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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Friday, May 26, was an extremely tough day for Olathe Northwest softball and track and field standout Kendall Yarnell, one she'll never forget.
But now Yarnell, who recently completed her junior year of high school, has turned her attention towards trying to help make sure something good comes out of that heartbreaking day, not only for herself but for other multi-sport athletes across the state.
Olathe Northwest star Kendall Yarnell finished second in the Class 6A discus as a freshman and sophomore, but was not able to compete in this year's event after KSHSAA officials ruled that Yarnell was not properly scratched out of an earlier event. [Submitted photo]
Kendall Yarnell, who recently completed her junior year, is a softball and track and field star for Olathe Northwest. [Submitted photo]
After dropping a marathon 3-1 12-inning decision to Washburn Rural in a Class 6A state softball semifinal, Yarnell made the extremely tough decision for forego the third-place game and make the 2 hour, 30-minute trip to Wichita with her parents so the 6A leader and two-time state runnerup in the discus could compete in that event at the state track and field championships.
Yarnell, also a state qualiifier in the 6A shot put, made it to Wichita State well before the start of the discus competition, but was informed by Kansas State High School Activities Association officials that she would not be allowed to compete in the discus because she had not properly been scratched out of the shot put earlier in the day. That ruling eliminated Yarnell from state competition for the remainder of the meet.
"After we lost in 12 innings, and after I got intentionally walked six times, I was kind of like, 'That actually could possibly happen again in the third-place game,' and I didn't want that to happen,'' Yarnell said in a phone interview. "The whole team and Shawn (Lopez, Northwest's head coach) kind of knew I was very upset after the loss but it was also that I was going to make the decision to go down to Wichita and it was hard to leave my team.
"Then when I went down to Wichita and they scratched me it was really hard because I had just gone through so much emotion about leaving my team. By the time they had scratched me I had already known that we had gotten fourth at state for softball, that we had already lost the third-place game. So it was a feeling of, 'If we would have known about this I could have been able to help.' It was a lot of weird feelings, a lot of frustration, a lot of feeling like I let down a team.''
Given nearly two weeks to reflect on the events of that day, Yarnell now just wants to be a proponent for the KSHSAA to change its state tournament schedule and create less overlap to be more condusive for athletes who qualify for state in multiple events to be able to compete.
"It was hard, but after like two weeks now it's one of those things where we knew a conflict was going to happen at some point and whatever happened down in Wichita is what happened,'' Yarnell said. "It is what happened and now we're just looking to change dates and hopefully never have any more conflicts.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Chip Kueffer may be brand new to being a head basketball coach, but the new Cair Paravel Latin coach has spent most of his life around the sport, including more than four years with Hall of Fame coach Bill Self and the storied University of Kansas program.
Chip Kueffer
Now the Baldwin native is looking forward to putting all of that experience to good use in his new position with the Lions.
Kueffer takes over at Cair Paravel from Trey Brown, who recently resigned to accept the head coaching job at Hayden.
"The game has done so much for me and given me countless opportunities, memories and relationships, so this is a phenomenal opportunity for me to give back and pay forward for what's been done for me,'' Kueffer said. "I had so many selfless leaders and mentors pour into my life when there was nothing for them to gain out of it,
"So for me this is just a great opportunity for me to be able to pass on those same lessons and values and morals and everything. It's my passion for sure.''
One of the biggest influences in Kueffer's basketball career have been Self and the Jayhawk basketball progam.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Class 6A state tournament qualifier Topeka High, which ended a seven-decade state drought, and perennial 5A qualifier Seaman lead the TopSports.news 2023 All-Shawnee County baseball team.
Seaman senior Bryson Vawter has been named the TSN All-Shawnee County baseball player of the year after leading the Vikings to a state-record 19th straight state tournament appearance. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman senior pitcher/first baseman Bryson Vawter was named the 2023 Shawnee County player of the year after helping lead the Vikings to an 18-5 record and a state-record 19th straight trip to the state tourament.
Topeka High's Cody Miller was named the county coach of the year after leading the Trojans to a 16-7 record, capped by High's state tournament appearance, while Hayden sophomore Brady Heinen was named the newcomer of the year.
Seaman sophomore Max Huston is a first-team All-Shawnee County selection after being named the county newcomer of the year as a freshman. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka High junior Nate Plankinton helped lead the Trojans to their first state baseball appearance in more than seven decades. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka High senior Elijah Kincade (32) has been named to the All-Shawnee County first team after helping the Trojans reach the Class 6A state tournament. [File photo//TSN]
Vawter is joined on the All-Shawnee County first team by senior Cameron Selbach, junior Holden Finley and sophomore Max Huston while Topeka High is represented by senior Elijah Kincaid and juniors Isaiah Kincaid and Nate Plankinton.
Hayden sophomore Cooper Grace earned a berth on the All-Shawnee County first team. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden put seniors Konnor Becker and Jackson Summers and sophomore Cooper Grace on the first team while Washburn Rural is represented by seniors Zach Sharshel and Ty Weber and junior Kyle Walker.
Shawnee Heights is represented on the all-county first team by senior Zack Cole and sophomore repeat pick Deacon Pomeroy while Silver Lake is represented by sophomore Dysen Schooler.
Vawter earned first-team All-Class 5A recognition from the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches while Grace earned All-4A second-team recognition.
Walker received All-6A honorable mention from the KABC while Finley, Huston and Cole received honorable mention in 5A and Summers received honorable mention in 4A.
2023 ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY BASEBALL
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Class 3A state champion Rossville and 6A runnerup Washburn Rural headline the 2023 TopSports.news All-Shawnee County softball team.
Washburn Rural senior Emmerson Cope has been named the Shawnee County softball player of the year after leading the Junior Blues to a second straight runnerup finish in Class 6A. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural freshman Reagan Chapman has been named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year after helping Rural post a runnerup finish in the Class 6A state softball tournamennt. [File photo/TSN]
Rossville softball coach John Nitsch has been named the Shawnee County softball coach of the year after leading the Bulldawgs to their first state title since 2000. [Photo by Jesse Bruner/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural senior Emmerson Cope was named the Shawnee County player of the year after leading the Junior Blues to a 21-4 record and a second straight berth in the 6A championship game while Rural freshman Reagan Chapman was named the county newcomer of the year.
Rossville coach John Nitsch was named the county coach of the year after his Bulldawgs posted a 20-4 record en route to their first state title since 2000.
Cope, a Nebraska signee, and Chapman are joined on the all-county first team by senior Piper Titsworth.
Senior Brinley Dyche picked up all three pitching victories for Rossville in the Class 3A state tournament as the Bulldawgs captured their first state title since 2000. [Photo by Jesse Bruner/Special to TSN]
Rossville also has three players on the first team -- senior Brinley Dyche and juniors Kinsey Perine and Emma Mitchell.
Shawnee Heights, which finished third in the 5A state tournament, is represented on the first team by sophomore Grace Proctor and junior Ally Millard-Adams while the T-Birds' United Kansas Conference rival, Seaman, is represented by senior Aspen Burghart and sophomore Kaelyn O'Rourke.
Silver Lake, which was top-ranked in Class 3A for most of the 2023 season, put junior Avery Wende and sophomores Kendra Cook and Taylor Zordel on the all-county first team.
Topeka High senior shortstop Adisyn Caryl, an Illinois signee, is a repeat pick on the All-Shawnee County softball team. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden senior Alyssa Droge has been named to the All-Shawnee County softball first team. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka High seniors Alesia Alvarez and Adisyn Caryl are both first-team repeat picks while Hayden senior Alyssa Droge also earned a first-team spot.
2023 ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY SOFTBALL
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TopSports.news
Shawnee County high schools have submitted their nominations for senior athletes for the 18th annual Topeka Shawnee County High School Sports Awards, which will be presented on June 28 along with the induction of the 2023 Hall of Fame class.
Washburn Rural graduate and Kentucky signee Brooklyn DeLeye is a nominee for the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards after leading the Junior Blues to the Class 6A state volleyball title as a senior. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden graduate and Notre Dame signee Joe Otting (left) has been nominated for the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards. [File photo/TSN]
Recent Highland Park graduate Tre Richardson was a three-time state track and field champion for the Scots, including two state titles as a senior. [File photo/TSN]
Rossville senior Brinley Dyche is a candidate for the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards after helping lead the Bulldawgs to the Class 3A state softball title this spring. [File photo/TSN]
TopSports.news, in conjunction with the University of Kansas Health Systems St Francis Campus, A-1 Lock and Key and Washburn University, will host the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards and Hall of Fame induction ceremonies at the Washburn University Memorial Union.
TopSports.news will present awards to the top female and male athletes in the fall, winter and spring seasons, as well as overall female and male athletes of the year and the most inspirational female and male. A complete list of nominees is listed below.
To be eligible, an athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.0. Athletes were nominated by their schools' athletic directors and coaches.
In addition to the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Awards, Grant Bruner and Jaycee Ginter will be honored as Washburn University Athletes of the Year and Chris Barnes, Kevin Bordewick, Crystal Kemp and Rick Peterson will be inducted as the 2023 Topeka Shawnee County Hall of Fame class.
A committee of local media members will select the 2023 high school winners, including the selection of overall female and male athletes of the year.
General admission tickets for the Topeka Shawnee County sports awards banquet are $30 per person and include dinner.
Ticket information is available at topsports.news.
TOPEKA SHAWNEE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS AWARDS NOMINEES
