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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
There's no doubt that Bethany Druse's favorite event is the 800 meters.
But the Seaman sophomore distance star knows the only way she's going to reach her true potential in that event is by pushing herself in other events.
So that's why Druse ran 5 kilometers throughout cross county season, pushing herself to a ninth-place state finish, and that's why she put herself through the difficult 1,600 meters/800 double in Friday's Bob Camien/Claudia Welch Seaman Relays.
Continuing an outstanding season in her first high school track and field campaign, Druse won the 1,600 in a personal-best 5 minutes, 19.90 seconds and came back later to take the 800 in 2:22.64.
Seaman sophomore Bethany Druse (right) duels with Olathe North's Shea Johnson during Friday's 1,600-meter run in the Camien/Welch Seaman Relays. Druse won the 1,600 in 5:19.90 and came back to double up in the 800 in 2:22.64. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN].
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
With the biggest meets of his track and field season coming up, Washburn Rural senior Sam Shonka was looking to take a step up in the Bob Camien/Claudia Welch Seaman Relays.
But not even Shonka could have predicted what transpired Frday, with the Junior Blue standout destryoing his previous personal record en route to a gold-medal performance.
"I came into this knowing that there was going to be a guy jumping 6-5, so honestly I wasn't even preparing to win,'' Shonka said. "I was just preparing to better myself.''
Washburn Rural senior high-jumper Sam Shonka (left) celebrates after clearing 6 foot, 6 inches to win the event in Friday's Camien/Welch Seaman Relays. [Photo by Rick Peterson]
Entering the meet with a season-best of 6 foot, 1 inches, Shonka cleared six heights from 5-8 to 6-6 on six straight attempts to win the event by two inches over Rowden Paul of Olathe North.
"I found a new mark and it just happened to work brilliantly,'' Shonka said.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka High product Teven Jenkins had to wait longer to hear his name called in the 2021 NFL Draft than most draft forescasters thought he would.
But when the Chicago Bears traded up to pick the Oklahoma State star offensive lineman in Friday's second round with the 39th overall selection, Jenkins made history in his hometown, easily becoming the highest-ever NFL draft pick from Topeka or Shawnee County.
Most draft prognosticators had Jenkins going in Thuesday's first around, with some 11 mock drafts predicting that the Bears would pick Jenkins with the 20th overall pick, but his name was not called until early second.
"You know coming into yesterday my agent let me know there's a strong possibility for the first, but he made sure I definitely wouldn't get my hopes up for everything because there was a strong possibility of going second also," Jenkins said in a teleconference.
Topeka High graduate and former Oklahoma State standout Teven Jenkins (73) became Shawnee County's highest-ever NFL Draft selection on Friday when the Chicago Bears picked Jenkins with the No. 39 pick overall. [Photo/okstate.com]
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kurt Davids has put together an impressive list of accomplishments in his 28 years as Topeka West's boys tennis coach, coaching state champions in both singles and doubles and leading the Chargers to top-three state team finishes.
But one thing had always eluded the veteran coach ... until Thursday that is.
Sweeping the No. 1 singles and doubles titles and adding a pair of runner-up finishes in No. 2 singles and doubles, Topeka West edged perennial city champ Washburn Rural by a single point (28-27) for the team crown.
Topeka West sophomore Carter Cool won the city title in No. 1 singles Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center, helping lead the Chargers to the city team title. [Photo by Rick Pet
"It was our goal coming into the season to get coach a win because he hadn't ever won since he's been here and that was our goal, to get him the win,'' said city No. 1 singles champion Carter Cool, a sophomore. "It was great to come in as a team and do what we wanted to.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Local sports greats Kyle McNorton, Kyle Weems and Michael Wilhoite will join the Topeka Shawnee County Hall of Fame on June 30, 2021, the 15th induction class into the local shrine. TopSports.news, in conjunction with Envista Credit Union and A-1 Lock and Key, will host the induction and Topeka Shawnee County sports awards ceremonies at the Capitol Plaza Hotel's Maner Conference Center Sunflower Ballroom.
McNorton is a 1978 Seaman High graduate who went on to become a star linebacker for the University of Kansas before playing in the NFL for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Weems is a 2007 graduate of Highland Park, where he earned All-State basketball honors before going on to become the Missouri Valley player of the year and embark on a long and continuing professional career overseas.
Wilhoite is also a graduate of HIghland Park, where he was a basketball teammate of Weems. Wilhoite went on to star at Washburn University and played six seasons in the National Football League before being an assistant coach in the NFL.
Both Weems and Wilhoite were coached in high school by Ken Darting, a 2015 inductee into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame.
The most recent Topeka Shawnee County banquet was held in 2019 before last year's ceremonies were canceled due to COVID-19.
General admission tickets are $25 per person and includes dinner. Ticket information is available on topsports.news.
Shawnee County's top senior student-athletes will be honored for the 16th time while TopSports.news will also honor an oustanding female and male athlete from Washburn University for the first time.
Shawnee County high schools Cair Paravel Latin, Hayden, Highland Park, Rossville, Seaman, Shawnee Heights, Silver Lake, Topeka High, Topeka West and Washburn Rural will be asked to nominate one female and male candidate with a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average as outstanding student-athlete nominees for the fall, winter and spring seasons. County high schools will also be asked to nominate a female and male candidate for most inspirational athlete.
A committee of local media members will select the 2021 winners, including the selection of overall female and male athletes of the year.
The winners of Washburn's outstanding male and female awards and the nominees for this year's high school awards will be announced in the near future.
The most recent Hall of Fame class in 2019 included Washburn Rural coaching legend Ron Bowen, 17-time state cross county and track champion Trisa Nickoley of Shawnee Heights and the late Pete Goering, who served The Topeka Capital-Journal as a sports reporter, columnist and editor for in a 35-year career at the paper.
Hayden's Brooklyn Hunter and Washburn Rural's Carly Bachelor were named co-outstanding female athletes of the year in 2019 while Rural's Jordan White was named the male outstanding athlete.
Hall of Fame class of 2021 capsules:
Seaman graduate Kyle McNorton, who starred at Kansas before playing for the Kansas City Chiefs, will be part of the 2021 induction class for the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame. [Submitted}
KYLE McNORTON
McNorton attended Northern Hills Junior High and graduated from Seaman, where he was student council president, Homecoming King and participated in football, basketball, wrestling and track.
McNorton qualified for the state meet in his one season of wrestling while in track McNorton ran sprints, setting the school record in the 440-yard dash, and competed in various field events.
He started all three years as a running back and linebacker for the Vikings in football and led the city of Topeka in yards per carry as a senior while earning all-league and All-City recognition. McNorton earned Most Valuable Player honors in the Kansas Shrine Bowl the summer following his high school graduation.
McNorton started the last three games of his freshman season at linebacker for Kansas and started the next three seasons as the Jayhawks improved from 1-10 his freshman season to a nationally-ranked Top 20 team his senior year.
McNorton ended his career with 381 tackles, at the time the all-time leading tackler in school history. He was named the Jayhawks' MVP and was a unanimous first-team All Big 8 selection and earned All-America recognition.
McNorton signed a professional contract with the Chiefs and was selected the MVP of a game against New Orleans Saints game before his NFL career was cut short due to knee injuries.
Former Highland Park and Missouri State star and current European standout Kyle Weems will be inducted into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame this summer. [Twitter]
KYLE WEEMS
Weems earned All-State basketball honors as a senior at Highland Park after the Scots became only the second boys team in city history to post anundefeated season en route to the Class 5A state championship.
Weems went on to put together one of the most outstanding college careers in Missouri State history. He was named the Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year and an NCAA Division I All-American following the 2010-11 season.
Weems averaged 16 points and 8 rebounds as a junior as the Bears won the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title.
Weems finished his college career No. 2 on Missouri State's career scoring list with 1,868 points, tied for No. 4 in rebounds with 844 and No. 6 in blocks with 114.
A 6-foot-6 forward, Weems has played professional basketball overseas since 2012, playing in Germany, France, Turkey and Italy.
Weems, who played in the NBA Summer League in 2012 and 2013 for the Warriors, Raptors and Hawks, is currently playing for Virtus Bologna of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A.
![Highland Park and Washburn star Michael Wilhoite, who played six seasons in the NFL and is an assistant coach for the Chargers, will be inducted into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame on June 30. [Submitted]](/images/aa-images/MichaelWilhoite3.jpg)
Highland Park and Washburn star Michael Wilhoite, who played six seasons in the NFL and is an assistant coach for the Chargers, will be inducted into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame on June 30. [Ninersnoise.com]
MICHAEL WILHOITE
Wilhoite was a football and basketball standout at Highland Park before becoming a football standout for Washburn University and playing in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
Wilhoite played quarterback at Highland Park and was used at six different positions for Washburn before playing linebacker and becoming a special teams standout in the NFL.
Wilhoite, 6-foot, 245 pounds, earned a spot on the 49ers practice squad in late 2011 and was promoted to the active roster late in the 2012 season, helping San Francisco make a run to Super Bowl XLVII.
After playing five seasons for the 49ers, Wilhoite finished his playing career with the Seahawks in '17.
Wilhoite played in 79 NFL games with 45 starts, recording 298 tackles with four pass interceptions.
Wilhoite spent the '19 and '20 seasons as an assistant coach for the New Orleans Saints and is currently the linebackers coach for the Los Angeles Chargers.
