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By CHARLES SPURLOCK
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights senior star Jackson Esquibel captured the Class 5A boys individual cross country championship Saturday to pace a large contingent of local competitors in the 6A, 5A and 3A state meets which were held on a cold, overcast day at Rim Rock Farm, just north of Lawrence.
Shawnee Heights senior Jackson Esquibel captured his third Class 5A state XC medal and first individual title Saturday at Rim Rock Farm. [File photo/TSN]
Esquibel, a three-time 5A state medalist, won his first state title on Saturday to go with the 3,200 meters championship he won in track in May.
Esquibel was one of three local runners to post top-three finishes, with Washburn Rural junior Payton Fink earning a runnerup finish in the 6A girls race to four-time state champ Anjali Hocker Singh of Olathe North while Seaman sophomore Ryin Miller posted a third-place finish in the 5A girls race.
Here's a race-by-race look at Saturday's state races:
CLASS 6A BOYS
Micah Blomker of Shawnee Mission North won the individual title in a five-kilometer time of 15 minutes, 18.2 seconds.
Gardner-Edgerton won the team title with 76 points, followed by Olathe East in second place with 93 points. Shawnee Mission North rounded out the top three with 102 points.
Washburn Rural had two runners competing in the race, with Brooks Kehoe finishing 83rd in a time of 17:36.24 seconds and Connor Olsen placing 86th place in 17:43.11.
Seaman sophomore Ryin Miller posted her second straight top-five Class 5A cross country finish Saturday, finishing third. [File photo/TSN]
CLASS 5A GIRLS
The 5A girls race saw the defending champion, Katelyn Rupe of Salina Central, win her second title with a winning time of 17 minutes, 36.11 seconds.
Rupe's teammate, freshman Kaylie Shultz, finished second in 17:58.88 while Seaman's Ryin Miller improved on her fifth-place finish as a freshman by placing third in a time 18:36.73.
The top three team finishers were state champion St. James Academy with 68 points; Great Bend with 78 points and St. Thomas Aquinas third with 103 points.
Ryin Miller led the Seaman girls teams to a sixth-place team finish.
Viking freshman Brynn Spencer finished 32nd in 20:18.07 while Stella Applehanz was 38th (20:35.64), senior Savannah Sampson 56th (21:16.93) and senior Elinore Stallbaumer 78th (22:11.89). The remaining two Seaman runners were freshmen, with Hannah Wempe 79th (22:15.38) and Alex Richardson 81st (22:18.89).
Payton Rice of Topeka West, competing as an individual, finished 51st in 21:05.43.
CLASS 3A BOYS
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By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights left no doubt it was advancing to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs next week. steamrolling Kansas City-Sumner 68-0 Friday night at Wetter Field.
Senior Allen Baughman (5) rushed for 99 yards and four touchdowns on just 10 carries in Shawnee Heights' 68-0 playoff win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Seniors Ryeki Tuley (3) and Jayden Moore (16) celebrate a touchdown in Shawnee Heights' 68-0 Class 5A playoff win over KC-Sumner Friday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
T-Bird coach Jason Swift’s 100th victory at Shawnee Heights was a special one – a home sendoff for 26 seniors in a blowout playoff win.
“We were clicking on all cylinders,” Swift said. “These kids practiced hard this week. They have goals ahead of themselves, but they came out tonight knowing this could be the last time they play together on this football field. That means a lot to them. For them to get this shutout, this big victory, that’s awfully special.”
The T-Birds' romp sets up a playoff matchup with city rival Highland Park next Friday at Hummer Sports Park.
The visiting Sabres never advanced from their end of the field the entire first period. In fact, Shawnee Heights started every one of their possessions of the first quarter inside the Sumner 44-yard line.
The T-Birds scored on each of their four possessions in the opening quarter as three rushing touchdowns from senior Allen Baughman helped put the T-Birds out front, 28-0.
The second period was nearly as lopsided.
Two touchdown receptions by Jayden Moore, another scoring run by Baughman, and a blocked punt for a touchdown gave the T-Birds another 28 points. They led 56-0 at the intermission.
“Man, it was really great, coming out here, probably the last time we’ll ever play on this field, to have a great outcome,” Baughman said. “We took care of business, did everything we’re supposed to do, and we see good results.”
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden remained undefeated with a 49-0 Class 3A home playoff rout past Baldwin Friday night.
Hayden sophomore Kade Mitchell rushed for 251 yards and four touchdowns in the Wildcats' 49-0 Class 3A playoff win over Baldwin Friday night. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden's Dom Ridley rushed for 67 yards and a touchdown in the Wildcats' 49-0 Class 3A playoff win over Baldwin. [File photo/TSN]
The 9-0 Wildcats advanced to a second-round game next Friday at Hayden against Santa Fe Trail (7-2), which advanced with a 56-40 win over Royal Valley.
Hayden scored the only points it would need on the second play from scrimmage, with junior Jensen Schrickel bursting 62 yards for a touchdown (conversion failed) to put the Wildcats up 6-0 with 11:41 left in the opening quarter.
Sophomore Kade Mitchell started off his big night with a 5-yard TD run that capped an eight-play, 74-yard scoring drive (conversion good) to give Hayden a 14-0 lead with 2:01 left in the first quarter.
Hayden broke the game open in the second quarter, with Dom Ridley scoring on a 9-yard run (Mason Becker kick), Mitchell scoring on a 21-yard run (Becker kick) and Conner Hanika completing a 28-yard touchdown pass to Makhi Kidd (Becker kick) with 2:53 left in the half to give the Wildcats a commanding 35-0 halftime lead.
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By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
The year was 1991 and current Topeka High coach Carlos Kelly was the quarterback for the Scots the last time Highland Park's football team won a playoff game.
Jermaine Monroe's Highland Park Scots ended a 32-year playoff drought Friday night with a 55-7 Class 5A rout over KC-Harmon. [File photo/TSN]
Senior Amari Taylor (3) rushed for 144 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns in Highland Park's 55-7 Class 5A playoff win over KC-Harmon Friday night. [File photo/TSN]
Fast forward 32 years and several coaching changes later and the Scots have won another playoff game, rolling to a 55-7 win over Kansas City-Harmon Friday night at Hummer Sports Park.
Highland Park advanced to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs next Friday at Hummer to host Shawnee Heights, which took a 68-0 playoff win over KC-Sumner Academy Friday night.
Highland Park entered the playoffs winning one of their previous three games to close out the regular season while having a high of 22 players ineligible or injured at one point.
But those issues have improved significantly and that showed in Friday night's performance as Highland Park improved to 7-2 while notching its second rout of the season over Meadowlark Conference foe Harmon (1-8).
“I have to tip my hat to the educators at the school,'' Highland Park coach Jermaine Monroe said. "It took a village to get the grades up and kids back onto the football field.”
Senior running back Amari Taylor led the Scots on the ground with 144 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Barring a major upset, Washburn Rural's football team was going to win Friday night's Class 6A playoff opener over winless Wichita North by a sizeable margin.
Titan Osburn (10) celebrates a touchdown with senior teammate Calvin Hayes (4), who also had a TD catch, in Washburn Rural's 48-7 Class 6A playoff win over Wichita North Friday night. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural senior quarterback Branton DeWeese scored on a 52-yard run and threw for a pair of touchdowns in Friday's 48-7 Class 6A playoff win over Wichita North. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
But Rural coach Steve Buhler and his coaching staff found a way to make it a special night for ninety-eight Junior Blues, who all got to play at least a small part as Washburn Rural improved to 9-0 with a 48-7 romp at Bowen-Glaze Stadium.
"We suited up 98 and unless somebody was hiding, they got in the game,'' Buhler said.
Buhler said that was the highlight of the night for him.
"We gave our freshman, who finished up their season on Monday, the opportunity if they wanted to stay and practice with us and continue to get better every week,'' Buhler said. "And those kids were out here every day, so it's really hard to look them in the eye and ask them here to play and not give them oportunities when they're available, so it was important for us to get them all in the game.
"When we told them yesterday they were all suiting up, their eyes lit up. They were excited to have a chance to get in here, so it's a good night.''
Washburn Rural will be back at home next Friday for a second-round playoff matchup with Centennial League rival Junction City, which advanced with a 27-18 win over Wichita Heights.
