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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After losing the bulk of its pitching staff from the 2023 season, Washburn Rural baseball coach Jay Mastin had to turn to several players to fill those holes, including senior left-hander Colin Redeker, who has taken full advantage of that opportunity.
Washburn Rural senior Colin Redeker threw a two-hitter and struck out 11 hitters as the Junior Blues earned a split with a 4-0 win over Seaman on Friday at Rural. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
After winning his first start of the season, Redeker improved to 2-0 on Friday with a dominating performance against Seaman as the Junior Blues earned a home doubleheader split with a 4-0 second-game win after Seaman took a 12-6 win in the opener.
Redeker twirled a two-hitter on Friday while recording 11 strikeouts and not allowing a walk as Washburn Rural (3-4) handed perennial Class 5A power Seaman its first loss of the year.
"I think the key today was just keeping the ball down and taking away the big hits, eliminating that, and letting my curve ball work from there,'' Redeker said.
Redeker has primarily played outfield in his Washburn Rural career, but said he's enjoying the opportunity to get the ball for the Junior Blues.
"I love pitching, I love it,'' Redeker said.
Redeker set the tone early on, striking out two Vikings in each of the first two innings and then striking out the side in the third.
Redeker struck out another Seaman hitter in the fourth and struck out the side for the second time in the sixth.
"He was in the zone, he was dealing tonight,'' Mastin said of Redeker. "I think he threw 80 pitches so you can't ask for anything more than that. He was very efficient tonight.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University baseball opened a three-game MIAA series with Rogers State on Thursday at Falley Field, and after falling behind 2-0, it was all Ichabods the rest of the way as WU topped the Hillcats 12-2 in eight innings while pounding out 16 hits in the win.
Payton McHarg had two homers and a double in Thursday's 12-2 MIAA win over Rogers State. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Caden Bressler went six innings to pick up the pitching win in Washburn's 12-2 MIAA win over Rogers State on Thursday. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Ichabod starter Caden Bressler improved to 3-2 on the season, striking out four. After hitting a pair of Hillcats in the first inning, who both came around to score on sac flies, he allowed only three hits the rest of the way in his six-inning stint.
After Rogers State (16-13 overall, 8-10 MIAA) took the early lead, the Ichabods came back with three runs in the first, three more in the second and added two additional runs in the third to open up an 8-2 advantage.
In the first inning, Payton McHarg took a 2-2 pitch over the right-field fence leading off the inning.
After singles by Cash Jay and Hayden Priest, Jay scored on of the Hillcats' three errors on the afternoon. Jett Buck doubled down the left-field line, scoring Priest as Washburn plated three in its first at bat.
Beardslee Invitational: Rural's Sulzen-Watson shatters personal record in discus, posts pair of wins
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
It came down to his final attempt of the day, but Washburn Rural senior thrower Josh Sulzen-Watson got the discus throw he's been waiting for in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Rural.
Washburn Rural senior Josh Sulzen-Watson (left) beams after hearing his winning distance of 179-2 in Thursday's discus event in the Jerry Beardslee Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural senior Josh Sulzen-Watson releases his personal-best discus throw of 179-2 in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Sulzen-Watson, fourth in the Class 6A discus as a junior, unleashed a throw of 179 feet, 2 inches to win the discus title by more than 30 feet while improving his personal record by nearly 20 feet.
"I've been working all year for this,'' Sulzen-Watson said. "Every practice I'm getting closer and closer and I was like, 'This is the time to do it.' I just had to go for it.''
As soon as he released his final throw he knew it was a big one.
"I knew immediately,'' he said.
Sulzen-Watson also gained some family bragging rights with Thursday's clutch throw, surpassing the high school personal-best of older brother Zach, the 6A discus runnerup in 2022 who now throws for Emporia State.
"I've always looked forward to passing him,'' Josh said. "It's always been a back and forth competition and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, I've got to pass him this year.' ''
Now, with his 179 throw on the books, he wants to set his sights higher.
"Definitely, I think maybe even a 190 throw now,'' Sulzen-Watson said. "If I get a good wind it might really fly for me.''
Sulzen-Watson, fifth at state in the javelin in 2023, also added a personal-best winning throw of 187 feet, 10 inches in that event Thursday while junior Jacob Hawks made it a sweep of the throws for Washburn Rural with a win in the shot put at 47-5.25.
Other meet highlights:
Washburn Rural junior Payton Fink led a one-two-three Rural finish in Thursday's girls 1,600-meter run in the Jerry Beardslee Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Washburn Rural junior distance star Payton Fink led a one-two-three finish in the girls 1,600-meter run with a win in 5 minutes, 16.93 seconds.
Rural junior Rylee Ismert was the runnerup in 5:20.83 while sophomore Emily Graf was third in 5:23.12.
Fink also posted a second-place finish in the 800 in 2:25.13.
Washburn Rural senior Raegan Petersen won the girls discus with a throw of 112-1 in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Washburn Rural sisters Raegan Petersen and Kailyn Petersen went one-two in the girls discus while Kailyn Petersen added a win in the shot put.
Senior Raegan Petersen won the discus with a winning throw of 112 feet, 1 inch while freshman Kailyn was second at 107-11.
Kailyn Petersen won the shot put in the first meet of her high school career with a throw of 34-5.75.
• Seaman senior Maggie Lesmeister posted her second straight win of the season in the girls javelin, recording a top throw of 122 feet, 8 inches.
Seaman sophomore Brody Anderson won the boys 800 meters in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational in 1:59.81. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Seaman sophomore Brody Anderson followed up his 800 meters win in the season-opening Topeka West Invitational with a second straight win on Thursday, with Anderson clocking a personal-best time of 1:59.81.
The Vikings also got a win from senior Aaron Merritt in the boys 110-meter high hurdles in a time of 15.15 seconds while Seaman junior Kaden Whitehurst won the triple jump at 41 feet, 9.50 inches.
• Washburn Rural senior Titan Osburn won the boys long jump with a best jump of 21-2.50 while Rural junior Isaiah Terry won the 400 dash in 53.14.
Terry also teamed with sophomore Liam Morrison, sophomore Draden Chooncharoen and senior Devin Roney to win the 4x400-meter relay by more than four seconds in 3:30.01.
JERRY BEARDSLEE INVITATIONAL
At Washburn Rural
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Throughout his high school football and wrestling career at Plainville and two full seasons as a safety for the Washburn University football team, Jordan Finnesy had never faced a serious injury, with nothing more than the usual bumps and bruises.
Washburn junior safety Jordan Finnesy is back in action for the Ichabods in spring practice after fighting through a serious knee injury. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
That all changed on the third play of the Ichabods' second game of the 2023 season against Missouri Southern last Sept. 7 when Finnesy suffered a serious knee injury that he's just now coming back from.
"I tore my (medial collateral ligament) and also tore my meniscus,'' said Finnesy, a former standout quarterback/defensive back and two-time state wrestling champion at Plainville. "I also had a fracture on the MCL, so then I ended up having to get that re-attached to the bone.''
Complicating things for Finnesy, one of a long list of Ichabods who suffered season-ending injuries last fall, was the fact that the true extent of his injury wasn't determined until weeks later.
"They initially missed the fracture part of it and technically I would have been able to come back,'' said the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Finnesy. "It was the week of Missouri Western (Week 6) and I was actually out practicing and thought I was going to be able to play that week and I got a call from the doctor and had to shut it down and go get surgery that same week.
"I had surgery in the middle of October and was able to start re-habbing right away after that and was fully cleared right before spring break, so it was about five months.''
For someone who had never faced serious injury challenges, Finnesy, who recorded 58 tackes in 2022, admitted that fighting through his injury was a big hurdle, not only physically but mentally.
"It's tough on you, especially that early in the season, because you're just coming off a good game against Pitt State (seven tackles, five solos) and you're looking forward to a long, good season coming up and then that happens,'' Finnesy said.
"Mentally it kind of wears on you, but it's just trusting what God's plan is for you. Your teammates and coaches are there for you and you just have to trust in the process and get through that.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University softball player Hailey Neira knows what it's like to win a national championship.
Former national champion Hailey Neira is hoping to help Washburn softball make a strong late-season run. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
And the senior outfielder can't think of anything better than to be able to share that feeling with her Ichabod teammates.
"My freshman year I was at West Texas A&M and I started there as a freshman and we ended up winning the whole thing, the national champions,'' Neira said. "So I know what that feeling is and I would love for everyone to experience that because it really is a crazy feeling.
"It feels unreal and to be able to experience that with this team, we would have so much fun.''
After helping the Buffaloes win the 2021 NCAA Division II national championship, the San Antonio native made the decision to enter the transfer portal, ending up with Brenda Holaday's Ichabods for the 2022 season.
"I finished my freshman year on a high and went to WT the fall semester and then entered the transfer portal and had to tranfer at the semester,'' Neira said. "That was kind of scary because who's looking for a player at semester because the season's starting in a couple of weeks. It was stressful but I found Holaday and I flew out here on a visit.
"I was meeting with other coaches but the experience I had here wasn't like what I had at any of the other schools I had went and visited. I'm definitely happy here.''
Senior Hailey Neira is hitting .403 for the No. 24-ranked Ichabods, who are 26-10 on the season. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Washburn senior outfielder Hailey Neira raised her batting average 37 points last weekend with a 7 of 12 performance in MIAA twinbills against Central Missouri and Lincoln. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Now in her third season with the Ichabods, Neira is off to the best start of her Washburn career, hitting .403 in 33 starts while compiling a .468 slugging percentage and an .483 on-base percentage.
