Highland Park Scots

'By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

MANHATTAN (6-8, 2-2) at HAYDEN (8-4, 1-3)

No. 8-ranked (Class 4A) Hayden has been off since winning the Wellsville Top Gun Tournament last Saturday with a 48-39 win over Spring Hill. The Wildcats have now won four straight games and put sophomores Brylee Meier and Kaliya Fulton and junior Lauren Sandstrom on the all-tournament team. Manhattan is coming off a 46-35 win over Dodge City and has won two straight games for the first time this season.

Senior Brooklyn DeLeye scored 19 points in Washburn Rural's 54-52 overtime loss to Blue Valley Northwest on Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]

EMPORIA (12-2, 3-1) at WASHBURN RURAL (9-4, 4-0)

No. 4-ranked (Class 6A) Washburn Rural will be looking to protect its lead in the Centennial League race while No. 4 (5A) Emporia will be looking to pull even with the Junior Blues. Both teams are coming off losses, with the Spartans dropping a last-second 46-43 decision to Seaman in the Glaciers Edge championship game last Saturday while Rural fell to non-league foe Blue Valley Northwest in overtime on Tuesday, 54-52. Senior Brooklyn DeLeye scored 19 points against Blue Valley Northwest while senior Chloe Carlgren added 11 points and sophomore Tenly Bunck nine points on three 3-pointers.

LEAVENWORTH (2-11, 2-7) at SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (9-5, 7-3)

Ninth-ranked (Class 5A) Shawnee Heights is coming off a tough 37-33 United Kansas Conference loss at Basehor-Linwood Tuesday night while Leavenworth is coming off a 59-26 loss to Bonner Springs. Shawnee Heights took 49-36 UKC win over the Pioneers earlier in the season. All five of Shawnee Heights losses have been by four or fewer points. Senior Riley Showalter led the T-Birds with 11 points against Basehor-Linwood while seniors Emari Doby and Taylor Rottinghaus added 10 and seven points, respectively.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

MANHATTAN (8-6, 2-2) at HAYDEN (6-6, 1-3)

Hayden was off Tuesday after a 58-51 non-league home loss to Shawnee Heights last Friday. Manhattan is coming off a 67-59 loss to Blue Valley, its third straight loss. Senior Joe Otting and junior Jacob Padilla scored 14 points apiece in the Wildcats' loss to Shawnee Heights, with Otting going six of six at the free throw line. Senior Jake Muller also cracked double  figures for Hayden with 11 points.

Washburn Rural senior Jack Bachelor is coming off a 27-point performance in Tuesday's 65-60 non-league road win at Blue Valley. [File photo/TSN]

EMPORIA (10-4, 3-1) at WASHBURN RURAL (10-4, 3-1)

Senior Jack Bachelor scored 27 points in Washburn Rural's 65-60 non-league victory over Blue Valley on Tuesday. Bachelor went nine of 13 from the field and six of seven from the free throw line against the Tigers while sophomore Kaden Ballard added 13 points while hitting four of seven 3-point attempts. Emporia is coming off a 41-39 win over Manhattan. 

LEAVENWORTH (4-9, 2-8) at SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (10-4, 7-3)

Shawnee Heights posted a 57-48 United Kansas Conference road win at Basehor-Linwood on Tuesday, giving the T-Birds a regular-season sweep over the Bobcats. Sophomore Jaret Sanchez led Heights with 16 points while junior Brennon Dodge added 15 points, seniors Jeremyah Kendrick and Q Stovall eight points apiece and sophomore Deacon Pomeroy seven. Leavenworth has lost four straight games, including a 67-60 non-league loss to Bonner Springs on Tuesday. Heights beat Leavenworth 61-40 in an earlier game between the two teams.

Senior Jahmir Kingannon scored 18 points with five 3-pointers in Thursday's 79-48 Meadowlark Conference win over KC-Schlagle. [File photo/TSN]

HIGHLAND PARK (13-0, 6-0) at KC-WYANDOTTE (3-10, 3-4)

Highland Park, top-ranked in Class 5A, will be playing its third game in four days. The Scots are coming off a 79-48 Meadowlark Conference home win over KC-Schlagle Thursday night, with seniors Tre Richardson and Jahmir Kingcannon scoring 18 points apiece and senior Bo Aldridge adding 11 points. Kingcannon canned five 3-pointers on the night. Highland Park took a 95-42 win over Wyandotte earlier in the season. The Bulldogs are coming off a 65-62 league win over KC-Harmon on Tuesday.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

For one of the few times all season, Highland Park's boys basketball team found itself behind in the first half of Thursday's Meadlowlark Conference home game against winless Kansas City-Schlagle, prompting Hi Park coach Mike Williams to call a timeout to express his displeasure with his Scots.

Highland Park coach Mike Williams talks to his team early in Thursday's 79-48 win over KC-Schlagle. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Highland Park senior Jahmir Kingcannon (right) scored 18 points with five 3-pointers in Thursday's 79-48 win over KC-Schlagle. [File photo/TSN]

But it didn't late long for No. 1-ranked (Class 5A) Highland Park to right the ship, with the Scots taking control with 14-2 run at the end of the half and cruising to their 13th straight win, 79-48 over the Stallions.

"As much as we don't want that, we were able to try some things,'' Williams said of the early deficit. "Credit to Schlagle for how they started out the game but credit to our guys for sticking together and putting some things together for us.''

Schlagle (0-12, 0-6) led 17-16 at the end of the first quarter and held a 21-18 advantage midway through the second quarter before Highland Park dominated the remainder of the half to take a 32-23 lead.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

Highland Park's boys and Seaman's girls held on to the No. 1 spot in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 5A state rankings, released Tuesday night.

Senior Bo Aldridge and the Highland Park boys remain No. 1 in the KBCA 5A boys rankings for the fourth straight week. [File photo/TSN]

Taylin Stallbaumer and the Seaman girls remain No. 1 in the KBCA Class 5A girls rankings after winning last week's Glaciers Edge Tournament. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

The undefeated Scots held the top spot in the 5A boys rankings for the fourth straight week while Seaman's girls are No. 1 for the second straight week after regaining the top spot.

Highland Park and Seaman are two of eight Shawnee County teams in this week's KBCA rankings.

Washburn Rural's girls fell to No. 4 in 6A while Topeka High's girls moved up to No. 5.

Shawnee Heights girls are still ranked No. 9 in 5A while Hayden's girls moved up to No. 8 in the 4A rankings.

Silver Lake's girls moved up a sport to No. 6 in 3A.

Topeka West remained No. 9 in the 5A boys rankings.

KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS

By ISAAC DEER

TopSports.news

Tuesday night's 65-23 romp over Meadowlark Conference foe Kansas City-Washington was everything Highland Park girls basketball coach Rob Brown could've asked for in his team.

"No matter who we play, we just need to continue playing the right way," Brown said. "Moving the ball around with Millie (Amelia Ramsey) touching the ball and everyone else getting touches is what we want. Defensively, we've been able to execute different defenses that we've been trying to touch base on and work on."

Sophomore Amelia Ramsey scored 18 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in Highland Park's 65-23 Meadowlark Conference win over KC-Washington Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]

Highland Park extended its win streak to four games with the 42-point conference win over Washington. Last year Highland Park's longest win streak was two games.

Last season the message was "trust the process." In the 2021-2022 campaign, Highland Park went 4-17 with a lot of painful growth.

With Highland Park sitting at 9-3 on the season, the potential for this young team is tremendous.

"We talk about last year a lot," Brown said. "Last year was a foundational year for us. We were trying to get those (roster) numbers up. Those seniors from last year built the foundation for us to get us in the right direction. The seniors got the young ones ready for what they are doing now. So we want to keep looking forward and try to keep getting better and better."

By ISAAC DEER

TopSports.news

Tuesday was a different game day for Highland Park coach Mike Williams.

Williams spent his day at the local hospital with chest pains and was stuck in the hospital until 6:00 p.m.

Mike Williams spent most of his Tuesday in the hospital but returned in time to see his Highland Park Scots improve to 12-0 with a 76-43 win over KC-Washington. [File photo/TSN]

Still, he was able to rush over to the gym and help lead his team to a dominant 76-43 victory over Meadowlark Conference opponent Kansas City-Washington.

"I was having chest pains, and I had no idea if I was having a heart attack or what," Williams said. "It's just been a crazy day. I wasn't around in school, I wasn't around at the end of the day, and I missed the JV game. But the guys were able to stay intact and keep their heads right."

Luckily, his heart was okay, and so was his team.

Class 5A No. 1-ranked Highland Park kept its 12-0, undefeated record alive in a loud way.

The Scots have now won eight games by at least 30 points. Highland Park's bench players are getting more minutes than the average team's starting five.

The Scots' starting five of Tre Richardson, Bo Aldridge, Jahmir Kingcannon, Quentin Adams and Aydren Drew-Gregory put the team in the best position possible to secure another enormous victory.

Four Highland Park players had double-digit scoring nights. Tamir Anderson led the Scots with 16 points off the bench while Aldridge had 15 points, Adams 12 and Richardson 10 points.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PIPER (10-4, 7-3) at SEAMAN (7-5, 4-4)

Senior Kaeden Bonner (right) and the Seaman boys basketball team will be looking for their fifth straight victory in Tuesday night's United Kansas Conference home game against Piper. [File photo/TSN]

Seaman has posted four straight victories, including a 68-41 United Kansas Conference victory over Lansing last Friday. Piper is coming off a 62-56 UKC loss to De Soto. Tuesday night will be the second game of the season between Seaman and Piper, with the Pirates taking a 61-48 win over the Vikings in the earlier meeting.

Senior Bo Aldridge and the Highland Park boys ran their winning streak to 11 games with a pair of non-league victories last week. [File photo/TSN]

KC-WASHINGTON (5-7, 3-2) at HIGHLAND PARK (11-0, 4-0)

Highland Park, the top-ranked team in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 5A state rankings, continued its dominating season with a pair of non-league victories last week The Scots took a 76-45 win over state-ranked Eudora on Tuesday and then rolled to an 82-21 victory over Kansas City-East, Mo. on Friday. The league-leading Scots return to Meadowlark Conference play against KC-Washington.

'By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

PIPER (10-4, 7-3) at SEAMAN (11-1, 7-1)

Seaman junior Taylin Stallbaumer is congratulated by her teammates after hitting the game-winning 3-pointer in Saturday's 46-43 win over Emporia in the Glaciers Edge Tournament. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

Seaman, top-ranked in Class 5A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, captured the tournament championship in last week's Glacier's Edge Tournament, taking a 46-43 win over tournament host Emporia on junior Taylin Stallbaumer's buzzer-beating 3-pointer in Saturday's championship game. Freshman Maddie Gragg scored 16 points and Stallbaumer 15 against Emporia while sophomore Anna Becker was named the tournament Most Valuable Player. Piper has posted three straight wins, including a 62-50 win over De Soto in the Pirates' last game. Seaman beat Piper 63-35 in an earlier meeting.

Sophomore Amelia Ramsey (center) has led Highland Park's girls to an 8-3 record and the Meadowlark Conference lead this winter. [File photo/TSN]

KC-WASHINGTON (3-7, 2-4) at HIGHLAND PARK (8-3, 4-0)

League-leading Highland Park will return to Meadowlawk Conference play after a 75-7 non-league romp past Kansas City-East, Mo. last Friday. Washington is coming off a 67-18 win over Kansas City-Northeast, Mo. Sophomore Amelia Ramsey leads Highland Park, which has not had a Meadowlark Conference game closer than 16 points. The Scots have won their last three games.

LANSING (3-9, 2-7) at TOPEKA WEST (3-10, 2-8)

Topeka West finished sixth in last week's Firebird Classic at Free State, posting a 1-2 record. The Chargers took a 46-40 consolation win over Great Bend last Friday before dropping a 59-53 decision to Wichita Northwest in Saturday's consolation final. Lansing is coming off a 49-45 win over Jefferson West.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Senior star Kiki Smith scored 36 points in three quarters of action as Topeka High's girls advanced to Saturday's Firebird Classic championship game with a 69-37 semifinal win over Goddard Eisenhower Friday night at Free State, improving to 10-3 on the season.

Topeka High senior Kiki Smith scored 36 points in just three quarters as the Trojans rolled to a 69-37 win over Eisenhower Friday night in the semifinals of the Firebird Classic. [File photo/TSN]

The seventh-ranked (Class 6A) Trojans took control with a 22-12 first quarter and opened up a 37-21 halftime advantage.

Topeka High used a 22-10 third quarter to take a 59-31 lead and cruised the rest of the way.

Smith canned six 3-pointers against Eisenhower while junior Ladaysha Baird added 11 points for Topeka High with three 3-pointers.

Topeka High will face 8-3 Blue Valley in the tournament championship game, with the No. 8-ranked Tigers advancing with a 59-38 win over No. 5 Lawrence.

The championship game is a rematch of last season's 6A state tournament first-round game between Topeka High and Blue Valley, with the Tigers taking a one-point win in that game.

SEAMAN GIRLS 45, DERBY 39 -- No. 1-ranked (Class 5A) Seaman posted a 45-39 statement win over No. 4-ranked (6A) Derby in Friday night's semifinals of the the Glacier's Edge Tournament..

Seaman, which improved to 10-1, led 25-19 at halftime over Derby, last year's 6A runner-up, and held off the Panthers the rest of the way.

Seaman advanced to Saturday's championship game to take on tournament host and former Centennial League rival Emporia.

The 12-1 Spartans, ranked No. 4 in 5A, advanced with a 53-52 win over Wichita Heights.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

Highland Park's boys held on to the No. 1 spot in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 5A boys state rankings for the third straight week while Seaman's girls regained the top spot in 5A.

Highland Park, celebrating its Topeka Invitational Tournament title last Saturay, is No. 1 in the KBCA Class 5A boys state rankings for the third straight week. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Matt Tinsley's Seaman girls basketball team regained the No. 1 spot in the KBCA Class 5A state rankings, released Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]

Highland Park and Seaman are two of nine Shawnee County teams in this week's KBCA rankings, released Tuesday.

Washburn Rural's girls remained No. 3 in 6A while Topeka High's girls are seventh-ranked..

Shawnee Heights girls are ranked No. 9 in 5A while Hayden's girls entered the 4A rankings in a tie for 10th.

Silver Lake's girls stayed No. 7 in 3A after winning the Burlington Invitational title.

Topeka West fell to No. 9 in the 5A boys rankings while Hayden stayed No. 10 in 4A.

KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS