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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
When high school football practice for the 2025 season kicks off across Kansas on August 18, linemen will go back to laboring in relative obscurity.
But Tuesday's eighth annual Battle of the Bigs lineman challenge at Shawnee Heights was all about the men in the trenches.
Approximately 70 linemen representing six city and area high schools took part in the Battle of the Bigs, competing in nine non-contact drills/activities while vying for individual and team prizes.
"I love it,'' Shawnee Heights coach Jason Swift said of the annual event. "The most unappreciated players on a football team are the linemen and we do this solely to celebrate the linemen for everything they do.
"They play a sport that they don't get noticed in unless something bad happens, so tonight we want to make it where we get to watch them do great things. It's good for them for unity and coming together as a team and having fun.''
Washburn Rural senior Ayden Crosswhite won the individual championship with 224 points, while Blue Valley seniors Chase Blandi (212 points) and Samuel Kiles (207) finished second and third and Shawnee Heights seniors Royce Daniels and Blake Coffman tied for fourth place (206 points).
Blue Valley won the team title with 1,015 points while Washburn Rural was second (991) and Shawnee Heights third (987).
Top 10 individuals
1. Ayden Crosswhite, sr., Washburn Rural, 224 points
2. Chase Blandi, sr., Blue Valley, 212 points
3. Samuel Kiles, sr., Blue Valley, 207 points
4. (tie) Royce Daniels, sr., Shawnee Heights, 206 points
4. (tie) Blake Coffman, sr., Shawnee Heights, 206 points
6. Austin Jordan, jr., Eudora, 204 points
7. Marx Marx, sr., Eudora, 203 points
8. Chase Metz, jr., Blue Valley, 202 points
9. Steven Cantrell, jr., Washburn Rural, 201 points
10. Ethan Winter, sr., Eudora, 200 points
Team standings (top three)
1. Blue Valley, 1,015 points
2. Washburn Rural, 991 points
3. Shawnee Heights, 987 points.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Linemen, football's unsung heroes, will be in the spotlight on Tuesday, July 8, when Shawnee Heights hosts its eighth annual "Battle of the Bigs'' lineman challenge (5:30 p.m. start).
Linemen will be able to compete as individuals and as a school in nine different non-contact events. Food and T-shirts will be provided for all participants. Cost is $25 and walk-ups are welcome. Contact Shawnee Heights football coach Jason Swift at
The "Battle of the Bigs'' is billed as an opportunity for offensive and defensive linemen to have fun over the summer in a non-contact competition.
Appoximately 90 linemen representing nine city and area high schools took part in the 2024 Battle of the Bigs.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman senior to be Ryin Miller has been named the Gatorade Kansas Girls Track and Field Player of the Year for the second straight season.
Seaman's Ryin Miller has been named the Gatorade Kansas track and field athlete of the year for the second straight season after winning three Class 5A state titles this past spring. [File photo/TSN]
Miller, a four-sport standout for the Vikings, Miller was earlier named the state’s 2024-25 Gatorade Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year, giving her three state Gatorade honors.
This past track season Miller swept the Class 5A 800 (2:11.14), 1,600 (4:57.33) and 3,200-meter runs (10:19.53) in the state meet at Wichita State's Cessna Stadium, giving her five career state titles.
Following her high school season Miller traveled to Eugene, Ore. for the Nike Outdoor Nationals, where she finished fifth in the championship division of the 3,000 meters (9:28.52) and fourth in the championship division of the mile run (4:42.58).
Miller's outstanding track campaign came on the heels of a banner cross country season last fall, which included the fastest five-kilometer run in Kansas history (16:32.62) and a runnerup finish in the 5A state meet (17:26.36).
Miller has maintained a 4.14 weighted grade point average in the classroom.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Rick Strecker, a member of Hayden Catholic High School's first class of inductees into the school's Hall of Fame in 2021, passed away Saturday morning at the age of 67 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Rick Strecker, who led Hayden to five state titles and served his alma mater in a variety of roles, passed away Saturday after a battle with cancer. [File photo/TSN]
A 1976 Hayden graduate, Strecker served his alma mater as a physics and chemistry teacher, state championship coach, athletic director, principal and the school's president for nearly two decades before moving on to Blue Valley West in 2016.
Strecker, the student council president and athlete of the year as a senior at Hayden, led the Wildcats to three Class 4A state championships in girls basketball and two in track during his coaching career at the school.
“My time at Hayden will probably, except for my family, be the greatest blessing of my life,’’ Strecker told The Topeka Capital-Journal in 2016 after accepting his position at Blue Valley West. "To get the chance to go back there and coach with people like Jerry Simecka and Ben Meseke and Bobby Taul and work with them, but also to be in the same school where I went to high school and where my dad and mom and my grandparents went to high school has just been wonderful.''
Strecker continued to teach and coach in multiple sports at Blue Valley West, including serving as the Jaguars' head girls basketball coach, until being forced to step away after receiving his cancer diagnosis early in 2025.
Strecker was born on March 7, 1958, in Topeka to William and Theresa (Boos) Strecker.
He was baptized at Sacred Heart Catholic Church and attended St. Matthew’s grade school.
After graduating from Hayden High Strecker earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Benedictine College in 1980 and was also team captain of the basketball team.
He then earned an master's in physics from the Missouri-Kansas City in 1982 and an M.S. in education from the University of Kansas in 1999.
On August 22, 1987 Rick married Kathleen A. Rinella, and together they were blessed with four children.
Rick and Kathy met as teachers at Hayden and taught and coached together for many years. The Streckers lived in Topeka until 2016, when they relocated to Olathe after Kathy accepted a position at Rockhurst University and Rick a position at Blue Valley West.
Rick was recently honored to receive the Greater Kansas City Girls Basketball Lifetime Service Award.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his father in law, Anthony Rinella, grandparents Aloysius and Agnes Strecker, and Clemens and Amelia Boos, and his brother in law, John Whigham.
Rick is survived by his wife of 37 years, Kathy, and their children -- Jordan Strecker, Kristin (Seth) Wiedel, Shannon (Adam) Sova, and Mary Strecker (Grace Maddox). He was a proud grandfather to Nora, Tori, Leah, Matthew Wiede and Anthony Sova.
Strecker is also survived by his siblings -- Carol (Greg) Ingenthron, William (Dee) Strecker, Mark (Kris) Strecker and Scott (Heather) Strecker -- his mother in law, Susan Rinella, and his in-laws, Mike (Jennifer) Rinella, Ann Whigham, Mary (Peter) Lebourveau, Nancy (Chad) LaSala, and Christi (Mark) Douglas. He leaves behind many beloved cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and friends.
The Vigil Prayers will begin at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, July 8, at St. Paul Catholic Church, 21650 W. 115th Terrace, Olathe, followed by visitation from 5:15-8 p.m.
Words of remembrance will begin at 9:45 a.m. on Wednesday, July 9, at St. Paul Catholic Church followed by Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. Wednesday, also at St. Paul.
Inurnment will follow immediately after at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery in Lenexa.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to:
- Hayden Catholic High School Foundation: Strecker Family Scholarship.
- St. Paul Catholic Church Capital Campaign.
- Benedictine College (Dr. A. Douglas Brothers Research Endowment).
• Catholic Community Health Hospice.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The top Shawnee County athletes from the class of 2025 are getting ready to embark on their college careers while offseason preparations for the 2025-2026 school year are well under way.
But it's also important to remember the accomplishments that made the '24-'25 campaign a special one for county athletes and teams.
Shawnee County schools claimed three state girls team championships and seven others came up just short over the past school year while three county standouts combined to claim five individual titles in three different sports.
While a case can always be made for any number of stories to sit at the top of the list, here's just one opinion on the Top 10 county girls prep stories of '24-'25.
Washburn Rural soccer celebrates its first Class 6A state championship after a 1-0 win over Mill Valley in PKs. [Photo by KSHSAA Covered]
1. HISTORIC BREAKTHROUGH -- Washburn Rural, already well established as one of the state's premier girls soccer programs, added the only missing piece from its impressive resume with its first Class 6A state championship on May 31 in Wichita. Making their 11th straight Final Four appearance, including four runnerup state finishes, the Junior Blues broke through with a 1-0 win over Mill Valley, taking the win with a 4-1 edge in penalty kicks as senior Madison Lemke came up huge in goal for Brian Hensyel's 19-2-0 Rural team.
Seaman junior Ryin Miller won three gold medals in the 2025 Class 5A state track meet at Wichita, giving her five wins in her career. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
2. MILLER TIMES -- Seaman superstar runner Ryin Miller capped off her junior track and field season by sweeping Class 5A state championships in her three individual events, taking wins in the 3,200 (10:19.53), 1,600 (4:57.33) and 800-meter (2:11.14) runs at Wichita State. Miller's three wins in 2025 gave her five career titles and came on the heels of a banner cross country season last fall, which included the fastest five-kilometer run in Kansas history (16:32.62) and a runnerup finish in the 5A state meet (17:26.36) by the Viking four-sport athlete.
Hayden senior Ainzley Zulueta earned her third Class 4A singles title last fall, leading the Wildcats to their second team title in three seasons. [File photo/TSN]
3. ZULUETA, WILDCATS BACK ON TOP -- After sitting out her junior high shool tennis season due to KSHSAA eligibility guidelines, Zulueta returned to the courts last fall and turned in a dominating postseason performance (eight straight 6-0, 6-0 wins in regional and state competition) en route to her third Class 4A singles championship in as many tries while leading Hayden to its second team title in three seasons by a 40-28 margin over McPherson. In addition to Zulueta's title, Christy Sheetz's Wildcats got a runnerup doubles finish from senior Emily Sheetz and freshman Sophia Wichman, a ninth-place singles finish from junior Grace Funk and an 11th-place doubles showing from juniors Izzy Glotzbach and Avery O'Bray.
Hayden's girls golf team captured its second straight Class 4A state championship last fall by 15 strokes over Wellington. [Submitted photo]
4. REPEAT FEAT -- Hayden rolled to its second straight Class 4A girls golf team championship last fall, posting a 698-713 win over Wellington at Hesston as three Wildcats earned individual medals. Junior Lauren Borjon paced Hayden with a third-place state finish (76-81 -- 157) while junior Izzy Glotzbach tied for 12th (89-82 -- 171) and senior Addyson Baer tied for 16th (86-88 -- 174). Glotzbach helped the Wildcats win state titles in tennis and golf three days apart.
Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet has her hand raised as the Class 5A 190-pound state champ last winter. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]
5. A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY -- Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet celebrated her 17th birthday in one of the best ways you could imagine last winter, with a Class 5A state wrestling championship. Cadet, who went 23-4 on the season, became the first girls wrestler in Highland Park history to win a state championship when she pinned Basehor-Linwood junior Izzy Renfro at the 1:36 mark of the first period in Park City. Cadet's win over Renfro avenged a regional loss to the Bobcat standout.
