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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
As the saying goes, defense wins you games and that saying was relevant in Friday night’s defensive slugfest between Shawnee Heights and Seaman.
A deeply rooted rivalry since 1962 came back to the gridiron on Friday night with Shawnee Heights taking a 14-7 victory at Seaman Stadium in the first meeting between the two schools as United Kansas Conference members.
Shawnee Heights celebrates Friday night's UKC win at Seaman. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
Shawnee Heights and Seaman hadn’t played each other before Friday night since 2017.
“Tonight was the epitome of what Friday night lights are about,” Shawnee Heights coach Jason Swift said. “Tonight had two teams that were pretty equal in talent, coaching and heart. Some mistakes were made, but we were able to come up with the win.”
The defensive clinic put on by Shawnee Heights was outstanding while another stellar part of its game plan was giving junior running back Allen Baughman the football as much as possible.
Baughman carried the ball 29 times for 178 yards and both T-Bird touchdowns on Friday night.
If you combine Baughman’s first three games of the season you’ll see that he has carried the ball 68 times for 492 yards and seven touchdowns.
“I have to give it to my line, I’m nothing without them,” Baughman said. “Honestly, I’m not that tired. The adrenaline is still with me and I had a great time tonight. It was a perfect statement win for us.”
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
In late May Jensen Schrickel's legs powered him to three state track and field medals, including a state championship.
On Friday night Schrickel's legs carried the Hayden sophomore to two long touchdown returns over the first 1:22 and four TDs on the night as the Wildcats improved to a 3-0 with a 55-34 win over Rossville at Hayden.
Hayden sophomore Jensen Schrickel busts through the Rosville defense for a 67-yard punt return, one of his four touchdowns in the Wildcats' 55-34 win over Rossville Friday night. [Photo by Sarah Carson/Special to TSN]
Schrickel, a 5-foot-9, 145-pounder, set the tone for the night when he took the opening kickoff and sped 74 yards for a touchdown. Schrickel also tacked on the extra point to put Hayden in front 7-0 over the two-time defending Class 2A state champs just 10 seconds into the game.
Hayden forced Rossville to punt on its opening possession and Schrickel was off and running again, taking the punt 67 yard to the end zone. Schrickel's extra point gave the Wildcats a 14-0 advantage at the10:38 mark of the opening quarter.
"It was really good blocking and they just opened up really well,'' Schrickel said of the twin returns.
Schrickel scored a third touchdown on a 48-yard pass play from sophomore Jett Wahlmeier and added a fourth TD on a 12-yard reverse. He was seven of eight on extra point kicks, finishing the night with 31 points, while also playing defense for the Wildcats.
"I think offense is my favorite but they're all really fun though,'' Schrickel said. "I think we're playing really well. There's still a lot of room to improve but I think we're doing really well.''
Hayden coach Bill Arnold said Schrickel is a standout for the Wildcats in everything he does.
"He's a great competitor and obviously God's given him some talent along with it,'' Arnold said. "His emotions never change. He's never too high or too low. He's just Steady Eddie out there and I'm happy for any success he has out here because he's great individual to coach.''
Hayden senior JC Cummings rambles for a 98-yard touchdown in the first quarter of Hayden's 55-34 win over Rossville Friday night. [Photo by Sarah Carson/Special to TSN]
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Linebacker Grant Bruner didn't get a whole lot of recruiting attention as a senior out of Gretna, Neb. and ended up accepting a walk-on offer from Washburn University.
Washburn senior linebacker Grant Bruner (43), bringing down a Lincoln ball-carrier in the Ichabods' season-opener, leads the nation in tackles after recording 23 stops last week at Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Fast forward to his senior season with the Ichabods and there's probably quite a few college football programs that wish they had that decision to do over again, with the 6-foot, 200-pounder currently leading the nation in tackles and coming off his best performance in a banner career at WU heading into Saturday's 1 p.m. matchup with 1-1 Nebraska-Kearney at Yager Stadium.
Bruner was in on 23 tackles with two pass interceptions last week in a 40-32 MIAA road win at Central Missouri and is averaging a whopping 16.5 tackles through two games for the 2-0 Ichabods.
And Bruner can't help but be proud of what he's been able to accomplish since the humble beginnings to his college career.
"it's a surreal feeling,'' Bruner said. "There's been a lot of work and a lot of betting on myself. I always thought I could play at this level. I think I only had a couple of scholarship offers, Kearney was one of them, but I came down here and loved this place and I knew I could play here.
"Just being able to be where I'm at now, it's a good feeling and I couldn't have been here without family, teammates, coaches, everything. It's all helped me get to where I'm at.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Belle Kennedy began her college soccer career for Washburn University with high potential and high hopes, but the former Washburn Rural star knew she couldn't take anything for granted.
Through the opening six games of the 2022 season things couldn't have worked out much better for either Kennedy or WU, with Kennedy starting all six games and tying for the team lead with four goals while Davy Phillips' Ichabods have posted a 5-0-1 record entering Friday's 6 p.m. road contest at Fort Hays State.
Former Washburn Rural soccer star Belle Kennedy is off to a quick start as a true freshman for Washburn University, tying for the team lead with four goals as the Ichabods have gone 5-0-1 to open the 2022 season. [File photo/TSN]
"I thought there was a chance that I could play (early),'' said Kennedy, the two-time Class 6A midfielder of the year for Rural. "But I think the chances of me playing were dependent on how hard I would play or how much I would push through compared to other people.
"It's always a case of he's (Phillips) going to play his best players to start off and you want to be out there, so in order to be out there you have to be the best. You can't lay off of anything.''
Through preseason camp Kennedy had an inkling she might be in position to earn a starting spot but didn't know for sure until she got the word just before Washburn's Aug. 25 season-opener against Oklahoma Baptist.
"I had a major hope and through practices I think I could kind of figure out how (Phillips) was putting teams together and all of that, but still, on the day of the game, I had no clue whether I was going to start or not,'' Kennedy said. "Eventually, when I found out I was happy and worked as hard as I could.''
The fact that her first college start came at Yager Stadium with a lot of friends and family members watching was an added bonus.
"It was amazing, the most amazing part of my start,'' Kennedy said.
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
The scoring didn’t come as early as Shawnee Heights wanted, but the T-Birds’ second-half offensive surge boosted them past Seaman, 3-2.
![Shawnee Heights' Levi Longstaff (right) tries to find a lane against Seaman's defense Thursday night in the T-Birds' 3-2 win. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]](/images/aa-images/LeviLongstaff_2.jpg)
Shawnee Heights' Levi Longstaff (right) tries to find a lane against Seaman's defense Thursday night in the T-Birds' 3-2 win. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
The rivalry was renewed on Thursday night as the new member of the United Kansas Conference, Seaman, hit the road to take on Shawnee Heights at Bettis Family Sports Complex.
Class 5A Shawnee Heights opened its season against four straight 6A schools with winning records and wasn't able to pick up any wins.
After Thursday night’s victory, the T-Birds have won two in a row against UKC programs (Turner and Seaman).
“We’ve truly been battle-tested,” Shawnee Heights coach Nic Simons said. “I think the lessons that we’ve learned from playing those high-quality 6A teams have been valuable to us. We’ve learned not to give up a single inch. I think the mentality that we’ve gained helped us pull one out tonight against a great Seaman team.”
The T-Birds put together a responsive and gutsy performance.
When Seaman gained momentum late in the second half, Shawnee Heights didn’t fold under the pressure from a fired-up Vikings squad.
“I thought we were threatening tonight,” Simons said. “I’d give our performance a great grade against a tough Seaman team. I thought at times we looked slow, but other then that, I was happy with the way we played tonight.”
