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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Topeka Junior Golf Association wrapped up its two-day 2024 City Championship Tuesday at Western Hills, crowning eight champions.
Eighty players competed in the city tournament, ranging in age from 7 to 17 years old.
"It's very exciting and the game of golf is growing,'' said Washburn Rural golf coach Jared Goehring, who has been the director of the TJGA program for 20 years. "Our numbers were up this year as far as registrations go with the tournament play. Kids love being on the golf course and I think that's a tribute to the success that Topeka has with Junior Golf.
"That dates back to Gary Woodland, Andrew Beckler, Lukas McCalla, Abby Glynn, a lot of those former players that went on to play either professionally or went on to play collegiately. The game is at an all-time high and I think we're seeing that with the local golf courses here in town continuing to stay busy.''
Peyton Wright (middle) won the girls 15-17-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Izzy Glotzbach (left) finished second and Reece Randall third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Avenley Head (right) won the girls 13-14-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Chloe Schmidtlein (left) finished second. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Rowan Martinek won the girls 12-and-under title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
On the girls side, Peyton Wright won the 15-17-year-old title while Avenley Head won the 13-14 division and Rowan Martinek was the 12-and-under champion.
James Kuta (middle) won the boys 15-17-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Tagan Monasmith (left) was second and Jack Donovan third. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Easton Moulin (middle) won the boys 13-14-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Brody Buessing (left) was second and Jaxson Leonardi third. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Jase Head (middle) won the boys 11-12-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Camden Swords (left) was second and Callen Baldwin third. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Nikhil Rao (middle) won the boys 9-10-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Trig Baird (second from left) was second and Beckham Schmidt (second from right) third. Cameron Anderson (left) and Dash Knowland (right) also posted top-five finishes. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN]
Mason Walker (second from left) won the boys 8-and-under title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championship, while Jaxson McFarland (middle) was second, Grayson Gudenkauf (left) and Hayes Wempe (right) tied for third and Colby Swords (second from right) finished fifth. [Photo by Trevor Falcon/Special to TSN
James Kuta won a three-hole playoff to take the championship in the boys 15-17 division while Easton Moulin was the 13-14 champ, Jase Head won the 11-12 division, Nikhil Rao was the 9-10 champ and Mason Walker won the 8-and-under title.
Wright, who attends Baldwin High, recorded a 36-hole score of 156 (79-77), while Head had a winning 18-hole total of 93 and Martinek won with an 18-hole score of 122.
Kuta won with a 36-hole score of 147 (67-80) while Moulin posted a 36-hole win at 157 (76-81), Head won with an 18-hole score of 75, Rao won the 9-10 division with an 18-hole total of 76 and Mason Walker shot a winning 18-hole score of 83.
"The talent's crazy,'' Goehring said. "The future looks very bright for the city of Topeka and the most important thing is the kids enjoy it. If they love the game first the sky is the limit for them. They continue to practice and I just can't wait to see what the future holds for them.''
TJGA CITY GOLF TOURNAMENT
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Local greats who made their mark in six sports at the high school, college and amateur level earned spots No. 51-60 on TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 list.
Shawnee Heights product Faith Rottinghaus, No. 51 on the Top 100 list, helped the T-Birds win Class 5A state titles in volleyball and softball before going on to earn first-team All-America honors for Washburn University, which posted a second-place national finish her senior season.
Rottinghaus is joined on the Top 100 by Washburn Hall of Famers Rhonda Matzke (Silver Lake) and Billie Jean Moore (Highland Park), with the late Moore going down in history as a legendary women's basketball coach.
In addition to hoops star Matzke, the latest group of 10 honorees include prolific Rossville scorer Jennifer Perine and Washburn Rural state champion Jamie Blakely, who both went on to standout careers at Emporia State.
Three of the county's most decorated cross country and track performers -- Washburn Rural's Avery Clifton and Jaybe Shufelberger and Seaman's Sydney Messick -- all earned spots in TSN's fifth installment of Top 100 picks as did former Rural multi-time state golf champions Abby Glynn and Megan Lucas, who both went on to Division I college careers.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A pair of athletes who played in the NFL, a Major League Baseball alum and a United States Olympian are part of the fourth installment of men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's latest group of 10 Top 100 honorees is headed by former Topeka High star Lamar Mady, who played for the Raiders before putting together a long and continuing career in professional indoor football, while Washburn Rural and Kansas State alum Will Cokeley also got a taste of the NFL with the Buffalo Bills while also playing in the United States Football League and Canadian Football League.
Picks No. 61 through 70 is top heavy with Topeka High products, including U.S. volleyball Olympian Chuck Nelson, Major League pitcher Ken "Hook'' Johnson, Trojan football stars Levi Lee and Troy Slusser and local softball legends Milo Mitchell and Joe Douglas.
Seaman grad and Washburn University baseball star J.P. Wright, a former NAIA Player of the Year, earned a spot in the Top 100 along with Washburn Rural product Luke Yarnell, who played Arena Football League for 10 seasons after starring at Coffeyville Community College and Southwestern Louisiana.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Five of the best known names in Shawnee County softball earned spots on TopSports.news' fourth group of Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 honorees while spots No. 61-70 also included three local soccer greats as well as swimming and golf stars.
Silver Lake product Brenda Stolle, who helped Emporia State capture a national softball title, earned the No. 61 spot on the Top 100 while the latest grouping also includes former Washburn Rural and ESU All-American Taylor Zordel, Silver Lake star and Washburn University Hall of Famer Kathy Mohler, Seaman state champ and Division I standout Hailey Reed and Rural multi-sport standout and Kansas pitcher Kasey Hamilton.
The group of honorees also includes former soccer national champion Leea Murphy of Shawnee Heights as well as Washburn Rural stars Kaira Houser and Darby Hirsch while Topeka West product Kadence Jeffries won six state swimming titles in as many tries and Topeka High grad Rachel Stous established herself as one of the area's top women's golfers.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 WOMEN’S ATHLETES
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
A former world record-holder in track, two of Shawnee County's all-time tennis greats, a Major League Baseball alum, a top MLB draft pick, three Division I athletes in basketball and football and a pair of record-setting quarterbacks comprise the third group of men's picks in TopSports.news' Shawnee County All-Time Top 100 project.
TSN's group of 10 Top 100 honorees in the No. 71 through 80 spots includes former American and world record-holder Clardy Vinson of Topeka High and Topeka West multi-sport star and Kansas Jayhawk C.B. McGrath as well as four-time state tennis champ Tommy Hunter of Hayden and three-time champ John Grantham of Topeka High.
Picks No. 71 through 80 also include former Division I athletes Bennie Simecka of Rossville and Theron Wilson of Highland Park, former MLB pitcher Rick DeHart and top draft pick David Proctor and former Silver Lake and Rossville stars Shannon Kruger and Tucker Horak.
TSN SHAWNEE COUNTY ALL-TIME TOP 100 MEN’S ATHLETES
