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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The top-ranked and undefeated Highland Park boys got off to a slow start in Monday's home Meadowlark Conference game against Kansas City-Schagle, which didn't come as a big shock to Scots coach Mike Williams.
Highland Park coach Mike Williams talks to his team during Monday's 63-25 win over KC-Schlagle. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
After all, Highland Park was playing the first varsity game of the night, about two hours earlier than normal, in front of a small crowd with zero pre-game fanfare.
But after scoring just eight first quarter points and trailing by a point, Highland Park got things cranked up in the second quarter and never looked back, improving to 16-0 overall and 8-0 in the conference with a 63-25 romp past the Stallions.
"It's an early game, a different environment,'' Williams said. "We're used to everybody being in it and the band around, but it's the type of game you've got to figure out how to play. There will be a 3 o'clock game at state, a 5 o'clock game at state and there's no energy and then you're complaining about why you didn't play well and who knows what happens in that environment and that situation.
"So I thought our guys did a good job. It's unfortunate that some games are a little bit harder to get up for. Every game aint like playing Topeka High or Topeka West, where everybody's in the gym and we're also dealing with teenagers, but I thought we did a good job of answering the call.''
After trailing 9-8 at the start of the second period, the Scots held a 23-6 scoring margin in the quarter, including the first 12 points, to open up a commanding 31-15 halftime advantage.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kayla Duncan
KAYLA DUNCAN, Seaman
A freshman, Duncan captured the girls individual championship in Friday's second annual Topeka City Bowling Championships, bowling a 623 three-game series to help lead the Vikings to their second straight city team title by a 3,000-2,949 margin over Washburn Rural. Duncan bowled games of 203, 235 and 185.
Logan Glinka
LOGAN GLINKA, Washburn Rural
Glinka, a senior bowler, won his second straight city boys title on Friday at Gage Bowl with a 734 three-game series while leading Washburn Rural to the team championship by a 3,505-3,398 margin over runnerup Shawnee Heights. A former Class 6A state medalist, Glinka rolled games of 278, 232 and 224 in the city meet.
Ja'Corey Robinson
JACOREY ROBINSON, Highland Park
A 6-foot-6 senior basketball standout, Robinson scored 68 points on the week as undefeated and top-ranked (Class 5A) Highland Park posted three wins. Robinson had 17 points in a 54-30 Meadowlark Conference win over Kansas City-Washington, 32 points in a 67-50 win over city rival Topeka West and 19 points in an 81-14 conference win over KC-Wyandotte.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' girls wrestling team entered Saturday's United Kansas Conference Championships looking for a sixth straight UKC team title.
But even though Basehor-Linwood ended the T-Birds' bid by a 209.5-184 margin, Heights coach Chad Parks praised his team's effort and was already looking forward to upcoming regional and state competition.
"We actually wrestled lights out today,'' Parks said. "We didn't lose very many matches at all. Basehor's just tough, we're tough and it's just going to be a battle.''
Shawnee Heights senior Madison Freeland won the 140-pound United Kansas Conference title Saturday at Topeka West. [File photo/TSN]
Junior Cianna Graves improved to 31-2 on the season while winning the 150-pound United Kansas Conference title for Shawnee Heights Saturday. [File photo/TSN]
The T-Birds earned four individual championships and added four runnerup finishes, a third and a fourth but Basehor-Linwood countered with five individual golds, four seconds, two thirds and a fourth.
"When you get a little bigger tournament sometimes it's a little different than a small tournament,'' Parks said. "We've won almost tournament this year and we just keep doing what we do.''
Shawnee Heights got girls individual titles from senior 125-pounder Reece Taylor, senior 130-pounder Isabel Reyes, senior 140-pounder Madison Freeland and junior 150-pounder Cianna Graves while freshman Ava Gutierrez (100), junior Olivia Stevens (145), sophomore Brooklyn Binkley (170) and junior Shelby Watson (190) all posted runnerup conference finishes.
Taylor improved to 30-3 on the season, posting a 1:46 pin in the championship match, while Reyes improved to 32-1 with a 44-second pin over Seaman junior Makenna Stuke.
Freeland won the 140 title with a 1:54 pin to improve to 26-6 while Graves is now 31-2 after a pin in 2:46.
Seaman senior Taylie Heston won the 120-pound title in Saturday's UKC tournament. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman, which was without injured standout Koti Best, finished fourth as a team with 85 points, led by senior 120-pound champion Taylie Heston, while the Vikings also got second-place finishes from senior Natalie Smith (110), freshman Avery Villines (115) and Stuke (130).
Heston (27-6) capped her title run with a 9-0 major decision.
Topeka West finished eighth in the girls standings with 11 points, led by fourth-place sophomore Monica Stewart (235).
On the boys side, Basehord-Linwood won the UKC championship by a 242-171.5 margin over Lansing while Seaman (145.5) finished third.
Seaman senior Samson Tootle won the 175-pound UKC title Saturday, helping lead the Vikings to a third-place team finish. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]
Senior Samson Tootle won the 175-pound championship to lead the Vikings, one of four Seaman wrestlers to reach the championship round.
Tootle improved to 28-11 on the season with a 10-1 major decision over Lansing's Xavier Harmon.
The Eagles also got runnerup finishes from sophomore Ross Shipley (144), senior Gabe Brannick (165) and senior Deyton Mentzer (215).
"The kids are figuring it out later in the season and we're starting to peak at the right time,'' Seaman coach Tony Pena said. "I'm real young. I've got a lot of first and second-year wrestlers on my varsity right now and they're learning.
"I'm seeing progress every week, which is great.''
Shawnee Heights finished seventh with 52.5 points, led by third-place sophomore Dallas Owens (132).
Topeka West finished ninth (26), getting a fourth-place showing from junior Cortez McCutcheon (285).
UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE WRESTLING
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BY ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural's boys and girls wrestling teams took runnerup finishes at the Centennial League Championships Saturday at Topeka High.
The Manhattan girls defeated Washburn Rural 42-38 in the opening dual round. Manhattan and Washburn Rural won the rest of their respective duals, which helped the Tribe secure its first Centennial League championship in girls history.
Washburn Rural's Emmerson Blanco won the 140-pound championship in Saturday's Centennial League wrestling tournament. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural's Ashley Schwarz won the 155-pound championship in Saturday's Centennial League wrestling tournament. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
“We knew it was going to be tough coming in,” Washburn Rural girls head coach Damon Parker said. “Coach (Shawn) Bammes and that crew over in Manhattan have done a fantastic job with their girls. Looking at it on paper, we knew it was going to be a real tough matchup for us … We knew we were going to have our hands full and we were going to have to be at our absolute best and we weren’t in that first dual today. We wrestle that dual 100 times, we win 50 and they win 50.
"It was a lot of fun. We are absolutely not letting the fact that they finished four points above us in that one dual cloud how well our kids wrestled today.”
Washburn Rural’s girls had won four straight Centennial League titles (2020-2024) coming into Saturday. While not taking home the league championship stings for the Washburn Rural group, the optimism is high for its program for the remainder of the season.
“It’s been such a blast,” Parker said. “I’m sure I say something like this every year, but I don’t remember having this much fun coaching. I’m not sure this team is equipped to win a state championship this year, but I also remember saying the same thing last year. It’s all about who shows up when it matters. There’s no team that’s more dangerous than the team that doesn’t care whether they win or lose. We do not place any kind of value on them as human beings on how they do out there on the match. And I think that bleeds over to the way they wrestle.”
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By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Washburn men defended their number one position atop Division II basketball and tightened their hammerlock on the MIAA by downing Central Missouri 83-60 Saturday at Lee Arena.
Sophomore Brayden Shorter led Washburn with 18 points in Saturday's 83-60 MIAA win over Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Ichabods improved their record to 22-0 behind a balanced scoring effort. Sophomore Brayden Shorter led the way with 18 points, while seniors Andrew Orr and Jacob Hanna contributed 14 apiece.
Senior Andrew Orr scored 14 points in Saturday's 83-60 MIAA win over Central Missouri. [Phto by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn senior Jacob Hanna scored 14 points Saturday as the Ichabods improved to 22-0 with an 83-60 win over Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn stretched its lead out to 20 points early in the second half. But Central Missouri gradually whittled the deficit to nine points with 12:45 remaining.
The Ichabods extinguished the threat, outscoring the visitors 33-19 the rest of the way.
“I felt like a couple of times we had chances to bury them, and we didn’t,” Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. “We need to learn from that. We pulled away eventually, but I just didn’t feel like we had the discipline we normally had played with there for some spurts.
“In this game, we could get away with that. But we’ve got to learn from that, because eventually, coming into the MIAA tournament and the regionals, that’s going to get you.”
Ballard’s words serve as a reminder that this team has lofty goals, as well as the pressure that comes with the No. 1 ranking.
“There’s been a target on our backs from Day 1,” Shorter said. “We really like that, actually, because we get every team’s best shot.”
