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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden junior girls basketball player Avery Grunert and Shawnee Heights junior wrestler Allen Baughman have been named the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency Rising Stars of the Week.
Avery Grunert
Allen Baughman
The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the 2022-2023 school year.
Here’s a brief look at the accomplishments of Grunert and Baughman last week:
AVERY GRUNERT, Hayden
Grunert, a 5-foot-6 guard, scored a career-high 17 points off the bench to help lead Hayden to a 71-14 non-league win over Kansas City-Bishop Ward last Friday at Hayden.
Grunert was Hayden's leading scorer as the Wildcats finished the 2022 portion of the 2022-2023 season with a 3-1 record.
Grunert was a Class 4A state placer in golf this past fall, tying for 14th place to help lead the Wildcats to a third-place team finish for the second straight season.
ALLEN BAUGHMAN, Shawnee Heights
Baughman went 8-0 with eight pins in last weekend's Johnson County Classic at Blue Valley to capture the championship in the 175-pound weight class.
Baaughman, 16-4 on the season, capped his championship run with a win by fall over St. Thomas Aquinas' Elzie Slaughter at the 3:11 mark and recorded four pins between 30 seconds and one minute, helping Heights finish fourth as a team in the 25-school event.
Baughman was a TopSports.news All-Shawnee County Top 22 pick in football this past season.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural's girls have returned to the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 6A state rankings after a pair of victories over ranked teams last week.
Senior Brooklyn DeLeye (middle) and the Washburn Rural girls have returned to the KBCA Class 6A state rankings at No. 7 after a pair of wins over state-ranked teams last week. [File photo/TSN]
Rural is No. 7 in this week's rankings, released Tuesday, one spot behind Topeka High, which moved up to No. 6 from No. 10 in 6A.
Seaman's girls (5A), Silver Lake's girls (3A) and Highland Park's boys (5A) all remained No. 2 in the KBCA rankings while Hayden's boys remained No. 3 in 4A, Topeka West's boys moved up to No. 7 in 5A and Rossville's girls climbed a spot to No. 9 in 3A.
KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
CLAIRE IRELAND, Washburn Rural -- Ireland, a junior, earned second-team All-City recognition last season after helping Washburn Rural post a third-place team finish in the Class 6A state tournament. Ireland, also a state qualifier this fall in tennis, placed eighth in last season's Centennial League meet and was fifth for the Junior Blues in regional competition.
GABBY MARTINEZ, Washburn Rural -- A junior, Martinez has a breakout performance in the 2022 Class 6A start tournament, placing sixth individually with a 583 series to help lead Washburn Rural to a second straight third-place team finish Martinez was 29th in the Centennial League tournament and 24th at regionals before her big state performance.
Seaman senior Katie Price helped the Vikings win the Class 5A-1A state team championship last season. [Submitted photo]
KATIE PRICE, Seaman -- Price capped her junior season by helping Seaman win the Class 5A-1A state team championship. A first-team All-City selection the past two seasons, Price finished fifth in the Centennial League tournament and third in 5A-1A regional competition last season with a 630 series. Price won the Centennial League individual championship as a sophomore with a 658 series.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman senior bowler Ethan Burns finished 10th in the Class 5A-1A state tournament last season, helping the Vikings win the state team title. [File photo/TSN]
ETHAN BURNS, Seaman -- A first-team All-City selection the past two seasons, Burns finished off his junior season with a 10th-place finish in the Class 5A-1A state tournament, bowling a 668 series to help Seaman win the state team championship. Burns won the Centennial League meet with a 728 series and was fourth at regionals with a 697 series. Burns was a first-team All-Class 5A-1A pick.
JOSH EGLY, Shawnee Heights -- Egly, a senior, earned second-team All-City honors last season. Egly finished 12th in Class 5A-1A regional competition with a 649 series to help Shawnee Heights qualify for the 5A-1A state tournament as a team with a third-place finish. Egly helped the T-Birds finish 11th as a team at state. Egly finished eighth in the United Kansas Conference tournament with a 586 series as Heights finished second.
LOGAN GLINKA, Washburn Rural -- Glinka earned first-team All-City recognition as a freshman. Glinka posted a 10th-place finish in the Centennial League tournament with a 623 three-game series to help the Junior Blues win the league team championship by 3,503-3,499 margin over Seaman. Glinka bowled a 669 series to finish fifth in the Washburn Rural triangular and placed fifth with a 625 in Topeka High's quadangular.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Darting Basketball Academy will hold its second annual Community Give Back Shoe Drive Camp on Dec. 28 at Topeka Collegiate School to help provide new basketball shoes for children in need.
The Darting Basketball Academy will hold its 2nd annual Community Give Back Shoe Drive Camp on Dec. 28 at Topeka Collegiate School. [File photo/TSN]
The camp, which will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., will include 50 participants, with the price of admission a new pair of sneakers that will be distributed to local kids.
The camp for boys and girls 8-14 years old is sold out, but interested individuals are still welcome to donate shoes to the project.
The goal is to raise 200 pairs of shoes to distribute within the community.
Local basketball standouts as well as city coaches will serve as instructors at the Dec. 28 camp.
If interested in donating a pair of sneakers, email Kerry Darting at
