, placing third at the Class 6A state meet for the second year in a row.

Washburn Rural girls wrestling coach Damon Parker cheers on his team during Saturday's Class 6A state tournament in Overland Park. [Photo by Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Winners of state titles in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024, Washburn Rural remains the standard in girls wrestling.

“There’s nobody outside of the people that were sitting up in (the Junior Blues’ cheering) section that thought we had a chance to bring home a trophy. And we came in here and we won a third-place finish at state,” said Washburn Rural coach Damon Parker. “I could not be more proud of this team.

“People have a recency bias. People forget that we are the most decorated program in Kansas girls wrestling history. We’ve never had a state tournament where we haven’t brought home a trophy. I think everybody else thought that this was the year, but we showed up with the youngest team in Kansas and still won third.”

The Junior Blues failed to take a gold medal in any weight class at AdventHealth Sports Park in Overland Park on Saturday. Still, they amassed 175 points, good for third behind Garden City with 226.5 and Gardner Edgerton with 197.

Three Junior Blues – all seniors – placed second in their respective weight classes.

Washburn Rural senior 125-pounder Lacey Middleton posted a runnerup Class 6A state finish for third-place Washburn Rural. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

Washburn Rural senior 145-pounder Emme Blanco finished second in Class 6A Saturday in Overland Park. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

Washburn Rural senior Elia Smith, the 170-pound runnerup, talks to coach Damon Parker during Saturday's Class 6A state meet in Overland Park. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

Lacey Middleton took the silver in the 125-pound class after she finished fourth at 120 a year ago. Emme Blanco took second in the 145-pound class after placing third at 140 last year and Elia Smith took second in the 170-pound class, the class in which she placed sixth a year ago.

Blanco nearly pulled off a big upset against Audrey Lennard, defending champ in the 145-pound class and the 6A East Regional Wrestler of the Year. Blanco led 11-3 and had battered her opponent when the reigning champ mustered the strength for one decisive pin.

“That girl is, what, 46-0, and then Emme put her on her back twice,” Parker said. “Nobody’s done that to her all year, right? She hasn’t given up a single back point until today. Emme was that close to winning that one.”

Middleton agreed with Parker’s belief that the Junior Blues surprised the rest of the 6A class on Saturday.

“I think we outperformed ourselves because we have grown so much as a team and just our culture together,” Middleton said. “We’re just a family and it really shows out on the mat.”

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Junior Brecken Garrett shot a 739 three-game series to capture the individual championship in Tuesday's Class 6A bowling regional at Lawrence's Royal Crest Lanes, leading Washburn Rural to the team championship by a 3,614-3,341 margin over Mill Valley.

Washburn Rural's boys bowling team won the team title in Wednesday's Class 6A regional in Lawrence. [Photo courtesy of Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Washburn Rural junior Brecken Garrett (left) captured the individual championship in Wednesday's Class 6A boys bowling regional at Lawrence. [Photo courtesy of Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Garrett shot games of 216, 258 and 265 to take the individual crown by 26 pins over Olathe Northwest junior Carter Bloomcamp (713).

The Junior Blues also got a sixth-place finish from junior Andrew Faurot (674), an eighth-place showing from senior Cody Spangler (648), a 12th from senior Parker Dixson (636) and a 13th-place finish from sophomore Zachary Hancock (626), while senior Jackson Keller shot a 576 to round out Washburn Rural's lineup.

Topeka High finished 11th as a team, led by senior Jayden Wilson's 562 series.

Washburn Rural's girls also earned a team berth for next week's state tournament in Wichita, placing third behind Mill Valley (3,416) and Centennial League rival Junction City (3,099) with a score of 3,011. 

Junior Megan Glinka placed eighth in Wednesday's Class 6A girls bowling regional at Lawrence, leading the Junior Blues to a state berth with a third-place finish. [Photo courtesy of Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]

Rural junior Megan Glinka tied for seventh and placed eighth on a tiebreaker with a 633 series, including games of 221 and 222.

The Junior Blues also got a 12th-place finish from Kenzie Lawson (591) while senior Camrynn Ahrens (556), freshman Peyton Lawson (503), senior Stella Gordon (487) and senior Ellen Austin (447) rounded out Rural's lineup.

Topeka High finished 12th as a team.

The 6A state tournament will be held next Friday, March 4, at Wichita's Bowlero Northrock.

Boys competition will get under way at 8:50 a.m., followed by the girls at 1:40 p.m. 

CLASS 6A REGIONAL BOWLING

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

By his own admission, Topeka High's Elisha Guest has been struggling with his 3-point shooting recently, and the 5-foot-7 senior guard got off to another tough start Tuesday night at Washburn Rural.

Topeka High celebrates Tuesday's 56-55 win at Washburn Rural. [Photo by Doug Walker/TSN]

But after that game-opening miss, Guest caught fire, scoring a game-high 25 points with seven 3s to lead Topeka High to a 56-55 win over the Junior Blues while High was able to clinch a winning regular-season record.

"My first shot was an air ball as everybody saw, but then I think I hit two or three in a row and I got rolling after that,'' Guest said.

"It's great to get it back. I've been struggling from the 3-point line but the rest of the team, they've kept my head up so I was able to hit a lot this evening.''

Topeka High's win was not secure until Rural senior John Hoytal's potential game-winning shot at the buzzer bounced around and out, but all that mattered to first-year High coach Robbie Sanders was that the Trojans found a way to pull out the victory after a five-point home loss to city rival Topeka West a night earlier.

"I told these boys that just look at my face and look at me from the beginning of the season until now, I've got a lot more gray hair and a lot less hair, but I'm happy we were able to find a way,'' Sanders said. "I think last night, even though we lost there were a lot more positives than negatives and just competing the way we did against Topeka West gave us a lot of confidence going into today.

"We started off strong and we had some lapses, but we were able to make enough plays in the end.''

Topeka High, now 12-11 overall and 5-5 in the league after winning just one game last season, led much of Tuesday's game, including an 18-9 advantage at the end of the first quarter and a 21-11 edge early in the second stanza.

But Washburn Rural (11-10, 4-5) battled back to take a 30-29 lead on a Brooks Ballard 3-pointer to end the first half and the game was tied 43-all at the start of the fourth.

Rural led 49-46 with five minutes remaining after a Zach Wright basket, but Topeka High scored seven straight points to go up 53-49 on a Jalen Aldridge trey and went in front 56-52 on a Guest 3.

Hoytal hit a 3-pointer to pull Rural within a point with 43.2 seconds left and Dominic Nimz came up with a steal with 20 seconds remaining to give the Junior Blues a change to pull out the win.

Washburn Rural missed a shot with 2.7 seconds on the clock, but Topeka High turned the ball over with two ticks left and Hoytal got a good look on his last-second miss.

Topeka High senior Bryson McComas backed Guest with 15 points while Aldridge had nine.

"It was a must win and 'E' really stepped up today, Bryson made some plays, Ajalon (Ross) got us started off hot after not being able to play yesterday because of illness,'' Sanders said. "I'm just happy with the guys.''

Washburn Rural senior John Hoytal scored 20 points in Tuesday's 56-55 loss to Topeka High. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Hoytal led Rural with 20 points while Ballard added 11.

Washburn Rural will close out its regular season Friday at home against Manhattan while Topeka High will await the postseason pairings.

 "We could potentially have a home game if things shake our way tonight and Friday,'' Sanders said. "If not we could potentially go to Wichita, but I think all the games and the teams that we could face will be pretty good competition but winnable games for us.''

TOPEKA HIGH BOYS 56, WASHBURN RURAL 55

Topeka High       18 11 14 13 -- 56

Washburn Rural   9 21 13 12 -- 55

Topeka High (12-11, 5-5) – Aldridge 2-6 3-4 9, Guest 9-14 0-0 25, McComas 5-12 3-4 15, Ross 2-4 0-0 5, McFadden 0-2 0-0 0, Carter 0-0 0-0 0, Wilkerson 0-0 0-0 0, Redmond 1-1 0-0 0, Luarks 0-1 0-0 0, Campbell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-40 6-8 56. 

Washburn Rural (?-?, ?-?) – Nimz 1-1 2-2 4, Ballard 5-11 0-0 11, Hoytal 7-11 4-5 20, Chooncharoen 1-3 0-0 2, Schmidt 2-5 0-0 4, Wright 3-5 0-1 6, O'Connor 3-6 1-1 8, Bradley 0-1 0-0 0, Jones 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-44 7-9 55.

3-point goals – Topeka High 12 (Guest 7, Aldridge 2, McComas 2, Ross), Washburn Rural 4 (Hoytal, Ballard O'Connor). Total fouls – Topeka High 10, Washburn Rural 10. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls -- none.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

With Topeka High's girls trailing Washburn Rural by eight points with six remaining Tuesday night, the Trojans' chance at a victory and any shot at a Centennial League championship looked pretty bleak.

Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, shooting over Washburn Rural's Maddie Vickery (5), came up big down the stretch in Tuesday's 59-55 Topeka High win over Washburn Rural. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

But a 15-3 game-ending run, including the final seven points, turned things around in a hurry, with the Trojans rallying for a 59-55 win to earn at least a share of the league title while stretching their winning streak to nine games. 

"Defense,'' Topeka High coach Ron Slaymaker said. "We got a couple of interceptions there at a crucial time and we got the ball back and made the free throws and wow!

"From the get go we have emphasized defense. Defense is your offense and I think it maybe finally kicked in that we can score a lot of points if we're playing really good defense and the nine in a row here that's what's kicked in, that they've really bought in. We've been shooting high percentages, but a lot of it's been interceptions and layups and stuff like that.''

With Tuesday's come-from-behind victory, the Trojans, 15-8 overall and 8-2 in the Centennial League, now have a chance to win the league title if outright if Washburn Rural beats Manhattan Friday night at Rural.

"How about that?'' Slaymaker said. "This is not your chump change league and now we're yelling for Washburn Rural on Friday and that should be a good game.''

Tuesday's Rural-Topeka High game was close throughout, with Washburn Rural (15-7, 5-4) leading by two points after each of the first three quarters.

The Junior Blues opened the fourth quarter with an 8-2 run, taking a 52-44 lead with 6:23 remaining on a hoop from senior Hallie Walker.

But the Trojans fought back to tie the game at 52 on a Trish Short free throw with 4:23 left.

Then, after a 3-pointer from Washburn Rural junior Brooklyn Rutherford, Topeka High answered with a huge 3-pointer from junior star Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton to knot the game at 55 before senior Sasha Gotru put the Trojans ahead to stay with 1:29 left and Rayton clinched the win with two free throws.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Daniel Allen

DANIEL ALLEN, Washburn Rural

Allen, a junior swimming star, won a Class 6A state championship in Saturday's Class 6A state meet in the 100-yard butterfly in a personal-record time of 50.85 seconds and earned four state medals overall as Rural finished sixth as a team. Allen finished third in the 100 backstroke (53.38) and swam on the Junior Blues' fourth-place 200 medley relay (1:40.31) and seventh-place 200 free relay (1:30.97). 

Thomas Appuhn

THOMAS APPUHN, Washburn Rural

A sophomore swimming standout, Appuhn earned four state medals in Saturday's Class 6A state meet, helping Washburn Rural post a sixth-place state finish as a team. Appuhn finished fourth in the 200-yard individual medley in 1 minute, 58.59 seconds, was fourth in the 100 backstroke in 54.71 seconds and swam on the Junior Blues' fourth-place 200 medley relay (1:40.31) and seventh-place 200 free relay (1:30.97).

Megan Glinka   

MEGAN GLINKA, Washburn Rural

Glinka, a junior bowler, won the girls individual championship in Thursday's Centennial League tournament at Manhattan with a three-game series of 610, winning the title by 37 pins. Glinka, who rolled games of 193, 204 and 213, helped lead the Junior Blues to the Centennial League team title by a 2,881-2,758 margin over runnerup Junction City.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural junior star Daniel Allen captured the Class 6A individual state championship in the 100-yard butterfly and earned four state medals to pace the city contingent in Saturday's state swimming championships Saturday at the Shawnee Mission School District Aquatics Center.

Washburn Rural junior Daniel Allen won the 6A title in the 100 butterfly by more than a second and a half and earned four state medals. [File photo/TSN] 

Allen, a multiple Class 6A medalist as a freshman in 2024 before sitting out the '25 high school season, entered the state meet as the No. 1 seed for the 100 fly and delivered a personal-record time of 50.85 seconds in the state final, out-distancing Blue Valley Northwest junior Cameron Hagen, who placed second in 52.37.

Allen posted a third-place state finish in the 100 backstroke in 53.38 and swam on Washburn Rural's fourth-place 200 medley relay (1:40.31) and the Junior Blues' seventh-place 200 free relay (1:30.97).

Washburn Rural sophomore Thomas Appuhn earned four state medals in the 6A state swimming meet, including a pair of fourth-place individual finishes. [File photo/TSN]

Washburn Rural sophomore Thomas Appuhn also earned four state medals for the Junior Blues, who finished sixth as a team with 143.5 points.

Appuhn finished fourth in the 200 individual medley (1:58.89), fourth in the 100 backstroke (54.71) and swam on Rural's 200 medley and 200 free relay teams.

 Junior Andres Morao-Jaspe and sophomore Castle Wallace swam on Rural's 200 medley relay while Wallace and sophomore Quinten Jessop swam on the Junior Blues' 200 free relay.

Morao-Jaspe tied for 10th in the 'B' final of 100 backstroke (56.93) and Wallace placed 12th in the 100 breaststroke 'B' final (1:04.05) while freshman Braeden Montgomery finished 15th in the 500 free 'B' final (5:08.50) and he teamed with senior Joseph Jensen, senior Alexander Jeffries and Morao-Jaspe to finish 12th in the 'B' final of the 400 free relay (3:30.00).

Shawnee Mission East won the 6A team championship with 290.5 points while Blue Valley West was second (270) and Blue Valley North third (218.5).

Seaman junior Kinser Barbosa finished seventh in the Class 5A-1A 100 freestyle Saturday.  [File photo/TSN]

Barbosa earns Class 5A-1A state medal

Seaman junior Kinser Barbosa posted a seventh-place finish Saturday in the 100-yard freestyle (49.56) to lead the city contingent in the Class 5A-1A state meet at the Shawnee Mission School District Aquatics Center. 

Barbosa also tied for 11th in the 50 free 'B' final (22.71) and swam on the Vikings' 15th-place 200 free relay and 16th-place 200 medley relay.

Barbosa swam with seniors Theron Carlson, Josh Hochard and Ryan Sloyer on the 200 free relay and with junior Wyatt Glotzbach, Carlson and Hochard on the 200 medley relay.

Andover won the 5A-1A state team championship with 379.5 points while Seaman placed 25th with 23.5 points.    

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural led the way with 12 state qualifiers for the Class 6A state wrestling tournament as all nine Shawnee County teams qualified at least one competitor for state, with 11 individual regional champions.

Leading Rural to a third-place 6A regional team finish were regional champions Landen Kocher-Munoz, a senior 144-pounder, and junior 215-pounder Jadyn Baum.

Silver Lake led the Shawnee County contingent with a county-high five regional champions and a county-best runnerup regional team finish in 3A-1A, with the Eagles getting regional titles from senior 120-pounder Bryce Cormier, senior 138-pounder Garret Holmes, senior 157-pounder Jayden Waterer, senior 190-pounder Paxton Willett and sophomore 285-pounder Carter Spreer.

Shawnee Heights qualified 10 wrestlers for the 5A state tournament, led by freshman 113-pound regional champion Jacob Bonebrake and 150-pound junior champ Brody Brown while Hayden got 4A regional titles from junior 175-pounder Caleb Menke and senior 190-pounder Jude Krentz.  

Here's a look at Saturday's regional tournaments involving Shawnee County high schools:

Washburn Rural senior 144-pounder Landen Kocher-Munoz, a two-time Class 6A state champion and a three-time state finalist, won a regional title Saturday at Wichita North. [File photo/TSN]

Kocher-Munoz, Baum power Rural to third-place regional showing

Regional champions Landen Kocher-Munoz and Jadyn Baum led 12 Class 6A qualifiers for perennial state contender Washburn Rural, which finished third as a team in the 6A West regional at Wichita North.

Kocher-Munoz, a senior two-time state champion and three-time state finalist, won the regional title at 144 pounds to improve to 35-4 on the season.

Kocher-Munoz, a defending state champion, capped his regional title run with a 13-5 major decision over Manhattan senior Cameron Coonrod (42-5).

Baum, a junior 215-pounder, improved to 25-4 on the season with a 16-1 technical fall over Wichita South senior Jayden Kirk (28-5). Baum posted a third-place state finish in 2025 as a sophomore. 

Washburn Rural got runnerup regional finishes from 113-pound freshman Andrew Peterson (23-10), 120-pound senior Ryder Harrison (25-6), 138-pound senior Cooper Stivers (31-6) and junior Brodye Kocher-Munoz (27-7) while Rural senior Brenner Beninga (175) qualified fourth for state, freshman Hayden Broxterman (106), junior Gavin Homeyer (190) and sophomore Kaiden Marshall (285) placed fifth, sophomore Owen Dowell (132) was sixth at regionals and sophomore Caleb Schwartz (165) seventh.

Topeka High will be represented at state by senior 157-pounder Jordan Stiner and junior 175-pounder Landon Snyder, who both posted eighth-place regional finishes.

Maize won the team title in the 6A West Regional with 272.5 points, followed by Manhattan with 251 points and Rural with 223.5 points. Topeka High placed 16th as a team with 29 points.

The 6A state meet will be contested Friday and Saturday at the Advent Health Sports Park in Overland Park.

T-Birds qualify 10 for 5A state meet

Shawnee Heights placed fourth as a team in Saturday's Class 5A East regional at Lansing while qualifying 10 wrestlers for this weekend's state tournament in Park City.

The T-Birds got regional championships from 113-pound freshman Jacob Bonebrake and 150-pound junior Brody Brown.

Bonebrake improved to 17-1 with a 3 minute, 37-second pin over Blue Valley Southwest junior Caden Magdefran (19-8) in the 113-pound regional final while Brown improved to 33-6 with a 5:27 win by fall over De Soto junior Eli Anderson (27-15).

Evan Johnson, a 175-pound senior (32-8) posted a runnerup regional finish while sophomore Mason Moore (126), freshman Markis Owens (157) and junior Jaiden Converse (165) qualified for state with sixth-place regional finishes, junior Dallas Owens (138) and sophomore Carter Kamanda (144) placed seventh and sophomore Reid Niedfeldt (132) and junior Landyn Bafford (285) qualified eighth.

Highland Park will be represented at state by senior 175-pounder Philiciono Rice (14-19) and junior 165-pounder Joshua Hernandez-Torres (15-15), with Rice placing seventh and Hernandez-Torres eighth at regionals.

Basehor-Linwood won the 5A East regional team crown with 266 points while Heights was fourth with 156.5 points and Highland Park 16th with 17 points.

The 5A state tournament will be held Friday and Saturday in Park City.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Hayden's boys faced long odds of posting a Senior Night win Friday night after spotting Washburn Rural a 17-point advantage midway through the second quarter and falling behind by 16 points early in the second half.

Hayden senior Connor Hanika (3) had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in Friday's 53-49 overtime win over Washburn Rural. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

But eventually the Wildcats began to flash the form that has now produced eight wins over their last nine games, forcing overtime before doubling up the Junior Blues in the extra session to take a 53-49 Centennial League win at the Bueltel Activities Center.

"We regrouped and got back to the things that we wrote up -- start executing, start looking for each other and don't be so panicked when you don't get that first option,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Anthony said. "They did a good job of just staying the course.''

Now 12-8 overall and 5-4 in the league, the Wildcats were able to avenge a 17-point loss (79-62) at Rural earlier in the season.

After trailing 3-2 and 5-4 early, Washburn Rural (11-9, 4-4) took a 10-7 lead at the end of the first quarter and hit the Wildcats with an 18-7 second quarter, leading 26-9 midway through the period, to take a 28-14 advantage into halftime.

The Junior Blues, who played without injured senior guard Simon Rowley, scored the first basket of the second half to go up 30-14 and still led by double-digits midway through the third quarter before the Wildcats began to peck away at the Rural advantage.

Hayden cut its deficit to 37-34 by the end of the third quarter and took its first lead since the opening three minutes on a Mason Becker 3-pointer with 6:28 left in regulation.

Three ties and a couple of lead changes followed and both teams had opportunities to end things in regulation over the final minute before the game went to OT.

Hayden drew first blood in overtime on a 3-pointer from junior Carter Compton and never trailed in the extra session while leading by five points twice as the Wildcat seniors were able to celebrate their first career wins over Washburn Rural.

Senior Connor Hanika scored 13 of his team-high 15 points in the second half to lead four double-figure scorers for the Wildcats while grabbing 10 rebounds for a double-double.

"We struggled in the first half, everybody,'' Hanika said. "We couldn't get anything to fall but the main thing at halftime was our shots are going to fall and we've just got to wait for the opportunity and then attack it.''

Becker added 13 points with three 3-pointers while senior Kade Mitchell scored 11 points and Compton 10 for the Wildcats.

"That's what we've been stressing,'' Anthony said of the Wildcats' balance. "This is a team game and so easily it can feel like it's not at times, but it is and they've embraced the 'We over me' philosophy and that's been blessing us in these last games.''

Senior John Hoytal (10) scored a game-high 17 points in Friday's 53-49 Washburn Rural overtime loss at Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 

Senior John Hoytal led Washburn Rural with a game-high 17 points and also grabbed nine rebounds while senior Kieffer O'Connor came off the bench to add 10 points with a pair of treys.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

The final minutes of Friday's Centennial League basketball game at Hayden got a lot tighter than Washburn Rural girls coach Kevin Bordewick would have preferred.

Washburn Rural's girls celebrate Friday's 40-38 Centennial League win at Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

But after seeing Hayden rally from a 13-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter to have an opportunity to send the game to overtime, Bordewick was relieved to get out of the Bueltel Activities Center with a 40-38 win.

"It was ugly and we've got to take care of the ball better, we have to understand situations,'' Bordewick said. "We got a couple of five-second counts, but we fought through a lot of adversity and I told them if we can persevere and be that resilient than that's really a good sign to come in here and get a win like that.'' 

Rural's win avenged an earlier 38-35 home league loss to the Wildcats as the Junior Blues improved to 15-6 overall and 5-3 in the league with their second one-possession win in as many nights.

After trailing 6-5 at the end of the first quarter, Washburn Rural took a slim 18-16 halftime advantage over the Wildcats before opening up a 29-21 cushion at the start of the fourth quarter.

The Junior Blues extended their lead to a game's biggest 36-23 midway through the final stanza on a basket from freshman Brynn Anderson, but Hayden (15-6, 6-3) stepped up the defensive pressure and went on a 14-3 run to cut its deficit to just two points (39-37) with 14.7 seconds remaining.

Anderson hit one of two free throws to push Rural's lead back to three, but the officials ruled that Hayden senior Lauren Borjon was fouled on a desperation 3-point attempt as time ran out. Three-10ths of a second were put back on the court and Borjon went to the free throw line for three shots with a chance to force OT.

After missing the first charity Borjon hit the second free throw before being called for a line violation as she purposely missed the third shot to try to give the Wildcats a chance at a game-tying bucket.

Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson led all scorers with 19 points in Friday's 40-38 Centennial League win at Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Washburn Rural junior Maddie Vickery had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in Friday's 40-38 win at Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Anderson led Washburn Rural with a game-high 19 points with three 3-pointers while junior Maddie Vickery had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in her second game back from ACL surgery.

I feel like our whole team was doing a good job of moving the ball and getting each other open,'' Anderson said. "We gave up a couple (baskets) towards the end but I feel like we did a pretty good job of getting stops on defense and staying physical. 

"It's good to have (Maddie) back as another option on offense and she moves the ball well, so our offense is moving a little bit better.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Through the first half of Thursday's non-league game at Seaman, Washburn Rural star Maddie Vickery looked a lot like a player who hadn't played a basketball game in more than six months.

But slowly but surely, the 6-foot-2 junior Kansas State commit started to look more and more like the player local fans have been accustomed to seeing, coming alive in the second half to help Washburn Rural overcome a 19-point deficit in a 50-47 win over the Vikings.

Washburn Rural junior Maddie Vickery (left) made her season debut Thursday at Seaman, scoring 11 points and grabbing seven rebounds in a 50-47 win. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Vickery, who suffered a torn ACL late in the summer season, went 0 of 6 from the field in the first half but scored all 11 of her points in the second half, including three 3-pointers, while also grabbing seven rebounds and registering two blocks as the Junior Blues improved to 14-6 overall.

"We talked about that and she's not nervous about the knee, but this was her first game in a long time, so I felt like it was going to take a little while,'' Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick said. "I think if the first one may have gone in maybe not as long, but in the second half she looked really good.

"It was kind of like the old Maddie. She really looked good. She was energetic, she was moving well and her shot looked a lot better the second half. We look up to her and we're excited to have her back.''

Vickery came off the bench for the first time with 5:19 left in the opening quarter and was in and out the rest of the night, playing 19 minutes, 45 seconds.

After her slow shooting start Vickery hit a 3-pointer for her first basket of the night at the 3:23 mark of the third quarter and hit another 3 with 4:17 remaining to put Rural up 43-41 and canned another trey with 2:13 left to break a 45-all deadlock, putting the Junior Blues ahead to stay.

"I wouldn't say it was really nerves because I've put in a lot of work and I've trusted the process,'' Vickery said. "And I know I'm going to be fine because I know God's got me,

"I mean, a little bit of pressure, but other than that I don't think it was really nerves. I haven't played a game in about six and a half months, so it was a little bit different to adjust to. Practice is different than a game. But once I got to the second half... I kind of settled in and got out of my head and stuff like that.''

And once she got her first shot to fall, Vickery knew she was really back.

"It was kind of a big weight off my shoulders that I was putting on myself,'' she said. "I'm glad the shots kept falling. I'm happy that I'm able to do this and that I was blessed to be given this opportunity and all my hard work is paying off.''  

Seaman (9-11) put together a 20-0 run at the end of the first quarter and start of the second stanza to take a 24-5 lead before Rural senior Ella Hirschi hit a 3-pointer with 5:06 left in the half to help stem the tide. 

Seaman was still in front 29-13 at the break, but Washburn Rural responded with a 22-8 third quarter to get within 37-35 at the start of the fourth.

Freshman Kamryn Smith came off the bench to lead Washburn Rural with 12 points on four 3-pointers in Thursday's 50-47 win at Seaman. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Freshman Kamryn Smith hit her fourth 3-pointer of a 12-point night with 4:53 left to give Rural its first lead since an early 5-4 advantage.

"I told her in the first half, 'I'm sorry, I can't play you because you're not playing hard enough and that's the standard that we have,' '' Bordewick said. "And then she woke up and she was playing hard on the defensive end. Yeah, her shot was really helping us tremendously, but it's because she's in the flow, she's engaged and she got after it. That's what we asked her to do and she did a great job.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Very few people are more familiar with Washburn Rural's golf program than Hayden Beck.

And now the former Junior Blues' star and 2020 Rural graduate will put that knowledge to work as Washburn Rural's new girls golf coach, beginning in the 2026 fall season.

Former Washburn Rural star Hayden Beck was announced Wednesday as the Junior Blues' new girls golf coach. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Beck takes over for his high school coach, Jared Goehring, as the Junior Blues' girls coach and will serve as an assistant under Goehring as a boys assistant this spring.

Goehring had a 15-year run as Rural's girls coach that included four Class 6A state championships, two runnerup finishes and three thirds while qualifying for state as a team 14 times. Goehring has also led Rural to a 6A boys title and will continue in that role for the foreseeable future. 

Beck, a teacher in Rural's social studies department, said his focus moving forward is to continue his alma mater's outstanding golf tradition while adding his own stamp on the program.

"I've talked to coach quite a bit and I have a lot of respect for the guy,'' Beck said. "Throughout my entire life, even before high school, playing junior golf and taking junior golf lessons through him, I've been able to learn from him and I've been able to learn from the other coaches that came before me, coach (Jeff) Stromgren, coach (Ronnie) McHenry at Washburn, who have been fantastic guys to learn from.

"We've got something great built here. Now my job is to carry on that tradition and keep building. We have that foundation because of all the great work that was done by those before us. Now it's our turn to see what we can do.''   

Beck played golf for the Junior Blues from 2017-2020 before going on to play collegiately at Washburn University.

In addition to his playing career, Beck has spent the past five years working as a junior golf instructor.

"We are excited to welcome Hayden back to Washburn Rural,'' Rural athletic director Charlie Nimz said. "His experience as a player, his passion for teaching and his familiarity with our program and community makes him an outstanding choice to lead our girls golf team.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural junior Daniel Allen, a multiple event city and Centennial League individual and relay gold medalist. leads the city contingent for the state swimming championships Friday and Saturday at the Shawnee Mission School District Aquatics Center.

Washburn Rural junior Daniel Allen is the top Class 6A seed for the 100 butterfly and the No. 2 seed for the 100 backstroke. [File photo/TSN] 

Allen, a multiple Class 6A medalist as a freshman in 2024 before sitting out the '25 high school season, is the No. 1 seed for the 100-yard butterfly (51.39 seconds) and the No. 2 seed in the 100 backstroke (52.82).

City and Centennial League team champion Washburn Rural will be well-represented in the 6A state meet, with sophomore Thomas Appuhn (200 individual medley, 100 backstroke), junior Andres Morao-Jaspe (200 individual medley, 100 backstroke) and freshman Braeden Montgomery (200 freestyle, 500 freestyle) all qualifying in two individual events while sophomore Castle Wallace is qualified in the 100 breaststroke, sophomore Quenten Jessop is qualified in the 50 freestyle and freshman Benjamin Allen is qualified in the 100 butterfly.

Washburn Rural sophomore Thomas Appuhn is the No. 4 seed in Class 6A for the 200-yard individual medley and the 100 backstroke. [File photo/TSN]

Appuhn is the No. 4 seed in the 200-yard individual medley (2:01.27) and the No. 4 seed in the 100 backstroke (55.50).

The Junior Blues are also qualified in the 200 medley relay, 200 free relay and 400 free relay.

Topeka High senior Will Stewart is qualified in the 50 freestyle and the 100 freestyle.

Seaman junior Kinser Barbosa is the No. 5 Class 5A-1A seed in the 100 freestyle and the No. 7 seed in the 50 freestyle. [File photo/TSN]

In 5A-1A Seaman junior Kinser Barbosa is the No. 5 seed in the 100 freestyle (49.23) and the No. 7 seed in the 50 free (22.41).

Hayden sophomore Patrick Luke is an individual qualifier in the 50 free while Seaman is qualified in the 200 medley, 200 free and 400 free relays and Hayden is qualified in the 400 free relay.  

The three-day state meet will get under way with Thursday's diving prelims and semis, with the 5A-1A event at 10 a.m. and 6A at 4:30 p.m., but the city does not have a qualifier in either of those events.

The 5A-1A swimming preliminaries will start at 10 a.m. on Friday, with the 6A prelims following at 4 p.m.

Championship 5A-1A finals will get under way at 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by the 6A finals at 4 o'clock. 

STATE SWIMMING/DIVING SCHEDULE 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news 

Washburn Rural girls basketball overcame a slow start with a 19-0 second quarter Tuesday night, going on to complete a three-game season sweep over Emporia with a 50-26 home Centennial League victory.

Freshman Brynn Anderson scored a game-high 19 points in Washburn Rural's 50-26 win over Emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Now 13-6 overall and 4-3 in the league, Washburn Rural clinched its 33rd straight winning season.

The Junior Blues committed seven turnovers in the opening seven minutes on the way to an 8-8 deadlock with the Spartans (7-13, 1-6) at the end of the first quarter, but Washburn Rural took control with its second-quarter shutout, opening up a commanding 27-8 advantage at the half.

Rural went on build a 40-16 lead by the end of the third stanza before forcing a running clock midway through the fourth.

"We were really not happy with the way we started because I didn't think we were focused in our talk before the game,'' Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick said. "I thought we were too loosey-goosey and we just weren't zeroed in and I think it showed once that game started.

"We were just tossing that ball away, and you can't do that. Emporia is a good enough team that they'll make you pay for it and they did in the first quarter. But then we started getting a little bit more zeroed in on defense. I really thought our defense picked up and I thought we were kind of forcing them into some shots that they were a little iffy about shooting.'' 

Washburn Rural senior Hallie Walker had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in Tuesday's 50-26 Centennial League win over emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Freshman Kamryn Smith scored 10 points with three treys in Tuesday's 50-26 Washburn Rural win over Emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 7's

Freshman Brynn Anderson led Washburn Rural with a game-high 19 points while senior Hallie Walker had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds and freshman Kamryn Smith came off the bench to score 10 points, with three 3-pointers.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Tuesday night's Washburn Rural boys basketball performance against Emporia wasn't real pretty. In fact, things got downright ugly at times, particularly in a scoreless fourth quarter.

Washburn Rural's bench celebrates Tuesday's 46-44 overtime Centennial League win over Emporia Tuesday night at Rural. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
 But all that mattered to Rural coach Alex Hutchins was that his Junior Blues somehow found a way to escape with a 46-44 overtime home Centennial League decision over the Spartans.

"Find a way to win,'' Hutchins said. "We've been talking about it, even before the last couple of games, about how we've got to be gritty and we've got to find ways even when it's not pretty to get it done.

"Friday against Junction we had three points at the end of the first quarter and tonight we don't score in the fourth quarter but find a way to win both. Yeah, would I prefer it look a little different? Sure, but I'd rather it be that way than a pretty loss.''   

Washburn Rural, now 11-8 overall and 4-3 in the Centennial League, looked to be on cruise control after taking a 39-26 lead into the fourth quarter.

But Emporia (15-5, 4-3) pitched a 13-0 shutout over the final eight minutes of regulation to send the game to overtime tied at 39.

Junior Zach Wright scored the game-winning basket for his only points of the game in Washburn Rural's 46-44 overtime Centennial League win over Emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

The Junior Blues trailed 42-41 in the four-minute extra session and there were ties at 42 and 44 before junior Zach Wright emerged as the hero, scoring his only basket of the game on a driving layup with 19 seconds remaining for what proved to be the game-winner.

"I saw a guy help and I was like, 'I'm just going to take it, I want to win the game,' '' Wright said. "I saw a little opening, I Euroed into the guy and made the layup.

"Coach always talks about finding a way no matter how it is, and that's what we did.''

Emporia called a timeout with 11.6 seconds left to set up a final play, but junior Harrison Trelc, who had burned Rural for a game-high 19 points, missed a 3-point attempt from the top of the key as time ran out.

Sophomore Brooks Ballard led Washburn Rural with 18 points in Tuesday's 46-44 overtime Centennial League win over Emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 

Junior Cooper Schmidt had seven points and 14 rebounds in Washburn Rural's 46-44 overtime win over Emporia. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Sophomore Brooks Ballard led Washburn Rural with 18 points, including four 3-pointers, while senior John Hoytal added eight points and eight rebounds and junior Cooper Schmidt had seven points and 14 rebounds as Rural avenged an earlier 52-46 loss to the Spartans in Emporia.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Emme Blanco

EMME BLANCO, Washburn Rural

Blanco, a senior girls wrestling standout, captured the 145-pound championship in Saturday's Class 6A West regional at Wichita South, improving to 37-3 on the season. After receiving a first-round bye, Blanco posted 32-second, 1:13 and 5:35 wins by fall, including a third-period pin over Garden City freshman Aria Cordes in the title match. 

Jack Donovan

JACK DONOVAN, Rossville

A senior basketball standout, Donovan scored a total of 61 points in two Rossville wins on the week as the Bulldawgs improved to 12-6 on the season. Donovan scored 21 points in Tuesday's 75-43 Big East League win over Royal Valley and then scored a career-high 40 points, with six 3-pointers and a 4 of 4 performance at the free throw line in Friday's 95-48 non-league victory over Abilene.  

Cianna Graves

CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights

Graves, a senior girls wrestling star, won the 155-pound championship in Saturday's Class 5A East wrestling regional at Bonner Springs as Shawnee Heights finished second as a team and qualified all 14 of its competitors for state. Now 31-2 on the season, Graves received a first-round bye and then went 3-0 with 1:35 and 1:56 pins and a 5-1 decision over Bonner Springs senior Addison Vogel.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights' girls wrestling team turned in a strong performance in Saturday's Class 5A East regional at Bonner Springs, posting a runnerup team finish while advancing all 14 competitors to the state tournament Feb. 27-28 at Park City.

Shawnee Heights sophomore Olive Jones (top) won the 135-pound championship in Saturday's Class 5A East regional. [File photo/TSN] 

Shawnee Heights senior Cianna Graves won the 155-pound championship in Saturday's Class 5A East regional. [File photo/TSN]

The T-Birds, ranked No. 3 in 5A by the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association, got individual regional championships from 135-pound sophomore Olive Jones and 155-pound senior Cianna Graves and put four other wrestlers in the finals, finishing second to top-ranked Basehor-Linwood by a 275-212.5 margin.

Jones improved to 35-1 on the season with a 1 minute, 25-second win by pin over Basehor-Linwood sophomore Willow Rademacher (30-10) in the 135 final while Graves improved to 31-2 with a 5-1 decision over Bonner Springs senior Addison Vogel (25-3) at 155.

The T-Birds got second-place finishes from freshman 120-pounder Brinnley Morris (17-3), junior 125-pounder Audrey Hinkly (25-12), senior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens (29-5) and junior 190-pounder Brooklyn Binkley (20-11) while sophomore Bianca Juarez (110 pounds) posted a third-place finish.

Freshmen Makynzie Allen (100) and Stella Engel (235) qualified with fourth-place regional finishes while freshman Raelyn Kelly (130) finished fifth, senior Shelby Watson (170) sixth, sophomores Halle Hill (115) and Evelyn Ruby (140) seventh and freshman Carmarra Smith (105) eighth.

Highland Park senior Makayla Cadet, the defending 5A state champion at 190 pounds, earned a shot to defend her title with a third-place regional finish. Cadet is 20-2 on the season.   

Washburn Rural senior Emme Blanco won the Class 6A West 145-pound regional title Saturday at Wichita South, helping Rural finish third as a team. [File photo/TSN]

 Washburn Rural senior Elia Smith won the 170-pound title in Saturday's Class 6A West regional at Wichita South for the third-place Junior Blues. [File photo/TSN]

Rural regional champs Blanco, Smith lead 13 Junior Blues 6A qualifiers

Washburn Rural seniors Emme Blanco and Elia Smith captured individual regional championships in the Class 6A West regional Saturday at Wichita South, powering the Junior Blues to a third-place team finish with 13 state qualifiers.

Blanco, now 37-3 on the season, won the 145-pound title with a 5:35 pin in the finals over Garden City freshman Aria Cordes while Smith, 32-3, earned a 4-1 decision over Derby senior Chloe Spears (36-6) in the 170-pound regional final.

The Junior Blues got third-place regional finishes from 125-pound senior Lacey Middleton (36-6), 140-pound senior Madi Blanco (35-4) and freshman 155-pounder Raella Ebanez (31-8) while freshman 105-pounder Aliyah Tangpricha (25-5), freshman 135-pounder Alea Estep (21-16), 190-pound junior Lily Davis (33-10) and sophomore Emma Mehl (24-14) placed fourth.

Junior Dixie Day (120) qualified for state with a sixth-place regional finish while freshman Ashlyn Johnson (110) finished seventh and freshman Hadley Rosenbaum (100) and junior Rylee-Jade Ebanez (130) placed eighth.

Topeka High freshman 235-pounder Kya Dawkins qualified for state with a seventh-place regional finish while senior 170-pounder Taniza Huggins advanced with an eighth-place finish.

The 6A state tournament will be contested Feb. 27-28 at the AdventHealth Sports Park in Overland Park.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Coming off back-to-back double-digit Centennial League road losses, Washburn Rural girls basketball got back on track in a big way Friday night, going wire to wire at home for a 56-14 league rout over Junction City.

Senior Ella Hirschi scored a game-high 12 points on four 3-pointers in Friday's 56-14 Centennial League win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Now 12-6 overall and 3-3 in the league, Rural completed a regular-season sweep over the Blue Jays, who fell to 2-15 overall and 0-6 in the league. The Junior Blues took a 36-point win (68-32) win at Junction City in their Centennial opener.

"I thought we were a lot better defensively this time,'' Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick said. "I thought everybody that played did a really good job on defense.

"We're trying to work on some things like stopping drives a little bit better. I still think we can box out better (on rebounds). We're not as strong as we need to be and getting a low base and keeping them away and getting on them a little bit faster.''  

Washburn Rural led 15-7 at the end of the opening quarter and then put the Blue Jays away with a 16-2 second quarter.

The Junior Blues continued to roll in the third quarter, outscoring Junction City 15-5 to open up a 46-14 lead and force a running clock over the final eight minutes.

Washburn Rural pitched a 10-0 shutout in the fourth quarter to close out the 42-point win.

Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson (15) and senior Josie Carlgren (23) celebrate a big play in Friday's 56-14 Centennial League win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Washburn Rural senior Hallie Walker (10) scored nine points and grabbed a game-high seven rebounds in Friday's 56-14 Centennial League win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Senior Ella Hirschi connected on four 3-pointers to score a game-high 12 points for Washburn Rural while freshman Brynn Anderson also cracked double figures with 10 points, senior Hallie Walker finished with nine points and seven rebounds and senior Josie Carlgren and freshman Kamryn Smith chipped in with eight points apiece.

"It was pretty even across the board,'' Bordewick said.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After Junction City cut a 16-point Washburn Rural lead to just three points midway through the fourth quarter Friday night, the host Junior Blues were in need of a big play to stem the tide.

Sophomore Brooks Ballard scored a game-high 17 points with five 3-pointers in Friday's 56-40 Washburn Rural win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN] 

Sophomore Brooks Ballard came through with three of them, draining back-to-back 3-pointers and three treys over the final 3:54 as Washburn Rural pulled away to snap a three-game losing streak with a 56-40 Centennial League victory over the Blue Jays.

"Just from practice, and all the reps we've gone through, I just trust our offense and trust that guys are going to get open and make plays,'' said Ballard, who scored a game-high 17 points on five 3s. "My guys got me open.''

And in a situation like Friday, when Ballard has the opportunity to come through for his team, he relies on his shooter's mentality.

"I always think it's going in, I'm not ever doubting myself,'' he said.

Ballard was just happy to be able to help close out what was a much-needed win for the Junior Blues, who had dropped three straight single-digit games, including a pair of one-point heartbreakers.

"This was a huge one for us, coming off some tough losses,'' Ballard said. "This was a big one to get us back on track.''

Washburn Rural coach Alex Hutchins wasn't surprised that his 6-foot-2 guard came through in the clutch.

"He is a really good shooter,'' Hutchins said. "I think the thing that stands out with him though is just the decision-making as a sophomore. He has some sophomore moments here or there and we have to have some conversations, but not very many considering he's a sophomore and we basically put the responsibility and the load on his shoulders of a senior.''

After digging itself out of an 11-0 hole to start the game and a 13-3 deficit at the start of the second quarter, Washburn Rural (10-8 overall, 3-3 in the league) battled back to take a 17-16 halftime advantage before using a 20-5 run to go up 37-21 with 2:37 left in the third stanza.

The Junior Blues took a 12-point lead (39-27) into the fourth quarter before the Blue Jays fought back to make it a one-possession game at 43-40.

Washburn Rural senior John Hoytal returned from an injury to score 12 points in Friday's 56-40 win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

But like it had early in the game, Washburn Rural showed its resiliency in being able to close out the victory while getting a big lift from senior John Hoytal, who returned to score 12 points off the bench after missing three straight games with an injury.

"We've been close in a lot of games lately and we just haven't finished the job off, so I'd by lying if I said there weren't some moments where it was like, 'Man, here we go again,' '' Hutchins said. "John was on limited minutes tonight but having him back in the fold changes things incredibly.

"He's just a steadying force for us. Whether the numbers show it or not, he doesn't always have to put up numbers to kind of steady us on both ends of the floor. And I felt like we had lots of guys who had really, really solid nights tonight.''

Washburn Rural senior Simon Rowley scored 10 points in Friday's 56-40 win over Junction City. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Senior Simon Rowley, who is also rounding back into form after missing multiple games with an injury, added 10 points, including a key stretch of three straight baskets in the third quarter to give Rural its 16-point cushion.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

After a year’s absence, the Centennial League boys swimming championship trophy will return to the Washburn Rural trophy case. The Junior Blues took revenge on last year’s champion, Manhattan, in the league meet at the Capitol Federal Natatorium Thursday.

Washburn Rural poses for a team picture after winning the 2026 Centennial League swimming championship Thursday at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

Manhattan and Washburn Rural have taken turns with the trophy since 2022, and this year was the Junior Blues’ year to take the title, scoring 511 points to Manhattan’s 421.

The Junior Blues demonstrated their depth by winning all three of the meet’s relay races. Washburn Rural and Manhattan also displayed their dominance on the all-league teams. Of the 24 swimmers and divers to receive first- or second-team All-Centennial League recognition, 12 were from Washburn Rural and eight were from Manhattan.

“It means a lot to the boys for (the trophy) to be in our trophy cabinet, for them to be able to walk by every day and see it and know that they earned it back,” Washburn Rural coach Bob Burdick said. “It leaves kind of a hollow spot when it goes away. But Manhattan’s a great competitor. Great team, great coach. So, it makes it special when you earn it.”

Junior Daniel Allen won four gold medals for team-champion Washburn Rural in Thursday's Centennial League swimming meet. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Leading the Junior Blues was junior Daniel Allen, who placed first in two individual events and was part of two first-place relays. Other top scorers included freshman Braeden Montgomery and sophomore Thomas Appuhn, both of whom were part of two winning relays and took home a first and a second in individual events.

Sophomore Thomas Appuhn was part of three victories for team-champion Washburn Rural in Thursday's Centennial League swimming meet. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Freshman Braeden Montgomery helped lead Washburn Rural to the Centennial League swimming title Thursday at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN] 

“Winning the league trophy feels great,” Appuhn said. “The team is doing really good this year and it was a team effort to get the trophy back. Getting it back was one of the key ambitions this year, so we made sure we had a diverse team that was able to swim all the events that we needed in order to get it.

“We had a developmental season last season, just trying to get more swimmers to practice and swim year round instead of just during the high school season. So this feels great.”

The only Topeka school to take home a medal was Topeka High, whose senior Will Stewart placed third in the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Cair Paravel Latin boys basketball completed a wire to wire 10-0 run to the Flint Hills League regular-season championship on Tuesday night, posting a 61-41 home win over Council Grove.

The Lions also won the Flint Hills League midseason tournament.

Lucas Marichal led the way with 17 points as Cair Paravel wrapped up a perfect Flint Hills League record with Tuesday's 61-41 win over Council Grove. [File photo/TSN]

Now 17-2 overall with 14 straight victories, the Lions took control of Tuesday's game with a 25-9 first quarter. 

Cair Paravel led 38-18 at the half and the two teams battled to a 23-23 scoring stalemate over the final two quarters.

Lucas Marichal led Cair Paravel with 17 points while Chase Hastert added 14 points with three 3-pointers and Blaine Durbin had 12 points.

The Lions will host Heritage Christian on Friday.

CPLS girls take 36-31 victory

London Backman led the way with 13 points, including three 3-pointers, as Cair Paravel's girls took a tight 36-31 Flint Hills League decision over Council Grove Tuesday on the Lions' home court.

Cair Paravel led 9-6 at the end of the first quarter and 16-11 at the half before going in front 27-20 through three quarters.

Council Grove held an 11-9 scoring edge over the final eight minutes but Cair Paravel was able to hold on for the win, improving to 9-10 on the season.

Karsyn Hastert added nine points and Avery Rosenow seven points for the Lions.

Rural boys drop 63-54 Centennial League tilt to Manhattan

Washburn Rural dropped its third straight single-digit game on Tuesday, with Manhattan taking a home 63-54 Centennial League decision over the Junior Blues.

Rural fell to 9-8 overall and 2-3 in the league while Manhattan improved to 12-5 overall and 4-1 in the league.

The Junior Blues will be at home Friday to host Junction City in a Centennial League contest.

Manhattan tops Lady Blues, 67-45

Manhattan girls basketball rolled to a 67-45 home Centennial League win over Washburn Rural Tuesday night.

Washburn Rural fell to 11-6 overall and 2-3 in the league.

Scots roll to 26-point Meadowlark Conference win

Highland Park's boys posted their second straight win Tuesday night, taking a 48-22 Meadowlark Conference road decision over Kansas City-Schlagle.

The Scots, now 5-14, have outscored their past two foes by a 116-41 margin.

Highland Park's girls took a 2-0 forfeit win over Schlagle.

Cameron Miller scored 26 points Tuesday in Rossville's 75-43 win over Royal Valley. [File photo/TSN] 

Bulldawg boys continue hot streak

Rossville boys basketball has now won six out of its last seven games after a 75-43 Big East League rout Tuesday night at Royal Valley.

The Bulldawgs, now 11-6 overall and 6-4 in the league, took control with a 45-23 first-half onslaught and used a 25-15 third quarter to force a running clock over the final eight minutes.

Senior Cameron Miller paced Rossville with 26 points while Jack Donovan added 21 points and Jakoby McDonnell 11.

Rossville will be at home Friday to host Abilene.

Senior Rylee Dick scored 24 points to pace Rossville to a 63-37 win over Royal Valley Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]

Dick, Burdiek power Rossville past Royal Valley

Senior Rylee Dick scored 24 points and junior Nora Burdiek 21 points as Rossville's girls took a 63-37 Big East League road win at Royal Valley.

Rossville has now won three straight games, improving to 9-8 on the season and 4-6 in the league.

The Bulldawgs will be at home Friday to host Abilene.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Leah Crawford

LEAH CRAWFORD, Seaman

A sophomore bowler, Crawford shot a 661 three-game series to capture the girls individual title in Friday's city championships at Gage Bowl. Crawford rolled games of 224, 211 and 226 to take individual honors by 36 pins as Seaman rolled to its third straight city team championship by a 3,293-2,970 margin over Washburn Rural.

Cianna Graves

CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights

Graves, a senior girls wrestling star, won the United Kansas Conference championship at 155 pounds while also recording the 100th pin of her career on Saturday at Piper as No. 3-ranked (Class 5A) Shawnee Heights claimed the team championship by a 179.5-163 margin over top-ranked Basehor-Linwood. Now 28-2 on the season, Graves went 3-0 on the day with three pins.

Caleb Menke

CALEB MENKE, Hayden

Menke, a 175-pound junior wrestling standout, reached the 100-win milestone on Thursday at Royal Valley, a rare accomplishment for an underclassmen, and followed that up with the 175-pound championship in Saturday's Centennial League tournament at Washburn Rural, posting a 5-0 record on the day, including a 55-second pin and a 15-0 technical fall.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural's girls and boys wrestling teams were unable to keep pace with Manhattan in Saturday's Centennial League tournament at Rural, with the Indians sweeping the team championships.

But both Junior Blues teams had plenty to celebrate, and Rural girls coach Damon Parker and girls coach Josh Hogan plan to use the league meet as a primer to get ready for upcoming Class 6A regional competition.

Washburn Rural's girls, ranked No. 5 in Class 6A by the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association rolled to wins in its first three duals of the day -- 66-16 over Emporia, 45-33 over Junction City and 84-0 over Topeka High -- before the No. 3  Indians built a huge early lead and held off the Junior Blues down the stretch for a 45-32 win.

"Manhattan's loaded for bear,'' Parker said. "(Shawn) Bammes and those guys have done a great job over there. We knew going into that one that there were going to be a couple of key swing matches and we'd have to pull an upset. We had a couple of opportunities and they didn't go our way.''

Washburn Rural freshman Aliyah Tangpricha (right) won the 105-pound Centennial League girls wrestling title and was named the league girls newcomer of the year. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Washburn Rural senior Emme Blanco won the Centennial League girls 145-pound title with four straight pins Saturday at Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

 Washburn Rural senior Elia Smith won the 170-pound Centennial League championship and reached the 100-win milestone Saturday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural junior Lily Davis won the 190-pound title in Saturday's Centennial League tournament. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural got league individual titles from 105-pound freshman Aliyah Tangpricha, 145-pound senior  Emme Blanco, 170-pound senior Elia Smith and junior 190-pounder Lily Davis, who all went 4-0 on the day.

E. Blanco posted four straight pins while Smith recorded three pins and a 16-1 technical fall and Davis recorded three straight pins after receiving a first-round forfeit.

Smith, 125-pound senior runnerup Lacey Middleton and 140-pound senior runnerup Madi Blanco were all recognized Saturday for reaching the 100-win milestone for their careers while Tangpricha was voted the Centennial League girls newcomer of the year. 

Now the Junior Blues will turn their sights on Saturday's 6A regional tournament at Wichita South.

"We got film and we're ready to game plan,'' Parker said. "We don't learn a lot if we come out and thump everybody. The best opportunity to learn is when somebody takes it to you and (Manhattan) took to us today. Tip of the top hat to them.'' 

The No. 3-ranked Rural boys went 4-0  to open the tournament -- 44-36 over Emporia, 40-38 over Junction City, 52-27 over Topeka High and 46-33 over Hayden -- before the No. 2-ranked Indians took a 58-18 win over the short-handed Junior Blues, who were missing four starters.

Despite the loss to the Indians, Hogan was proud of the way his Junior Blues wrestled Saturday.

By RICK PETERSON                                                                                                          

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural freshman girls basketball standout Brynn Anderson and Highland Park junior boys basketball standout JoJo Kingcannon have been selected by the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency as the Rising Stars of the Week.

The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the bulk of the 2025-2026 school year.

Here's a brief look at the recent accomplishments of Anderson and Kingcannon.

 Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural

Anderson was named the Most Valuable Player in last week's Glaciers Edge Tournament at Emporia after helping lead Washburn Rural to the tournament title. Anderson scored a game-high 20 points in the championship game as Rural captured the tournament championship with a 48-42 win over Wichita Southeast. Anderson hit 5 of 10 shots from the field and went 9 of 10 at the free throw line against the Buffs. Anderson followed up her tournament performance with 25 points in Wednesday's 55-42 win over Blue Valley, hitting five 3-pointers and going six of six at the free throw line. 

 JoJo Kingcannon, Highland Park [File photo/TSN]  

JOJO KINGCANNON, Highland Park

Kingcannon, who ranks second in the city of Topeka in scoring, continued his outstanding season with 49 points in a pair of Highland Park games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Kingcannon scored 26 points in Tuesday's 62-51 Meadowlark Conference loss to Kansas City-Washington, hitting 8 of 18 shots from the field and going 9 of 10 at the free throw line. The Scot standout scored a game-high 23 points in Wednesday's 84-60 loss to city rival Topeka West, hitting 8 of 15 shots from the floor and all five of his free throw attempts with a pair of 3-pointers.   

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka High boys basketball was faced with two tests in Friday night's Centennial League home matchup with city rival Washburn Rural.

Senior Elisha Guest scored 14 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter as Topeka High edged Washburn Rural, 68-67. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The Trojans' first test was finding a way to rally from a double-digit deficit late in the first half to get back in the hunt.

Then, after battling all the way back to lead by six points late in the game, the task facing the Trojans was holding off the Junior Blues down the stretch. 

Robbie Sanders' Topeka High team passed both those tests, holding on for a hard-fought 68-67 win at "The Dungeon.''

"It's a resilient bunch of guys,'' Sanders said. "Like I told them in the locker room, I'm just so proud of them. We had every opportunity to quit when things weren't going our way. I wasn't happy with the body language or the effort in the first half. I challenged them at halftime and they really responded.

"These kids are starting to believe they can beat anybody. And that's all I've been waiting on because I believe in their talent, I believe in the work we've put in, and we have good players so if they just keep believing and keep trusting each other we can keep this streak going.''  

Now 10-6 overall and 3-2 in the league, Topeka High trailed by 11 points (29-18) late in the first half and eight points (29-21) at the break and still faced an eight-point deficit (38-30) with two and a half minutes left in the third stanza and by six (46-40) in the fourth before rallying to take a 64-58 advantage inside the final two minutes.

But the game still went down to the final seconds, with the Junior Blues, trailing by three points, forcing a Topeka High turnover to give themselves an opportunity to force overtime, but Rural ran out of time as the Trojans were able to run out the clock after a Simon Rowley driving layup that cut the Blues' deficit to the final margin.

Senior Bryson McComas (4) scored a game-high 22 points Friday as Topeka High edged Washburn Rural, 68-67. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Seniors Bryson McComas, Jalen Aldridge and Elisha Guest combined for 59 of the Trojans 68 points, with McComas scoring a game-high 22 points, Aldridge 19 and Guest 18 for High.

Guest came up huge in the fourth quarter, scoring 14 of his 18 points in the final 7:41 of the game, including three 3-pointers and a five of five performance at the free throw line.

"I've been battling a sickness for awhile,'' Guest said. "I've been coughing and my coughing's messing with me, so I just had to push through it.

"My teammates believed in me, so I was able to help us come in clutch and win the game.''

Senior Simon Rowley led Washburn Rural with 19 points in Friday's 68-67 loss to Topeka High. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Rowley, who returned for the Junior Blues after missing multiple games with an injury, led Rural (9-7, 2-2) with 19 points off the bench while 6-foot-10 junior Cooper Schmidt had a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds, sophomore Brooks Ballard 12 points and senior Kieffer O'Connor and junior Zach Wright 10 apiece.

Washburn Rural suffered its second one-point heartbreaker in three nights, dropping a 55-54 home loss to Blue Valley on Wednesday.

The Junior Blues will travel to Manhattan on Tuesday while Topeka High will be back at home to face Hayden.

 TOPEKA BOYS 68, WASHBURN RURAL 67

Washburn Rural 15 14 11 27 -- 67

Topeka High       12 9 17 30 -- 68

Washburn Rural (9-7, 2-2) – Ballard 3-7 5-7 12, Wright 5-8 0-0 10, O'Connor 3-6 4-4 10, Chooncharoen 0-2 0-0 0, Schmidt 7-11 0-0 14, Rowley 7-15 4-4 19, Nimz 1-2 0-0 2, Bradley 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 26-55 13-15 67.

Topeka High (10-6, 3-2) -- Aldridge 6-10 5-8 19, Guest 5-12 5-5 18, McComas 9-17 2-2 22, Ross 2-3 2-2 7, McFadden 0-3 0-0 0, Carter 1-3 0-0 2, Redmond 0-0 0-0 0, Luarks 0-2 0-0 0, Campbell 0-4 0-0 0, Villegas 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 14-16 68.   

3-point goals – Washburn Rural 2 (Ballard, Rowley), Topeka High 8 (Guest 3, Aldridge 2, McComas 2, Ross). Total fouls – Washburn Rural 14, Topeka High 15. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls -- McComas.