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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Topeka West Chargers are halfway home.
Rick Bloomquist's Chargers clinched a share of the Centennial League boys basketball championship with a wire-to-wire 60-46 road win over Emporia Friday night and can clinch the title outright with a win over USD 501 rival Topeka High in Saturday's 1 p.m. game at West.
"It's a goal of theirs and they want it,'' Bloomquist said of the league title. "We mentioned it. I'm one of those guys that wants to put that carrot out in front and let them go get it. If we take care of business, we'll be OK.''
Elijah Brooks
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By ANDREW GILL
TopSports.News
With senior star Isiah Johnson out due to an ankle injury, Ken Darting’s Shawnee Heights boys basketball team struggled to find a rhythm in Thursday night’s United Kansas Conference home 46-41 win over Leavenworth.
But Darting was pleased with his team’s ability to create second and third-chance shot opportunities, which ultimately won T-Birds the game.
T-Bird's Jaye'son Jones lead his team in scoring with 11 points against Leavenworth. Photo by Rex Wolf / TSN
“That’s effort and attitude,” Darting said.
The athletic Pioneer defense kept the T-birds from getting penetration offensively and between that and a fullcourt press, Leavenworth made things very difficult for Darting’s squad, which gave up 17 turnovers on the game, 11 in the second half.
But despite its offensive woes, Heights led almost the entire game, but every time it looked as if the T-Birds might run away with it the Pioneers answered right back.
JaiKuan Darthard was Leavenworth’s top performer, scoring a game high 16 points, and the junior added 9 rebounds, 8 of which came from the offensive glass.
Heights earned its own share of offensive rebounds, with senior Andrew Rantz snagging 7 of the team’s 14 and Rantz also contributed 8 points.
Sophomore Jaye'son Jones came off the T-Bird bench to lead his team in scoring with 11 points while junior Nathan Pewe and senior
Harvey Davis added 10 points each
Junior Jarin Sanders chipped in 6 assists and 5 steals.
Shawnee Height's Adysen Burghart scores 18 points against Leavenworth. Rex Wolf / TSN
LEAVENWORTH GIRLS 53, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 40
Both teams got off to a slow start in Leavenworth’s 53-40 win over Shawnee Heights as it took almost two and a half minutes for the first points to be scored.
And although Heights led 11-5 at the end of the first quarter, once the T-Birds gave up the lead in the second quarter, they never got it back.
Kaylee McLain helped extend the Pioneer lead with back-to-back 3-pointers to start the second half. The junior hit 3 of her 6 treys in the third quarter.
Other than senior Adysen Burghart’s 18-point effort, Bob Wells’ group simply could not get much going offensively, with Heights hitting just 15 for 43 attempts from the field. Burghart made the Lady T-Bird’s only two 3-pointers on the team’s 12 attempts.
Shawnee Heights played excellent defensively until its aggressive play style got the T-Birds into foul trouble.
Burghart picked up three quick fourth to start the fourth quarter and fouled out with two minutes left to play.
McLain finished with a game-high 20 points as she shot 55 percent from 3-point land and added 4 rebounds.
Senior Aleshia Jones earned a double-double by contributing 17 points and 10 rebounds for Leavenworth.
LEAVENWORTH GIRLS 53, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 40
Leavenworth 5 17 18 13 -- 53
Shawnee Heights 11 9 11 9 -- 40
Leavenworth -- Jones 6 4-5 17, Posch 0 1-5 1, McLain 6 2-4 20, Gardner 1 1-2 3, Wright 1 2-2 5, Thomas 0 5-7 5. Totals: 17 11-22 53
Shawnee Heights -- Brown 1 5-10 7, Burghart 7 2-2 18, Canady 2 0-0 4, Fleischer 1 0-0 2, Hawkins 2 1-2 5, Showalter 1 0-0 2, Schulte 1 0-0 2. Totals: 15 8-14 40
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS BOYS 46, LEAVENWORTH 41
Shawnee Heights 14 12 7 13 -- 46
Leavenworth 13 6 10 12 -- 41
Shawnee Heights -- Pewe 3 4-7 10, Sanders 0 1-2 1, Rantz 4 0-0 8, Ginter 1 0-0 2, Davis 4 2-2 10, Showalter 1 0-0 2, Jones 4 3-4 11, Beier 0 2-2 2. Totals: 17 12-17 46
Leavenworth -- Darthard 7 1-4 16, Chatmon 0 1-6 1, Walltower 3 0-1 6, #24 (name not listed on roster) 3 4-6 12, Mateski 1 0-0 2, Cannon 1 1-2 4. Totals: 15 7-19 41
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University's men's basketball team mounted spirited comebacks in both halves Thursday night against Missouri Western.
But the fact that the 15th-ranked Ichabods spotted the Griffons a 16-point lead in the first half and an 18-point advantage in the second half ended up costing Washburn in an 81-77 MIAA loss at Lee Arena.
"We just got off to such slow starts both halves,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. "Then you try to come back against a good team and didn't have quite enough time.
"I liked how we fought back, but we've got to get off to better starts.''
Junior Jalen Lewis scored 15 points for Washburn in Thursday's 81-77 Ichabod loss to Missouri Western. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After two straight losses by a total of 9 points and fighting for a berth in the MIAA postseason tournament, Washburn University's women's basketball team was in dire need of a bounce-back win Thursday night.
Riding a strong defensive effort and big nights from senior Hunter Bentley and freshman Lauren Cassaday, the Ichabods achieved that objective with a 51-41 victory over Missouri Western at Lee Arena.
Washburn freshman Lauren Cassaday scored 11 points, including 10 in the first half, helping the Ichabods snap a two-game losing streak with a 51-41 win over Missouri Western. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
After winning the 235-pound championship for team champion Washburn Rural in last season’s inaugural KSHSAA girls state wrestling tournament, Dajia Anderson was ready to take on a new challenge.
Once she made her decision the Rural senior approached that quest with the same determination that helped her become the city’s first official girls state champ, shedding some 40 pounds so she could compete this season at 191 pounds.
“Last summer I came up for one of the workouts and it was the first one after the (COVID-19) shutdown,’’ Washburn Rural coach Damon Parker said. “I get out of my car and go over to the football field where we were working out and was like, ‘Oh yea, Dajia’s got a little sister!’
“I thought it was a sibling I didn’t know about, and I get up there and I was like, ‘Dajia?’ I didn’t know it was the same person.’’
Washburn Rural senior Dajia Anderson (top) battles Shawnee Heights junior Maranda Bell in last Saturday's Division I regional wrestling tournament at Emporia. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
