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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

The No. 1-ranked Washburn University Ichabods tied the program record for the most consecutive wins to start a season on Saturday at Missouri Western, improving to 19-0 and 10-0 in an 85-52 win over Missouri Western at the MWSU Fieldhouse.

Sophomore Brayden Shorter scored 22 points with four 3-pointers as No. 1-ranked Washburn improved to 19-0 with an 85-52 win at Missouri Western on Saturday. [File photo/TSN]

With Saturday's win, Brett Ballard's Ichabods have equaled their win total for the entire 2023-2024 season in a 19-11 campaign.

The Ichabods trailed 5-3 3:18 into the game but after a layup from freshman Dillon Claussen and a 3-pointer by senior Michael Keegan, Washburn found itself up 8-5.

The teams traded baskets and then the Ichabods rung up a 22-2 run over the next 7:45 to take a 32-11 lead, going 8 of 12 from the field and hitting 4 of 6 3-pointers while holding the Griffons to 1 of 7 shooting.

Washburn would go on to lead 41-26 at the break.
 
Washburn opened the second half hitting their first four shots, including both 3-pointers, but went 1 of 7 from the free throw line as they pushed the lead to 18 at 52-34 with 14:24 to go.
 
On Washburn's next possession, Brayden Shorter's third 3-pointer of the night jump-started a 17-4 run and his fourth 3-pointer finished off the run as the Ichabods led 69-38 with 7:22 to play.

Washburn would go on to lead by as many as 35 with 48 seconds to play as Washburn won its fourth-straight game in a row over the Griffons (13-7, 5-5).
 
Shorter, a sophomore, led the Ichabods with a game-high 22 points while adding five rebounds to pace five Washburn players in double figures.

Keegan had 12 points and four rebounds, followed by senior Jacob Hanna and junior Brady Christiansen with 11 points and senior Andrew Orr with 10 points, eight boards and two blocks.

Sophomore Jack Bachelor had double-digit assists for the second straight game with 10, adding eight points.
 
The Ichabods shot 54 percent from the field for the game, hitting 30 of 56 overall and 11 of 22 from deep, as Washburn held the Griffons to 35 percent shooting on 17 of 48 shooting and 3 of 16 from 3-point range.

Western did hit 15 of 17 free throws compared to 14 of 26 for the Ichabods.
 
Washburn had a massive 40 to 22 advantage on the glass, including 12 offensive rebounds, and the Ichabods also dominated the transition game, outscoring the Griffons 21 to 0 in fastbreak points.

The Ichabods will look for their 20th win of the season on Thursday, hosting Fort Hays State in Lee Arena (7:30 p.m.).

Junior Payton Sterk led Washburn with 21 points in a 62-56 road loss to Missouri Western on Saturday. [File photo/TSN]

WU women's road bid falls short

Washburn went back and forth with Missouri Western for 40 minutes on Saturday afternoon but came up short, falling 62-56 on the road. 

To begin the game Washburn (11-9 overall, 5-5 MIAA) was stingy on defense as it held the Griffons (12-6, 7-3) without a field goal until the 4:12 mark of the first quarter. In that time the Ichabods built a 9-1 lead after a driving layup by junior Payton Sterk.

Missouri Western began hitting from outside, knocking down four 3-pointers in the first quarter to erase the Ichabod lead. A 3-pointer by Sterk in the final seconds of the quarter made it a one-point game after the first.  

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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

The Washburn University softball team will open its 55th season on Friday, playing five games over three days in the Mardi Gras Classic in Youngsville, La.

Junior pitcher Sadie Walker is a top returner for Washburn University's softball team, winning 20 games last season for the 37-17 Ichabods. [File photo/TSN]

Friday's Jan. 31 start date is the earliest the Ichabods have started a season since Feb. 1, 2019.

"We're all ready,'' said senior first baseman Jaden LaBarge. "We're all antsy and ready to go. We're all excited and a little nervous, but it's a good nervous and we're ready to get at it.''

Ichabod coach Brenda Holaday agreed.

"From a coach's standpoint I think our kids are prepared and ready to go,'' Holaday said. "We have a lot of room to grow. We have a lot of new players and we're at that point where I think we've grown as much as we can in practice and now we need to go play and be able to kind of re-access and also be in live action and play at the speed of the game to grow.''

Washburn is coming off its sixth NCAA appearance in program history last season, finishing the year with a 37-17 record.

The Washburn Ichabods secured their 19th season with at least 30 wins last season and their fourth under Holaday.

Hitting the 30-win mark for the third straight season is the longest streak since the Ichabods won at least 30 games in six straight seasons from 2002-07.

The Ichabods graduated five seniors off last year's team, including former All-Americans and program record-setters Jaycee Ginter and Marrit Mead, but Washburn returns a strong nucleus, including five seniors. The WU roster also includes six juniors, one sophomore and nine freshmen.

"I think we have a very good chance of getting very far with this team,'' LaBarge said. "We're already very well inter-connected and get along very well and are very close and family, so I think we have a good chance.''

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By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

The Class 4A No. 3-ranked Hayden Lady Wildcats entered Emporia rolling hot, getting off to a 9-0 start to the season and looked to continue that streak Friday against against the Lady Spartans.

Senior Millie Ramsey led undefeated Hayden in Friday's 56-16 Centennial League win over Emporia. [File photo/TSN]

Senior Brylee Meier scored 14 points in Friday's 56-16 Hayden win over Emporia. {File photo/TSN]

The Wildcats would get off to a big start led by their starting five, featuring four seniors and one freshman.

Hayden would take an 18-7 lead after the first quarter and went on to build a 37-7 halftime advantage over its Centennial League rival, led by seniors Milie Ramsey and Brylee Meier.

It would be all Wildcats from there on out as Hayden would roll to a 56-16 win over the Lady Spartans, which had three freshmen in its starting five.

“They are a very improving team, so it was nice that we came out and didn’t overlook them because we beat them big already this year and its natural for you to kind of take it easy,'' Hayden coach Carvel Reynoldson said. "But we didn’t and I was proud of our girls for that.”

The Wildcats got big nights again from both of their 6-foot seniors, with Ramsey leading all scorers with 17 points and Meier add another 14 points.

“It’s big, we’re a pretty balanced team and having them to go in the paint and their ability to shoot the ball is obviously big strengths for us,” Reynoldson said.

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