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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
State champions Maranda Bell of Shawnee Heights and Kendra Hurla of Rossville headine TopSports.news' 2022 All-Shawnee County girls wrestling team.
Bell and Hurla were tapped as the Shawnee County co-wrestlers of the year after Bell ended her high school career with the Class 6A-5A 191-pound state title while sophomore Hurla won her second straight Class 4A-1A 120-pound championship.
After finishing third at state as a junior, Bell posted a 27-1 record as a senior, avenging a semifinal loss to Derby's Meya Howell in the 2021 state tournament with a first-period pin in the state final. Bell became Heights' first official girls state champ and the first T-Bird girl to compile 100 career victories.
Hurla won her second state title with a 3-0 decision over Pratt's Jadyn Thompson, capping a 39-0 season for the Bulldawgs.
The TopSports.news all-county team is based on selections made by the seven Topeka head coaches as well as at large selections for county schools Rossville and Silver Lake.
Washburn Rural, which finished second as a team in 6A-5A after winning back-to-back state titles in 2020 and 2021, put six wrestlers on the first team, led by two-time state runner-up Addison Broxterman, a 120-pound junior..
In addition to Broxterman, Washburn Rural is represented by state placers Kristen Rezac (101-pound sophomore), Alexis Fredrickson (132-pound junior) and Jaliah Johnson (155-pound senior) along with sophomores Laiken Clark (143) and TaAni Rhoten (170).
Broxterman went 42-3 on the season en route to her second state runner-up finish while Fredrickson (43-5) placed third, Rezac (37-8) fourth and Johnson (39-5) fifth in the state meet.
Johnson earned a state medal for the third straight season.
Shawnee Heights put three wresters on the first team, with sophomore Odessa Schmidt (109) and junior Molly Busenitz (115) joining Bell on the all-county squad.
Busenitz posted a fourth-place finish in the state tournament while Schmidt placed fifth.
Shawnee Heights' Chad Parks and Erich Singer were named Shawnee County coaches of the year after leading the T-Birds to a fifth-place team finish at state. Heights was the highest placing 5A school in the 6A-5A state meet.
Seaman is represented on the all-county team by senior 126-pounder Rylee Murray, who placed fifth at state, while Viking freshman Koti Best was named the county newcomer of the year after placing fourth at 132 pounds in her first state meet.
Topeka High junior Marilena Zuniga made the All-Shawnee County first team at 138 pounds while Topeka West sophomore Tristyn Johnson made the first team at 235 pounds.
Johnson placed fifth in 6A-5A while Zuniga finished sixth.
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS WRESTLING
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
MARA BARE, Washburn Rural
A junior, Bare capped her sophomore season with a strong performance in the Class 6A state swimming and diving championships, finishing fourth in the 200-yard freestyle and fifth in the 500 free, earning second-team All-State honors. An All-City first-team selection last season, Bare placed second in the 500 free and third in the 100 backstroke in the city meet and swam on Washburn Rural's runner-up 200 medley and 400 free relays. Bare was second in the Centennial League in the 200 free and 500 free and swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 free relay and third-place 200 medley relay, earning first-team all-league honors.
AUDREY CAPE, Shawnee Heights
A sophomore, Cape posted a third-place finish for Shawnee Hights in the city championships in the 500-yard freestyle and finished fourth in the 100 backstroke. Cape also swam on the T-Birds' third-place 200 free and 400 free relays in the city meet and earned second-team All-City honors.
GEORGIA COLE, Shawnee Heights
Cole, a sophomore, finished fourth in the 2021 United Kansas Conference meet in the 200-yard individual medley and the 500 freestyle and also swam on Shawnee Heights' fourth-place 400 free relay team. A second-team All-City pick, Cole placed fifth in the city meet in the 200 IM and the 500 free and swam on Heights' third-place 400 free relay.
BLANCA ESPINOSA, Topeka West
Espinosa, a senior, earned second-team All-State honors in Class 5A-1A last season, placing eighth in both the 200-yard freestyle and the 500 free at state. Espinosa, a first-team All-City selection last season, also swam on the Chargers' 12th-place 200 medley and 200 free relays. Espinosa placed second in the 200 freestyle and third in the 100 butterfly in the city meet and helped West win the city title in the 200 free relay. Espinosa swam on West's second-place 200 free relay in the Centennial League, earning second-team all-league honors.
GABBY GRACE, Seaman
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
HAILEY BECK, Washburn Rural
Beck, a junior goalkeeper, helped 17-3-1 Washburn Rural win the Centennial League championship and finish third in the Class 6A state tournament last season, earning All-Shawnee County first-team recognition. Beck posted 12 shutouts a year ago while earning All-Class 6A and All-Centennial League honorable mention.
ABBY DODD, Hayden
Dodd, a senior defender, earned first-team All-Shawnee County recognition last season and was also an All-Centennial League first-team selection for the Wildcats. Dodd helped the Wildcats post a 10-8-0 record in the 2021 season.
TATUM HOGE, Shawnee Heights
Hoge, a senior goalkeeper, earned a berth on the All-Shawnee County first team last season after helping Shawnee Heights post a 10-7-1 record. Hoge has signed with Fort Hays State.
BELLE KENNEDY, Washburn Rural
A senior midfielder, Kennedy was a first-team All-Class 6A and All-Shawnee County pick as a junior after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 17-3-1 record, the Centennial League championship and a third-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament. Also an All-Centennial League pick, Kennedy led Rural with 17 goals and 12 assists and was named the 6A midfielder of the year. Kennedy has signed with Washburn University.
KATHERINE KEYS, Cair Paravel Latin
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman junior Kaeden Bonner and Washburn Rural junior Brooklyn DeLeye have been named the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency Athletes of the Week for last week.
Bonner helped lead Seaman to its first-ever Class 5A boys state basketball championship last Saturday at Emporia's White Auditorium while DeLeye helped lead Washburn Rural's girls to their second 6A state championship since 2019.
Here’s a brief look at the accomplishments of Bonner and DeLeye last week:
KAEDEN BONNER, Seaman
Bonner, a junior, scored a total of 43 points in the Class 5A state tournament, helping lead 18-7 Seaman to the first boys state basketball championship in school history.
Bonner scored 10 points with 4 assists and 3 steals in the No. 8-seeded Vikings' 54-43 first-round win over top seed Kapaun Mt. Carmel.
He followed that up with 18 points on six 3-pointers in the Vikings' 66-54 semifinal win over 2021 champion Maize with 5 assists and 2 steals and scored 15 points and hit 3 of 3 3-point attempts in Seaman's 66-47 win over De Soto in Saturday's state championship game.
Bonner hit long 3-pointers to end the first half in both the state semifinals and state championship games, giving the Vikings double-digit halftime leads in both games.
BROOKLYN DELEYE, Washburn Rural
DeLeye, a junior, scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in Saturday's Class 6A state championship game as Washburn Rural won its second state championship since 2019 with a 40-23 victory over Derby at Wichita State's Koch Arena.
DeLeye scored 11 points with 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks in Rural's 66-43 first-round win over Dodge City and had 6 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal in the Junior Blues' 44-43 semifinal victory over previously-unbeaten Olathe North.
DeLeye bounced back from a knee injury suffered in Rura's sub-state win over Manhattan to help the Junior Blues cap a 23-2 season.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seven Rossville and Silver Lake basketball players have earned first-team All-Mid-East League recognition.
Silver Lake senior Troy Heiman and junior Kamryn Kaniper and Rossville junior Kade Perine were named to the All-Mid-East boys first team, with Perine a unanimouse first-team pick.
Also named to the all-league boys first team were Fred Criqui, Jaxson Hurla and Keller Hurla of Class 2A state runner-up St. Marys, Brayden Meseke, Cade Oliver and Ed Oliver of Wabaunsee and Trey Harmison and Korin Koenig of Riley County.
Silver Lake, which finished third in the 3A state tournament, is represented on the girls first team by sophomores McKinley Kruger and Makenzie McDaniel while Rossville put sophomores Emma Mitchell and Kinsey Perine on the first team.
All four Silver Lake and Rossville picks were unanimous selections and Kruger, Mitchell and Perine were all first-team all-league selections for the second straight season.
Also named to the all-league girls first team were Lexi DeWeese, Grace Gehl and Brooklyn Goehring of Rock Creek, CJ Rignell and Haily Sharp of Riley County and Katelyn Hurla of St. Marys.
ALL-MID-EAST LEAGUE BASKETBALL