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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Emma Chapman enjoyed her time at Kansas State, but made the decision to transfer to Washburn University prior to last season, a move the 6-foot-3 senior forward said she continues to feel better and better about both on and off the basketball court.
Former Kansas State player Emma Chapman has made a smooth transition to Washburn, averaging 7.0 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Ichabods. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"I think I just needed a change of pace,'' Chapman said. "I needed a different environment and just a better fit for me. And then academically I needed a smaller classroom, more personal professors.''
The move to Topeka also got Chapman an hour closer to her home in Columbia, Mo., which she said is a big bonus.
"That's amazing,'' she said. "That hour makes a huge difference when you're driving like three hours compared to four, and my dad and mom really love it, too, because they can make it to almost every game.''
The move has also paid off from a basketball standpoint, with Chapman seeing more action than she has since starring at Highman High from 2015-2019.
Chapman averaged 5.7 minutes a game in 22 appearances at Kansas State in the 2019-2020 season before opting out of the '20-'21 campaign.
After taking that full season off, Chapman eased back into the game last season at WU, playing an average of 6.8 minutes in 22 games and scoring a season-high five points against Fort Hays State.
Chapman has moved into a sigificant role for Lora Westling's 3-4 Ichabods this season, playing 19.6 minutes a game with three starts while averaging 7.0 points (fourth on the team) and 5.3 rebounds (second on the team).
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Senior star Kiki Smith scored 28 points to go with six assists and five rebounds as Topeka High advanced to the championship game of De Soto's Hardwood Classic with a 52-44 semifinal win over Olathe Northwest Thursday night.
Topeka High senior star Kiki Smith scored 28 points with five 3-pointers as the Trojans improved to 3-1 with a 52-44 win over Olathe Northwest Thursday night in De Soto. [File photo/TSN]
Brittney Redmond's Topeka High girls picked up their third straight win to improve to 3-1 on the season and will play tournament host De Soto at 3 p.m. Saturday for the championship.
Smith went 9 of 19 from the field and hit 5 of 11 3-point attempts and 5 of 7 free throws.
Topeka High led 13-9 at the end of the first quarter, 23-18 at the half and outscored Northwest 29-26 in the second half to hold the Ravens at bay.
Senior Adisyn Caryl added six points and seven rebounds for the Trojans while sophomore Jo'Mhara Benning had six points and six rebounds.
Senior Faith Shields was credited with five steals.
De Soto advanced to the championship game with a 51-42 semifinal win over Notre Dame De Sion, Mo.
Senior Jack Bachelor (right) scored 21 points in Washburn Rural's 68-31 win over KC-Schlagle on Thursday in SM East's Championship Showdown. [File photo/TSN]
WASHBURN RURAL 68, KC-SCHLAGLE 31 -- Seniors Jack Bachelor and Wyatt Conklin combined for 37 points as Washburn Rural evened its record at 1-1 with a 68-31 romp past Kansas City-Schlagle in Thursday's consolation game of the Shawnee Mission East Championship Showdown.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EMPORIA -- It had been nearly eight months since Hayden's boys basketball team had played a game.
But the way the Wildcats ended last season, with a fourth-place finish in the Class 4A state tournament, seemed to have a carryover effect when Hayden lined up Thursday to open the 2022-2023 season against Wichita Trinity in the Paul Terry Classic.
Hayden junior Mister Cameron (4) takes the ball to the basket against Wichita Trinity in Thursday's 82-45 romp in the opening round of the Paul Terry Classic. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden boys coach Dwayne Paul gives instructions to his team during Thursday's 82-45 season-opening romp past Wichita Trinity. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"It's one of those things where I think the way we ended last year has kind of propelled us into this year,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Paul said. "This summer wasn't about winning or losing. It was about skill development, a lot of shooting, a lot of ball-handling. We worked on playing the right way.
"We move the ball, we attack and you saw that (tonight). This has been four or five months in the making'''
Hayden jumped out to a 17-8 first-quarter lead against Trinity and put the game by halftime, taking a 42-25 advantage to the locker room.
The Wildcats continued to add to their advantage in the second half, outscoring the Knights by a 37-20 margin, and forced a running clock early in the fourth quarter.
Veteran Joe Otting, a 6-foot-5 senior, led Hayden with 11 points but was just part of a balanced attack for the Wildcats, who had 12 players crack the scoring column out of the 13 players who saw action.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EMPORIA -- To say Hayden's girls basketball team got off to a slow start in Thursday's season-opener is a big understatement.
But that nasty beginning set the stage for the sweetest of endings, with the Wildcats rallying from 19 down in the opening quarter and 13 down at the start of the fourth quarter to take a 60-54 overtime win over Spring Hill in the opening round of the Paul Terry Classic at White Auditorium.
Hayden's players begin to celebrate in the closing seconds of Thursday's 60-54 overtime win over Spring Hill in the Paul Terry Classic at Emporia. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
After digging itself a huge hole, Hayden outscored Spring Hill 29-10 in the fourth quarter and overtime to pull out the victory.
"I would say we were nervous and I came in thinking, 'OK, this team already has a win under their belt, we haven't played,' so I think we were all playing timid, but we got back into it,'' said Hayden junior Lauren Sandstrom, who finished with a game-high 25 points, including eight points in the overtime.
Sandstrom said after climbing all the way back to force the overtime, the Wildcats knew the game was in their grasp in the extra session.
"It was bad in the beginning, but going into overtime I was hyping everyone up. I'm like, 'This is our game. We fought through this, it's time to finish it,' '' Sandstrom said.
Hayden trailed 4-2 early against the Broncos before Spring Hill ran off 15 straight points to open up a 19-2 lead with 1:40 left and went on to go in front 23-4 before Wildcat sophomore Brylee Meier hit a 3-pointer to end the quarter.
"I was thinking them having a game under their belt was pretty big,'' Hayden coach Carvel Reynoldson said. "Early on we were just shell-shocked. But this team is really cool to coach because even though we were down 23-4 every shot we made everybody was celebrating like crazy. They all really love each other.''
Sandstrom opened the second quarter with another 3 for the Wildcats and Hayden got within 10 (27-17) later in the quarter before Spring Hill built its lead back to 15 and took a 36-23 advantage to the locker room at the half.
Hayden got within nine in the third quarter but was still down by 13 (44-31) at the start of the fourth quarter.
And that's when everything changed for the the Wildcats.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (1-1, 1-1) at TOPEKA WEST (0-2, 0-2)
Shawnee Heights senior Taylor Rottinghaus scored a career-high 18 points in Tuesday night's 54-32 UKC win over Piper. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights picked up its first win of the year on Tuesday, rolling to a 54-32 United Kansas Conference victory over Piper, while Topeka West is coming off a 60-26 UKC loss at Seaman. Senior Taylor Rottinghaus paced Shawnee Heights with a career-high 18 points against Piper while senior Emari Doby was right behind with 16 points for the T-Birds. Senior Azaryah Duncan scored seven points to pace Topeka West against Seaman, but no other Chargers scored more than four points.
Carvel Reynoldson's Hayden girls rallied from 19 points down to take a 60-54 overtime win over Spring Hill in Thursday's season-opener. [FIle photo/TSN]
HAYDEN (1-0) vs. EMPORIA (2-0)
At Emporia Paul Terry Classic
Hayden rallied from a 19-point deficit to take a 60-54 overtime win over Spring Hill on Thursday in the opening round of the Paul Terry Classic at Emporia. Junior Lauren Sandstrom led the Wildcats with a game-high 25 points, including eight points in overtime, while sophomore Brylee Meier added 19 points and 10 rebounds. Emporia cruised to a 63-32 win over Wichita Trinity on Thursday as Rebecca Snyder scored 20 points. Friday's game between Centennial League rivals Hayden and Emporia is set for a 6:30 p.m. tipoff.
