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State tennis: Seaman's Sweeney, Cair Paravel's Poole advance to singles semifinals
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
With a pair of dominating victories Friday at Kossover Tennis Center, Seaman junior Emma Sweeney, the No. 2 seed, assured herself of a top-four Class 5A state singles finish for the second straight season.
Seaman junior Emma Sweeney advanced to the Class 5A singles semifinals for the second straight season with a pair of dominant victories Friday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
But after finishing fourth as a sophomore, the Seaman star has her sights on bigger things Saturday.
"Last year I wasn't really expected to make it, so I didn't really know what was going on and not winning my semifinal match, it was OK and it was a learning moment,'' Sweeney said. "But this year I'm really looking forward to taking that step and competing and trying to make it to the championship.''
Now 29-1 on the season, Sweeney dropped just one game on Friday, posting a 6-0, 6-0 win over St. James Academy's Jenna Peltzer and a 6-1, 6-0 quarterfinal victory over Kapaun Mt. Carmel's Clara Hocker to advance to Saturday's 9 a.m. semifinal.
Sweeney said she felt relaxed for the most part during Friday's matches.
"I had a talk with my mental performance coach the other day and we talked about winning over my nerves and I think after I won them over it helps me play a lot more confident and loose,'' Sweeney said.
Sweeney will face No. 3 seed Allison Munhall of Valley Center in one semifinal while top seed Mia Jaramillo of Andover will face No. 5 seed Kali Keough of Emporia in the other semifinal.
Seaman senior singles player Molly Gorman and the Viking doubles team of senior Peyton Henry and junior Camryn Lux also assured themselves of state medals while advancing to Saturday's place matches.
Gorman, who lost 6-0, 6-2 to Jaramillo in the singles quarterfinals, can still finish as high as fifth, as can Henry and Lux, who also lost in the doubles quarterfinals.
Viking juniors Kaylyn Hiebsch and Cadence Speer were eliminated Friday, just one win away from advancing to the place rounds.
Seaman coach Jamie Robinson said he was pleased overall with the Vikings' first-day state performance as the team tries to earn a top-three state finish for the second straight season.
"We won the matches we were supposed to win,'' Robinson said. "So far, so good. It could have been a little better, it could have been a lot worse.''
Cair Paravel junior Madilyn Poole advanced to Saturday's Class 3A-1A singles semifinals with a pair of Friday wins. [File photo/TSN]
Lions' Poole advances to 3A-1A semis
Cair Paravel Latin junior Madilyn Poole, making her second straight Class 3A-1A state appearance, has assured herself of a top-four finish and her first state medal after advancing to Saturday's singles semifinals at the Salina Tennis Center.
Poole, the No. 3 seed, posted a 6-0, 6-1 win in her first match of the day before rallying for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 win over No. 6 seed Lauren Sleder of Larned in the quarterfinals.
Poole will face No. 2 seed Karli Haase of Ellsworth in a 9 a.m. semifinal Saturday.
Silver Lake junior Evelynn Thompson came within one win of advancing to Saturday's place matches.
WU soccer stretches unbeaten streak to eight games with 4-0 win over RiverHawks
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn soccer continued its hot streak Friday night in Yager Stadium, stretching its unbeaten streak to eight games with a 4-0 shutout MIAA victory over Northeastern State.
Freshman Kate Hinck scored the only goal Washburn would need 10 minutes into Friday's 4-0 home win over Northeastern State. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods improved to 8-2-2 overall and 5-0-1 in the MIAA, while Northeastern State fell to 6-5-1, 1-4-1.
"The ladies did an amazing job executing our game plan tonight,'' Washburn coach Davy Phillips said. "I'm so proud of the fight and intentionality of the team tonight. We were organized defensively and had a few really good finishes.
"I feel growth in every game, and we have to look forward to a tough test on Sunday vs. Rogers State.''
Washburn opened the scoring in the 10th minute with a goal from freshman Kate Hinck, with the former Washburn Rural star finding the bottom left corner for her fourth goal of the season.
Rilyn Snyder would take a free kick in the 21st minute, which found the back of the net for her first career goal.
No. 2-ranked Washburn volleyball posts seventh straight sweep in home win over Southern
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 2-ranked Washburn volleyball worked a seventh straight sweep and extended its set winning streak to 21 with a 3-0 takedown of Missouri Southern on Friday night in Whiting Fieldhouse.
Washburn volleyball stretched its winning streak to 21 straight sets in Friday's 3-0 home win over Missouri Southern. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods, now 19-1 overall and 8-1 in the MIAA, have a full week off before returning to action facing Emporia State on Friday, Oct. 24, at 6 p.m. in Whiting.
Both the first and second sets went long, but both went to Washburn, which posted a 28-26 come-from-behind victory followed by a 27-25 win in the second over the Lions (8-11, 2-6). The third set was not as dramatic, with the Ichabods taking a 25-18 decision to close out the match.
Early in the first set Washburn jumped out to a 5-1 lead after Emery Keebaugh took a pass from Sydney Conner for a kill.
But the next seven points were all scored by Missouri Southern. The lead grew to five points at 15-10 after three more in a row by the visitors.
The Ichabods chipped away, finally tying it on a Kali Henry ace and going in front 18-17 with a Brynne Topolski kill.
A 4-1 run by the Lions put them back in front, 22-20, but Washburn came right back to tie it up. There were four more ties after the 22-22 knot. Finally, kills by Alex Dvorak and Keilah Rivers ended the set at 28-26.
Both sides traded runs to begin the second set, eventually splitting the first 20 points. Missouri Southern went in front 12-10 after a three-point burst and stayed in front over halfway through the set.
A kill by Keebaugh began a five-point rally by the Ichabods to put them in front, 19-16. Washburn led 23-19 before the Lions went on a 5-0 run to go in front and force set point. The Ichabods navigated with two points in response.
After one more tie Dvorak got a kill and then teamed with Austin Broadie on a block to end the set.
In the third set Washburn used a five point burst at the beginning to go in front 10-5. It turned into a 8-1 run after Broadie slammed a kill.
Missouri Southern got within four points after scoring five in a row, but the Ichabod offense didn't let up down the stretch, hitting .375 in the final set to win, 25-18.
