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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka High sophomore Jaxon Cowdin has never been afraid to try new things, particularly in the athletic realm.
And that attitude has paid, and continues to pay, big dividends for the standout one-meter diver and the Trojans.
Topeka High sophomore Jaxon Cowdin will begin his quest for a Class 5A state diving medal in Thursday's 11:30 a.m. preliminary competition in Shawnee Mission. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Cowdin also runs cross county and participates in track and field for Topeka High and has also taken part in ballet and other similar activities, which led him to try diving last year for Topeka High swim coach Ken Bennett, who also coachess Cowdin in cross country.
"Last year was my first year doing it, freshman year,'' said Cowdin, who will make his second straight appearance in the Class 6A state diving event this weekend at the Shawnee Mission School District Aquatic Center. "I didn't really think I was going to make the basketball team and I had a little bit of a history of doing like some flips and everything.
"My sister Maisie, she had had Bennett's class and she had told him that I had done this type of stuff, so he convinved me to go out for dive after running cross country for him.''
Cowdin experienced almost immediate success, winning the city title and advancing to the top 16 in the state meet as a freshman while also setting a school record in the six-dive discipline.
His early success caught even Cowdin by surprise.
"Definitely, you don't expect it at all when you're going in and I definitely wouldn't have expected it for myself, but I'm really happy with how a lot of this has turned out.,'' Cowdin said.
His sophomore season has been even better, with Cowdin winning a second straight city crown and capturing his first Centennial League title last week in decisive fashion.
"I'm always looking for the bigger fish to go after, so this one was defiinitely a goal,'' he said. "It feels really cool to accomplish that one for the first time, so I'm really happy.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' boys moved into the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 5A state rankings for the first time this season Tuesday after improving to 12-4 on the season with four straight victories.
Ken Darting's 12-4 Shawnee Heights boys made the KBCA Class 5A state rankings for the first time this season, taking over the No. 10 spot.
Highland Park's boys and Seaman's girls continue to hold on to the No. 1 spot in the 5A state rankings, with the undefeated Scots holding the top spot in the boys rankings for the sixth straight week while Viking girls are No. 1 for the fourth straight week.
Silver Lake's girls remained No. 3 in 3A.
Topeka High and Washburn Rural are No. 4 and No. 5 in the 6A girls rankings while Hayden's girls are tied for No. 10 in 4A .
Washburn Rural's boys stayed No. 10 in 6A.
KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Washburn men's basketball team will face its second top-10 team in three days as the Ichabods host No. 4-ranked Northwest Missouri at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night in Lee Arena.
Hayden product Levi Braun is coming off a 20-point, six 3-pointer game on Saturday in Washburn's 75-55 win over Central Oklahoma. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Ichabods are 12-11 overall and 9-8 in the MIAA after a 75-55 win over No. 6 Central Oklahoma on Saturday.
The Bearcats are 23-2 and 16-2 in the MIAA and have won their last nine games, including a 79-53 win over the Ichabods on Feb. 4 in Maryville, Mo.
Northwest topped Northeastern State on Feb. 11 in a 79-43 win.
Sophomore Andrew Orr averages a team-high 13.8 points for Washburn while averaging 14.5 points in MIAA contests. He is third on the team in rebounds at 5.7 per game.
Tyler Nelson is averaging 11.8 points and has reached double-digits in nine of his last 10 games, averaging 15.5 points.
Hayden product is scoring 10.2 points a game and has hit 58 of 127 3-pointers (46 percent). Of his 77 field goals this season, 58 have been from 3-point range.
Michael Keegan is averaging 8.3 points with 5.9 rebounds, 20 steals and 18 blocks.
Freshman Brady Christiansen is scoring 5.7 points and a team-high 7.2 rebounds and scored a career-high 16 points against Central Oklahoma last time out.
Northwest, the two-time defending national champion, is in the midst of a nine-game win streak.
Diego Bernard leads the Bearcats with a 16.9 scoring average and 5.1 rebounds per game while recently going over the 2,000-point mark in scoring.
Bennett Stirtz averages 12.6 points, while Wes Dreamer averages 11.2 points.
Washburn will go on the road to face Lincoln on Thursday and will play at Central Missouri at Saturday.
WU women to host Pink Out game
Washburn is set to host Northwest Missouri at 5:30 p.m.Tuesday for the annual Pink Out Game.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
TOPEKA HIGH (3-14, 0-7) at WASHBURN RURAL (13-4, 6-1)
Senior Jack Bachelor scored 14 points and went seven of eight at the free throw line in Washburn Rural's 43-39 overtime win over Hayden last Friday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn Rural maintained its lead in the Centennial League race with a 43-39 home overtime win over Hayden last Friday while Topeka High dropped a 67-51 league decision to Emporia. Washburn Rural, which has won six straight games, got a game-high 14 points from senior Jack Bachelor against Hayden, including a seven of eight performance at the free throw line. Washburn Rural took a 54-42 win over Topeka High in an earlier meeting this season at High.
Senior Bo Aldridge and the Highland Park boys will host Atchison Tuesday in a battle between top-ranked teams. [File photo/TSN]
ATCHISON (15-1, 7-1) at HIGHLAND PARK (15-0, 7-0)
Tuesday's game matches Highland Park, the top-ranked team in Class 5A, against Atchison, No. 1-ranked in 4A. Highland Park is coming off an 87-73 non-league victory at Kansas City-Central, Mo. last Friday while Atchison is coming off a 74-33 Meadowlark Conference decision over KC-Harmon. Highland Park handed Atchison its only loss of the season in an earlier conference game, with the Scots taking a 66-47 road win.
JUNCTION CITY (10-7, 4-3) at HAYDEN (8-8, 2-5)
After dropping back-to-back Centennial League heartbreakers last week to Emporia and Washburn Rural, Hayden got back on track with a 49-35 non-league win at Tonganoxie Monday night. Senior Joe Otting and sophomore Jacob Deister scored nine-points apiece for the Wildcats, with Deister hitting three 3-pointers, while senior Jake Muller added eight points. Junction City dropped two and one-point league games to Washburn Rural and Manhattan last week. The Blue Jays took a 44-42 decision over Hayden earlier in the season.
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'By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
TOPEKA HIGH (13-4, 4-3) at WASHBURN RURAL (12-4, 7-0)
Washburn Rural senior Brooklyn DeLeye scored a game-high 18 points in Friday's 55-29 Centennial League win over Hayden at Rural. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn Rural protected its two-game lead in the Centennial League race with a 55-29 home league win over Hayden last Friday while Topeka High dropped a 37-31 league decision to Emporia. Seniors Brooklyn DeLeye and Chloe Carlgren scored 18 and 13 points for Washburn Rural in the win over Hayden while senior Kiki Smith led Topeka High with 15 points against Emporia. Rural took a 47-46 win over High in the first meeting between the two teams.
Sophomore standout Amelia Ramsey and the Meadowlark Conference-leading Highland Park girls will host Atchison Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]
ATCHISON (9-7, 6-2) at HIGHLAND PARK (12-3, 7-0)
Highland Park is coming off a 67-31 non-league victory at Kansas City-Central, Mo. last Thursday while Atchison is coming off a 70-22 Meadowlark Conference win over KC-Harmon. Highland Park and Atchison have combined for 11 straight wins, with the Scots winning seven straight games and Atchison winning four straight. Highland Park took a 56-40 win over Atchison in an earlier meeting between the two teams.
