Highland Park Scots

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EMPORIA -- Highland Park was within a shot here or a missed free throw there to a perfect end to a perfect season Saturday in White Auditorium.

Highland Park senior Ja'Corey Robinson (23) scored 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Saturday's 58-55 OT loss to Kapaun Mt. Carmel in the Class 5A state final. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

But for the second straight season, Kapaun Mt. Carmel came up with just enough plays down the stretch to end the Scots' Class 5A championship hopes, with the Crusaders rallying from a nine-point halftime deficit to outlast Highland Park 58-55 in overtime to claim their second straight state title.

"We had some chances and heart was never a question for our guys,'' Highland Park coach Mike Williams said. "I think they showed that time and time again and I think they showed that again tonight. All you really ask for a chance to win that thing late and I think we had a chance at the end of regulation and had a really good chance at the end of the overtime and that's a testament to the kids.

"They fought, they scrapped. We got down eight late in the fourth and they did not give up. Obviously we would have liked that it came out a little bit differently, but I will not knock our guys' fight and how they approached the game and how they played buzzer to buzzer all night long.''

Kapaun, which finished off a 22-3 season with its 17th straight win, had topped Hi Park 67-64 in OT in a classic 2024 semifinal en route to the championship before another thriller in Saturday's title tilt.

"My teams have played Topeka Highland Park three times -- once at Wichita South and twice here -- and every game went to overtime,'' Kapaun coach Steve Eck said. "The guys don't give up. We're down by nine at halftime and they just didn't give up. We beat a really good team.

"Highland Park is really talented and if you told me we'd be down nine at halftime and come back and win it I would have thought you were crazy, but at one time (early in the season) we were 5-3.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EMPORIA -- The undefeated Highland Park boys basketball team exorcised the demons of semifinals past Friday in White Auditorium, holding off Piper to advance to Saturday's Class 5A state championship game with a 60-55 win over Piper.

Highland Park coach Mike Williams celebrates Friday's 60-55 Class 5A state semifinal win over Piper in White Auditorium. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Highland Park, which will playing in a state championship game for the first time since 2014, will face defending state champion Kapaun Mt. Carmel, a 55-43 semifinal winner over Andover, in Saturday's 6:15 p.m. title game after getting past last year's runnerup, Piper, in the semis.

"I cried on the sidelines,'' Highland Park coach Mike Williams said. "We had just been here so often and felt pain. I'm just happy for the kids. We put so much work in and I'm hard on the guys, but I just want them to win. And we aint done yet. We've still got more to do.

"We set out to win a state championship. That's what we've been focused on from Day 1. Despite the noise, despite the league talk, who we play, who we don't play, are our guys good enough? We hear it all year long and we were focused on getting to this game and getting over the hump and bringing a state championship back to not just Highland Park, but bring a state championship back to Topeka.''

Highland Park, now 24-0, had dropped semifinal heartbreakers to the eventual state champs the past two seasons -- 55-54 to Andover in 2023 and 67-64 to Kapaun in overtime last season -- before getting over that hump Saturday.

"I felt like we played great,'' said Scot senior star Ja'Corey Robinson, who scored 26 points with 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocked shots and 3 steals. "I feel like we played good defensively, rebounded well and didn't allow them to get too many offensive rebounds.

"I also felt like we've got to make more free throws down the stretch. Other than that we played great.'' 

And now the Scots will be trying to cap their amazing 2024-2025 campaign with Highland Park's first state title since 2009 while becoming only the third team in city history to post a perfect season.

"It's our last high school game, so we've got to lay everything out there,'' Robinson said.

Piper (20-4) led 1-0, 3-2 and 5-4 early on, but senior Mikey Williams hit back-to-back 3-pointers to put Highland Park in front 10-5 at the 3:09 mark of the opening quarter and the Scots never trailed again.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

EMPORIA -- Top seed and undefeated Highland Park got everything it wanted from No. 8 Andover Central in Thursday's Class 5A boys state tournament opener at White Auditorium, but senior Mikey Williams made sure that the Scots lived to see another day.

Senior Mikey Williams scored a game-high 33 points in Thursday's 65-56 Class 5A state tournament win over Andover Central. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Williams scored a career-high 33 points, including an amazing 7 of 7 performance from 3-point range as Highland Park advanced to Friday's 4 p.m. semifinal with a 65-56 win over Central.

"I just knew going into it I had to step up,'' Williams said. "We know we rely on Ja'Corey (Robinson) and Jamon (Wilson) and all our other guys to step up, but I know in every game I can't just rely on another guy I know I've got to step up and do it for myself and do it for my team and do whatever it takes to get us to the next round and that's what I had to do.''

The Jaguars trailed by just a 24-22 margin at the end of the first quarter and led 35-33 at halftime before the Scots rallied in the third stanza for a 61-56 advantage.

Hi Park went up by 10 (56-46) on a Williams hoop with 6:19 remaining, but the Jaguars cut their deficit to two (58-56) at the 3:20 mark before the Scots ended the game with a 7-0 run.

The Scots also got 14 points (7 of 9 shooting) and a game-high eight rebounds from senior Isaiah Kelley.

Andover Central, which stayed in the hunt with a 10 of 21 performance from 3-point range, was led by Jayden Brown with 17 points (4 of 8 3s) while Jace Jefferson added 12 points on four treys and Jason Adler also had 12 points.

Highland Park advanced to the state semifinals for the third straight season to face last year's runnerup, Piper, a 70-52 winner over Shawnee Heights.    

HIGHLAND PARK  BOYS 65, ANDOVER CENTRAL 56

Andover Central 22 13 11 10 -- 56

Highland Park     24 9 18 14 -- 65

Andover Central (14-9) -- Brown 5-13 3-6 17, Degarmo 1-5 0-0 3, Jefferson 4-7 0-0 12, Meschke 1-2 1-2, Adler 5-10 2-4 12, Neal 0-0 0-0 0, Archibald 0-0 0-0 0, Balke 1-5 0-0 2, Stupka 3-7 0-0 7, Inslee 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-49 6-12 56.

Highland Park (23-0) -- Wilson 0-4 1-2 1, Hales 0-2 0-0 0, Kelley 7-9 0-1 14, Williams 12-14 2-6 33, Robinson 1-5 5-6 7, Brown 0-0 2-2 2, Jones 1-2 0-1 2, Kingcannon 3-4 0-0 6, Montgomery 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-40 10-18 65.

3-point shots -- Andover Central 10-21 (Brown 4-8, Jefferson 4-6, Degarmo 1-1, Stupka 1-3, Balke 0-3), Highland Park 7-10 (Williams 7-7, Robinson 0-2, Hales 0-1). Total fouls -- Andover Central 21, Highland Park 17. Fouled out -- Degarmo, Adler. Technical fouls -- Robinson.

Shawnee Heights senior Jaret Sanchez led the T-Birds with 16 points in Thursday's 70-52 Class 5A state tournament loss to Piper. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

PIPER BOYS 70, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 52 --After spotting Piper a 13-point halftime advantage, Shawnee Heights gave itself a chance to win Thursday's first-round game before a disasterous start to the fourth quarter ended the T-Birds' hopes.

No. 5 seed Piper, now 20-3, opened up a 21-12 first-quarter advantage and boosted its lead to 39-26 at the halftime break.

But Shawnee Heights (19-4) came to life in the third quarter, outscoring the Pirates 22-11 to get within two points (50-48) at the beginning of the fourth period.

The T-Birds then had an opportunity to take the lead, but missed back-to-back 3-pointers and turned the ball over on its next possession as the Pirates scored the first 15 points of the quarter to put Shawnee Heights away.

"We went out and we fought and 'O' (Ontarius Emmot) was shooting a wide open three to go ahead and misses it and gets a rebound and shoots it again and gets it blocked and they go down and hit a three, so instead of being up one, we're down five,'' Heights coach Ken Darting said. "And when you've played that hard to get back in it... we just got emotionally drained and tired, physically tired.

"But you can't spot a good team that much and come back.''

Heights went scoreless over the first five minutes of the quarter and was outscored 22-4 over the final eight minutes as Piper took its third straight win over the T-Birds this season and fourth straight dating back to last year's first-round state game.

Phillip Moore led Piper with 18 points while Isaiah Sayles added 16 points and Derrick Jackson 10 as the Pirates shot 60.9 percent from the field, including a nine of 15 performance from 3-point range.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Highland Park's boys basketball team has put together an amazing run of success over the past three seasons, advancing to the Class 5A state tournament all three years while posting a 65-8 overall record, including a 47-3 mark over the past two campaigns.

Highland Park boys basketball celebrates its Class 5A sub-state championship after Saturday's 53-35 win over Bashor-Linwood. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But there's a feeling of emptiness that remains for those closest to the Scot program after back-to-back heartbreaking semifinal losses to the eventual state champions the past two years.

Two years ago Highland Park led virtually the entire game against Andover before the Trojans pulled out a 55-54 win with a late 7-0 run. The drama continued last season when Kapaun Mt. Carmel outlasted the Scots in overtime, 67-64.

Highland Park bounced back both seasons for dominating wins in the third-place game, but that provided little consolation to the Scots.

And now the Scots' main focus -- really their only focus -- is on doing everything they can to wipe that bad taste out of their mouths with a state title run this week in Emporia's White Auditorium.

"I feel like the last three or so years we get down there and I'm not saying we were playing bad but I feel like we could have played a little better,'' Highland Park coach Mike Williams said. "So we are really, really focused on wanting to get to state and kind of show a little bit of the essence that we saw tonight.

"I like our prep, I like what we're doing going into it and we're looking forward to next week.''

Scot senior standout Ja'Corey Robinson agreed.

"We've got some fire under us,'' Robinson said. "We're trying to go out with a win. We're tired of getting third place. We're trying to finish it all out and win a state championship.''

Highland Park, which has had only three single-digit games all season, enters this year's state tournament as the top seed with a perfect 22-0 record and will face off with No. 8 Andover Central (14-8) at 2 p.m. Thursday in the opening game of the 5A boys event.

Highland Park made it back to the state tournament with a 53-35 romp past Basehor-Linwood in Saturday's sub-state final at Hi Park.

Senior Mikey Williams led the Scots with a game-high 18 points, including three 3-pointers, against the Bobcats, while Robinson added 15 points.

The Highland Park-Andover Central winner will advance to a 4 p.m. semifinal on Friday to face the first-round winner between No. 4 seed Shawnee Heights (19-3) and No. 5 Piper (19-3).

"We're just making it a point to come out every day in the state tournament with the same fire and the same juice and the same fire that we've had throughout this whole season so we can end up hoisting the state championship trophy,'' Mikey Williams said. "

The Shawnee Heights-Piper first-round contest at 4 p.m. Thursday is a rematch of last year's first-round game that saw Piper close with a 14-1 run to pull out a 72-71 win on the way to a runnerup state finish.

Heights and Piper will be playing for the third time this season, with the Pirates winning the first two games. 

Shawnee Heights earned its second straight state berth under Ken Darting with a 49-42 sub-state win over St. Thomas Aquinas on Saturday.

On the other side of the bracket, No. 2 seed and defending champion Kapaun Mt. Carmel (19-3) will play a 6 p.m. first-round game against No. 7 Topeka West (14-8) and No. 3 Andover (19-3) will face No. 6 Bonner Springs (18-4) at 8 o'clock, with the winners playing an 8 p.m. Friday semifinal.

Topeka West is making its first state tournament appearance under coach Christian Ulsaker after making it to state with an 81-54 home win over Valley Center in Saturday's sub-state final. 

Here's a team-by-team glance at the other first-round games involving Shawnee County teams:

By RICK PETERSON 

TopSports.news

It's been an outstanding 2024-2025 high school basketball season for Shawnee County teams, with 10 of 20 making it to state tournaments in five different classifications.

Now we wait to see how many of those teams can achieve the ultimate goal of a state championship on Saturday.

For what it's worth -- and it's not much -- here's my take on what we could see in all 14 of this week's state  tournaments across the state.

If I didn't pick your team don't fret because it could bode well for you.

If I did pick the team/teams you root for, good luck.

By Saturday night we'll know, and win or lose, it promises to be a fun week. Enjoy!

CLASS 6A BOYS

Finalists -- Shawnee Mission Northwest (4: 19-3) vs. Wichita Heights (3: 20-2).

Champion -- Wichita Heights. I give Heights, the 6A runnerup the past two seasons, a very slight edge in what could be a repeat of the 2024 title game, won by Northwest to cap a 25-0 season.

Other contenders -- Shawnee Mission South is the top seed at 21-1, with its lone loss coming against SM Northwest, while Derby is also 21-1 and the No. 2 seed. Washburn Rural (6: 18-4) is certainly capable of knocking off Wichita Heights while Derby could get a big test from No. 7 Olathe North (16-6). 

CLASS 6A GIRLS

Finalists -- Blue Valley North (3: 18-4) vs. Olathe South (4: 18-4). 

Champion -- Blue Valley North. It's worth noting that although North has lost four times, but none of those four losses came against Kansas teams. The Mustangs finished third last season after winning the championship in 2023.

Other contenders -- It's been an up and down season for Washburn Rural (6: 16-6) but never count out a Kevin Bordewick team in postseason. The Hall of Fame coach has led Washburn Rural to three straight 6A championship games (title in 2022, runnerup in 2023 and 2024) and the Junior Blues have won a pair of championships since 2019. Derby is the top seed at 19-3 and the pre-tournament team to beat.

Highland Park standout Ja'Corey Robinson and the 22-0 Scots will be looking for a Class 5A state title this week after back-to-back third-place finishes. [File photo/TSN]

CLASS 5A BOYS

Finalists -- Highland Park (1: 22-0) vs. Kapaun Mt. Carmel (2: 19-3).

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Highland Park boys basketball is very proud of its Runnin' Scots nickname.

But it was the Scots' work on the other end of the court that propelled them back to the Class 5A state tournament with a 53-35 win over Basehor-Linwood in Saturday's sub-state final at Highland Park.

Senior Mikey Williams, who scored a game-high 18 points, cuts down the nets after Highland Park's 53-35 sub-state win over Basehor-Linwood. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Highland Park senior Ja'Corey Robinson is congratulated by the Scots' coaches as he leaves the floor late in Saturday's 53-35 sub-state win over Basehor-Linwood. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Highland Park, which improved to a perfect 22-0 on the season, allowed no more than nine points over any of the first three quarters against the United Kansas Conference-member Bobcats to build an insurmountable 23-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter before cruising the rest of the way.

"Coming into the game I kind of heard all the, 'Aw, you guys got them and they're hot and there this,' and they were,'' Highland Park coach Mike Williams said. "They were playing well to end the year, but I believed in the guys and I believed in the game plan and the prep.

"We spent a lot of time and watching them and seeing their offense and I thought our guys did an amazing job -- 9 points in the first quarter, 4 in the second and then another single-digit quarter (in the third) -- and that was our game goal, we wanted to hold them to single-digit quarters and try to keep the score in the 40s for them and our guys answered the call from a defensive standpoint.'' 

Scot senior star Ja'Corey Robinson agreed.

"We made sure we had to get the stops first and turn the defense into offense,'' Robinson said. "We just came at them hard and didn't let off of them.'' 

The Scots, who have finished third in 5A the past two seasons after a first-round loss in 2022, will open their state bid as the top seed at 2 p.m. Thursday against No. 8 Andover Central (14-8).

"I feel real confident,'' Robinson said. "Almost every state game we've played we've always been up like 10 points or more. We've just got to keep pushing and can't let up and can't stall out the time. We've got to keep pushing and go all out.''

By RICK PETERSON                                                                                                           

TopSports.news

Juinior state wrestling champions Makayla Cadet of Highland Park and Landen Kocher-Munoz of Washburn Rural have been selected by the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency as the Rising Stars of the Week.

The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the bulk of the 2024-2025 school year.

Here’s a brief look at the accomplishments of Cadet and Kocher-Munoz over the past week: 

Makayla Cadet has been selected as the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency female Rising Star of the Week after becoming Highland Park's first-ever girls state wrestling champion last Saturday in Park City. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN].

MAKAYLA CADET, Highland Park

Cadet, a junior, became Highland Park's first-ever girls state wrestling champion on her 17th birthday last Saturday in Park City, registering a first-period pin over Basehor-Linwood junior Izzy Renfro in 1 minute, 36 seconds to win the Class 5A 190-pound title.

Cadet, who finished 23-4 on the season, went 4-0 at state with four pins.

Cadet's pin over Renfro avenged a loss on a 1:37 pin in a regional final. 

Washburn Rural junior wrestler Landen Kocher-Munoz has been named the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency male Rising Star of the Week after winning his second Class 6A state title last Saturday in Overland Park. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN].

LANDEN KOCHER-MUNOZ, Washburn Rural

Kocher-Munoz, a 138-pound junior, captured his second Class 6A state wrestling championship Saturday in Overland Park, posting a 16-9 decision over Garden City junior Roman Clouse in the state title match, Kocher-Munoz's third straight trip to the state finals.

Kocher-Munoz, 34-3 on the season, went 4-0 at state, including a pin and two major decisions.

Kocher-Munoz helped Washburn Rural finish third as a team.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural's girls, who have advanced to the Class 6A championship game three straight seasons, put themselves in position to earn another trip to state with a 72-26 semifinal victory over Lawrence Free State Wednesday night at Rural.

Washburn Rural sophomore Gracie Hayes scored 18 points on six 3-pointers in Wednesday's 72-26 Class 6A sub-state semifinal win over Free State. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

The Junior Blues, now 15-6, took control with a 20-5 first quarter and opened up a 45-12 advantage over the Firebirds (3-18). Rural led 63-21 at the start of the fourth quarter, forcing a running clock over the final eight minutes.

Sophomore Gracie Hayes had a big night for Rural, hitting six 3-pointers to lead the Junior Blues with 18 points.

Senior Kate Hinck scored 10 points in Wednesday's 72-26 Washburn Rural sub-state semifinal win over Free State. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Washburn Rural sophomore Maddie Vickery scored 10 points in Wednesday's 72-26 sub-state win over Free State. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

Senior Kate Hinck and sophomores Brooklyn Rutherford and Maddie Vickery added 10 points apiece while junior Ella Hirschi added nine points.

With Wednesday's win the Junior Blues advanced to Saturday's 3:30 p.m. sub-state championship game to host Centennial League rival Manhattan, a 51-27 winner over Maize.

The Junior Blues and Indians will be playing for the third time this season, with Rural winning the first two meetings.

Undefeated Hi Park boys take 72-51 win over Bears

Highland Park, the top Class 5A East boys seed, improved to 21-0 on the season with a 72-51 home semifinal win over No. 16 Kansas City-Turner Wednesday night.

The Scots, third in 5A the past two seasons, will host Basehor-Linwood on Saturday in a 5 p.m. sub-state final at Highland Park.

The Bobcats advanced to the championship game with a 44-37 win over Spring Hill.

Silver Lake boys survive Osage City rally, 64-62

Silver Lake's boys built a double-digit advantage over Osage City Wednesday night and needed every bit of it, holding on for a 64-62 home sub-state semifinal decision over the Indians.

BY RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

WICHITA -- Not everything went Hayden's way in the hours leading up to Thursday's Class 4A-1A state bowling tournament, with the Wildcats forced to switch hotels late in the night due to a bed bug infestation.

Hayden's boys celebrate after being announced as the Class 4A-1A state bowling champion. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Hayden's boys bowling team poses for a picture after winning the Class 4A state championship Thursday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

But once the Wildcats got on the lanes at Bowlero Northrock, a nightmare of a night transformed into a dream day, with Hayden's boys claiming the school's first state bowling championship by a 95-pin margin (3,666-,3571) over Mulvane as four Wildcats earned individual state medals.

Hayden, which had finished fifth as a team in the 2024 state event, got their state bid off to a good start with a solid 931 opening game, taking a three-pin lead over Mulvane and then followed that up with a school-record 1,026 second game, including a 279 from sophomore Reece Renyer and a 277 from senior John Strickland, stretching its advantage to 181 pins.

"The momentum in the first game was just absolutely just monumental for us,'' said Hayden senior Trevor Christy, who led the Wildcats with a third-place individual finish. "Having the energy going the first game and bowling those high 200s (four games between 203 and 258) it just kept us alive.

"Without the energy today I don't think we would have won.''

Mulvane cut 88 pins off its deficit in the final game of American 10-pin and cut another 27 pins through the first three games of Baker before Hayden closed out its title with a spectacular 276 game in the fourth and final Baker game.

Senior Trevor Christy paced state-champion Hayden with a third-place individual finish Thursday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

"We didn't think we had the win (going into Baker), we were scared out of our minds,'' Christy said. "We knew Mulvane was right there on us and we knew that if we kept slipping up it was over for us. So that final game we just had to focus in and just really bowl the best we've ever bowled.''

"When we put it together as a team it all comes together, and it all clicked today,'' Strickland said. "Whoever thought that we would put this all together in our last year? Hayden had never had a team go to state and we went to state last year, then it was incredible this year to take (the title) home.''

Mulvane senior Joseph Cervantes earned the individual title with a 713 series while Andale's Konnor Bretthauer was second with a 704, but Hayden claimed three of the next five individual spots. 

Christy finished third with a 698 (244-239-215) while Strickland was fifth at 685 (226-277-182) and senior Chase Blaser seventh with a 676 (258-222-196).

"Fifth place last year definitely drove our energy this year because we brought everyone back,'' Blaser said. "We were I think one of two teams in the field to return all six members from last year's state team and that experience really gave us the edge.''

Renyer finished 16th with a 636 series while sophomore Kelton Meier narrowly missed an individual medal with a 21st-place finish (604) while senior Caston Meier placed 32nd (565) to round out the Hayden lineup.

Hayden's girls finished sixth as a team with a 2,454 team score while Wildcat senior twin sisters Emily and Ashley Lee earned individual state medals.

Senior Emily Lee posted a fourth-place individual finish in Thursday's Class 4A state bowling tournament in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Regional champion Emily Lee paced Hayden with a fourth-place individual finish, recording a 551 series (188-203-160).

"I thought I could have done better,'' said Lee, a two-time state medalist. "It all came down to picking up spares. I felt like my strike number was what it normally is, it just came down to picking up spares. But my goal was to go top 10 and I did.

''I was actually really proud of our team. We had a rough night last night (with the hotel switch), so we were all pretty tired -- we got like four hours of sleep -- so I was proud of what we did.''

Ashley Lee had a 509 series to finish 11th, with a high game of 181.

CLASS 4A-1A STATE BOWLING

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

Just a year ago the Wildcats were in Class 3A and entered the postseason 5-13.

What a difference a year makes and the Wildcats, led by first-year coach Dwayne Anthony entered the postseason in Class 4A with a 13-8 record and ranked No. 7 in the last Kansas Basketball Coaches Association poll.

Senior Jacob Deister (4) led Hayden with 15 points in Tuesday's 93-59 Class 4A sub-state win over Independence. [File photo/TSN]

Hayden would end up drawing the Bulldogs of Independence, who would enter the game with a 9-11 record and led by 5-foot-10 sophomore Javen Colbert. Javen's mom is from Topeka so he was able to play in front of a lot of friends and family and would score 14 points on the night. 

"It was very special to be able to play in Topeka tonight because all my family is from here, and I am glad I was able to represent for them just wish the game would of gone a different way,'' Colbert said.

The Wildcats would get off to a 6-0 run to start the game and take off from there as they would stretch that into a 22-10 lead midway thru the first quarter and take a commanding 32-19 lead to end the first quarter.

The Wildcats would start the second quarter with a 12-0 run that would put them up 47-19 as the Wildcats would use their length and speed to go into halftime up 54-29.

The Wildcats would be led by senior Jacob Deister, who would have 13 of his game-high 15 points at halftime.

The Wildcats would roll from there and out-score the Dawgs 39-29 the rest of the game to take a 93-59 semifinal win.

Hayden would get double-digit nights from four athletes as Deister would lead the way with 15 points, followed by Mason Becker’s 14, Connor Hanika’s 13 and Cooper Zweisler with 11 points.

The Wildcats were hot from 3-point range all night as they would shoot 9-17 from outside the arc.

"We came out really hot and our press really got the momentum going for us,'' Hanika said. "We still have a few adjustments to make to get ready for Rock Creek, including watching lots of film before Friday.”

"I really applaud the boys' passion and attention to detail and our energy and effort,'' Anthony said. "We are really, really a strong team when they bring those things. Now we just need to get back to it and watch film on Rock Creek and get ready for Friday.

"I am blessed, I have a team full of leaders, not just Mason, Connor and Jacob, but the senior class alone, each and every one of them is solid individuals and it is the reason that these guys have experienced success so far.''

The Wildcats now turn their attention to the No. 2 team on the East side of sub-state in Rock Creek, which advanced with a 59-39 win over Tonganoxie.

The game will be Friday night at Rock Creek with a game time of 7p.m. The winner will punch their ticket to the Class 4A state tournament next week in Salina.

HAYDEN BOYS 93, INDEPENDENCE 59

Independence 19 10 7 23 — 59

Hayden           32 22 22 17 — 93

Independence (9-12) — Smith 5-12 2-4 15, Colbert 4-11 4-6 14, Lanning 2-7 2-2 7, Veile 1-2 3-6 5, Bunyard 2-3 0-0 4, Sprague 3-3 1-2 7, Small 2-2 0-0 6, Sanders 0-0 1-1 1. Totals 19-40 13-21 59.

Hayden (13-8) — Deister 7-12 0-0 15, Becker 5-8 1-2 14, Hanika 6-9 1-2 13, Mitchell 2-4 0-0 4, Kuta 2-3 0-2 4, Zweisler 4-7 1-1 11, Compton 3-6 2-2 10, Tourtillot 4-6 0-2 9, Banks 3-5 0-0 6, Heinen 2-4 1-1 5, Wolff 1-2 0-0 2, Power 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 39-67 6-12 93.

3-point goals — Indy 8 (Smith 3, Colbert 2, Small 2, Lanning) Hayden 9 (Becker 3, Zweisler 2, Compton 2, Tourtillot, Deister). Total Fouls — Indy 10, Hayden 18.

Highland Park girls roll to 59-11 5A sub-state win

No. 3 Class 5A East girls seed Highland Park opened its sub-state bid with a 59-11 home semifinal win over Meadowlark Conference rival Kansas City-Washington Tuesday night. 

BY RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

WICHITA -- Seaman's girls bowling team was shooting a lot higher in Wednesday's Class 5A state tournament at Bowlero Northrock, but the Vikings still took home a team trophy, finishing third to lead the city 5A state contingent.

Seaman's girls bowling team poses for a picture with the Class 5A third-place team trophy Wednesday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Led by state medalist Claire LaDuke, the Vikings finished with a team score of 2,844, finishing behind team champion Bishop Carroll (2,987) and runnerup Maize South (2,958).

"We had great high hopes,'' Seaman coach Bob Benoit said. "They just bowled so good all year and won by so much, winning the regionals by 514 pins. We have two juniors, two sophomores and two freshman and this was so nerve-wracking. The first game we had one girl crying, the second game we had four crying.''

Benoit said the Vikings' inability to pick up spares was the difference between a possible run at a state title and Wednesday's third-place finish.

"Our spare-shooting today killed us,'' Benoit said. "If we make our spares like we have all year, we probably have a chance of being first or second. So it was just execution. I know the nerves were there and things started to fall apart. They were trying to make things happen, but tried in the wrong way.

"The girls were really disappointed and I told them, 'I hope this is enough of a punch in the gut for you to understand what I've told all of you. Spare are more important than strikes.' We gave away over 200 pins today in spares. ''

Benoit said the young Vikings will use the offseason to get ready for the 2026 season.

"We'll regroup this summer and we'll get back here next year,'' Benoit said. "It's a good learning experience and we'll figure it out and be back next year.''

Claire LaDuke (right) finished eighth individually with a 582 series, helping lead Seaman to a third-place team finish in Class 5A. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

LaDuke rolled a 582 series with a 214 high game to finish eighth individually while the Vikings also got a 22nd-place finish from Leah Crawford (532), a 29th from Kayla Duncan (514), a 37th from Paige Snyder (492), a 45th from Ava Carlson (467) and a 48th from Laci Cole (459).

Shawnee Heights finished sixth as a team with a 2,753 score while the T-Birds had a pair of state medalists.

Shawnee Heights' Addison Van Metre earned a Class 5A state medal with a 15th-place individual finish Wednesday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Shawnee Heights' Jasmine Villalobos earned a Class 5A state medal with a 16th-place individual finish. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Heights' Addison Van Metre finished 15th individually with a 559 series while teammate Jasmine Villalobos was a pin behind with a 558 series to finish 16th.

Shawnee Heights' boys came up short in their bid to win a second straight team championship, finishing fifth with a 3,340 team score.

Shawnee Heights' Kaden Evans placed ninth in the Class 5A boys state tournament with a 676 series, including a 279 game. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN] 

Kaden Evans led the T-Birds with a ninth-place individual finish, bowling a 676 series, including a final-game 279. 

Donovan Davis finished 14th in Class 5A for Shawnee Heights with a 653 series Wednesday in Wichita. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Heights also got a 14th-place finish from Donovan Davis, who rolled a 653 series. 

CLASS 5A STATE BOWLING

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

Parirings have been finalized for this week's sub-state high school basketball tournaments, with 12 city teams earning home court advantage for at least the semifinals of sub-state competition, which begins Tuesday and continues through Saturday.

Both Washburn Rural (Class 6A), Highland Park (5A) and Seaman (5A) teams, Shawnee Heights' boys (5A) and Hayden's girls (4A) could all stay at home through both rounds of sub-state competition.

Topeka High's girls (6A), Topeka West's boys (5A), Shawnee Heights' girls (5A) and Hayden's boys (4A) will be at home for at least the sub-state semifinals.

Both Silver Lake and Rossville teams and the Cair Paravel Latin boys have already posted first-round sub-state wins to advance to semifinals.

Silver Lake's girls and boys will compete in the Class 3A Hiawatha sub-state while Rossville and the CPLS boys will compete in the Class 2A Valley Heights sub-state.

Here's a look at sub-state tournaments involving Shawnee County teams:

Senior Kaden Ballard and the Washburn Rural boys will open their bid for a Class 6A state tournament berth with a home semifinal game against Wichita West Tuesday night. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

CLASS 6A BOYS

West sub-state No. 3 -- Centennial League champion Washburn Rural (16-4) is the No. 3 West seed and will host No. 14 Wichita West (4-16) a 6 p.m. Tuesday semifinal.

The Washburn Rural-Wichita West winner will advance to a Friday night 7 p.m. sub-state final to face the semifinal winner between No. 6 seed Junction City (13-7) and No. 11 Manhattan (6-14).

Senior standout Kate Hinck and the Washburn Rural girls are the No. 3 West seed for the Class 6A sub-state tournament. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

CLASS 6A GIRLS

West sub-state No. 3 -- Washburn Rural, second in 6A the past two years after winning the title in 2022, is the No. 3 West seed and will host No. 14 Lawrence Free State (3-17) in a 7 p.m. Wednesday semifinal.

The Washburn Rural-Free State winner will advance to a 5 p.m. Saturday sub-state championship game to face the semifinal winner between No. 6 seed Manhattan (13-7) and No. 11 Maize (5-15).

CLASS 6A GIRLS

West sub-state No. 2 --Topeka High, the No. 7 West seed at 13-7, will host No. 10 Wichita South (8-12) Wednesday for a 6 p.m. sub-state semifinal. 

The winner of that game will advance to a 5 p.m. Saturday final to meet the winner of the semifinal between No. 2 seed Wichita Heights (17-3) and No. 15 Dodge City (1-19).

CLASS 5A GIRLS

East sub-state No. 2 -- Shawnee Heights is the No. 7 East seed at 13-7 and will host No. 10 Basehor-Linwood (10-10) in a 7 p.m. Tuesday semifinal. The T-Birds beat the Bobcats twice during the regular season in the United Kansas Conference.

The winner of that game will advance to a 7 p.m. Friday final to face the winner of the semifinal between No. 2 seed Piper (16-4) and No. 15 Kansas City-Harmon (6-14).

East sub-state No. 3 -- Highland Park (16-4) is the No. 3 East seed and will host No. 14 seed Kansas City-Washington (6-14) in a 7 p.m. semifinal on Tuesday. Hi Park owns a pair of Meadowlark Conference wins over the Wildcats this season.

The Highland Park-Washington winner will advance to a 7 p.m. Friday sub-state final to face the semifinal winner between No. 6 Aquinas (13-7) and No. 11 Pittsburg (10-10).

Undefeated Seaman begins defense of its Class 5A state title Tuesday against city rival Topeka West. [File photo/TSN]

West sub-state No. 2 --Defending Class 5A state champion Seaman is the No. 2 West seed with a perfect 20-0 record and will host city and United Kansas Conference rival Topeka West, the No. 15 West seed at 6-14, in a 7 p.m. Tuesday semifinal.

The Seaman-West winner will advance to Friday's 7 p.m. sub-state final to face the winner of the semifinal between No. 7 Kapaun Mt. Carmel (15-5) and No. 10 Valley Center (10-10).

CLASS 5A BOYS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Easton Broxterman 

EASTON BROXTERMAN, Washburn Rural

A senior wrestling star, Broxterman claimed his third straight Class 6A state championship Saturday in Overland Park, clinching the 144-pound championship with a a 16-0 technical fall over Manhattan junior Brecken Crist-Funk. A four-time state finalist, Broxterman finished his season with a 41-2 record, including four straight technical falls in last weekend's state tournament.

Makayla Cadet

MAKAYLA CADET, Highland Park

Cadet, a junior, became Highland Park's first-ever girls state wrestling champion on her 17th birthday Saturday in Park City, registering a first-period pin over Basehor-Linwood junior Izzy Renfro in 1 minute, 36 seconds to win the Class 5A 190-pound title. Cadet, who finished 23-4 on the season, went 4-0 at state with four pins. Cadet's pin over Renfro avenged a loss on a 1:37 pin in a regional final. 

Maddie Gragg

MADDIE GRAGG, Seaman

A 5-foot-10 junior basketball standout, Gragg converted a buzzer-beating inside shot to give the undefeated and top-ranked Seaman girls a 48-47 United Kansas Conference over Piper Wednesday at Seaman. Gragg led the Vikings with 14 points against the Pirates and scored 34 points on the week as defending Class 5A state champion Seaman went 3-0 on the week to finish off a perfect 20-0 regular season.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PARK CITY -- Winning a Class 5A state wrestling championship would have made Saturday a special day for Highland Park junior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet no matter what.

Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet posted a pin in 1:36 pin to win the Class 5A 190-pound title Saturday in Park City. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

But the calendar provided the proverbial icing on the cake for the Scot star.

"The best birthday present ever,'' said Cadet, who celebrated her 17th birthday with a first-period pin (1 minute, 36 seconds) over Basehor-Linwood junior Izzy Renfro.

Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet has her hand raised as the Class 5A 190-pound state champ Saturday in Park City. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Cadet, who capped a 23-4 season, won the title with a dramatic takedown and pin, avenging a loss to Renfro (1:37 pin) in a regional final.

"Honestly, I have no idea what happened, it just happened so fast,'' Cadet said.

Cadet had already made Highland Park girls program history by reaching the semifinals and finals before capping her dream weekend with the title.

"I had no idea this was going to go this way,'' Cadet said. "I took it slow, I came up with a plan and I just gained momentum as the match went on.

"I had a plan and I just tried to execute it to the best of my ability.''

Highland Park also got a sixth-place finish from junior Connie Burns (22-7) at 115 pounds.

Vikes' Heston, Best post runnerup finishes

Seaman seniors Taylie Heston and Koti Best came within an eyelash of winning 5A state titles Saturday, with the Viking stars dropping a pair of heartbreakers in their championship matches.

Heston (32-8) fell 3-2 to Emporia junior Kensley Medrano (31-13) in the 120 final while Best (20-3) dropped an 11-10 overtime decision to Kapaun Mt. Carmel junior Courtney Nye (37-10) in the 125-pound title match.

Heston's loss to Medrano came after a four-overtime loss to the Emporia star at regionals while Best built a 10-4 lead before Nye, who led KMC to the 5A team title, rallied late as Best battled a shoulder injury that had sidelined her for a portion of the season.

Seaman coach Jordan Best said he was proud of the performances turned by his two finalists.

"I'm happy,'' Best said. "It's our first time in program history to have two state finalists. Taylie is a multi-time state placer, Koti's a three-time state placer, I can't be disappointed. I'm happy for them. Seniors, they got to make the big show, and that's what matters the most. It's not about the wins or the losses.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PARK CITY -- Since advancing to the Class 5A state championship match as a sophomore, the last two seasons have been a star-crossed journey for Seaman 125-pound wrestling star Koti Best, filled with a lot of time with medical personnel.

Seaman senior Koti Best (top) is back in the Class 5A state championship match for the second time in her career after a semifinal pin. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But after fighting through concussion issues as a junior and a dislocated shoulder this season, on Saturday Best will be back where she was two years ago, wrestling for a state title in the Park City Arena.

Wearing a brace to protect her right shoulder, Best earned her return trip to the final with a win by pin in 5 minutes, 57 seconds over Blue Valley Southwest senior Brynn Lowe.

"It feels very good,'' Best said about earning another title shot. ''I felt really good today. I've felt very encouraged since I got my brace and everything's been going good. I haen't had too many issues.

"I was stressed about this because it had been a long time since I've been in this position, but I think I handled it pretty well. It was a rough match for sure, but we got there. I knew this was my last shot.''

Now 20-2 on the season, Best's pin in the semifinals came after a 41-second pin in the first round and 17-0 technical fall in the quarterfinals.

"With her injuries and being knocked out last year (with a first-round concusion), for her to come back as a senior and make it to the finals again, it's amazing,'' said Jordan Best, Seaman's coach and Koti's father. "She kind of set her goal, 'This is what I'm going to do,' and I said, 'There's really only one person that's going to stop you,' and she went out there and did it.''

Best will face Kapaun Mt. Carmel junior Courtney Nye (36-10) in the 125-pound title match.

After finishing fourth as a junior, Seaman's Taylie Heston will wrestle for the 120-pound state title Saturday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Reluctant wrestling star Heston advances to 120-pound final

Seaman 120-pound senior Taylie Heston has never denied the fact that she's not a big wrestling fan.

"That's true, I don't like it at all,'' Heston said.

But that hasn't kept Heston, a state runnerup in track last spring, from becoming one of the state's best.

"My parents kind of wanted me to do it because my sister wrestled and my brother wrestled, so it's in the family,'' Heston said.

And after finishing fourth as a junior, Heston (32-7) punched her ticket to her first state final in her fourth state appearance on Friday with a 4:53 pin over Piper sophomore Rylee Burke in the 120 semifinal. 

Heston beat Burke 9-0 in the United Kansas Conference meet and said that win gave her confidence in the semifinal.

"It was nice to know that I had already beat her,'' Heston said. "I felt good.''

The semifinal pin was Heston's third of the day, following pins in 2:56 and 3:42 in her first two matches. 

Heston will now face familiar foe Kensley Medrano, an Emporia junior, in Saturday's state final.

Heston and Medrano have faced off three times in the past, with Medrano (30-13) winning two of those matches, including a four-overtime decision in the regional meet two weeks ago.

"It will be a good match,'' Heston said. 

Highland Park 190-pounder Makayla Cadet is congratulated by Scot boys coach Freddy Maisberger and girls coach Ellen Heavner after advancing to the Class 5A championship match. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Cadet makes Highland Park history with run to 190 final

In her first state tournament appearance, Highland Park junior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet has etched her name into the Highland Park girls wrestling record book.

Now 22-4 on the season, Cadet became the first Scot girls wrestler to advance to the state semifinals and then topped that performance a couple hours later when she recorded a pin over Newton freshman Clair Harder in 4:39 to reach Saturday's state championship match.

"I had a feeling I was going to do my best, but I honestly wasn't expecting this at all,'' Cadet said. "I kept telling myself in my head that I had worked all three years for this moment and I wasn't going to let anyone get in my way.''

  By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After running away with the Class 6A state title in 2023, Washburn Rural's boys bowling team had an off day in the 2024 regional and failed to qualify for state as a team, depriving the Junior Blues of an opportunity to defend their championship.

Washburn Rural's boys and girls bowling teams swept the team championships in Wednesday's Class 6A regional at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Rural was back on its game in Wednesday's 2025 regional at Gage Bowl, rolling to the team championship by a 123-pin margin over fellow Centennial League member Junction City (3,562-3,439).

The Junior Blues put three bowlers in the top 10 while all six Rural team members finished in the top 18 and bowled between 598 and 679 series.

Sophomore Andrew Faurot paced Washburn Rural with a third-place individual finish (679) while Glinka finished seventh (650) and junior Cody Spangler 10th (642).

Senior Tyler Faurot bowled a 617 series while senior Conner Ahrens had a 606 and junior Jackson Keller a 598.

Washburn Rural's boys title-winning performance came after the Rural girls dominated the morning session.

The Junior Blues, who finished second in 6A a year ago, put four bowlers in the top eight places individually on the way to winning the team title by a whopping 341 pins over Junction City (3,259-2,918).

Senior Elizabeth Poling and junior Camrynn Ahrens finished two-three individually in the regional meet, with Poling second with a 629 series and Ahrens third with a 616.

Rural junior Kenzie Lawson posted a sixth-place finish (597) and senior Ashley Billups an eighth-place showing (575) while sophomore Megan Glinka bowled a 561 series and junior Stella Gordon a 451.

The 6A state tournament will be held next Friday at Wichita's Bowlero Northrock, with the girls bowling at 8:50 a.m. followed by the boys at 1:40 p.m.  

CLASS 6A REGIONAL

At Gage Bowl

BOYS

Team scores

Washburn Rural 3,562,Junction City 3,439, Olathe Northwest 3,318, Manhattan 3,256, Wichita Southeast 3,169, Lawrence Free State 3,092, Lawrence 2,996, Olathe North 2,972, Gardner-Edgerton 2,894, Olathe West 2,813, Topeka High 2,621,Mill Valley 2,592.

Individual results

1. Maxwell Case, Wichita Southeast, 782; 2. Simon Clark, Olathe Northwest, 680; 3. Andrew Faurot, Washburn Rural, 679; 4. Jesse Holtkamp, Junction City, 664; 5. Jackson Sorenson-Hills, Olathe Northwest, 657; 6. Nicholas Burfict, Manhattan, 652; 7. Logan Glinka, Washburn Rural, 650; 8. Cael Smith, Junction City, 649; 9. Maddox Siharath, Wichita Southeast, 644; 10. Cody Spangler, Washburn Rural, 642.

Other Washburn Rural -- 13. Tyler Faurot, 617; 15. Conner Ahrens, 606; Jackson Keller, 598.

Topeka High -- 38. Austin Mitchell, 518; 46. Franklin Jackson, 499; 52. Adrian Meraz, 477; 63. Wyatt Jones, 434; 67. Miles Barnes, 415; 70. Hunter Mitchell, 380.   

Individual state qualifiers -- Maxwell Case, Wichita Southeast; Nicholas Burfict, Manhattan; Maddox Siharath, Wichita Southeast; Graesyn Hoss, Lawrence; Knowlen Owens, Olathe West; Jacob Catron, Olathe West.

GIRLS

Team scores

Washburn Rural 3,259, Junction City 2,918; Mill Valley 2,768, Olathe West 2,519, Lawrence Free State 2,476, Olathe Northwest 2,606, Manhattan 2,674, Gardner-Edgerton 2,289, Wichita Southeast 2,705, Olathe North 2,559, Lawrence 2,183, Topeka High 1,914.

Individual results

1. Cortlynn Millington, Manhattan, 640; 2.  Elizabeth Poling, Washburn Rural, 629; 3. Camrynn Ahrens, Washburn Rural, 616, 4. Alyssa Brantley, Wichita Southeast, 604; 5. Abby Haney, Mill Valley, 601; 6. Kenzie Lawson, Washburn Rural, 597; 7. Victoria Martinez, Junction City, 576; 8. Ashley Billups, Washburn Rural, 575; 9. Grace Radi, Manhattan, 566; 10. Myranda Rogers, Gardner-Edgerton, 565. 

Other Washburn Rural --12. Megan Glinka, 561; 31. Stella Gordon, 451.

Topeka High -- 32. Lilly Krohe, 450; 50. Sophia Ambrose, 394; 65. Catie Fulton, 333; 68. Maurine Wadley, 292; 70. Molly Meseke, 283; 71. Keelie Colstrom, 247.

Individual state qualifiers --Cortlynn Millington, Manhattan; Alyssa Brantley, Wichita Southeast; Grace Radi, Manhattan; Myranda Rogers, Gardner-Edgerton; Emma Reese, Olathe Northwest; Lexie Eberle, Olathe West.

Seaman's girls bowling team posted a 1-2-3 individual finish and won Tuesday's Class 5A regional by 514 pins. [Seaman Athletics]

Seaman girls go 1-2-3 en route to 5A regional title sweep

Seaman's girls swept the top three individual spots in Tuesday's Class 5A regional at Emporia's Flint Hills Lanes as the Vikings claimed the team championship by a 514-pin margin over Emporia. Shawnee Heights also claimed a state team berth with a third-place finish.

Viking freshman Leah Crawford shot a 630 series to win the individual championship while sophomore Paige Snyder was second with a 613 and junior Claire LaDuke third with 581.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural, coming off a third-place team finish in last year's Class 6A state tournament, placed third Saturday in the Garden City 6A West regional, with the Junior Blues qualifying 10 wrestlers for Friday and Saturday's state meet at Overland Park.

Washburn Rural senior Easton Broxterman (top) will be aiming for his third straight Class 6A state wrestling championship this weekend in Overland Park. [File photo/TSN]

Rural, which scored 218.5 points to finish behind Manhattan and Garden City, was led by individual champions Landen Kocher-Munoz, Easton Broxterman and Kristan Marshall.

Washburn Rural senior Kristjan Marshall (top) enters this weekend's Class 6A state wrestling tournament as a defending state champion. [File photo/TSN]

Washburn Rural junior Landen Kocher-Munoz is a two-time state finalist and a former Class 6A state champ. [File photo/TSN]

Broxterman, a 144-pound senior, will be shooting for his third straight 6A state title this weekend while Marshall, a 157-pound senior and 138-pound junior L. Kocher-Munoz will be looking for their second state championships.

Broxterman will take a 37-2 record into the state tournament while Marshall is currently 33-5 and L. Kocher-Munoz 30-3.

Rural sophomore 190-pounder Jadyn Baum, 31-7 on the season, also advanced to the regional championship match, finishing second.

The Junior Blues also got third-place finishes from junior Cooper Stivers (132) and sophomore Brodye Kocher-Munoz (150), fourth-place finishes from junior Ryder Harrison (120) and senior Walker Doyal (126), a fifth from freshman Kaiden Marshall (215) and a sixth from sophomore Gavin Homeyer (175).

Topeka High qualified four wrestlers for state, led by senior 165-pounder Nick Davis (38-5), who posted a fourth-place regional finish.

The Trojans got a fifth-place finish from sophomore Landon Snyder (175), a sixth from senior Cooper Martin (190) and an eighth-place finish from sophomore Jose Gomez (106).

Friday and Saturday's state meet will get under way at 9 a.m. at the AdventHealth Sports Park.

Hayden junior Jude Krentz won the 175-pound title in Saturday's Class 4A regional at Tonganoxie. [File photo/TSN]

Hayden's Krentz, Silver Lake's Clelland win 4A regional titles

Silver Lake sophomore Kayden Clelland and Hayden junior Jude Krentz won regional championships in Saturday's 4A tournament at Tonganoxie as Silver Lake posted a third-place team finish and Hayden finished sixth.

Krentz won the 175-pound championship while improving to 38-0 on the season while Clelland won the 165-pound title, improving to 32-11.

Silver Lake got runnerup finishes from junior Jayden Waterer (144) and senior Trent Rollenhagen (175), thirds from freshman Carter Spreer (215) and senior Trent Harris (157) and fourths from junior Garrett Holmes (132) and freshman Kendrick Vande Velde (285).

In addition to Krentz, Hayden got second-place finishes from sophomore Caleb Menke (157) senior Broderick Desch (190) and a third from senior Hunter Diederich (285).

The 4A state tournament will be held Friday and Saturday at the Tony's Pizza Events Center in Salina (9 a.m. starts both days).

By Todd Fertig

TopSports.news

If the visiting Atchison Phoenix thought they were in the game after one period at Highland Park on Saturday, they were quickly disabused of that notion.

After sitting out the first quarter senior Ja'Corey Robinson scored 25 points in Highland Park's 63-35 Saturday win over Atchison. [File photo/TSN]

Highland Park coach Mike Williams sent a message to his team by holding regular starters Jacorey Robinson and Isaiah Kelley out for the entire first period. The Scots clung to a 15-12 lead when those seniors entered the game.

Whatever hope Atchison had of winning the game was removed at that point. The Scots went on a 17-0 run. Highland Park held Atchison to just four points in the second period and four more in the third period.

Highland Park pulled away to win 63-35, gaining their 10th win in the Meadowlark Conference against zero defeats, and running their season record to 18-0.

“We just wanted to address some things,” Williams said. “The guys responded really well. I’ve got the boys' trust. They know that when I ruffle some feathers, it’s easy to reel them back in because they know who I am.”

Robinson took over the game, hitting six shots – most of them dunks – in the second period. He finished the game hitting 11-16 shots for 25 points.

By Todd Fertig

TopSports.news

With two league games remaining on the schedule, the Highland Park girls secured their third consecutive Meadowlark Conference title by beating Atchison 50-42 Saturday at Highland Park.

Sophomore Pearmella Carter scored 15 of her 18 points in the second half in Highland Park's 50-42 Meadowlark Conference win over Atchison. [File photo/TSN]

Highland Park improved to 14-4 on the season, 10-0 in the conference.

“For us, the number one goal is always to win the league,” said Highland Park assistant coach Chris Giardina, who has been on the Scots’ staff for four years. “When you can win the league three years in a row, it’s a good building block for the program. But now we need to move past that. With this group, we’re preparing for something bigger.”

Giardina praised several of the teams around the league who he felt were making improvements.

“Now that they’ve seen us a few times, they are really starting to bring their A-game against us. Like we’re the hunted now,” Giardina said. “I like that. I would rather be in those types of games than winning by tons. We don’t get anything out of that.”

Playing for the third time in three days, the Scots were slow out of the gate Saturday, falling behind 10-7 in the first period. That’s when sophomore Zayah Kincade got hot, hitting for eight points in a four-minute stretch to jump-start the Highland Park offense.

Kincade helped make up for low output from sophomore Pearmella Carter, who had to cope with a box-and-one defense designed to shut her down. Carter attempted just one field goal and scored just three points in the first half. She did go to the line seven times in the game, knocking down 10 of 14 free throws. She accounted for 18 points by the game’s end.

“I think we’ve seen a box-and-one three or four times from league teams now,” Highland Park head coach Rob Brown said. “They’re trying to figure out how to beat us.”

Kincade’s 12 points were essential to the win. She said she likes her role coming off the bench to provide defensive energy, shooting and ball handling.

“I seem to work better with certain people than others, so (Coach Brown) puts me in those positions,” Kincade said. “I think I’m very good on defense. My shooting can be kind of 50/50 sometimes, but I like when I can help the team. It feels good that when I went in today, things kind of came up.”

The Scots will host J.C. Harmon on Tuesday, followed by KC-Washington on Friday to close the regular season.

HIGHLAND PARK GIRLS 50, ATCHISON 42

Atchison          10 10 10 12 -- 42

Highland Park 7 16 15 12 -- 50

Atchison (15-5, 5-5) – Housh 1-4 2-2 4, Downing 10-22 1-2 21, Herrera 2-11 1-2 5, Boldridge 0-1 0-0 0, Stoves 1-6 0-0 3, Burge 2-6 1-7 5, Banks 0-1 0-0 0, Tate 2-4 0-2 4. Totals: 18-55 5-15 42.

Highland Park (14-4, 10-0) – Broils 1-6 1-4 3, Hartz 2-8 2-6 5, Jones 1-4 0-0 2, Sanders 1-7 0-2 2, Carter 4-5 10-14 18, Kincaide 4-15 2-4 12, Grace 2-6 1-2 6, Cosey 0-1 0-0 0, Atkins 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 16-54 15-29 50.

3-point goals – Atchison 1 (Stoves 1), Highland Park 3 (Kincaide 2, Grace 1). Total fouls – Atchison 21, Highland Park 15. Fouled out – Boldridge. Technical fouls – None. 

By Todd Fertig

TopSports.news

The Highland Park girls were a little slow to shake off the effects of Thursday’s 71-22 drubbing at the hands of Wichita Life Prep. But the Scots eventually got it going Friday and pulled away from Meadowlark Conference rival Sumner Academy, 57-38.

Sophomore Pearmella Carter tied for game-high scoring honors with 16 points in Friday's 57-38 Highland Park home win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The Scots stumbled out of the gate Friday, going scoreless for the first three minutes. Trailing 5-0, they got off the mat to take an 11-10 advantage at the end of the period. They used a 15-2 run to close the second quarter, leading 32-21.

From there, the Scots used defense and a dominant fourth quarter by sophomore Pearmella Carter to shut down the Sabres.

“We kind of had a slow start,” said coach Rob Brown. “But they buckled down and did what we’ve been preaching to them -- getting the ball moving from side to side, being patient with the ball, not turning it over and finding open teammates, making shots and finishing plays.”

Carter finished with 16 points to lead the Scots, followed by Tahtionna Broils with 14. Majesty Grace came off the bench to spark the Scots with three 3-pointers and 11 total points.