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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
After coming up short of a Class 6A team berth last season, the Washburn Rural boys bowling team took a runner-up finish in Friday's Class 6A regional at West Ridge Lanes, qualifying the Junior Blues for next Friday's state meet at Northrock Lanes in Wichita.
Washburn Rural's boys bowling team finished second in Friday's regional to earn a team berth in next week's Class 6A state tournament at Wichita. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural knew it had to earn the right to bowl for a state title in a highly-competitive regional field.
“We knew it was going to be tough,” Washburn Rural coach Jo Ricard said. “We’ve been with Olathe South sometimes, and we know what they’ve done. We always know Olathe North has it in their back pocket as well. Junction (City) battled us hard last week, and they’ve battled us in Wichita. It’s up to who’s on and who’s able to make the adjustments the correct way.
“We had some strong points, and we had some struggle points. There was a stress point coming into this today, knowing where we are coming in with the season going the way it has gone for us. But we still had good, quality games, and that’s what it takes. We knew there would be a battle on our hands with all of the schools that were here, knowing how well that they have done throughout the season.”
Josh Hammons and Logan Glinka led the way for Washburn Rural in its quest for a state title, posting top 10 finishes.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
PARK CITY -- Technically, Seaman senior wrestling standout Jaxson Thomas is not a true 285-pounder.
But there's a lot of foes that Thomas has outclassed in a 45-5 season that would probably disagree with that.
Seaman senior Jaxson Thomas gets in a position for a pin in a 285-pound Class 5A semifinal Friday at Hartman Arena. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
And now, despite giving up nearly 60 pounds in some matches, Thomas is one win away from being the best in the state after advancing to Saturday's Class 5A championship match with three straight pins Friday at Hartman Arena.
Thomas competed at 195 pounds as junior, winning a Centennial League title and advancing to the state tournament, but went to Viking coach Tony Pena with the idea of jumping not just one but two divisions this winter.
"He said, 'Coach I want to play football in college so I don't want to cut weight this year,' '' Pena said. "I said, 'OK, then we need to get big.' We've been constantly feeding him and just trying to get him up there.''
That project has only been partially successful, with Thomas getting bigger, but not coming close to the 285 limit.
"On a good day when he weighs in, he's 227,'' Pena said.
But Thomas has proven time and time again that he can hold his own, and then some, in the state's biggest weight class.
On Friday Thomas was out to prove that point yet another time, posting pins in 45 seconds, 1 minute, 47 seconds and 1:34 over Arkansas City senior Derek Honeycutt in the semifinals.
"I wanted to get it done, not just to get off the mat but to prove a point, that I'm supposed to be here and that I deserve my spot up there,'' Thomas said.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
PARK CITY -- Washburn Rural 113-pound sophomore wrestler Easton Broxterman looked competely at ease in Friday's Class 6A semifinal match at Hartman Arena.
Broxterman dominated his match against Free State senior Nolan Bradley from start to finish en route to a 10-0 major decision that put him in the state finals for the second straight season.
Washburn Rural sophomore 113-pounder Easton Broxterman earned a berth in the Class 6A wrestling finals for the second straight season with a 10-0 semifinal win Friday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural freshman 120-pounder Landen Kocher-Munoz (right) shakes hands with Garden City sophomore Matthew Long after Kocher-Munoz's 8-6 overtime win in Friday's Class 6A semifinals. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The toughest part for Broxterman came in the next semifinal match, with the Rural star sweating out the bid of his friend and longtime training partner, Junior Blues freshman 120-pounder Landen Kocher-Munoz, to join him in Saturday's finals.
Kocher-Munoz trailed Garden City sophomore Matthew Long 4-2 and 6-4 late in regulation before rallying to force overtime and taking an 8-6 OT win to punch his ticket to the championship match.
"I get a lot more nervous when Landen is out there,'' Broxterman said. "I didn't think he was going to win for a second there. It scared the heck out of me. I thought I was going to have a heart attack.''
If Kocher-Munoz was feeling the pressure it didn't show, with the first-time state participant coming up with with big move after big move to get the semifinal win.
"Honestly I feel like I could have wrestled a lot better to start off the match,'' Kocher-Munoz said. "But it's not really about how you start, it's how you finish and I finished out on top so that's all that matters.
"I always think it's my match because I have the best practice partners in the world, the best team in the world and they push me each and every day and I was feeling comfortable in overtime. I felt comfortable I'd win that.''
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural's girls bowling team is returning to the Class 6A state bowling championships after a strong team performance in Friday's regionals at West Ridge Lanes.
Washburn Rural's girls bowling team poses for a picture after tying for first and finishing second on a tiebreaker in Friday's Class 6A regional at West Ridge Lanes. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural girls took a second-place finish behind Olathe Northwest, but the finish was not ordinary.
Washburn Rural and Olathe Northwest tied for first with a 2,842 team score, but Olathe Northwest took first on a tiebreaker.
At one point in the regional, Washburn Rural sat in fifth place before the Baker games but came back and clinched a state berth.
Although Washburn Rural had to deal with the pain of being a runner-up, the Junior Blues can rest easier knowing that they will be back in the 6A state meet on March 3rd at Northrock Lanes in Wichita.
“We had some strong spots with the 10-pin games, but had some single spare opportunities that we missed that were makeable,” Rural coach Jo Ricard said. “We were a little below our average through the 10-pin but knew we had to bowl well into Baker. To come back from where we were at before the Baker (games), it took the whole team.
“This is part of what we preach. Yeah, you have to bowl well individually, but it’s the team that’s going to take us there. We are extremely proud of how they finished and what they have done going into next week.”
Junior Claire Ireland paced the Rural girls, rolling a three-game series of 570 to finish fifth individually.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University men's basketball won its second game in a row and finished out its home schedule with a 84-64 Senior Night win over Missouri Southern Thursday night in Lee Arena.
Sophomore Jaden Monday scored a career-high 23 points Thursday night as Washburn rolled past Missouri Southern, 84-64. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Andrew Orr (left) scored 16 points and Tyler Nelson 12 in Thursday night's 84-64 Washburn win over Missouri Southern. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Ichabods finish the 2022-23 season with a 10-3 record inside of Lee Arena and were led in the finale by sophomore Jaden Monday, who poured in a career-high 23 points.
Seniors Tyler Nelson and Connor Deffebaugh were recognized before the game for their contributions to the program in their four-year careers.
Missouri Southern (16-11 overall, 12-9 MIAA) led for the first three minutes of action but after a layup from WU sophomore Andrew Orr with 16:52 left in the first half, Washburn (14-13, 11-10) took a 7-5 lead and never trailed again.
After both teams were tied at 10, Washburn went on a 10-0 run to create a double-digit lead that was capped off by a fast break dunk by Michael Keegan.
The 10-0 run was part of a larger 31-6 burst for the Ichabods that spanned from the 13:47 mark to the 5:08 point in the first half.
In that time Washburn knocked down seven 3-pointers including four on consecutive possessions -- three from Hayden product Levi Braun and one from Jarmell Johnson.
The lead ballooned up to 25 points at the five-minute mark but was bumped under 20 by halftime with Washburn in front, 46-27.
