- Details
By KYLE MANTHE
Special to TopSports.news
Washburn Rural and Manhattan were tied for the first 44 minutes of Thursday night's Centennial League girls soccer showdown, but the Lady Blues began to use their heads to turn the game around, scoring three goals in a 23-minute stretch, all coming on headers, to take a 3-0 win at McElroy Field.
Washburn Rural senior Addi Broxterman (middle) celebrates one of her two goals with teammates in Thursday's 3-0 Centennial League shutout over Manhattan. [Photo by Kyle Manthe/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural senior Brooklyn DeLeye celebrates a goal in Thursday's 3-0 win over Manhattan. [Photo by Kyle Manthe/Special to TSN]
Washbun Rural senior goalkeeper Hailey Beck makes a save in Wednesday's 3-0 win over Manhattan. [Photo by Kyle Manthe/Special to TSN]
“This is a big game for both teams every year, it’s always a battle for the league, usually both teams are in the final four so this is always a good middle-of-the-season barometer,'' said Washburn Rural coach Brian Hensyel. "I thought the game was pretty even to be honest with you.
“The difference was our ability to box out and finish plays off … you don’t see three header goals in a game very often.”
The win was the fourth in a row for the Lady Blues, all coming in shutout fashion. Six of the seven games for Washburn Rural, now 6-1 overall, 2-0 in the league, have ended with the opponent unable to find the back of the net.
“We tell them with our defense, if we kind of build a wall around the box and don’t let anybody in the box our keeper, Hailey Beck, is going to save almost everything, which you saw a few times tonight,” Hensyel said. “The defense has been phenomenal.”
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
WAMEGO -- Shawnee Heights senior golf standout Alex Valdivia didn't feel like he hit or putted the ball particularly well in Thursday's Washburn Rural Invitational.
Shawnee Heights senior Alex Valdivia tied for third place in Thursday's Washburn Rural Invitational, shooting a 74. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
But thanks to some nifty scrambling Valdivia still scored well, tying for a city-best third in the 16-school field with a four-over-par 74 at Wamego Country Club.
"I didn't really play good,'' Valdivia said. "I didn't really hit my drives good, I didn't hit my irons good, I couldn't really putt good but I was able to scramble put up a decent score.
"It was definitely a scrambling kind of day.''
Topeka West junior Myles Alonzo shot a 75 Thursday at Wamego Country Club, tying for seventh place. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Topeka West junior Myles Alonzo birdied his final two holes to tie for seventh with a 75.
Washburn Rural's top six placed fourth as a team with a 309 total, led by senior Tyler Baumchen with a 76.
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights sophomore soccer player Lailah Benz and Topeka West sophomore track and field standout Alesecio Batson have been selected by the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency as the Rising Stars of the Week.
The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the bulk of the 2022-2023 school year.
Here’s a brief look at the accomplishments of Benz and Batson over the past week:
Shawnee Heights sophomore Lailah Benz (2) has scored a total of seven goals over her past two games in T-Bird wins over Ottawa and Kansas City-Turner. [File photo/TSN]
LAILAH BENZ, Shawnee Heights
Benz, a sophomore midfielder, recorded a three-goal hat track for Shawnee Heights in last Tuesday's 5-0 non-league girls soccer victory over Ottawa and followed up that performance with a four-goal game in Tuesday's 11-1 United Kansas Conference win at Kansas City-Turner.
Benz has helped lead the T-Birds to a 3-1 start to the 2023 season, including three straight wins.
Benz earned first-team All-City honors as a freshman for the T-Birds and was also a first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection. Benz earned All-Class 5A honorable mention from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association last season.
Topeka West sophomore Alesecio Batson posted top-five finishes in three events in last Friday's ESU High School Relays. [File photo/TSN]
ALESECIO BATSON, Topeka West
A sophomore, Batson turned in a banner performance in last Friday's Emporia State University High School Relays at Welch Stadium, posting a win in the boys triple jump, a runnerup finish in the high jump and a fifth-place finish in the long jump.
Batson won the triple jump with a best of 44 feet, 11.50 inches, finished second in the high jump at 6-2 and took fifth in the long jump at 20-9.
Batson currently ranks No. 1 on the Shawnee County Track and Field Honor Roll in the high jump and the triple jump.
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The 2023 season is a new beginning for Washburn Rural boys tennis and Junior Blues coach Brad Johnston.
Perennial city, Centennial League and Class 6A power Rural is in the process of reloading after graduating five of its top six players from last year's team while former Topeka West and Washburn University standout Johnston is in his first year guiding the Junior Blues, taking over for Hall of Fame coach Kevin Hedberg, who retired last spring.
Washburn Rural senior No. 1 singles player Mason Casebeer went 3-0 in Wednesday's Seaman quadrangular at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
So far it's been a smooth changing of the guard for Rural, which is undefeated to start the year, including 4-0 sweeps over Topeka West, Lawrence and Seaman in Wednesday's Seaman quadrangular at Kossover Tennis Center. Topeka West played a split squad in Wednesday's quad.
"I love the fact that we have such a young group,'' Johnston said. "They're very talented and it's just building around the ones that came back that didn't have as much of an opportunity to play varsity last year with that big group (of seniors) that was here.
"But I also think me being new they get to feel how the coaching's going to go. We're all starting together.''
Senior Mason Casebeer, the Junior Blues' lone top-six returner, went a perfect 3-0 in No. 1 singles Wednesday, while Lawson Lobatos was 3-0 in No. 2 singles and the teams of Keegan Knudtson and Dylan Dodge and Dylan Willingham and Duestscher went undefeated in No. 1 and No. 2 doubles.
Johnston said he's been very pleased with how the Junior Blues have bought in to what he's trying to do.
"I think they trust that I've been in their position and they understand that what happens happens, but we can talk about it and go forward with it,'' Johnston said.
Casebeer, a two-time state qualifier and former state placer in doubles, agreed that the transition to a new coach is going well.
"I think everyone's enjoying him,'' Casebeer said of Johnston. "Honestly, he's a lot like Hedberg in his reaction sometimes, and all in all I think he's doing a great job.''
Lawrence went 2-1 in Wednesday's quad, posting 4-0 win over Seaman and Topeka West, while Seaman and West played to a 2-2 tie.
Seaman's Gavin Dutton posted an 8-4 win over Topeka West in No. 1 singles and Mason Pfeifer took an 8-7 (7-0) win for the Vikings in No. 2 singles.
Topeka West's No. 1 doubles team of Josiah Bidwell and Mason Rutledge took an 8-5 win over Seaman while the Chargers' No. 2 doubles team of Cori Bidwell and Alex Engel took an 8-4 victory.
SEAMAN TENNIS QUADRANGULAR
- Details
By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Rossville’s softball squad has eased into an undefeated 6-0 start to the 2022-2023 campaign without a hiccup.
It was no secret that this team could be a force this season.
Rossville junior Hailey Horton is batting over .500 for the 6-0 Bulldawg softball team this spring. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior pitcher Brinley Dyche picked up the win in Tuesday's 8-2 first-game victory over Riley County. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Rossville junior Kinsey Perine (2) is congratulated by junior Katie Spielman (18) after scoring a run in the Bulldawgs' twinbill sweep over Riley County. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
With very few seniors departing from last year’s unit that advanced to the Class 3A state tournament, this team has the capability to make a run this year.
“We’ve been playing really good, and we’re pretty deep,” Rossville coach John Nitsch said. “If any girls are down, we have other girls that are more than capable of stepping up. This year the depth is really starting to show.”
Rossville has handled opponents in their three doubleheaders thus far.
Jefferson West was first on the list with an 8-2 and 9-6 sweep. Then, the Dawgs avenged their state tournament loss to Santa Fe Trail last year with a pair of wins and added to their undefeated start with an 8-2, 5-3 sweep over Mid-East League foe Riley County on Tuesday at Rossville.
Defensively, Rossville’s two starting pitchers have helped the team to its hot start. Senior Brinley Dyche is 2-0 to start the season, while junior Katie Spielman is 1-0. The duo has combined to allow 1.8 runs and 4.5 hits per contest.
“Even if we struggle, our team always finds a way because we work well together,” Dyche said. “Our defense behind us either when I’m pitching or when Katie’s pitching has been great. Pretty much everything right now is working.”
