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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Picking the top spot on TopSports.news Best of the Best Top 10 has been a tough task in most every sport.
But thanks to a dominant three-year run by Washburn Rural, picking No. 1 for boys tennis was relatively easy.
Hall of Fame coach Kevin Hedberg's Junior Blues captured three straight Class 6A state team championships from 2003 through 2005, capped by a sweep of the singles, doubles and team titles in '05.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka had a strong tennis tradition long before the Kansas State High School Actiivities Assocation hosted its first state girls tennis team championships in 1985.
And the Capital City continued that tradition in the inaugural state meet, with Corey Wilson's Topeka West Chargers, who were tapped for the No. 1 spot on the TopSports.news Best of Best girls tennis list, capturing the Class 6A state championship behind a dominating doubles performance.
The Chargers won by a 59-52 margin over Wichita Souheast as West's Stacy Cook and Diana Gaiher won the state title wih a 6-2, 6-0 win in the state championship match over teammates Amy Bybee and Andrea Hazlett.
Hall of Fame coach Kevin Hedberg's 1993 Washburn Rural team is No. 2 on the Best of the Best Top 10, winning the 6A team championship by a 38-29 margin over Shawnee Mission East as Danielle Knipp posted a runnerup state finish in singles and Megan McBride and Jenny Van
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka has produced some of the top boys and girls high school swimmers in Kansas history, multi-time state champions and record-setters, but when it comes to teams, a couple stand alone.
Rod Garman's 2018 Seaman boys team made history in the Class 5A-1A state meet as the only city team to claim a team championship, while prep stars Haley Molden and Sammie Schurig were triple gold medalists in 2010 as Washburn Rural's girls finished second in 6A, just 11 points out of first.state champs in 2010.
The Viking boys dominated the '18 state meet en route to a runaway 347-197 win over Bishop Miege as Zeke Metz won three gold medals and was named the 5A-1A swimmer of the meet while both Molden and Schurig were double individual state champs in '10 and also added a relay win.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Brent Reese-Hackett is getting a late start in his new position as Topeka West's head girls basketball coach, but will be looking to use his impressive background as a player and experience as a coach to make up for long time.
Reese-Hackett is taking over for Jeff Skar, who resigned after the 2022-2023 season, and Reese-Hackett was a late hire after Topeka West hit a snag that delayed the hiring process, accepting the job last month as teams across the state were finishing up their summer offseason work.
"It was late,'' Reese-Hackett admitted. "I looked at an email (Monday) and the accepted offer was July 11th.''
But it's hard to question Reese-Hackett's basketball pedigree, which could come into play as the new West coach plays catchup.
A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Reese-Hackett was a standout at Division I Texas Christian University from 2004-2008, appearing in 122 games with 88 starts.
Reese-Hackett finished his career with 1,098 points for the Horned Frogs while connecting on 190 3-pointers.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It was an impossible task to fit 27 Shawnee County state softball championship teams into just 10 spots on the TopSports.news Best of the Best list.
But after a great deal of consternation and second-guessing, 12 state tournament winners received mention on the Best of the Best list, headed by a pair of co-No. 1s -- Shawnee Heights' 25-0 2017 Class 5A title team and Topeka High's 25-0 2021 6A champions.
Shawnee Heights sent retiring coach Steve Giddens out with a perfect 25-0 record and the T-Birds' first state softball championship in '17, capped by a 10-0 win over Blue Valley Southwest in the state final.
Top players for Heights included seniors Faith Rottinghaus and Kaisha Wells, juniors Kayleigh Bayless and Lydia Ostenson, sophomores Paige Petefish, Abbey Fischer and Sydney Wellshear and freshmen Jaycee Ginter and Aniya Holt.
Shane Miles' Trojans went a perfect 25-0 in '21 en route to the first state softball championship in Topeka High history and High's first of two straight titles.
Current Stanford star pitcher NiJaree Canady was dominant in the pitching circle for the Trojans, who allowed just one run at state, capped by a 7-1 win over Olathe North in the tiitle game.