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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Eli Barnes
ELI BARNES, Silver Lake
Barnes, a senior wide receiver/defensive back, was a TopSports.news All-Shawnee County Top 22 and All-Mid-East League selection in 2022. Barnes caught 39 passes for 670 yards (17.2 yards per catch) and five touchdowns for the 6-3 Eagles. Barnes also picked off a pair of passes for Silver Lake and recovered a pair of fumbles on the year.
Callen Barta
CALLEN BARTA, Seaman
A 6-foot-3, 180-pound senior wide receiver/defensive back, Barta earned All-Shawnee County Second 22 and All-United Kansas Conference second-team recognition at receiver last fall for the 4-4 Vikings. Barta caught 41 passes for 406 yards and three touchowns and was in on 26 tackles with two interceptions. Barta has made an oral commitment to Nebraska.
Allen Baughman
ALLEN BAUGHMAN, Shawnee Heights
A senior running back, Baughman was named the TopSports.news Shawnee County co-offensive newcomer of the year in 2022 after rushing for 1,496 yards and 20 touchowns on 225 carries for the 5-5 T-Birds. Baughman, a first-team All-United Kansas Conference pick, rushed for more than 100 yards in seven games, including 284-yard and 222-yard performances.
Packson Bettis
PACKSON BETTIS, Washburn Rural
Bettis, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound senior defensive end, recorded 61 tackles (38 solos) with 10 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, 12 quarterback pressures and a forced fumble to help lead Washburn Rural to an 8-3 record and the third round (sectional) of the 6A Class 6A playoffs last fall. Bettis received All-Shawnee County Top 22 and first-team All-Centennial League first-team honors. Bettis has made an oral commitment to North Dakota.
Jack Bloom
JACK BLOOM, Seaman
Bloom, a 6-foot, 185-pound senior running back/defensive back, was an All-Shawnee County Second 22 selection last fall and earned All-United Kansas Conference second-team honors on defense for 4-4 Seaman. Bloom carried the ball 81 times for 483 yards and seven touchdowns and caught 10 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown. On defense Bloom was in on 20 tackles with an interception.
Jesiah Bonura
JESIAH BONURA, Cair Paravel Latin
Bonura, a senior, received TSN All-Shawnee County honorable mention for the 3-5 Lions last season and will be counted on to provide leadership for Cair Paravel. Bonura caught 40 passes for 400 yards and five touchdowns in 2022 and carried the ball 37 times for 250 yards and two touchdowns. Bonura was in on 23.5 tackles, with 3.5 stops for loss.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Editor's note: TopSports.news finished its tour of preseason football practice at all 10 Shawnee County high schools on Friday and will post preview stories over the coming days leading into the opening games of the 2023 season on Sept. 1.
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Coming off a perfect 11-0 record and a Kansas Christian Athletic Association state championship in 2021, Cair Paravel Latin football coach Doug Bonura knew his team was going to face a big challenge last fall in its first season as a full member of the Kansas State High School Athletics Association.
Cair Paravel Latin football coach Doug Bonura (right) talks to his team during a preseason practice session. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
That certainly proved to be the case as the Lions finished 3-5 after an up-and-down campaign and came up short of their goal of advancing to the Eight-Man Division I playoffs out of District 2.
"Last year was kind of a year of getting things figured out, going into KSHSAA for the first time, and not knowing half the teams we played,'' Bonura said. "That's half your battle when you know what you're getting into.
"Last year we were really hoping to get into the playoffs. We thought we had a chance, and we did have a chance, but we just didn't put two and two together to make it happen and we played some really good teams.''
But with a strong, senior-laden returning nucleus, Bonura is confident his team can make some major moves this fall.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Izzy Glotzbach
IZZY GLOTZBACH, Hayden
A sophomore, Glotzbach competed in the Class 4A state tournament for Hayden last season, with the Wildcats finishing third as a team. Glotzbach placed sixth in the city championship as a freshman and finished ninth in the Centennial League tournament, tied for 12th at regionals and was a second-team all-league and All-Shawnee County honoree.
Avery Grunert
AVERY GRUNERT, Hayden
Grunert, a senior, ended her junior season with a tie for 14th place in the Class 4A state tournament, helping lead the Wildcats to a third-place team finish while earning first-team All-Shawnee County recognition. Grunert placed 10th in the city meet, was seventh in the Centennial League tournament and tied for 10th in 4A regional competition, helping Hayden qualify for state as a team with a second-place finish. Grunert earned All-Shawnee County second-team honors as a sophomore.
Raegan Petersen
RAEGAN PETERSEN, Washburn Rural
Petersen, a senior, had a breakout junior season for the Junior Blues, capped by a 15th-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament as Washburn Rural finished fourth as a team, just two strokes out of second place. Petersen was the city runnerup as Rural captured its 10th straight city team
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Picking the boys and girls wrestling teams for the top of the TopSports.news Best of the Best Top 10 wasn't an easy chore.
But one thing was for sure -- the poll was going to have a distinctive blue tint to it.
Washburn Rural's 2023 girls wrestling team set a state girls tournament record with nine state placers on the way to its third state title in four seasons [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural captured its first Class 6A boys wrestling state title in 2021 while earning three individual state championships. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural's wrestling teams have garnered all five of Shawnee County's state team titles in the sport and eight Junior Blue teams are among the 12 that received mention in the Top 10, which includes boys and girls teams.
Damon Parker's 2023 girls team and Parker's '21 boys team top the Best of the Best list, with this past season's Rural girls team setting a state record with nine state placers on the way to its third championship in four seasons while the '21 boys team ran away with the Class 6A state title by a 47.5-point margin to claim the first boys state team crown in county history.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The most recent of Shawnee County's 25 state championship volleyball teams garnered the No. 1 spot on the TopSports.news Best of the Best list.
Kevin Bordewick's 2022 Washburn Rural team, his eighth state championship team, leads the Top 10 after a 45-1 season, including 44 straight victories to end the year.
Washburn Rural's 2022 Class 6A 45-1 state championship team is ranked No. 1 on the TSN Best of the Best volleyball list. [Submitted photo to KSHSAA.org]
All-American and Kentucky signee Brooklyn DeLeye, who had more than 2,000 kills in her career, was the ringleader for the Junior Blues while other top players for Washburn Rural included Taylor Russell, Chloe Carlgren, Zoe Canfield and Jada Ingram.
