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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Wednesday afternoon was a successful day for two USD 501 high schools in the Highland Park bowling quadrangular at Gage Bowl.
The Topeka High boys team won by a 113-pin margin over Washington County, while the Highland Park girls defeated second-place Topeka High by 74 pin.
Topeka High boys win first meet of the year
Wednesday was the first team win of the season on for the Trojan boys, who compiled a 2,348 team score.
Topeka High's boys bowling team won the Highland Park quadrangular Wednesday at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
“This was awesome, and everyone bowled fantastic today,” Topeka High coach Brian Brunkow said. “They struggled after the first game a bit. In the second game, (Gage Bowl) brushed a lot of oil into place, and the boys had a hard time changing. But the boys did make a major change after the second game.
“I give them all the credit because they really had to work hard to manage their approach and get everything down the line the way it should be. We didn’t do bad at Emporia yesterday and here today, but they need to watch how they do and how they mark a lane.”
Topeka High bowler Austin Mitchell took top honors with a first-place series finish, rolling a 635 series.
Along with the team, Mitchell also took his first individual win of the 2023 campaign.
“To be honest, it just feels great because the last few days haven’t been it for me,” Mitchell said. “I think the adjustments that were able to be made were important for me today. I ended up using my first ball that I got, the Tropical Storm and I was able to hit my mark almost every single time. The lanes were working with me instead of against me.”
Mitchell’s teammate, Thomas Patterson, finished 11 pins behind him with a 624 series and took a second-place individual finish.
Hayden’s team took a third-place finish with a 2,035 series. Wildcat bowler Evan George finished in fifth place with a team-high 558 series.
Highland Park boys’ finished in fourth place with a 1,638 series.
Highland Park girls edge Topeka High
Highland Park’s 1,792-1,718 victory over Topeka High was secured by five bowlers instead of six, with senior leadership going a long way for the Scots to pull out a win.
“I think we relied on the consistency of our three seniors,” Highland Park coach Marcie Hartwig said. “We also had some big contributions from our two freshmen today that was able to help us out quite a bit and bring us some big numbers. We just have to keep reiterating what we do in practice and get ready for the next (meet).”
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Even though Seaman junior bowler Riley Parkhurst was in the midst of a career day Wednesday at West Ridge Lanes he couldn't do any celebrating after the final ball in the Washburn Rural Senior Day triangular had been rolled.
Riley Parkhurst
Tyler Faurot
Parkhurst bowled a personal-best three-game series of 727 Wednesday and he needed every single pin to hold off Washburn Rural sophomore Tyler Faurot, who was second with a 726 series.
"I got off to a good start and kept hitting eight at that marker down lane and it just kept coming in,'' said Parkhurst, who put together games of 237, 224 and 266.
Faurot rolled games of 231, 236 and 259 and actually took a six-pin lead over Parkhurst into the final game.
Parkhurst and Faurot were bowling side by side, which made it easy for the pair to keep track of each other at the end of the third game.
"I went over there and knew if he nine-spared-struck I beat him by one and that's what he did,'' Parkhurst said.
"At the end there I was kind of looking and I was kind of calculating to see what I had to shoot to beat him,'' Faurot said.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Sophomore Kaden Ballard came up with a steal and the game-winning basket at the buzzer to give Centennial League-leading Washburn Rural a 46-44 road victory at Junction City Tuesday night.
Sophomore Kaden Ballard (right) scored the game-winning basket in Tuesday night's 46-44 Centennial League win over Junction City. [File photo/TSN]
With the win Washburn Rural moved to 12-4 overall and 5-1 in the league while Junction City dropped to 10-6, 4-2.
Washburn Rural led 35-32 at the end of the third quarter and 23-20 at the half.
Senior Wyatt Conklin led the Junior Blues with 11 points while senior Jack Bachelor added nine points.
The Junior Blues have now won five straight games.
WASHBURN RURAL GIRLS 46, JUNCTION CITY 28 -- Washburn Rural protected its two-game lead in the Centennial League race with a 46-28 win at Junction City Tuesday night.
The Junior Blues improved to 11-4 overall and 6-0 in the league race.
Washburn Rural led by only a point, 23-22, at haltime before outscoring the Blue Jays 23-6 in the second half.
Junior Lauren Sandstrom scored a game-high 22 points in Hayden's 44-32 Centennial League loss to Emporia Tuesday night. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
EMPORIA GIRLS 44, HAYDEN 32 -- Hayden was within six points (11-5) at the end of the opening quarter and eight points (25-17) at the half but Emporia opened up a 13-point cushion at the end of the third quarter on the way to a 44-32 Centennial League victory Tuesday at Hayden.
Emporia improved to 13-3 overall and 4-2 in the league with its third win of the season over the Wildcats while Hayden fell to 9-5 and 2-4, with the Spartans ending Hayden's five-game winning streak.
Junior Lauren Sandstrom led Hayden with a game-high 22 points.
Senior Joe Otting scored a game-high 12 points for Hayden in Tuesday's 39-38 Centennial League loss ot Emporia. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
EMPORIA BOYS 39, HAYDEN 38 -- Hayden was whistled for a foul with .3 on the clock and Cooper Rech hit one of two free throws to give Emporia the 39-28 Centennial League victory at Hayden.
Hayden (7-7, 2-4) led 21-16 at halftime and 30-26 at the start of the fourth quarter.
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
In a rematch of a mid-December romp, Topeka High repeated its success against Manhattan with a 62-45 decision in a Centennial League bout Friday night at High.
Topeka High senior guard Kiki Smith recorded yet another 20-plus point performance with 25 points against the Lady Indians.
Senior Kiki Smith fires a 3-point shot in Topeka High's 62-45 Centennial League win over Manhattan Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Topeka High coach Brittney Redmond said it best after another standout performance, "Kiki is going to be Kiki."
"Personally, I don't think I had the best game," Smith said. "I think what worked best for me is my teammates motivating me, the coaches kept motivating me, and everyone did a good job of keeping me going. Their support pushed me through this whole game.
"I know my goals and what I want to accomplish individually and help accomplish for the team. Thinking about how things have ended the last three years, coming up short for a state title, keeps me motivated and pushes me to where I want to be."
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Having rallies come up short at the end of games is an ongoing headache for Topeka High boys basketball coach Geo Lyons.
But although the close games sting, G. Lyons is proud of how his team fought in a 76-71 Centennial League loss to Manhattan Tuesday night at High.
Topeka High coach Geo Lyons talks to his Trojans during Tuesday night's 76-71 loss to Manhattan. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
"It's hard to keep a positive locker room when we've been in so many ballgames," G. Lyons said. "I really admire the toughness and the grit that my kids have. We play from tipoff until that final horn goes off. That's really all you can ask for from your team. Even during the adversity throughout the game, our body language is still great, and our bench is still in it.
"We have to find a way to get our morale back up. We have another tough (match) on Friday with Emporia, which was another game earlier in the year that we were right in. We will talk about nothing but the positives."
Many things went right for Topeka High on Tuesday night in front of its home crowd. The Trojans shot 47 percentfrom the field and canned 13 3-point shots.
Leading the way for Topeka High's hot offense was 5-foot-9 junior Isaiah Lyons, who scored 26 points (seven 3-pointers), including a 12-point third quarter.
