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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PARK CITY -- Winning a Class 5A state wrestling championship would have made Saturday a special day for Highland Park junior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet no matter what.

Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet posted a pin in 1:36 pin to win the Class 5A 190-pound title Saturday in Park City. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

But the calendar provided the proverbial icing on the cake for the Scot star.

"The best birthday present ever,'' said Cadet, who celebrated her 17th birthday with a first-period pin (1 minute, 36 seconds) over Basehor-Linwood junior Izzy Renfro.

Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet has her hand raised as the Class 5A 190-pound state champ Saturday in Park City. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Cadet, who capped a 23-4 season, won the title with a dramatic takedown and pin, avenging a loss to Renfro (1:37 pin) in a regional final.

"Honestly, I have no idea what happened, it just happened so fast,'' Cadet said.

Cadet had already made Highland Park girls program history by reaching the semifinals and finals before capping her dream weekend with the title.

"I had no idea this was going to go this way,'' Cadet said. "I took it slow, I came up with a plan and I just gained momentum as the match went on.

"I had a plan and I just tried to execute it to the best of my ability.''

Highland Park also got a sixth-place finish from junior Connie Burns (22-7) at 115 pounds.

Vikes' Heston, Best post runnerup finishes

Seaman seniors Taylie Heston and Koti Best came within an eyelash of winning 5A state titles Saturday, with the Viking stars dropping a pair of heartbreakers in their championship matches.

Heston (32-8) fell 3-2 to Emporia junior Kensley Medrano (31-13) in the 120 final while Best (20-3) dropped an 11-10 overtime decision to Kapaun Mt. Carmel junior Courtney Nye (37-10) in the 125-pound title match.

Heston's loss to Medrano came after a four-overtime loss to the Emporia star at regionals while Best built a 10-4 lead before Nye, who led KMC to the 5A team title, rallied late as Best battled a shoulder injury that had sidelined her for a portion of the season.

Seaman coach Jordan Best said he was proud of the performances turned by his two finalists.

"I'm happy,'' Best said. "It's our first time in program history to have two state finalists. Taylie is a multi-time state placer, Koti's a three-time state placer, I can't be disappointed. I'm happy for them. Seniors, they got to make the big show, and that's what matters the most. It's not about the wins or the losses.''

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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PARK CITY -- Since advancing to the Class 5A state championship match as a sophomore, the last two seasons have been a star-crossed journey for Seaman 125-pound wrestling star Koti Best, filled with a lot of time with medical personnel.

Seaman senior Koti Best (top) is back in the Class 5A state championship match for the second time in her career after a semifinal pin. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But after fighting through concussion issues as a junior and a dislocated shoulder this season, on Saturday Best will be back where she was two years ago, wrestling for a state title in the Park City Arena.

Wearing a brace to protect her right shoulder, Best earned her return trip to the final with a win by pin in 5 minutes, 57 seconds over Blue Valley Southwest senior Brynn Lowe.

"It feels very good,'' Best said about earning another title shot. ''I felt really good today. I've felt very encouraged since I got my brace and everything's been going good. I haen't had too many issues.

"I was stressed about this because it had been a long time since I've been in this position, but I think I handled it pretty well. It was a rough match for sure, but we got there. I knew this was my last shot.''

Now 20-2 on the season, Best's pin in the semifinals came after a 41-second pin in the first round and 17-0 technical fall in the quarterfinals.

"With her injuries and being knocked out last year (with a first-round concusion), for her to come back as a senior and make it to the finals again, it's amazing,'' said Jordan Best, Seaman's coach and Koti's father. "She kind of set her goal, 'This is what I'm going to do,' and I said, 'There's really only one person that's going to stop you,' and she went out there and did it.''

Best will face Kapaun Mt. Carmel junior Courtney Nye (36-10) in the 125-pound title match.

After finishing fourth as a junior, Seaman's Taylie Heston will wrestle for the 120-pound state title Saturday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Reluctant wrestling star Heston advances to 120-pound final

Seaman 120-pound senior Taylie Heston has never denied the fact that she's not a big wrestling fan.

"That's true, I don't like it at all,'' Heston said.

But that hasn't kept Heston, a state runnerup in track last spring, from becoming one of the state's best.

"My parents kind of wanted me to do it because my sister wrestled and my brother wrestled, so it's in the family,'' Heston said.

And after finishing fourth as a junior, Heston (32-7) punched her ticket to her first state final in her fourth state appearance on Friday with a 4:53 pin over Piper sophomore Rylee Burke in the 120 semifinal. 

Heston beat Burke 9-0 in the United Kansas Conference meet and said that win gave her confidence in the semifinal.

"It was nice to know that I had already beat her,'' Heston said. "I felt good.''

The semifinal pin was Heston's third of the day, following pins in 2:56 and 3:42 in her first two matches. 

Heston will now face familiar foe Kensley Medrano, an Emporia junior, in Saturday's state final.

Heston and Medrano have faced off three times in the past, with Medrano (30-13) winning two of those matches, including a four-overtime decision in the regional meet two weeks ago.

"It will be a good match,'' Heston said. 

Highland Park 190-pounder Makayla Cadet is congratulated by Scot boys coach Freddy Maisberger and girls coach Ellen Heavner after advancing to the Class 5A championship match. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Cadet makes Highland Park history with run to 190 final

In her first state tournament appearance, Highland Park junior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet has etched her name into the Highland Park girls wrestling record book.

Now 22-4 on the season, Cadet became the first Scot girls wrestler to advance to the state semifinals and then topped that performance a couple hours later when she recorded a pin over Newton freshman Clair Harder in 4:39 to reach Saturday's state championship match.

"I had a feeling I was going to do my best, but I honestly wasn't expecting this at all,'' Cadet said. "I kept telling myself in my head that I had worked all three years for this moment and I wasn't going to let anyone get in my way.''

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By Todd Fertig

TopSports.news

In the regular-season finale, Shawnee Heights boys basketball exacted revenge for a loss at Seaman by trouncing the Vikings 70-49 Friday night at Shawnee Heights.

Shawnee Heights senior Deacon Pomeroy (1) scored a game-high 21 points in Friday's 70-49 win over Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Shawnee Heights senior Jaret Sanchez (3) scored 19 points in Friday's 70-49 win over Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Shawnee Heights propelled itself into the postseason, winning an intense – at times chippy – game against its United Kansas Conference rival. The T-Birds finished the regular season 17-3, 13-3 in the conference.

The outcome was dramatically different from when the T-Birds lost 68-66 at Seaman Feb 11. But the intensity was the same.

“We had literally a street fight out there,” Shawnee Heights coach Ken Darting said. “So, we spent all week knocking each other into the stands, knocking people down. We decided we were going to quit being the sweetheart of the block. We fought back well.

“Games like this, we trade punches, we trade punches, and then somebody gets a couple of jabs in and it gets away a little bit. But it’s never as bad as the score indicates.”

Seaman clung to a slim lead after the first period. It looked like they gained a big advantage when Shawnee Heights senior Jaret Sanchez picked up his third foul with 4:33 left in the second period. But the T-Birds rallied without their leading scorer, outscoring the Vikings 18-5 in the period.

Shawnee Heights senior Deacon Pomeroy stepped into the void and scored 21 points, 19 after Sanchez’ third foul.

“Deacon carried us. He took over,” Darting said. “He really physically got tough, made shots, rebounded, blocked shots. That’s what you get when you’ve got kids of great character.”

“I always have that team-first mentality,” Pomeroy said. “So, if I’m needed to score, I’ll score. If I don’t need to score, I’ll pass, rebound, whatever. So, I needed to score in that moment and give our guys the momentum back.”

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