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Washburn Rural racks up perfect team score en route to city tennis championship
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It's been a challenging but very successful last few days for Washburn Rural's boys tennis team.
The eventful stretch began with last Thursday's city meet being postponed by inclement weather and continued in Monday's Centennial League meet, which Brad Johnston's Junior Blues won despite playing without top singles players Dylan Dodge and Keegan Knudtson, who were out of state on a school-related trip.
City schools also had to deal with weather uncertainty again on Wednesday, with teams initially reporting to Plan B indoor venue Genesis before the weather conditions vastly improved and the city championships were able to go on as planned at Kossover Tennis Center.
And once city competitors got back to Kossover and were treated to near-perfect conditions, Washburn Rural did the rest, sweeping all four individual titles on the way to a perfect team score and a 36-26 win over 2023 city champ Topeka West.
"The boys obviously kept their heads and stayed level-headed and finished the job,'' Johnston said. "I feel like we're at the top of our game right now and I feel like they're going to keep performing at a high level.
"Obviously you just never know, but I'm proud of where they're at and proud of where they're working towards.''
Dodge, a senior, and sophomore Knudtson swept the No. 1 and No. 2 singles championships while senior Lawsen Lobatos and sophomore Dylan Willingham prevailed in No. 1 doubles and sophomores Brayden Kohls and Cale Duetscher completed the sweep with the title in No. 2 doubles.
The match of the day was the No. 1 doubles final, with Lobatos and Willingham avenging an earlier tiebreaker loss to Topeka West returning Class 5A medalists Caden McGee and Caleb Weybrew, with the Rural duo taking a hard-earned 8-6 victory.
"You never want to lose to your city rivals, so losing in their invitational of course it gives us motivation to practice and try harder and go and play other, better guys afterwards to just prepare for it and then to come back and win is pretty nice,'' Lobatos said. "Winning and sweeping city as a team is great motivation and great momentum going into regionals.''
"It doesn't get any better,'' Willingham said. "Winning now is perfect because we have all the momentum going to regionals. I lost to them last year and I lost to them this year. I was tired of losing and I was so glad we got the win today.''
Dodge, who won a city title in No. 2 doubles as a junior, made it two city titles in a row with Wednesday's 8-4 win over Cair Paravel Latin sophomore Drew Fay.
"That was one of the things on the top of my list of goals,'' Dodge said. "To win city is a big achievement I feel like, especially in Topeka, because tennis has a very rich tradition here.
"This is a big confidence boost for regionals and hopefully I can carry this into regionals and state.''
Knudtson added the No. 2 singles crown with an 8-6 win over Topeka West's Mark Cianciarulo while Kohls and Duetscher took an 8-5 win over Seaman's Noah Andrews and Austin Bramlett in the No. 2 doubles final.
Hayden and Cair Paravel will begin two days of 3A-1A regional competition on Thursday in Marysville while the remaining six city teams will compete on Friday.
Rural and Topeka High will compete in a 6A meet in Junction City while Highland Park, Seaman, Shawnee Heights and Topeka West will compete in a 5A meet at Emporia.
The top six regional finishers in singles and doubles will qualify for state tournaments on May 10-11.
The 6A state tournament will be played in Wichita, 5A in Andover and 3A-1A in Prairie Village.
CITY BOYS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
A1 Lock & Key Performers April 29, 2024
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
MYLES ALONZO, Topeka West
A senior, Alonzo captured his first city boys golf individual championship last Monday at Topeka Country Club, winning by four strokes with a 27-hole total of 117. After finishing second in a playoff in the 2023 city tournament, Alonzo's city title was his second straight individual win after shooting a 71 to win the Salina South Invitational.
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural
Appuhn, a sophomore, had a part in four wins (two individual, two relays) to lead Washburn Rural's girls swimming to the team championship in last Wednesday's Topeka West Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium by more than 200 points. Appuhn won the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes, 12.29 seconds and the 500 freestyle in 5:18.81 and swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 medley relay (2:04.40) and the 400 free relay (4:08.67).
BRYCE BADSKY, Silver Lake
A senior, Badsky carded a 73 in last Monday's Silver Lake Invitational at Lake Shawnee to capture the individual championship by a 10-stroke margin. Badsky, a three-time state medalist, led the host Eagles to the team title by a seven-stroke margin over a split squad from Santa Fe Trail. Badsky is a three-time All-Shawnee County first-team pick.
Topeka Shawnee County 2024 Sports Hall of Fame Class to feature Benoit, Golden, Kelsey and Nick Stringer
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By VINCE FRYE, Chairman
Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame Selection Committee
The selection committee for the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame has selected local sports greats Bob Benoit, Jim Golden, Kelsey (Chipman) Stringer and Nick Stringer as the Class of 2024 for induction into the local shrine on June 26.
TopSports.news, in partnership with the University of Kansas Health System St Francis Campus, A-1 Lock and Key, Washburn University, Capital Label, Peggy's Tax and Accounting and the Jamie Hornbaker State Farm Insurance Agency, will host the 19th annual Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards/Hall of Fame induction ceremony on June 26, 2024 at Washburn's Memorial Union.
Benoit was a star on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour in the 1980s and 1990s with four PBA titles and he was the first bowler to ever roll a perfect 300 game in a televised title match. Benoit is currently the boys and girls bowling coach at Seaman High School and he has coached the Vikings to three state team championships.
Golden carved out a legendary high school career at Silver Lake, leading the Eagles to back-to-back state baseball titles while establishing strikeout records that still stand today. Golden went on to pitch in the Major Leagues for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Colt .45s.
Kelsey (Chipman) Stringer and Nick Stringer will become the second husband-wife duo inducted into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame, joining James Patrick and Nadira (Hazim) Patrick.
Kelsey starred at Washburn Rural and Nick at Hayden, where they both were part of state championship teams, before both went on to play at Kansas State, with Kelsey earning All-Big 12 recognition in volleyball and Nick earning first-team All-Big 12 honors in football as an offensive lineman.
Shawnee County's top senior high school student-athletes will be also be honored on June 26th.
Shawnee County high schools Cair Paravel Latin, Hayden, Highland Park, Rossville, Seaman, Shawnee Heights, Silver Lake, Topeka High, Topeka West and Washburn Rural have been asked to nominate one female and male candidate with a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average as outstanding student-athlete nominees for the fall, winter and spring seasons. County high schools have also been asked to nominate a female and male candidate for most inspirational athlete.
A committee of local media members will select the 2024 winners, including the selection of overall female and male athletes of the year.
Washburn Rural's Brooklyn DeLeye and Highland Park's Tre Richardson were named the overall athletes of the year in 2023.
The nominees for this year's high school awards will be announced in early June after the conclusion of the spring high school season.
In addition, TSN will recognize Braden Rose and Khloe Schuckman as Washburn University's 2023-2024 male and female Athletes of the Year.
Hall of Fame Class of 2024 capsules: