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By KYLE MANTHE
The Washburn Review
Week 8 of Friday night football featured a matchup between two of the top teams in the city as the 5-2 Seaman Vikings visited the 6-1 Washburn Rural Junior Blues.
It was truly a tale of two halves as the defenses controlled early on and the offenses took over late, but it was the explosive offense of the Junior Blues which propelled them to a 42-31 Centennial League victory on Senior Night at Bowen-Glaze Stadium.
“This is one they will remember for a long time, a share of the league championship tonight, coming and playing a great game like this, an exciting game, that’s something they will always remember,” Washburn Rural coach Steve Buhler said.
Washburn Rural coach Steve Buhler talks to his team after the Junior Blues wrapped up a 7-1 regular season and clinched a share of the Centennial League title with a 42-31 win over Seaman Friday night. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
The defenses for each side were as good as advertised with a three and out for each team to begin the game.
Seaman would strike first, moving the ball in nine plays down to the 5-yard-line of Washburn Rural before senior Gavin Wilhelm knocked in a 22-yard field goal.
The Junior Blues responded with a nine-play drive of their own, ending in a 9-yard pass to junior Amr Sabbarini in the right side of the end zone from sophomore Branton DeWeese before the end of the first quarter.
Each side's defense controlled most of the second quarter with an interception coming from Washburn Rural’s senior Landon MacEwan, who finished with two takeaways in the game, but no points would come from the first turnover.
“I definitely think we were being physical, we pride ourselves on being a physical team, and I think we really got to them in the run game,” said Washburn Rural senior Robby Bolin.
With yards hard to come by on the ground, the Vikings would go to the air with a pass from senior Camden Barta to senior Brody Gormley, who tapped his toes at the back of the end zone for a 9-yard TD just before halftime.
“It was a hard-fought seven points we held them to in the first half, so we were kind of in that position and knew that coming out we were going to have to execute the same way we were and unfortunately we didn’t,” said Seaman coach Jared Swafford.
The Junior Blues struck fast out of halftime, with Bolin breaking a tackle and taking an 84-yard pass from DeWeese to the house on the third play.
“We came into halftime and nothing was really working so we came out, made some adjustments and stuff started firing and it just worked out,” Bolin said.
After punts from each side Seaman would counter with a catch and run of 65 yards by Gormley into the end zone, putting the Vikings back out in front, but not for long. Two plays later Washburn Rural junior Ma’Kenttis Adams bounced outside for a 28-yard touchdown run to flip the scoreboard.
After a kick return back to the 20-yard-line by Seaman sophomore Jack Bloom, Barta was able to connect with senior P.J. Vargas for a 17-yard touchdown throw just three plays later.
Next came the longest drive of the quarter, a nine-play balanced attack from the Junior Blues ending in another touchdown pass from DeWeese to Sabbarini from 24 yards out to end the high scoring quarter at 28-24 Rural.
“We went in and just re-adjusted our protection for Branton (DeWeese) and when we were able to give him time it allowed our wide receivers to gain a little separation on the guys that were pressing at the line,” said Buhler.
A quick Viking punt and a 75-yard catch by senior Adrian Tibbetts set up the second DeWeese to Bolin touchdown throw, this time from 20 yards out to break the game open at 35-24. After a second consecutive three-and-out from Seaman, Washburn Rural would need only one play to find the end zone as JC Heim took a handoff 90 yards with just under 10 minutes to play.
The Vikings would get into the end zone one more time on a 3-yard score from Barta to senior Braden Colley but it was too late as the ensuing onside attempt failed.
“I think we will bounce back, we had a great week of practice, we've got great senior leadership, and I like our chances to go out and give ourselves a shot in the playoffs in every game,” said Swafford.
At 7-1 on the year the Junior Blues claimed a share of the Centennial League title with Manhattan and Junction City.
Both Rural and Seaman will be set for home playoff games on Oct. 29, with opponents to be determined late Friday or early Saturday.
“We are excited, we are ready to go, we have been talking about this since last November,'' Buhler said. "This is where we wanted to be, we wanted a top-four seed, I think we got that tonight, hopefully with the win we put ourselves right where we want to be and now the second season starts.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights football coach Jason Swift had a couple of primary goals in mind entering Friday night's United Kansas Conference game against Turner.
First and foremost the T-Birds wanted to win, clinch a .500 regular season and continue to build momentum for the Class 5A playoffs, goals the T-Birds took care of when they went in front 21-0 in the opening four minutes.
And on Homecoming night at Wetter Field, Swift and his coaching staff also wanted to give as many T-Birds as possible the opportunity to get a chance to share in what became a 60-0 runaway win.
"Football's a great sport because it's a team win,'' Swift said. "We always say that it doesn't matter if you play scout team, one play or every play you have an equal value in our program, so seniors, juniors, sophomores they all took a lot of pride in this and let's get everyone on the field and let's throw a shutout, too.
"I think those were the two things we wanted to do and we accomplished them.''
Shawnee Heights senior Jarin Sanders (4) is congratulated by his teammates after scoring one of his three touchdowns in Friday's 60-0 win over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
With Friday's win Shawnee Heights is expecting to host Sumner Academy in a first-round 5A playoff game next Friday night. Playoff pairings will be announced by the Kansas State High School Activities Association late Friday or early Saturday.
Shawnee Heights, which won for the fourth time over its past five games, put the 1-7 Bears away with 21 points in the first 3:27 of the contest and Heights took a huge 47-0 advantage to the locker room at the half, forcing a running clock through the entire second half.
And as far as sharing the wealth, Heights' sideline looked like a revolving door.
Swift alternated senior quarterbacks Callan Carver, Braeden Brown and Raiden McGrew, and all three had a hand in building the T-Birds' big cushion.
Carver ran for one touchdown and threw for two TDs in his limited duty while Brown and McGrew both passed for scores.
Sanders, the T-Birds' standout senior running back, rushed for 94 yards on 12 attempts and scored three touchdowns -- 24 and 4-yard runs and an 11-yard reception from Carver.
Heights senior Ayden McDaniel also scored three touchdowns, scoring on runs of 27 and 15 yards and catching a 40-yard TD from McGrew. He finished the game with 89 rushing yards on just six carries.
Shawnee Heights senior Carter Olson stretches out to catch a pass in Friday's 60-0 win over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior Braedon Ginter caught a 17-yard TD pass from Brown while senior Carter Olson caught a 5-yard TD pass from Carver.
In addition to using three quarterbacks the T-Birds also used three place-kickers on extra points, with senior Jaxon Correll, junior Carson Christian and junior Pablo Gonzalez combining for six PATs.
It all added up to a fun night for the T-Birds.
"Man, it was a lot of fun,'' Sanders said. "The crowd was great, there were a lot of people out here, and it was good to see all the young guys get an opportunity because they show up to everything.
"They don't miss anything and they don't get the same opportunities that the varsity does, so it was good to see them out here.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman state doubles champions Grace Unruh and Lauren Sweeney and Hayden state singles champ Ainzley Zulueta have been named to the 2021 Kansas Tennis Coaches Association All-State girls tennis team.
Unruh, a senior, and Sweeney, a junior, capped a perfect 36-0 season with the Class 5A state doubles championship last Saturday at Emporia while freshman Zulueta finished off a 35-5 season with a 4A state singles title last Saturday at Winfield.
Seaman Class 5A state doubles champions Grace Unruh and Lauren Sweeney have received All-State honors from the Kansas Tennis Coaches Association. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden freshman Ainzley Zulueta has received All-State recognition from the Kansas Tennis Coaches Association after winning the Class 4A state singles title. [File photo/TSN]
Unruh and Sweeney, who had finished fourth in 5A in 2020, led the Vikings to a fifth-place team finish while Zulueta led the Wildcats to a third-place state finish.
Manhattan junior Jillian Harkin, the 6A state singles champion, was also named to the KTCA All-State team.
KTCA All State Tennis Teams 2021
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THE PENNANT PLAYER PROFILE
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After more than two years of waiting his turn, redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Simoncic was suddenly "the guy'' for Washburn University's offense last week against then-No. 2-ranked Northwest Missouri, pressed into service early in the game when senior standout Mitch Schurig went down with an injury.
And the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Smithville, Mo. native responded exactly the way he and his coaches and teammates hoped he would, helping the Ichabods end a 15-game losing streak to the Bearcats with a 17-16 MIAA win at Yager Stadium.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Simoncic came off the bench to help Washburn knock off No. 2-ranked Northwest Missouri, 17-16, last Saturday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Simoncic, who had seen mopup duty earlier in the year against Lincoln, admitted it took him a few moments to grasp the situation he was in when Schurig went down (concussion protocol), but then just tried to concentrate on the task at hand.
"My first thought was, 'Is he OK, is he getting up, how's he doing?' '' Simoncic said of Schurig. "After that I went and grabbed my helmet and started playing catch a little bit and kind of mentally preparing to get in the game.
"You never want to see anybody get hurt, especially Mitch because he's helped me so much throughout the years, but it was also very exciting. You couldn't ask for a better opportunity.''
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
In Thursday's final regular-season soccer game of the year, Topeka High and Seaman squared off in a thrilling defensive matchup that resulted in a 0-0 tie at Seaman.
Seaman honored its seniors on Senior Night before the first kick with a ceremony honoring Gavin Wilhelm, Kyson Evans, Pablo Font, Jake Moss, Trustin Shafer, Lawson Greig and Justin Kruse.
After the ceremony concluded, it was time to get to work.
Topeka High goalkeeper Logan Murray displayed that he is one of the area’s best young goalkeepers. As a sophomore, he’s opened a lot of eyes with his strong athleticism and his abilities in the goal. On the other side, junior Ayden Thompson has also been impressive for the Vikings with his long reach and blocking abilities and both goalkeepers provided shutouts for their teams throughout the game.
In the first couple of halves, things were mute offensively. Strong, physical pushes by both sides and clutch preventive kicks made the game competitive.
No matter how great the kicks were by either side in the first half, Murray and Thompson prevented them from putting a tally in the score column.
In the first overtime, the Vikes and Trojans sped up the game speed.
