Washburn University softball Ichabods boosted its win streak to four games Friday with a 12-1, 6-0 sweep at Fort Hays State.
Shawnee Heights Thunderbirds
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural senior star Audrey Appuhn reached a career milestone in Friday's Topeka girls city swimming/diving championships at the Capitol Federal Natatorium as the Junior Blues stretched their city title streak to 23 straight seasons.
Appuhn was a double individual winner and four-event gold medalist to lead the way as Washburn Rural took the city crown by a 588-468 margin over Seaman.
Washburn Rural's girls swimming team celebrates in the Capitol Federal Natatorium pool Friday after Rural won its 23rd straight city team championship. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
And while the two biggest meets of the year -- Centennial League and Class 6A state -- are next up for Rural, coach Bob Burdick said the city championship will always be one that the Junior Blues circle on the schedule.
"Especially here in Topeka, we're all here in this together and the best part about this meet is not only the meet, the championship, but also that all these girls in the city all know each other, so they all get to compete with each other, cheer each other and it's just an amazing event,'' Burdick said.
Washburn Rural senior Audrey Appuhn won four gold medals in Friday's city meet as the Junior Blues captured their 23rd straight city team championship. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Competing in her final city meet, Appuhn won the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes, 22.00 seconds and the 100-yard freestyle in 57.28 while teaming with Sophie Heinen, Resego Mackenzie and Kaci Hodgson to win the 200 medley relay (2:13.84) and with Heinen, Ava Von Lintel and Stella Berry to win the 400 free relay (4:20.97).
With her two individual wins Appuhn finished her four-year city career with eight individual victories in as many tries.
"It never really was a goal,'' Appuhn said. "I just realized, 'Oh, it happened.' ''
Appuhn also added seven career relay victories in eight starts to finish her city career with 15 gold medals.
Senior Rhiannon Good won the one-meter diving event with a score of 239.85 to account for Washburn Rural's fifth victory of the day while the Junior Blues posted top-three finishes in 11 of 12 events and had multiple top-three finishes in four events.
Rural began the season with several question marks, but Burdick said he's been very pleased with the Junior Blues' performance this spring.
"They've made the progress we need,'' he said. "We picked up 12 new swimmers this year that had never swam and moved them all along and they all contributed tonight, so that was great.''
Appuhn, Good, Heinen and Von Lintel all earned spots on the All-City first team while Mackenzie, Hodgson and Sophie Reffett were second-teamers.
Other highlights:
Hayden junior Kaelyn Gerdel won a pair of individual titles in Friday's city swimming meet. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Hayden junior Kaelyn Gerdel joined Appuhn as a double individual city champion, winning the 200-yard freestyle in 2:16.81 and the 100 backstroke in 1:19.12.
Gerdel was a first-team All-City pick while Hayden's Lilly Charvat finished second in the 100 breaststroke (1:21.11) and was a second-team All-City pick.
Shawnee Heights' Kaitlyn Aldridge (left) won the 100-yard butterfly and finished second in the 200 individual medley in Friday's city championships at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Shawnee Heights got victories from Clara Sobba in the 50-yard freestyle (26.94) and Kaitlyn Aldridge in the 100 butterfly (1:10.52) while Aldridge finished second in the 200 individual medley (2:34.61) and Sobba was second in the 100 free (58.49).
Aldridge and Sobba also teamed with Jade Kinsch and Lainey Herrera in the 200 medley relay (2:14.60).
Aldridge and Sobba were All-City first-team honorees while Kinsch was a second-team pick.
Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo won the 100-yard backstroke in Friday's city championships at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Topeka High got city titles from Avery Skinner and Hara Del Castillo, with Skinner winning the 500 freestyle (6:01.47) and Del Castillo winning the 100 backstroke (1:10.55).
Skinner finished second in the 100 back (1:12.70) while Del Castillo was third in the 50 free (27.78) as both Trojans were first-team All-City selections.
• Team runnerup Seaman got a city title from the foursome of Ava Carlson, Gracie Scott, Isabelle Hahn and Riley Strother in the 200 free relay in 1:57.02 while the Vikings posted top-three finishes in five other events.
Seaman's Strother, Carlson, Scott and Megan Strobel finished second in the 400 free relay (4:26.64).
Strobel and Strother were both All-City first-team honorees while Jenna Zimmerman, Manuela Diaz, Marleigh Frazier, Jurnee Jessepe and Tenley Wessel made the second team.
• Cair Paravel Latin's Avery Rosenow finished second in diving to earn a spot on the All-City second team while Topeka West's Makenna Russell was also a second-team selection.
TOPEKA GIRLS CITY SWIMMING/DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman boys tennis continued its late-season run on Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center, with the Vikings capturing their second tournament championship over three days.
Seaman captured a Class 5A regional championship Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center after winning the UKC title two days earlier. [Submitted photo]
After capturing the United Kansas Conference title on Thursday, Seaman won Saturday's Class 5A regional title by a 20-17 margin over Piper, advancing all six of its players to Friday's 5A state tournament at Andover.
"It was a gutsy effort from everybody,'' Seaman coach Jamie Robinson said. "They really came to play, so that was fun to watch as a spectator and a coach.
"This is the second year in a row we're going to take all six to state and I think we learned a lot from last year.''
After finishing second in the UKC tournament, sophomore singles player Camden Dutton added a runnerup regional finish to lead the Vikings.
The Vikings also got a third-place singles finish from Kenton Myrick and third and fourth-place doubles finishes from the teams of Owen Stewart and Dayton Schneider and Aaron Sampson and Cooper Hopeck.
Sophomore Camden Dutton led regional champion Seaman with a runnerup singles finish Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Dutton dropped a 6-1, 7-5 decision to Piper's Blake Taylor in the singles final while Myrick, a freshman, earned his first trip to state with a 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) win over Bonner Springs' Deion Cruse in the third-place match.
Dutton will take an 18-11 into state while Myrick is 22-7.
Seniors Schneider and Stewart (22-6) met teammates Hopeck and Sampson (23-9) in the third-place doubles match for the second straight tournament, with Stewart and Schneider taking a 6-4, 6-1 decision.
Topeka West sophomore Collin McGee earned a second straight state tournament berth with a runnerup regional doubles finish. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka West junior Zander Rice teamed with Collin McGee to post a runnerup doubles finish in Saturday's Class 5A regional. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka West got a runnerup doubles finish from Collin McGee and Zander Rice, who dropped a tight 6-4, 6-4 decision to Piper's Johnny Vogel and Baird Greenamyre in the title match after also playing the Pirates' duo in the UKC final.
McGee, a sophomore, earned his second straight 5A state berth and McGee and Rice, a junior, will take a 28-10 record into the state tournament.
CLASS 5A BOYS REGIONAL TENNIS
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman didn't claim an individual title in Thursday's United Kansas Conference boys tennis championships at Kossover Tennis Center, but the Vikings took home the biggest prize.
Seaman captured the United Kansas Conference boys tennis championship Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Submitted photo]
Seaman advanced all six of its players to the tournament semifinals, including a second-place singles finish from Camden Dutton, en route to earning the team crown by a 67-62 margin over Piper.
In addition to Dutton's runnerup showing, the Vikings got a fourth-place singles finish from Kenton Myrick and third and fourth-place doubles finishes from the teams of Owen Stewart and Dayton Schneider and Aaron Sampson and Cooper Hopeck.
Camden Dutton led UKC team-champion Seaman with a runnerup singles finish Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Dutton advanced to the championship singles match with an 8-3 semifinal win over Basehor-Linwood's Trevor Christenson before dropping an 8-3 decision to Piper's Blake Taylor while Myrick lost in the semifinals to Taylor before dropping an 8-1 decision to Basehor-Linwood's Trevor Christenson in the third-place match.
Schneider and Stewart met teammates Hopeck and Sampson in the third-place doubles match, with Stewart and Schneider taking an 8-4 decision.
Topeka West finished third as a team with 54 points, getting a runnerup doubles finish from Collin McGee and Zander Rice.
Topeka West's Collin McGee (left) and Zander Rice posted a runnerup doubles finish in Thursday's UKC tennis tournament at Kossover Tennis Center. [Submitted photo]
McGee and Rice outlasted Seaman's Schneider and Stewart 8-6 in the doubles semifinals before dropping an 8-6 decision to Piper's Johnny Vogel and Baird Greenamyre in the title match.
Topeka West's Collin McGee (left) teamed with Zander Rice to finish second in doubles in Thursday's UKC tennis tournament at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Wyatt Lindencrantz and Jordan Ward led Shawnee Heights with a fifth-place doubles finish.
Seaman, Topeka West and Shawnee Heights will also compete in a Class 5A regional tournament on Saturday at Kossover, vying for state tournament berths.
UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE BOYS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
BOYS
100 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 10.43
Malachi Murph, Topeka High 10.91
Israel Edmonds, Washburn Rural 11.02
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 11.04
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 11.15
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural
200 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 21.78
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 22.30
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 22.38
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 22.60
Courtney Sanders, Topeka High 22.66
400 METERS
Draden Chooncharoen, Washburn Rural 50.25
Jason Slay, Shawnee Heights 50.71
Joel Miller, Silver Lake 50.94
Xavier Fisher, Shawnee Heights 51.34
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 51.43
Brody Anderson, Seaman
800 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 1:53.37
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 1:56.64
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 1:59.62
Everett Un, Washburn Rural 2:03.26
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights 2:03.30
1,600 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 4:08.2 (mile converted to meters)
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 4:20.32
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 4:24.35
Nick Newkirk, Hayden 4:33.03
Duke Graf, Washburn Rural 4:33.71
3,200 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 9:11.63
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 9:23.61
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 9:24.34
Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural 9:44.54
Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural 9:57.60
110-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 14.07
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 15.31
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 15.54
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 16.10
De'sean Lunkins, Topeka High 16.22
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural
300-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 37.61
Kellan Parcaro, Seaman 42.03
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 42.09
Colin Miller, Silver Lake 43.41
Michael Ruelas, Seaman 43.46
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 42.92
Seaman 43.27
Washburn Rural 43.27
Topeka High 43.52
Silver Lake 43.77
4x400-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 3:21.82
Shawnee Heights 3:24.59
Silver Lake 3:30.04
Seaman 3:35.19
Topeka High 3:35.43
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 8:21.93
Seaman 8:34.58
Silver Lake 8:57.48
Topeka High 9:09.82
Topeka West 9:29.28
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: TopSports.news will compile a weekly girls swimming and diving honor roll for Topeka high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
200-YARD MEDLEY RELAY
Shawnee Heights 2:16.07
Seaman 2:18.07
Washburn Rural 2:18.75
Hayden 2:25.76
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden
200-YARD FREESTYLE
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden 2:11.68
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 2:25.97
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 2:31.01
Megan Strobel, Seaman 2:37.54
Stella Berry, Washburn Rural 2:43.23
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural
200-YARD INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 2:23.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 2:34.07
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 2:34.20
Riley Strother, Seaman 2:51.05
Avery Skinner, Seaman 2:51.97
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights
50-YARD FREESTYLE
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 27.28
Riley Strother, Seaman 27.61
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 27.76
Ava Carlson, Seaman 28.56
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 28.90
Rhiannon Good, Washburn Rural
ONE-METER DIVING
Rhiannan Good, Washburn Rural 196.00
Avery Rosenow, Hayden/CPLS 176.40
Mackenzie Caryl, Topeka High 146.60
Abigail Culbertson, Topeka High 122.50
Madilyn Typer, Seaman 105.40
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
KellyAnn Chada registered a three-goal hat trick Tuesday night at the Bettis Family Sports Complex as Cair Paravel Latin soccer celebrated Senior Night with a 4-2 win over city rival Shawnee Heights.
KellyAnn Chada (20) scored a hat trick in Cair Paravel's 4-2 Senior Night win over Shawnee Heights Tuesday night. [Photo by Vince Lovergine/TSN]
“Just having so many fans cheering me on knowing my seasons at Cair Paravel are coming to a close, it was just very special to end like that even though we have a couple more games,” said Chada, one of four Lion seniors. “I’ll miss all the times that I’ve had here, so I'm glad that I got something to go off for my final few games.”
It hasn’t been the type of season CPLS has had in recent years, but coach Doug Woolery told TopSports.News that this game against the T-Birds could’ve been the game the Lions needed against a good program.
“It’s been a struggle,'' Woolery said. "We have some talent. I have a lot of young players and I think we're getting them used to our system and kind of gelling together as a team.
“Every coach wants to start peaking at the end of the season and I think we’re peaking. I thought this game was a good representation.”
Chada agreed.
“We've definitely grown so much through the season and Shawnee Heights, they're a good team but we just played to the best of our ability and that was something that was really special finally seeing everything that we've been working on coming together on Senior Night, that was great to see,” Chada said.
Shawnee Heights struck first in the first half when junior Nina Bolanos scored at the 23:00 mark.
Cair Paravel would even the match at 1-1, with senior Hemi Duehring putting one home deep inside the box after the play began from an inbounds play with 17:15 left in the half, ending the first-half scoring.
But then Oral Roberts commit Chada exploded for three second-half goals as the Lions took control.
Chada helped the Lion take their first lead of the match off a hand ball which positioned Chada for a successful penalty kick with 25:31 left.
About three minutes later Chada buried another goal off the right side of the box to make the score 3-1.
The T-Birds got back within one off junior Morgan Robinson’s goal with 16:49 to go in the match, but then Chada put the nail in the coffin, scoring off a rebound from a corner kick with 6:23 remaining.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural swept the doubles championships in Thursday's city boys tennis tournament at Kossover Tennis Center to lead the Junor Blues to a third straight city team title.
Washburn Rural tennis swept the doubles titles on the way to its third straight city team title Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham captured the No. 1 doubles title with an 8-3 win over Topeka West's Collin McGee and Zander Rice while Junior Blues seniors Ben Tryhus and Kieffer O'Connor repeated as the No. 2 doubles champs with an 8-3 decision in the final as Rural captured the team championship by a 30-27 margin over Seaman.
Cair Paravel Latin swept the singles titles, with senior Drew Fay topping 2025 champion Tres Lassiter of Topeka High in the No. 1 final and freshman Jonah Arnold capturing the No. 2 crown in his first city meet.
Deutscher and Willingham's title came after a tiebreaker loss to Cair Paravel in the 2025 final.
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher (left) and Dylan Willingham won the city title in No. 1 doubles Thursday to lead the Junior Blues to their third straight city team title. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"I think we just put in the work in the offseason and it just helped us to push through this year,'' Deutscher said about Thursday's win. "We played good tennis today.''
"Being a senior, you want to end it off on the right foot and we did it,'' Willingham said. "I think we've got some good momentum going forward and that's good because we're going into league and regionals and state.''
The Junior Blues also got a third-place finish in No. 1 singles from Greyson Jones and a runnerup finish in No. 2 singles from Jaxon Whitehead to outdistance Seaman, which posted four top-four finishes, including a second-place showing in No. 2 doubles.
Thursday's Rural title was a tuneup for next Monday's Centennial League tournament, followed by Class 6A regional and state meets.
"I think the team's definitely doing good,'' Deutscher said. "We put in a lot of work in practice every day and a lot of us stay after, too, after our regular time. We've all been coming together really well.''
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay won the city title in No. 1 singles Thursday after winning the No. 1 doubles championship as a junior. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Fay captured his second straight city championship, with an interesting twist.
Fay teamed with Eric Buchenau to win the No. 1 city doubles title as a junior on the way to a runnerup Class 3A-1A state finish before switching back to singles this spring and earning the No. 1 singles crown with an 8-3 win over High standout Lassiter.
Fay said he got the day off to a somewhat slow start in the quarterfinals before picking up steam as the day went on.
"It was honestly my fault,'' said Fay, who has played 13 matches over the past three days. "I didn't warm up before this so I was slowly getting better as it went on.''
Fay admitted that going from doubles back to singles did take some time.
"Especially over the summer it took awhile to even remember how to play singles,'' Fay said. "It was like re-learning almost, so it's been kind of tough, but I feel like I've gotten back to it now.
"I think I've been progressing all season, so hopefully I hit my climax when state comes around and just keep improving.''
CITY BOYS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
GIRLS
100 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 12.46
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 12.60
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 12.72
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 12.75
Jaiden Wise, Silver Lake 12.83
200 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 26.11
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 26.81
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 26.82
Sofia Harper, Hayden 27.00
Julia Molleker, Seaman 27.23
400 METERS
Sofia Harper, Hayden 59.75
Ali Gerber, Silver Lake 60.07
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 60.34
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 61.03
Brynn Scheid, Seaman 62.93
800 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 2:20.86
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 2:23.63
Ryin Miller, Seaman 2:23.65
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 2:24.26
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 2:33.45
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural
1,600 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 5:14.21
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 5:17.54
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 5:26.49
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 5:28.35
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 5:39.04
3,200 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 11:06.46
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 11:36.26
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 11:36.97
Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural 12:05.94
100-METER HURDLES
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 15.70
Rylee Dick, Rossville 16.77
Marchayla White, Topeka High 17.76
Ravaya Smith, Washburn Rural 18.88
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 19.13
300-METER HURDLES
Rylee Dick, Rossville 50.00
Journey Manhart, Silver Lake 54.13
Avery Villines, Seaman 55.36
Amy Hill, Silver Lake 56.03
Grace Funk, Hayden 56.44
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 50.77
Silver Lake 51.06
Washburn Rural 51.79
Seaman 52.03
Topeka West 52.33
4x400-METER RELAY
Silver Lake 4:11.03
Topeka High 4:13.96
Washburn Rural 4:18.21
Shawnee Heights 4:29.41
Seaman 4:31.03
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 10:47.80
Topeka High 11:13.01
Silver Lake 11:30.83
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
BOYS
100 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 10.43
Israel Edmonds, Washburn Rural 11.02
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 11.04
Josh Brown, Seaman 11.18
Malachi Murph, Topeka High 11.21
200 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 22.02
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 22.30
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 22.50
Courtney Sanders, Topeka High 22.68
JaVeon Alston, Shawnee Heights 23.13
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 23.15
400 METERS
Draden Chooncharoen, Washburn Rural 50.25
Jason Slay, Shawnee Heights 50.71
Xavier Fisher, Shawnee Heights 51.34
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 51.43
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 52.40
Brody Anderson, Seaman
800 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 1:53.37
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 1:56.64
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 1:59.69
Everett Un, Washburn Rural 2:03.26
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights 2:03.30
1,600 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 4:09.65 (mile) 4:11.94 (1,600)
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 4:20.32
Nick Newkirk, Hayden 4:33.03
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 4:33.08
Duke Graf, Washburn Rural 4:38.83
3,200 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 9:11.63
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 9:30.10
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 9:43.11
Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural 9:54.63
Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural 9:57.60
110-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 14.07
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 15.43
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 15.54
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 16.10
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 16.41
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural
300-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 37.61
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 42.09
Kellan Parcaro, Seaman 42.36
Michael Ruelas, Seaman 43.46
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 43.71
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 42.98
Seaman 43.27
Washburn Rural 43.27
Topeka High 43.52
Silver Lake 44.07
4x400-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 3:21.82
Shawnee Heights 3:24.59
Silver Lake 3:32.89
Seaman 3:35.19
Topeka High 3:35.43
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 8:38.13
Seaman 8:50.45
Silver Lake 8:58.57
Topeka High 9:28.74
Topeka West 9:29.28
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
GIRLS
100 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 12.36
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 12.60
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 12.59
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 12.72
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 12.75
200 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 25.83
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 26.04
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 26.82
Ciera Hartz, Topeka High 26.48
Sofia Harper, Hayden 26.88
400 METERS
Sofia Harper, Hayden 59.75
Ali Gerber, Silver Lake 59.86
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 60.34
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 61.03
Brynn Scheid, Seaman 62.93
800 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 2:20.86
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 2:21.50
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 2:23.63
Ryin Miller, Seaman 2:23.65
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 2:33.45
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural
1,600 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 5:14.21
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 5:17.54
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 5:22.98
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 5:25.93
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 5:28.35
3,200 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 11:06.46
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 11:18.36
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 11:33.69
Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural 12:02.15
100-METER HURDLES
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 15.70
Rylee Dick, Rossville 16.77
Marchayla White, Topeka High 17.76
Ravaya Smith, Washburn Rural 18.88
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 19.13
300-METER HURDLES
Rylee Dick, Rossville 50.00
Marchayla White, Topeka High 51.68
Journey Manhart, Silver Lake 53.33
Avery Villines, Seaman 55.36
Amy Hill, Silver Lake 56.03
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 50.18
Silver Lake 50.64
Washburn Rural 51.79
Seaman 52.03
Topeka West 52.33
4x400-METER RELAY
Topeka High 4:10.27
Silver Lake 4:11.03
Washburn Rural 4:15.62
Seaman 4:21.03
Shawnee Heights 4:28.06
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 10:12.53
Topeka High 10:59.98
Silver Lake 11:18.38
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: TopSports.news will compile a weekly girls swimming and diving honor roll for Topeka high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
200-YARD MEDLEY RELAY
Shawnee Heights 2:16.07
Seaman 2:18.07
Washburn Rural 2:18.75
Hayden 2:25.76
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden
200-YARD FREESTYLE
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden 2:11.68
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 2:25.97
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 2:31.65
Megan Strobel, Seaman 2:37.54
Stella Berry, Washburn Rural 2:43.23
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural
200-YARD INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 2:23.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 2:34.07
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 2:34.20
Riley Strother, Seaman 2:51.05
Avery Skinner, Seaman 2:51.97
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights
50-YARD FREESTYLE
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 27.39
Riley Strother, Seaman 28.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 28.26
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 28.90
Ava Carlson, Seaman 29.31
ONE-METER DIVING
Rhiannan Good, Washburn Rural 196.00
Avery Rosenow, Hayden/CPLS 176.40
Mackenzie Caryl, Topeka High 138.75
Abigail Culbertson, Topeka High 110.35
Madilyn Typer, Seaman 105.40
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights
100-YARD BUTTERFLY
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 1:09.79
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 1:21.98
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 1:23.77
Sophie Reffett, Washburn Rural 1:27.54
Riley Strother, Seaman 1:31.54
100-YARD FREESTYLE
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 57.50
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 59.15
Riley Strother, Seaman 1:02.04
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 1:03.11
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 1:03.71
500-YARD FREESTYLE
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 6:25.05
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 6:33.78
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 6:53.97
Megan Strobel, Seaman 7:11.52
Emily Groff, Hayden 7:15.29
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural girls soccer rode three first-half goals to a 3-0 win over Shawnee Heights Monday night at the Bettis Family Sports Complex
.
“We’ve had a tough schedule, we’ve played a lot of road games and we’ve played some good competition and I think we’re making progress,'' Rural coach Brian Hensyel said. "Anytime that you play a team in the city, a lot of kids know each other and you want to have a good win and our best trait in this one was our defense didn’t allow them too many chances and pitched a shutout which is good.''
Rural had all the offensive momentum in the first half, keeping Shawnee Heights on their heels most of the first 40 minutes. Rural had 12 corner kicks and five shots on goal.
“Scoring goals has been a little tougher this year,'' Hensyel said. "Last year we kind of scored goals with ease and had forwards who would go get 30 goals … we’ve had to manufacture stuff. We’re doing all the right stuff. At least in the high school level, getting the ball in the box in any capacity is the danger zone.
"We did that a lot but we just missed a few shots, the keeper made some saves. The production is good, we just have to find a few more in the back of the net.''
The first goal for the Junior Blues came at the 22:37 mark from senior midfielder Allie Schroder inside the box.
About eight minutes later, Washburn Rural would capitalize on a corner kick. Senior Dayne Shriver put it in play, junior Brooklyn Rutherford finished it off at the 13:15 mark to go up 2-0.
Then just about two minutes later at the 10:37 mark, another corner kick occurred and junior Emery Hall put one home to make it 3-0 and that would end up being the final score.
Two of the three goals were on corner kicks in this matchup and Hensyel said that will be key for their success moving forward.
“About a week or so ago we watched film of all of the goals we either scored or gave up in the first eight games of the season … we do emphasize trying to earn them and we ran our plays better tonight,'' Hensyel said. "We had opportunities but their keeper came up big a couple of times.
"I was hoping we could put a few more in the back of the net but that’s always something we’re going to emphasize because in high school soccer, that’s always a huge advantage to have those set pieces.''
For Shawnee Heights, that was its second time in three games being shut out after pitching two shutouts previously over Turner and Topeka West.
Rural will play Trinity Academy at home on Tuesday. Shawnee Heights will also play Tuesday against Lansing at Bettis Sports Complex.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural had a lot to celebrate in Monday's city boys golf championship at Topeka Country Club.
The Junior Blues extended their city title streak to 16 straight seasons while sweeping the top three individual places and capping the day with a special father-son moment.
Washburn Rural boys golf ran its city championship streak to 16 straight Monday at Topeka Country Club. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural took the team championship by a 326-335 margin over Seaman while the Junior Blues put four players in the top 10, led by a one-two-three sweep from Peyton Goehring, Keaton Stoner and Wyatt Dean.
Senior teammates Goehring and Stoner both shot 77s to tie for the city individual title and force a playoff, with Goehring winning with a bogey on the first playoff hole.
Washburn Rural senior teammates Peyton Goehring (left) and Keaton Stoner exchange a hug after finishing one-two in a playoff in Monday's city tournament. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Goehring admitted that it was tough going up against a teammate in the playoff.
"Obviously it's a team game and I really didn't want to beat him because he played tremendous, too,'' Goehring said. "I'd rather beat an opponent, but a win's a win I guess.''
Peyton Goehring is congratulated by his father and coach, Jared Goehring, after winning the city title Monday at Topeka Country Club. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Making Goehring's first city title even more special was the fact that it came in Peyton's final city tournament for his father, Jared Goehring, the longtime Washburn Rural coach.
"It means a lot,'' Peyton said. "He's obviously coached me my whole life and I had a goal this year to place top 10 in the city individually, but I guess I did a little bit better than that.
"It does mean a lot though to do it for my team and obviously my dad coaching.''
Dean finished third in the city meet with an 81 while Hayden's Austin Bean, Topeka West's Blake Schultz and Seaman's Hunter Gerhardt shot 82s to tie for fourth.
Rural's Michael Wilson and Seaman's Noah LaRosh tied for seventh with 83s while Topeka High's Caleb Cleverdon and Seaman's Evan Michalski tied for ninth with 84s.
Rural also got an 85 from Higgins Hawks and an 86 from Camden Ismert while Rural's Lane Witrock competed in the Topeka Country Club Invitational, held in conjunction with the city tournament, shooting an 80.
"I'm proud of all of them today because it got pretty tough there at stages in the round and I thought they put their heads down and really battled for one another,'' Jared Goehring said.
"This was a goal we had at the beginning of the season, to defend this title, and hat's off to this senior class for getting it done today.''
Blue Valley North won the team title in the Topeka Country Club Invitational by four strokes over Blue Valley West (293-297).
Drew Krystyn of Blue Valley North claimed the individual title in a playoff over Free State's Henry Thompson after both players carded 69s.
TOPEKA CITY GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Topeka Area Football Coaches Association will host its 21st annual Junior Day Combine on Tuesday, May 5, at Shawnee Heights for next year's seniors interested in playing football at the collegiate level.
The NFL style combine, scheduled for 4 to 5:30 p.m., will be an opportunity for area high school athletes to get exposure in front of college coaches.
There will be representatives from NCAA Division II, NAIA and junior college programs in Kansas and the Midwest area at the combine and prospect information and combine results will be available to every college that recruits the Topeka area.
Players need to bring running shoes, cleats and water and wear a T-shirt representing their school.
The cost for attending the NFL style combine is $10 and can be paid the day of the combine (cash or check to TAFCA) .
If you are planning to attend the combine, please scan the completed registration form and email the information to Shawnee Heights football coach Jason Swift at
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural boys tennis rode a balanced attack to the team championship in Tuesday's 10-school Topeka West Invitational at the Kossover Tennis Center.
Washburn Rural captured the team championship in Tuesday's 10-school Topeka West Invitational at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Rural tennis]
Seniors Dylan Willingham and Cale Deutscher came within a whisker of winning the doubles championship, with the Junior Blues duo dropping an 8-7, 7-3 tiebreaker decision to Piper in the title match.
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher (left) and Dylan Willingham posted a runnerup doubles finish to lead the Junior Blues to the team title in Tuesday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Junior Greyson Jones finished third in singles to help Washburn Rural win the team title in Tuesday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural junior singles player Greyson Jones also mounted a strong bid for a title, losing on a tiebreaker in the semifinals before bouncing back to take an 8-4 win over Lawrence's Julian Bricker in the third-place match.
Rural juniors Ben Tryhus and Kieffer O'Connor posted a fifth-place finish in doubles while sophomore Jaxon Whitehead finished sixth in singles as Washburn Rural took the team crown by an 82-79 margin over Blue Valley Southwest.
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
Seaman girls soccer continued its unbeaten streak by jumping on United Kansas Conference and city rival Shawnee Heights early and holding on for a 5-0 shutout Tuesday at Bettis Family Sports Complex.
Seaman senior Ava Huston had a goal and an assist Tuesday as the Vikings improved to 6-0-2 with a 5-0 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Going against a fierce wind from the south, Seaman surprised their hosts when Savannah Nelson punched home a goal on the Vikings’ first possession, just 37 seconds into the contest. Barely five minutes into the contest, Julia Molleker added a second score. And 17 minutes into the first half, Nelson found the back of the next for a second time.
Senior Savannah Nelson (4) scored a pair of goals in Tuesday's 5-0 Seaman UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
“We came out super strong and pressed them really high at the beginning, which is good,” said senior Ava Huston. “It was a super-aggressive game, of course, but our defense locked them down and our forwards scored, so it was a good game.”
Seaman coach Kyle Seevers said his team has a knack for playing well into the wind. He wasn’t so certain, however, how the Vikings would perform a few days after prom.
“The effort is never there right after prom, and you’re wondering, 'Are we gonna show up against Shawnee Heights today?’ ” Seevers said. “Even in warmups, I was a little worried. I just didn’t see the effort. But this team has a pretty good nucleus, and when it’s time to kick off, they click right in.”
The Vikings added scores by Huston and Kallie Zurmely in the second half. At the back of the Seaman defense, goalkeeper Kelecia Hale held the T-Birds scoreless. It was the Vikings’ fourth shutout of the season.
The Vikings improved to 6-0-2 on the season with ties at Manhattan and at De Soto.
“We’re at the midpoint of the year, and right now we’ve got a lot of work to do, but we’re in a really good place,” Seevers said.
“We’re really aggressive and give a lot of effort to push through the hard times,” Huston added. “(Leading) this team is honestly pretty easy. Everyone gets along well. We’re all friends.”
Seaman (6-0-2) 3 2 -- 5
Shawnee Heights (3-4-2) 0 0 -- 0
Seaman -- Goals: Nelson 2, Molleker, Zurmely, Huston. Assists: Huston, Golightley, Brooks. Shutouts: Hale.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
BOYS
100 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 10.43
Israel Edmonds, Washburn Rural 11.02
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 11.04
Malachi Murph, Topeka High 11.20
Josh Brown, Seaman 11.21
200 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 22.02
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 22.50
Courtney Sanders, Topeka High 22.68
JaVeon Alston, Shawnee Heights 23.13
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 23.15
400 METERS
Draden Chooncharoen, Washburn Rural 50.25
Jason Slay, Shawnee Heights 50.71
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 52.40
Thomas Fisher, Silver Lake 53.26
Joel Miller, Silver Lake 53.38
Brody Anderson, Seaman
800 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 1:55.43
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 1:59.69
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 2:01.36
Everett Un, Washburn Rural 2:03.26
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights 2:03.30
1,600 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 4:09.65 (mile) 4:11.94 (1,600)
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 4:20.32
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 4:33.08
Duke Graf, Washburn Rural 4:38.83
Connor Baldwin, Hayden 4:39.00
3,200 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 9:27.73
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 9:30.10
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 9:43.11
Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural 9:54.63
Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural 9:57.60
110-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 14.07
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 15.43
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 15.54
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 16.10
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 16.44
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural
300-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 37.61
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 42.09
Kellan Parcaro, Seaman 42.36
Michael Ruelas, Seaman 43.46
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 43.79
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 42.98
Seaman 43.27
Topeka High 43.52
Washburn Rural 43.69
Silver Lake 44.07
4x400-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 3:21.82
Shawnee Heights 3:24.59
Silver Lake 3:33.24
Seaman 3:35.19
Topeka High 3:35.43
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 8:38.13
Seaman 8:50.45
Silver Lake 9:09.46
Topeka High 9:28.74
Topeka West 9:29.28
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
GIRLS
100 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 12.61
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 12.66
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 12.72
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 12.75
JaidenWise, Silver Lake 12.83
200 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 26.11
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 26.81
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 26.82
Sofia Harper, Hayden 27.00
Ciara Hartz, Topeka High 27.27
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 27.27
400 METERS
Ali Gerber, Silver Lake 60.23
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 61.03
Sofia Harper, Hayden 62.38
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 63.26
Brynn Scheid, Seaman 63.36
Ryan Miller, Seaman
800 METERS
Ryin Miller, Seaman 2:23.65
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 2:24.26
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 2:31.07
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 2:33.45
Hazel Rondash, Shawnee Heights 2:36.40
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural
1,600 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 5:14.21
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 5:24.46
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 5:26.49
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 5:28.35
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 5:39.04
3,200 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 11:06.46
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 11:36.26
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 11:36.97
Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural 12:09.09
100-METER HURDLES
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake 16.14
Rylee Dick, Rossville 17.15
Marchayla White, Topeka High 17.76
Ravaya Smith, Washburn Rural 18.88
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 19.13
300-METER HURDLES
Rylee Dick, Rossville 50.00
Avery Villines, Seaman 55.36
Journey Manhart, Silver Lake 55.66
Grace Funk, Hayden 56.44
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 57.47
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 50.77
Silver Lake 51.19
Washburn Rural 51.92
Seaman 53.07
Topeka West 53.39
4x400-METER RELAY
Silver Lake 4:11.03
Topeka High 4:13.96
Washburn Rural 4:18.21
Shawnee Heights 4:29.41
Seaman 4:31.03
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 10:47.80
Topeka High 11:13.01
Silver Lake 11:38.44
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: TopSports.news will compile a weekly girls swimming and diving honor roll for Topeka high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
200-YARD MEDLEY RELAY
Seaman 2:18.32
Washburn Rural 2:19.41
Shawnee Heights 2:21.17
Hayden 2:48.67
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden
200-YARD FREESTYLE
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden 2:12.42
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 2:25.97
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 2:31.65
Megan Strobel, Seaman 2:37.54
Joanna Diehl, Washburn Rural 2:47.44
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural
200-YARD INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 2:28.23
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 2:35.70
Riley Strother, Seaman 2:51.05
Avery Skinner, Seaman 2:51.97
Mya Bucholtz, Hayden 3:09.89
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights
50-YARD FREESTYLE
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 27.39
Riley Strother, Seaman 28.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 28.26
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 28.90
Makenna Russell, Topeka West 29.77
ONE-METER DIVING
Avery Rosenow, Hayden/CPLS 176.40
Mackenzie Caryl, Topeka High 138.75
Madilyn Typer, Seaman 105.40
Abigail Culbertson, Topeka High 89.55
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights
100-YARD BUTTERFLY
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 1:09.79
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 1:21.98
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 1:23.77
Sophie Reffett, Washburn Rural 1:28.10
Riley Strother, Seaman 1:31.54
100-YARD FREESTYLE
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 57.50
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 59.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 1:03.11
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 1:03.71
Gracie Scott, Seaman 1:07.72
500-YARD FREESTYLE
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 6:25.05
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 6:33.78
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 6:53.97
Sophie Reffett, Washburn Rural 7:57.80
Jurnee Jessepe, Seaman 8:18.59
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kaitlyn Aldridge
KAITLYN ALDRIDGE, Shawnee Heights
Aldridge, a junior swimming standout, won the 100-yard butterfly in last Tuesday's Topeka West Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium in a time of 1 minute, 9.79 seconds while also posting a runnerup finish in the 200 individual medley (2:35.70) and swimming on the T-Birds' second-place 200 medley relay (2:21.49).
Dalaney Anderson
DALANEY ANDERSON, Washburn University
A sophomore second baseman, had a huge weekend as Washburn University softball went 3-1 to improve to 33-18 and clinch a spot in the upcoming MIAA Tournament. Anderson, a native of Seward, Neb., hit a pair of three-run homers in Saturday's 6-4, 6-4 doubleheader split with Missouri Western and delivered two two-run doubles in Sunday's 2-0, 6-3 sweep over Northwest Missouri, giving her 10 RBI and 61 on the season, one off the WU single-season record.
Grace Funk
GRACE FUNK, Hayden
Funk, a senior midfielder, scored three goals on the week as Hayden soccer improved to 7-0-0 on the season. Funk had a goal in the Wildcats' 5-0 win over Shawnee Heights last Monday and scored both goals in Hayden's 2-0 Centennial League win over defending Class 6A state champion Washburn Rural on Wednesday. Funk was also a multi-time 4A state medalist in tennis.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
GIRLS
100 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 12.61
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 12.72
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 12.85
Ciara Hartz, Topeka High 13.06
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 13.13
200 METERS
Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights 26.11
Jurnee Cole, Highland Park 26.81
Sofia Harper, Hayden 27.00
Ciara Hartz, Topeka High 27.27
Adriana Raub, Washburn Rural 27.27
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High
400 METERS
Keimara Marshall, Topeka High 61.03
Ali Gerber, Silver Lake 61.65
Sofia Harper, Hayden 62.38
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 63.26
Brynn Scheid, Seaman 63.36
Ryan Miller, Seaman
800 METERS
Ryin Miller, Seaman 2:23.65
Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural 2:24.26
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 2:31.07
Clara Dillon, Washburn Rural 2:33.45
Hazel Rondash, Shawnee Heights 2:36.40
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural
1,600 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 5:14.21
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 5:24.46
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 5:26.49
Alyson Hink, Washburn Rural 5:28.35
Kinley Robinson, Seaman 5:39.04
3,200 METERS
Emily Graf, Washburn Rural 11:25.73
Brynn Spencer, Seaman 11:36.26
Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural 11:36.97
Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural 12:09.09
100-METER HURDLES
Rylee Dick, Rossville 17.15
Marchayla White, Topeka High 17.76
Ravaya Smith, Washburn Rural 18.88
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 19.13
Alana Mitchell, Hayden 19.18
300-METER HURDLES
Rylee Dick, Rossville 50.00
Avery Villines, Seaman 55.36
Journey Manhart, Silver Lake 55.74
Grace Funk, Hayden 56.44
Kennedy Gatewood, Seaman 57.47
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 50.77
Silver Lake 51.19
Washburn Rural 52.33
Seaman 53.07
Topeka West 53.39
4x400-METER RELAY
Silver Lake 4:11.03
Topeka High 4:13.96
Washburn Rural 4:18.21
Shawnee Heights 4:29.41
Seaman 4:31.03
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 10:47.80
Topeka High 11:13.01
Silver Lake 12:15.82
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
BOYS
100 METERS
Malachi Murph, Topeka High 11.20
Josh Brown, Seaman 11.21
Quortay Hailey, Topeka High 11.30
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 11.31
Nas Williams-Brown, Topeka West 11.39
200 METERS
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 22.02
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 22.50
Courtney Sanders, Topeka High 22.68
JaVeon Alston, Shawnee Heights 23.13
Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High 23.15
400 METERS
Jason Slay, Shawnee Heights 50.71
Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West 52.40
Thomas Fisher, Silver Lake 53.26
Joel Miller, Silver Lake 53.38
Tyler Jakle, Washburn Rural 53.53
Brody Anderson, Seaman
800 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 1:55.43
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 2:01.36
Everett Un, Washburn Rural 2:03.26
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights 2:03.30
Duke Graf, Washburn Rural 2:06.72
1,600 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 4:11.94
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 4:20.32
Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural 4:33.32
Connor Baldwin, Hayden 4:39.00
Nick Newkirk, Hayden 4:39.76
3,200 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 9:27.73
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 9:30.10
Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural 9:56.70
Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural 9:57.60
Max Esquibel, Seaman 10:20.82
110-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 14.32
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 15.43
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 15.54
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 16.44
Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake 16.60
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural
300-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 37.61
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 42.09
Kellan Parcaro, Seaman 42.36
Michael Ruelas, Seaman 43.46
Isiah Pennington, Seaman 43.79
4x100-METER RELAY
Topeka High 42.98
Seaman 43.27
Topeka High 43.52
Washburn Rural 44.02
Topeka West 44.21
4x400-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 3:21.82
Shawnee Heights 3:24.59
Silver Lake 3:33.24
Seaman 3:35.19
Topeka High 3:35.43
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 8:38.13
Seaman 8:50.45
Silver Lake 9:18.40
Topeka High 9:28.74
Topeka West 9:29.28
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Veteran tennis coaches Duane Pomeroy of Topeka High and Kurt Davids of Topeka West knew that the dual match between the Trojans and the Chargers in Tuesday's West quadrangular at the Kossover Tennis Center would be a close one.
Topeka High senior No. 1 singles player Tres Lassiter went 3-0 in Tuesday's Topeka West quadrangular, dropping just one game on the day. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka West's Collin McGee (left) and Zander Rice went undefeated in No. 1 doubles in Tuesday's Topeka West quadrangular at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
It couldn't have been any closer, with High and West battling to a 2-2 tie in the final match of the day to earn a share of the top spot in the quad with 2-0-1 records on the day.
"Kurt and I have been coaching against each other over three decades and we take turns beating the other one in both girls and boys,'' Pomeroy said.
"That's why we played Topeka High last to have a grand finale kind of thing,'' Davids said. "They got the singles and we got the doubles. I'm happy with the results and happy with everybody's effort singles and doubles.''
Topeka High shut out Shawnee Heights 4-0 and beat Basehor-Linwood 3-1 while West beat Heights 4-0 and Basehor-Linwood 3-1 to open the day before the USD 501 rivals squared off in the finale.
High senior Tres Lassiter went a perfect 3-0 in No. 1 singles to lead the Trojans while West's Collin McGee and Zander Rice went 3-0 in No. 1 doubles and Isaac Bowers and George Davidson went undefeated in No. 2 doubles.
Lassiter, the reigning city champion in No. 1 singles, dropped just one game on the game while McGee and Rice rallied from a 3-0 deficit against Topeka High to take an 8-4 victory.
TOPEKA WEST TENNIS QUADRANGULAR
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: Top.Sports.news will compile a weekly track and field honor roll for Shawnee County high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
BOYS
100 METERS
Peyton Holmes, Seaman 10.73
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 10.82
Evan Scheid, Silver Lake 11.13
Ben Roeder, Topeka High 11.17
Sean LeDuc, Washburn Rural 11.18
200 METERS
Bryce Cochran, Seaman 21.87
Jensen Schrickel, Hayden 21.92
Isaiah Terry, Washburn Rural 22.02
Evan Scheid, Silver Lake 22.22
Matthew Houser, Washburn Rural 22.37
Isaiah Terry, Washburn Rural
400 METERS
Isaiah Terry, Washburn Rural 48.20
Jensen Schrickel, Hayden 48.30
Bryce Cochran, Seaman 48.43
Liam Benz, Shawnee Heights 49.63
Ben Roeder, Topeka High 49.82
Brody Anderson, Seaman
800 METERS
Brody Anderson, Seaman 1:56.22
Mark Wilkie, Topeka West 1:57.23
Ben Buesing, Washburn Rural 1:58.87
Adrian Lehman, Topeka West 1:59.08
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 2:00.38
1,600 METERS
Adrian Lehman, Topeka West 4:18.07
Brody Anderson, Seaman 4:18.55
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 4:19.77
Mark Wilkie, Topeka West 4:21.37
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 4:34.44
3,200 METERS
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural 9:16.96
Adrian Lehman, Topeka West 9:16.98
Brody Anderson, Seaman 9:34.99
Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural 9:41.18
Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural 10:03.37
110-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 14.59
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural 15.50
Desean Lunkins, Topeka High 15.80
Isaac Song, Shawnee Heights 15.84
Braylon Badger, Washburn Rural 15.93
300-METER HURDLES
Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural 38.83
Braylon Badger, Washburn Rural 40.60
Isaac Song, Shawnee Heights 41.07
Michael Hurla, Seaman 41.29
Kellan Parcaro, Seaman 41.86
4x100-METER RELAY
Silver Lake 43.16
Seaman 43.48
Topeka High 43.48
Washburn Rural 43.49
Topeka West 44.50
4x400-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 3:17.38
Topeka West 3:24.56
Topeka High 3:24.64
Hayden 3:25.32
Seaman 3:26.21
4x800-METER RELAY
Washburn Rural 8:01.63
Shawnee Heights 8:31.70
Seaman 8:43.94
Topeka High 8:46.69
Silver Lake 8:54.17
HIGH JUMP
Jack Esser, Seaman 6-5
Blake Toyne, Seaman 6-2
Brooks Ballard, Washburn Rural 6-0
Bryson Burgos, Silver Lake 6-0
Cody Quy, Seaman 6-0
Rondell Harris, Hayden 6-0
Tad McGee, Seaman 6-0
Deondre Razzano, Silver Lake 6-0
Tyler Wedl, Shawnee Heights
POLE VAULT
Tyler Wedl, Shawnee Heights 12-6
Luke Deering, Washburn Rural 10-6
Desmond Grindol, Washburn Rural 9-6
Emery Kearney, Seaman 9-6
Caleb Schwartz, Washburn Rural 9-6
Quinton White, Seaman 9-6
Jensen Schrickel, Hayden
LONG JUMP
Jensen Schrickel, Hayden 22-7
Peyton Holmes, Seaman 22-6
Elijah Berg, Topeka West 21-8
Te'Vante Ewing, Topeka High 21-5
Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park 20-11
Ethan Surey, Washburn Rural 20-11
TRIPLE JUMP
Kaden Whitehurst, Seaman 42-8
Deondre Razzano, Silver Lake 42-5.5
Cody Quy, Seaman 41-11
Bryson Burgos, Silver Lake 41-8
Ethan Surey, Washburn Rural 40-7.50
SHOT PUT
Brogen Brown, Seaman 50-11
Amir Bass, Shawnee Heights 47-3.5
F. Anguiano, Hayden 44-10
Adrian Shuler, Shawnee Heights 44-9.5
Clayton Johnson, Seaman 44-5
DISCUS
Brogen Brown, Seaman 146-0
Myles Fisher, Silver Lake 144-5
Treyton Tetuan, Hayden 137-4
Samuel Scott, Washburn Rural 136-0
Zachary Hancock, Washburn Rural 135-11
JAVELIN
Kelton Meier, Hayden 162-5
Oliver Perez, Washburn Rural 155-2
Andre Johnson, Rossville 155-1
Jackson Haas, Hayden 153-7
Gabriel Taylor, Washburn Rural 148-10
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
NOTE: TopSports.news will compile a weekly girls swimming and diving honor roll for Topeka high schools throughout the 2026 season. Coaches are asked to email updated times and marks or any corrections to Rick Peterson at
200-YARD MEDLEY RELAY
Seaman 2:18.32
Washburn Rural 2:19.41
Shawnee Heights 2:21.17
Hayden 2:48.67
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden
200-YARD FREESTYLE
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden 2:12.42
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 2:25.97
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 2:31.65
Megan Strobel, Seaman 2:37.54
Joanna Diehl, Washburn Rural 2:47.44
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural
200-YARD INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 2:28.23
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 2:43.29
Riley Strother, Seaman 2:51.05
Avery Skinner, Seaman 2:51.97
Mya Bucholtz, Hayden 3:09.89
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights
50-YARD FREESTYLE
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 27.98
Riley Strother, Seaman 28.15
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 28.26
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 28.90
Makenna Russell, Topeka West 29.77
ONE-METER DIVING
Avery Rosenow, Hayden/CPLS 173.75
Mackenzie Caryl, Topeka High 138.75
Madilyn Typer, Seaman 105.40
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights
100-YARD BUTTERFLY
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights 1:11.39
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 1:21.98
Avery Skinner, Topeka High 1:23.77
Sophie Reffett, Washburn Rural 1:28.10
Riley Strother, Seaman 1:31.54
100-YARD FREESTYLE
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural 57.50
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights 1:00.70
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 1:03.71
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High 1:04.28
Makenna Russell, Topeka West 1:08.95
500-YARD FREESTYLE
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural 6:33.78
Ava Von Lintel, Washburn Rural 6:56.95
Sophie Reffett, Washburn Rural 7:57.80
Jurnee Jessepe, Seaman 8:18.59
Meckenah Philpott, Seaman 8:19.26
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden girls soccer was a little sluggish out of the gate Monday, not necessarily surprising given the fact that the Wildcats were coming off an emotional road win over perennial Class 4A-1A state champion Bishop Miege last Thursday and prom weekend.
Hayden junior Avery Becker (3) battles Shawnee Heights sophomore Eva Austin (21) for the ball in Monday's 5-0 Wildcat win over the T-Birds. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
But Klaus Kreutzer's Wildcats picked up steam as the game went on, improving to a perfect 6-0 on the season with a 5-0 non-league home victory over city rival Shawnee Heights.
"We did get off to a little slow start, but give them credit,'' Kreutzer said. "I think they recovered well and they kept the pressure on.
"I think (Shawnee Heights) is a good team and with a team like that when you get the opportunity you've got to keep pressuring.''
Hayden senior Carsyn Broxterman scored a pair of goals in Monday's 5-0 Wildcat win over Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden scored the only goal it would need at the 30:02 mark of the first half on a goal from senior Carsyn Broxterman and opened up a 2-0 halftime advantage on a goal from sophomore Hailey Schmidtlein with 7:05 left in the half.
Shawnee Heights (1-3-1) suffered a blow late in the opening half when junior defender Brylee Garner was hit with a red card and the T-Birds played a player down the remainder of the game.
It look Hayden only 5:25 into the second half to increase its advantage to 3-0 on a goal from senior Grace Funk and the Wildcats added goals from freshman Emma Slyter and Broxterman over the final 26:25 to pull away.
Seniors Lauren Borjon and Kadence Watts combined for the shutout in goal as Hayden recorded its fourth straight shutout and fifth in six games.
"If you can keep the other team from scoring, you're way ahead, way ahead,'' Kreutzer said with a chuckle.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
WAMEGO -- After two meets to open the 2026 season, Washburn Rural golf coach Jared Goehring knows his Junior Blues are making progress.
Senior Michael Wilson shot a 75 to tie for 10th place for Washburn Rural in Thursday's Great Plains Classic at Wamego Country Club. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
But Goehring also knows that Rural still has a lot of room for improvement if the Junior Blues, a perennial city and Class 6A contender, are going to put themselves in position for a late-season run.
"I felt like the progress was there in stretches with good course management, good contact with their clubs,'' Goehring said. "It's definitely a step in the right direction, but we've got to keep moving forward.
"We've got Manhattan Country Club on Monday and then we go to Firekeeper, which will be a real good test where the state tournament is, and then we'll kind of see where we fall after that.''
Rural had two players shoot in the 70s and four in the 80s in Thursday's Great Plains Classic at Wamego Country Club en route to a 319 team score and a tie for 11th in the powerhouse 17-school field.
Higgins Hawks shot an 81 for Washburn Rural in Thursday's Great Plains Classic at Wamego Country Club. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Senior Michael Wilson shot a team-low 75 to tie for 10th place individually while Peyton Goehring added a 79, Higgins Hawks an 81 and Wyatt Dean an 84 to round out Washburn Rural's top four.
Olathe Northwest won the team title by a 301-303 margin over Manhattan, while the Indians' Charlie Haney shot a two-under-par 68 to post a two-shot individual victory.
Hayden and Shawnee Heights also competed in Thursday's meet, with the Wildcats finishing 15th at 361 and Shawnee Heights 17th at 375.
Austin Bean carded an 84 and Carter Compton an 88 to lead Hayden while Andrew Schulte and Keaton Hornbaker both shot 92 to pace Shawnee Heights.
WASHBURN RURAL GREAT PLAINS CLASSIC
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural girls swimming entered the 2026 season with a lot of question marks.
And three meets into the year, Junior Blues coach Bob Burdick has seen steady progress.
Now the key for Rural is to continue taking strides as the city, Centennial League and state meets get closer and closer.
"We are making progress, but we have a lot more to go,'' Burdick said. "Our pool was actually broken down for five days, which took us out a whole week and set us back, but the new kids are coming on great and the older kids are pulling their weight and starting to get back down to the times they should be at, which is great.''
Washburn Rural senior Audrey Appuhn (left) and Shawnee Heights junior Clara Sobba congratulate each other after the swimmers went one-two in the 100-yard freestyle Wednesday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Led by a victory and runnerup finish from senior Audrey Appuhn, as well as a runnerup relay finish, the Junior Blues finished Wednesday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium with 284 points, finishing third behind Lawrence Free State (536 points) and Hays (337).
"Silly little mistakes tonight may have cost us second place, but that's OK,'' Burdick said. "There were just some DQs (disqualifications) for just simple little things, technical things, and we're working on them and it helps when we're consistently in the pool.
"The girls are doing great though and the team's coming together. I'm really happy with everybody and it's a lot of fun.''
Appuhn won the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 57.50 seconds and finished second in the 100 breaststroke in 1 minute, 15.99 seconds while the foursome of Sophie Heinen, Kaci Hodgson, Resego Mackenzie and Ava Von Lintel finished second in the 400 freestyle in 4:46.87.
Heinen was the runnerup in the 500 freestyle in 6:33.78 while Von Lintel finished third in 6:56.95.
Other meet highlights:
Hayden junior Kailyn Gerdel posted second and third-place finishes in Wednesday's Topeka High Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Hayden junior Kailyn Gerdel finished second in the 200 freestyle in 2:12.42 and was third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:18.26.
Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo had a pair of second-place finishes in Wednesday's Topeka High Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
• Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo posted a second-place finish in the 50 freestyle in 28.26 and second in the 100 backstroke in 1:11.35 while High's Mackenzie Caryl finished third in one-meter diving with a score of 137.85.
• Shawnee Heights junior Clara Sobba placed second in the 100 freestyle in 1:00.70 and third in the 50 freestyle in 28.32.
• Seaman's Riley Strother finished third in the 100 backstroke in 1:12.84.
TOPEKA HIGH INVITATIONAL
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Four Shawnee County senior volleyball standouts have been selected to play in the 2026 Kansas Volleyball Association All-Star Match on June 6 at Washburn University's Whiting Fieldhouse.
Ella Foster, Hayden [File photo/TSN]
Avery Willey, Shawnee Heights [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake's Paige Heiman, Hayden's Ella Foster and Washburn Rural's Stella Kelly will play for the Red team while Shawnee Heights' Avery Willey will play for the Blue.
Paige Heiman, Silver Lake [Photo by KSHSAA Covered]
Stelly Kelly, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake captured the Class 3A state championship last fall while Hayden was the 4A runnerup and Washburn Rural advanced to the 6A state tournament.
The players selected were first nominated by their high school coaches (who must be KVA members), and then recommended by a committee to fill the squads based on achievements, positions, classifications, collegiate plans and availability.
Match time will be 5 p.m.
KVA ALL-STAR MATCH
BLUE
Carlie Pandjaris, Blue Valley West; Kyndal Moore, Ellinwood; Brooke Doile, McPherson; Cami Sher, Olathe West; Jadence Stewart, Greeley County; Avery Willey, Shawnee Heights; Ava Smith, Valley Heights; Jaden Goldberg, Blue Valley North; Emerson Waldren, Buhler; Reese Stuhlsatz, Garden Plain; Brynna Zoeller, Rock Creek; Emma Parker, Olathe Northwest.
Coaches -- Head: David Schuler, Jefferson County North. Assistants: Alli Snapp, Rock Creek; Nicole Jones, Manhattan.
RED
Ella Foster, Hayden; Arika Feldman, Little River; Olivia Nzioki, Mill Valley; Paige Heiman, Silver Lake; Regan Widener, Ellinwood; Ava Romero, McPherson; Jade Xu, Emporia; Hayden Meats, Gardner Edgerton; Katharine Engel, Halstead; Elyse Haxton, Ellsworth; Stella Kelly, Washburn Rural; Neely Leathers, Olathe West; Delaney Childs, Nickerson.
Coaches -- Head: Kristel Bontrager, Holton. Assistants: Amy Bott, Linn; Shannon Funk, Hays.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
From an early age Katie Glatczak knew she would probably be a coach someday.
In fact, given her family history, it was most likely inevitable.
Katie Glatczak
The 26-year-old Gtatczak grew up in a family of coaches, with father Larry coaching Centralia to four state football and a boys basketball title, mother Janelle coaching multiple sports and brothers Michael and Tyler also both coaching, with Michael leading Nemaha Central to state football titles in three of the past four seasons.
"Growing up, I've never really known any different,'' Katie Glatczak said. "From a very young age I grew up in the gym with mom and dad and my two brothers and ever since then I haven't gotten out of it and I love it.
"From being a manager at a young age for dad to being a player through high school and college to now coaching it really has been a blessing, just having the chance to impact lives in a special way that coaching just has and I couldn't ask for anything else.''
After a redshirt year, new Shawnee Heights volleyball and girls basketball coach Katie Glatczak played three seasons for Washburn University. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Now the former Washburn University basketball guard is set to take her next step up the coaching ladder, with Glatczak being approved Monday night by the Shawnee Heights school board as the T-Birds' new head volleyball and girls basketball coach.
Glatczak is taking over the Shawnee Heights volleyball reins from Sami Kearney, who resigned to spend more time with her family, and replaces longtime coach Bob Wells in basketball, with Wells retiring after leading the T-Birds to a fourth-place finish in Class 5A this past season.
"I started at Shawnee Heights actually for my very first year of teaching after I graduated from Washburn (in 2022),'' Glatczak said. "I was an elementary teacher at Berryton and then I helped out as an assistant in volleyball (under Kearney) and assistant softball (under Tara Griffith).''
"I loved it at Shawnee Heights. It just feels like a small town, which Centralia is just a little smaller than that area, but it just felt like a small town out there and just felt like home.''
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kaitlyn Aldridge
KAITLYN ALDRIDGE, Shawnee Heights
A junior swimming standout, Aldridge won the 100-yard butterfly in a time of 1 minute, 11.39 seconds and finished second in the 100 backstroke in 1:11.31 in Thursday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium while also swimming on the T-Birds' third-place 200 free relay (2:03.17) and fourth-place 200 medley relay (2:21.17). Aldridge also posted an individual win and runnerup finish in last Tuesday's meet.
Brody Anderson
BRODY ANDERSON, Seaman
Anderson, a senior cross country and track star, shattered the Seaman school record in the boys 1,600 meters by nearly six seconds in Thursday's Jerry Beardslee Invitational at Washburn Rural. Anderson clocked a winning time of 4 minutes, 11.94 seconds and came back later in the day to win the 800 in 1:56.49 giving him four victories in four races on the season.
Taylor Brees
TAYLOR BREES, Washburn University
A freshman outfielder, Brees had a big weekend as Washburn University softball posted a pair of MIAA doubleheader road sweeps at Nebraska-Kearney (9-1, 4-0) and Fort Hays State (12-1, 6-0). Brees went 7 of 13 at the plate in the four games with six runs batted in and five runs scored. Brees went 5 of 6 in Friday's wins over Fort Hays State with five RBI and four runs scored.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Rossville was the first school to give Brandon McDonnell the opportunity to be a head basketball coach and he's cherished his four years there, leading the Bulldawgs to back-to-back Class 2A state tournament berths the past two seasons.
Brandon McDonnell has been selected as Shawnee Heights' new boys basketball coach after leading Rossville to back-to-back Class 2A state berths. [File photo/TSN]
But the chance to move up to the 5A level in his hometown of Topeka was too good to pass up, with McDonnell tapped to replace retiring local legend Ken Darting as Shawnee Heights' new boys coach.
"For your first head coaching job and then to have such a great group of kids, it's obviously hard to leave that,'' McDonnell said about leaving Rossville. "For the four years I've been embraced by our players and it's been a Godsend, so obviously this is not an easy choice by any means, but at the end of the day I always explore opportunity and at this particular moment my name was just kind of out there for this (Shawnee Heights) job.
"When your name's out there, you know there's people that kind of want your leadership and your expertise and your mentorship and you always want to pursue something that you think you'll be a good fit for, so that's what happened here.''
A former Topeka High standout and assistant at Topeka West, McDonnell said it has always been in the back of his mind to someday land a head coaching job in his hometown.
"One hundred percent,'' said McDonnell, who played collegiately at Baker. "Nothing against Rossville, I loved it out there, but it was always a thing for me to come back and coach in the city where I played in, where I grew up.''
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Monday was a night of firsts for the Shawnee Heights girls soccer team.
After a loss and a tie to open the season, the T-Birds picked up their first win of the year while scoring their first goals of 2026 in a 3-0 shutout over city rival Topeka High at Hummer Sports Park, while Heights assistant Josiah Juarez, filling in for veteran T-Bird coach Nic Simons, picked up win No. 1 as a head coach.
Shawnee Heights junior Morgan Robinson scored two goals Monday as the T-Birds picked up their first win with a 3-0 shutout over city rival Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Juarez was running the show Monday while Simons missed the game to be with his wife and newborn child, born over the weekend.
"I was just a little bit nervous -- it comes with the game -- but that's the exciting part, especially with us needing a win,'' Juarez said. "And I'm just excited we got it done tonight.''
The T-Birds didn't miss a beat under Juarez, taking a 2-0 halftime lead on a pair of goals from junior standout Morgan Robinson and adding a third goal on a shot from junior Nina Bolanos in the second half.
Robinson scored the only goal the T-Birds would need 5:50 into the game off a corner kick from Bolanos.
Shawnee Heights junior Nina Bolanos (2) had a goal and an assist in Monday's 3-0 win over city rival Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Robinson scored her second goal with 19:39 left in the opening half to give the T-Birds their two-goal halftime advantage before Bolanos wrapped up the scoring with 8:33 remaining.
Senior MacKenzie Mertel picked up the shutout in goal for the T-Birds.
Shawnee Heights girls soccer assistant Josiah Juarez picked up his first win as a head coach in Monday's 3-0 T-Bird win over Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"I thought we were (solid) for the most part,'' Juarez said. "We kept our game plan and just executed it really well and continued to do it throughout the whole game.''
The 2026 All-City girls bowling team: From left -- Addison Van Metre, Shawnee Heights; Paige Snyder, Seaman; Claire LaDuke, Seaman; Leah Crawford, Seaman; Megan Glinka, Washburn Rural; Kenzie Lawson, Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
If the 2026 All-City girls bowling team looks familiar, there's a very good reason: All six first-team members are repeat selections.
Seaman juniors Paige Snyder of Seaman and Megan Glinka of Washburn Rural are three-time first-team All-City picks while Seaman senior Claire LaDuke and sophomore Leah Crawford, Washburn Rural senior Kenzie Lawson and Shawnee Heights junior Addison Van Metre are repeat selections.
LaDuke, Crawford and Snyder all posted top-eight individual finishes as Seaman won the Class 5A state championship by a whopping 358 pins while individual runnerup Glinka and Lawson helped lead Washburn Rural to a second-place 6A state finish and Van Metre earned her second straight 5A individual medal.
All-City capsules:
The 2026 All-City boys bowling team: From left -- Evan Jones, Shawnee Heights; Henry Schattilly, Shawnee Heights; Chevy Stallbaumer, Shawnee Heights; Brecken Garrett, Washburn Rural; Cody Spangler, Washburn Rural; Kelton Meier, Hayden. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights put seniors Henry Schattilly and Chevy Stallbaumer and junior Evan Jones on the 2026 All-City boys bowling team after the T-Birds captured their second Class 5A state team title in three seasons.
Schattilly and Hayden junior Kelton Meier are both first-team repeat All-City selections while Washburn Rural senior Cody Spangler, the 2026 6A state individual champion, is joined on the first team by junior teammate Brecken Garrett, a regional champion.
Jones, Meier and Stallbaumer joined Spangler, a two-time All-City first-teamer, as state medalists.
Meier and Stallbaumer both bowled 300 games during the regular season while Spangler and Schattilly also have career perfect games.
All-City capsules:
BRECKEN GARRETT, Washburn Rural -- A first-time All-City pick, Garrett capped his junior season with a 619 series in the Class 6A state tournament as the Junior Blues finished fifth as a team. Garrett captured a regional individual title for team-champion Washburn Rural with a 739 series, putting together games of 216, 258 and 265. Garrett rolled a 608 series in the city meet as Rural claimed the team title and he recorded a 529 series in the Centennial League meet.
EVAN JONES, Shawnee Heights -- A junior, Jones helped lead Shawnee Heights to its second Class 5A team championhip in three seasons, posting a 10th-place individual finish with a 693 series (242, 224, 227) as the T-Birds took the team title by a 3,727-3,624 margin over Bishop Carroll. Jones finished fifth in the city tournament with 664 series, rolled a 641 in the United Kansas Conference tournament and finished fifth at regionals with a 650 series.
KELTON MEIER, Hayden --Meier, a junior All-City repeat pick, posted a sixth-place individual finish in the Class 4A-1A state tournament with a 717 series (254-268-195) as Hayden finished fifth as a team. Meier placed eighth in the city meet with a 638 series, rolled a 573 in the Centennial League tournament and finished second in a 4A-1A regional with a 682 series. As a sophomore Meier helped Hayden capture its first-ever state bowling team championship.
HENRY SCHATTILLY, Shawnee Heights --A senior, Schattilly shot a 640 series in the Class 5A state tournament as Shawnee Heights won its second state team championship in three seasons by a 3,727-3,624 margin over Bishop Carroll. Schattilly won the United Kansas Conference title with a 761 series (245, 269, 247), finished sixth in the city meet (645) and 14th at regionals (637). Schattilly helped the T-Birds win their first-ever boys 5A team bowling championship in 2024.
CODY SPANGLER, Washburn Rural -- Spangler capped his high school career with a Class 6A state individual championship, putting together games of 245, 223 and 288 to win with a 756 three-game series. Spangler finished 10th with a 631 series in the city tournament for the team-champion Junior Blues, finished eighth in 6A regional competition for team champion Washburn Rural with a 648 series and rolled a 565 series in the Centennial League tournament.
CHEVY STALLBAUMER, Shawnee Heights -- Stallbaumer, a senior, helped lead Shawnee Heights to the Class 5A state team championship by a 3,727-3,624 margin over Bishop Carroll. Stallbaumer rolled a 738 series to lead the T-Birds with a sixth-place individual finish, putting together games of 255, 237 and 246. Stallbaumer placed fourth in the city tournament with a 669 series, finished 10th in the United Kansas Conference with a 659 for the team-champion T-Birds and rolled a 581 series at regionals.
ALL-CITY BOYS BOWLING
FIRST TEAM
Brecken Garrett, jr., Washburn Rural; Evan Jones, jr., Shawnee Heights; Kelton Meier, jr., Hayden; Henry Schattilly, sr., Shawnee Heights; Cody Spangler, sr., Washburn Rural; Chevy Stallbaumer, sr., Shawnee Heights.
SECOND TEAM
Trey Donath, jr., Shawnee Heights; Kaden Evans, sr., Shawnee Heights; Andrew Faurot, jr., Washburn Rural; Jackson Keller, sr., Washburn Rural; Reece Renyer, jr., Hayden; Garrett Shaw, sr., Seaman.
By RICK PETERSON
Freshman Taylor Brees went 5 for 6 with five RBI and four runs scored in Friday's twinbill sweep at Fort Hays State. [File photo/TSN]
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
A cold windy night at the Bettis Family Sports Complex Tuesday night did not fare too well for the Shawnee Heights baseball team, as the bats went cold in a 6-2 United Kansas Conference loss to Basehor-Linwood.
Basehor-Linwood jumped out to a 2-0 lead after a couple of RBI singles but Heights also hurt itself, committing two errors in the inning and four total in the game.
In the first two innings Shawnee Heights went three up, three down, including three strikeouts.
The Bobcats led 3-0 in the top of the third inning and began the inning reaching base with an error that opened the door to score two more runs, pushing the advantage to 5-0.
SHHS made a pitching change in the middle of the inning, replacing starter Cambren Floberg for Keaven Ortiz.
“I told Cam, 'You come out here and there’s just days you don’t have it. It happens to all of us. Let it go and it’s about the next time you go on the mound. It’s over with and you can’t fix it,' ” Heights coach Jason Brown said. “He threw strikes, a little unlucky behind him, a lack of focus there but I think he’ll be fine come his next outing.”
The T-Birds went one-two-three in the third despite starting inning with an infield hit. After a double play and a strikeout, any momentum vanished.
Basehor-Linwood took a 6-0 lead in the fourth, and yet again, Heights went one-two-three, ending the inning with a double play.
Through five innings the T-Birds had just two hits, but in the sixth they were able to scratch one across the board as Makade Orton ripped an RBI single into right before being thrown out trying to advance to second base.
Thomas Smith for Shawnee Heights came in at the top of the sixth and retired all six batters he faced to give the T-Birds some hope.
After Steven Zimbelman completed six innings, striking out seven, allowing two walks and one earned run, his brother Colin Zimbelman came on in relief.
The T-Birds loaded the bases with no outs, giving Heights some life at a comeback.
Cayden Lindsay grounded into a double play to push across one run, making it 6-2, and Michael Lilly couldn’t keep the rally going, striking out swinging to end the game.
“We walked on here and we were sleep walking and you can’t do that,” Brown said. “You have to show up and be ready to go every time you step on the field. We tell our players there are three facets to the game, you swing it well, you pitch it well and take care of it behind our pitcher and two of those three we did not do.
“The good thing about this game is the two guys that we brought in relief, we hadn’t thrown them yet this year and us as a coaching staff we found out that some of them are ready. So that was a positive to take something out of this game. We have a lot of baseball left and I think this will wake them up and when you step on the field, you can’t take any days off.”
BASEHOR-LINWOOD 6, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 2
Basehor-Linwood (3-3) 212 100 0 -- 6 5 1
Shawnee Heights (4-2) 000 001 1 -- 2 4 4
W -- S. Zimbelman L -- Floberg. 2B – Basehor-Linwood: Kiernan.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights junior Clara Sobba posted a pair of individual wins to pace city swimmers in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium.
Shawnee Heights' Clara Sobba posted a pair of individual victories in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational swimming meet at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Sobba won the 50-yard freestyle in 28.04 seconds and captured the 100 freestyle in 1 minute, 01.65 while also helping the T-Birds finish second in the 200 free relay (2:04.55) and third in the 200 medley relay (2:22.16).
Shawnee Heights' Kaitlyn Aldridge (left) won the 100-yard butterfly and finished second in the 100 backstroke in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo won the 100-yard backstroke in Tuesday's Topeka High Invitational at the Capitol Federal Natatorium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Sobba was one of three city champions in Tuesday's meet, with Shawnee Heights junior Kaitlyn Aldridge winning the 100-yard butterfly in 1:11.46 and Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo winning the 100 backstroke in 1:09.81.
Del Castillo was the runnerup behind Sobba in the 50 free in 28.69 while Aldridge finished second to Del Castillo in the 100 backstroke in 1:10.77.
Aldridge and Sobba teamed with Gracelyn New and Jayde Kinsch for the runnerup finish in the 200 free relay and teamed with Kinsch and Lainey Herrera for the third-place finish in the 200 medley relay.
Topeka High's Mackenzie Caryl finished second in one-meter diving with a score of 138.70.
Manhattan ran away with the team title by a 677-454 margin over Junction City while Shawnee Heights placed third (213), Topeka High fourth (76) and Topeka West fifth (44).
TOPEKA HIGH INVITATIONAL
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
DRAYDEN ACCOSTA, Topeka High
A senior, Accosta earned second-team TopSports.news All-Shawnee County recognition for the second straight season and was named to the All-Centennial League second team as a utility player.
Isaac Ansley, Washburn Rural
ISAAC ANSLEY, Washburn Rural
A senior pitcher, Ansley earned first-team TSN All-Shawnee County recognition last season and was a second-team All-Centennial League pick after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 15-12 record and a Class 6A state tournament berth.
Mason Becker, Hayden
MASON BECKER, Hayden
Becker, a junior, earned second-team TSN All-Shawnee County and Centennial League recognition last season after helping the Wildcat post a 23-1 record.
Axton Brewer, Seaman
AXTON BREWER, Seaman
A junior, Brewer was a TSN All-Shawnee County first-team pick, earned All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition as a pitcher and designated hitter and was a Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches All-Class 5A first-team honoree at designated hitter and a second-team pitcher.
BRADY DEUTSCH, Hayden
Deutsch, a senior catcher, was a second-team All-Centennial League pick for the league-champion Wildcats, who went 23-1 last season. Deutsch receive All-Shawnee County honorable mention.
Austin Ditch, Washburn Rural
AUSTIN DITCH, Washburn Rural
A senior infielder, Ditch was a first-team TSN All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League pick last spring after helping Washburn Rural post a 15-12 record and advance to the Class 6A state tournament.
TYLER EDMISTON, Washburn Rural
Edmiston, a junior pitcher, was a second-team All-Centennial League and All-Shawnee County selection last season for the 15-12 Junior Blues, who earned a berth in the Class 6A state tournament.
Cambren Floberg, Shawnee Heights
CAMBREN FLOBERG, Shawnee Heights
Floberg, a senior, was named the United Kansas Conference pitcher of the year last season after helping the 21-8 T-Birds advance to the Class 5A state tournament. Floberg received second-team All-Class 5A honors from the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches.
CAEL HORGAN, Rossville
A junior, Horgan was a first-team All-Big East pick last spring after helping Rossville advance to the Class 2A-1A state tournament in 2025.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
When I first covered Gary Woodland back in 1998, it sometimes seemed like success came easy for the Shawnee Heights multi-sport star.
I saw Woodland lead the T-Birds to Class 5A state basketball championships in 2000 and 2002 while he also captured three city boys golf titles.
Woodland also turned in an impressive basketball season for Washburn before opting to concentrate on golf and prior to high school Woodland was also a baseball star, which his father, Dan, told me might have been Gary's best sport.
Of course, it wasn't easy then -- with Woodland's success a combination of talent and an incredible work ethic and support system -- and it certainly isn't easy now, with Woodland batting through brain surgery and an ongoing battle with post-traumatic stress disorder that would have ended the careers of most athletes long ago.
But Woodland proved in Sunday's Houston Open that he still has what it takes to win, coming through with an emotional five-stroke victory -- his fifth tour win and first since his three-stroke 2019 U.S. Open triumph.
It was a victory for the ages, and should provide inspiration for those inside and out of sports in a time that good news seems to be increasingly harder to come by.
The 41-year-old Woodland's emotions bubbled over after he sank his final putt and especially when he engaged in a long, tearful hug with Gabby, his wife and mother of the couple's three children.
“We play an individual sport out here, but I wasn’t alone today,” Woodland told NBC after his win at 21-under-par. “I got a lot of people behind me, my team, my family and this golf world.
"Anybody that’s struggling with something, I hope they see me and don’t give up. Just keep fighting.”
Woodland received his brain tumor diagnosis in May of 2023 and underwent brain surgery later in the year to remove part of the tumor.
And just recently Woodland went public to discuss his battle with PTSD, which is related to his brain surgery. Woodland received the PGA Tour Courage Award last month.
Sunday's victory moved Woodland to No. 51 in the world, his highest ranking in five years, and punched his ticket to the upcoming Masters.
“Today was a good day, but I’m going to keep fighting,” Woodland told NBC after setting the tournament scoring record. “I’ve got a big fight ahead of me, and I’m going to keep going. But I’m proud of myself right now.”
The rest of the world, and particularly his hometown of Topeka, should be proud, too.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
London Backman, Topeka High
LONDON BACKMAN, Topeka High
A sophomore infielder who attends Cair Paravel Latin and plays for the Trojans through a co-op agreement, Backman received TopSports.news All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League first-team recognition and was named the co-county and co-Centennial League newcomer of the year last season after helping 19-10 Topeka High advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decisiont to 6A champ Olathe West. Backman received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
Adda Boleski, Washburn Rural
ADDA BOLESKI, Washburn Rural
Boleski, a sophomore infielder, was an All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League second-team pick a year ago as a freshman after helping the Junior Blues post a 22-8 record and a second-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with Washburn Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game.
Reagan Chapman, Washburn Rural
REAGAN CHAPMAN, Washburn Rural
A senior pitcher/third baseman, Chapman was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team for the third straight season after helping lead the Junior Blues to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in Class 6A last spring, with Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game. Chapman was a first-team All-Centennial League honoree.
JOSIE CARLGREN, Washburn Rural
Carlgren, a senior outfielder, is a top returner for Washburn Rural, which posted a 22-8 record and finished second in the Class 6A state tournament last season, dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the title game. Carlgren received All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League honorable mention in 2025.
Falyn Clurman, Rossville
FALYN CLURMAN, Rossville
Clurman, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County honoree last season as a freshman for the Bulldawgs, who posted a 17-12 record in 2025. The Bulldawgs were a Class 2A-1A regional runnerup to state champion Oskaloosa.
ADDISON COOPER, Shawnee Heights
Cooper, a senior outfielder, was a first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection and a second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament in 2025. The T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual state champion St. Thomas Aquinas.
Campbell Dawson, Topeka High
CAMPBELL DAWSON, Topeka High
A junior pitcher/outfielder, was a first-team All-Centennial League selection and second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping the 19-10 Trojans advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decision to 6A state champ Olathe West. Dawson received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
LYDIA DREHER, Seaman
Dreher, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County selection and a second-team All-United Kansas Conference pick as a freshman last season after helping the Vikings earn a berth in the Class 5A state tournament. Dreher helped Seaman post a 20-9 record last spring, with the Vikings dropping a 3-2 17-inning decision to Maize South in the state quarterfinals.
Cianna Graves, Shawnee Heights
CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights
A senior catcher, Graves received second-team All-Shawnee County recognition in 2025 after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament before the T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual 5A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas. Graves is also a 2026 5A state wrestling champion.
Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake
KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake
Hanni, a senior left-fielder, earned first-team All-Shawnee County and first-team All-Big East League recognition last spring for the second straight season after helping Silver Lake post a 25-7 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 3A state tournament for the second straight season, with the Eagle falling 2-1 to Frontenac in nine innings. Hanni was named to the All-Class 3A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association. Hanni also led Silver Lake to the 3A state basketball title this past season.
Oliva Koch, Washburn Rural
OLIVIA KOCH, Washburn Rural
A junior pitcher/outfielder, Koch was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team and was named the Centennial League player of the year last season after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with the Junior Blues dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the state title game. Koch was named to the All-Class 6A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
Carly McAllister, Hayden
CARLEY McALLISTER, Hayden
McCallister, a sophomore, received second-team TSN All-Shawnee County recognition a year ago as a freshman while also receiving All-Centennial League second-team honors.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Five city swimming and diving teams opened the 2026 season in Thursday's Topeka West Invitational, with a sweep of the top three places in one-meter diving pacing the local contingent.
Hayden's Avery Rosenow won the diving event with a score of 173.75, while Topeka High's Mackenzie Caryl placed second at 138.75 and Seaman's Madiylyn Typer was third at 105.40.
Shawnee Heights' Clara Sobba posted a third-place finish in the 100 freestyle in Thursday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Another city highlight was turned in by Shawnee Heights' Clara Sobba, who posted a third-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 1:01.71, while Topeka High's Hara Del Castillo was fifth in 1:04.50.
Seaman's Riley Strother helped the Vikings finish fifth in the 200 medley relay in Thursday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Seaman's Riley Strother, Lizzie Gould, Jenna Zimmerman and Ava Carlson finished fifth in the 200 medley relay in 2:18.32.
Hayden's Kaelyn Gerdel posted a pair of top-five individual finishes in Thursday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden's Kaelyn Gerdel placed fifth in the 200 freestyle (2:15.92) while Seaman's Strother was fifth (2:51.05) and Topeka High's Avery Skinner sixth (2:51.97) in the 200 individual medley.
Topeka High's Hara Del Castillo swims to a fifth-place finish in the 100 backstroke in Thursday's Topeka West Invitational. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
High's Del Castillo added a fifth-place finish in the 100 backstroke (1:11.58) while Hayden's Gerdel placed fourth in the 100 breastroke (1:19.41) and the Wildcats' Lilly Charvat was sixth in the 100 breaststroke (1:23.55).
TOPEKA WEST INVITATIONAL
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Senior co-players of the year KaeVon Bonner of Seaman and Dayne Johnson of Silver Lake headline the 2026 TopSports.news All-Shawnee County boys basketball team.
KaeVon Bonner, Seaman
Dayne Johnson, Silver Lake
Bonner is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after leading the Vikings to a 23-5 record and a third-place finish in the Class 5A state tournament while Johnson was an all-county repeat pick after leading the Eagles to a second straight third-place state finish in 3A and ending his high school career as Silver Lake's all-time leading scorer, eclipsing the record previously held by the legendary Lon Kruger.
Rossville senior Jack Donovan is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 honoree and is joined on the first time by Rossville senior point guard Jakoby McDonnell after the Bulldawgs advanced to the Class 2A state tournament for the second straight season.
Topeka West, which won the United Kansas Conference championship in a tiebreaker over Seaman and placed fourth in Class 5A is represented on the all-county top 10 by seniors Malakyah Duncan and Keimani Paul and junior Prince Lassiter.
Also earning Top 10 honors were Hayden senior Connor Hanika, Shawnee Heights junior Cam Ross and Topeka High senior Bryson McComas.
Quincy Dixon, Shawnee Heights
Shawnee Heights freshman Quincy Dixon was named the county newcomer of the year after averaging 12.4 points and helping the T-Birds advance to the Class 5A state tournament.
Chip Kueffer, Cair Paravel Latin
Robbie Sanders, Topeka High
Cair Paravel's Chip Kueffer and Topeka High's Robbie Sanders were named the Shawnee County co-coaches of the year after leading their teams to 12-win improvements in 2025-2026.
Kueffer led CPLS to a 22-3 record, including 19 straight wins and the Flint Hills League championship while first-year coach Sanders led Topeka High to a 13-11 record in '25-'26 after the Trojans posted just one win in the previous season.
All-Shawnee County capsules:
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights softball opened its season Wednesday with a home United Kansas Conference doubleheader sweep over De Soto.
Senior Cianna Graves had a two-run double in Shawnee Heights' 8-7 come-from-behind second-game win over De Soto. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
After taking the first game 6-0 over the Wildcats, the T-Birds mounted a comeback in Game 2 to take an 8-7 extra-inning victory.
“The girls did a really good job of making an adjustment to their swings,'' Shawnee Heights coach Tara Griffith said. "They were getting us out early with those pop-ups.
"We made some adjustments and started swinging down a little bit and that helped us out a lot and we started getting more line drives and then just getting singles and kind of pushing people around.
De Soto took a 4-0 lead in the first inning of the nightcap and Shawnee Heights couldn’t find much of anything in the first couple of innings.
The T-Birds didn’t have a runner go past second until the fifth inning.
SHHS was able to get runners on with leadoff walks, errors committed by the Wildcats or two- out singles, but nothing came of it.
In the top of the fourth, De Soto led off with a single. After struggling with her command, T-Bird junior Kaelyn Fisher was pulled after giving up another single to push the De Soto lead to five and junior Haven Ellenburg replaced Fisher.
Shawnee Heights’ bats woke up in the bottom of the fifth and the T-Birds put some runs on the board.
It started with a leadoff walk from senior Aubrey Hamilton. Senior Addison Cooper had a base knock, giving Heights runners at first and second with one out.
After a fielder’s choice to advance the runners, the two-out rally began.
Senior catcher Cianna Graves nearly hit a three-run home run to left center, slugging a two-RBI double, making the score 5-2.
Jaiden Euwer helped Shawnee Heights softball sweep UKC foe De Soto Wednesday [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior Jaidyn Euwer blooped one down the right-field line, resulting in a triple and another run for Heights.
De Soto made a pitching change, but that didn’t stop Shawnee Heights.
Ellenburg knocked in a run of her own on a single, making it a 5-4 ball game.
After trading runs in the sixth inning, De Soto pushed its lead back to two at 7-5 with a run in the top half of the seventh.
In the bottom half of the frame, the T-Birds tied the ballgame, beginning with a Graves leadoff single.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Silver Lake senior point guard Kailyn Hanni has been tapped as the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County girls basketball player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state championship in three seasons.
Silver Lake senior Kailyn Hanni has been named the TopSports.news Shawnee County girls player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state title in three seasons. [File photo/TSN]
A three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick, Hanni helped lead Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and a third straight trip to the 3A state championship game, with the Eagles sandwiching titles in 2024 and this past season around a second-place finish in 2025.
Hanni is one of five repeat picks on the All-Shawnee County Top 10, including four-time honoree Maddie Gragg of Seaman, junior repeat selections KK Emmot of Shawnee Heights and Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton of Topeka High and sophomore repeat pick Hailey Schmidtlein of Hayden.
Schmidtlein helped lead Hayden to the 4A state championship while Emmot helped Shawnee Heights post a fourth-place state finish in 5A and Rayton helped Topeka High advance to the state quarterfinals in 6A.
Also earning All-Shawnee County Top 10 spots are Rossville senior Rylee Dick, Shawnee Heights junior Pearmella Carter, Topeka High sophomore Hailey Caryl, Silver Lake sophomore Karys Deiter and Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson.
Anderson was also named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year, while state-champion coaches Kyle Porter of Silver Lake and Carvel Reynoldson of Hayden were named the co-county coaches of the year.
All-Shawnee County capsules:
Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural
BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural -- Anderson was named an All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick and the Shawnee County newcomer of the year for 2025-2026 after averaging 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals and canning 41 3-pointers for the Junior Blues. Anderson was also a first-team all-county selection in volleyball.
Pearmella Carter, Shawnee Heights
PEARMELLA CARTER, Shawnee Heights -- After starring for two seasons at Highland Park, the 5-foot-9 junior had a big season in her first year at Shawnee Heights, helping the 22-6 T-Birds win their first United Kansas Conference championship and post a fourth-place finish in Class 5A in Heights' first trip to state since 2011. Carter, a second-team all-county pick as a sophomore, averaged 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds for Heights while shooting 56 percent from the field on two-point attempts.
Hailey Caryl, Topeka High
HAILEY CARYL, Topeka High -- A 5-foot-10 sophomore, Caryl moves up to the All-Shawnee County Top 10 this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman. Caryl averaged 14.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists this past season while shooting 57 percent from the field from two-point range, helping lead the Trojans to a 17-9 record, the Centennial League championship and a quarterfinal berth in the Class 6A state tournament.
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake
KARYS DEITER, Silver Lake -- Deiter, a 5-foot-6 sophomore, helped Silver Lake post a 28-1 record and win the Class 3A state championship this past season. Deiter moves up to the All-Shawnee County first team this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman and also earned first-team All-Big East honors. Deiter was also an all-county pick in volleyball after helping Silver Lake win the 3A state title.
Rylee Dick, Rossville
RYLEE DICK, Rossville -- Dick, a 5-foot-8 senior, helped lead the Bulldawgs to a Class 2A state tournament berth for the first time in 20 years this past season, averaging 20.6 points on the season. A unanimous All-Big East League selection, Dick finished her high school career with 1,578 points, which ranks No. 2 on Rossville's all-time list. Dick scored 31 points in Rossville's quarterfinal state loss to Ellinwood.
KK Emmot, Shawnee Heights
KK EMMOT, Shawnee Heights -- Emmot, a 5-foot-8 junior, is a two-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after earning second-team honors as a freshman. Emmot, who helped lead the T-Birds to a 22-6 record, the United Kansas Conference title and a fourth-place Class 5A finish, earned first-team All-United Kansas Conference honors for the second straight season after averaging 16.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 3.0 assists while connecting on 67 3-pointers and shooting 82 percent from the free throw line.
Maddie Gragg, Seaman
MADDIE GRAGG, Seaman -- A 5-10 senior, Gragg is an All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection for the fourth straight season. Gragg, also a four-time All-United Kansas Conference first-team pick, averaged 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.4 steals while hitting 32 3-pointers. Gragg helped the Vikings win the Class 5A state championship in 2024 and finish second in 2025.
Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake
KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake -- Hanni, a 5-7 senior, was named the Shawnee County player of the year after leading Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and the Class 3A state championship this past season. Hanni also played a major role in the Eagles' 26-0 state championship run in 2024 and a runnerup state finish in 2025. Hanni is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection as well as an All-Big East first-team pick.
Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High
AHSIEYRHUAJH RAYTON, Topeka High --Rayton, a 5-7 junior All-Shawnee County repeat pick, averaged a city-high 23.6 points on the season for the 17-9 Trojans while also averaging 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals and shooting 52 percent from two-point range and 37 percent on 3-point attempts. Rayton helped the Trojans win the Centennial League championship and advance to the Class 6A state tournament.
Hailey Schmidtlein, Hayden
HAILEY SCHMIDTLEIN, Hayden --Schmidtlein, a 6-0 sophomore, earned first-team All-Shawnee County recognition for the second straight season after helping lead the Wildcats to a 22-6 record and Hayden's first Class 4A state championship since 2004. Schmidtlein averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.7 steals, 2.5 assists and 2.0 blocked shots.
2025 TSN ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS BASKETBALL
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Tuesday's 2026 Shawnee Heights girl soccer season-opener didn't go the T-Birds' way, with a string of injuries derailing Heights in a 3-0 home non-league loss to Lawrence at the Bettis Family Sports Complex.
Shawnee Heights junior Nina Bolanos (left) battles Lawrence's Maggie Wagner for the ball in Tuesday's 3-0 T-Bird loss to the Lions. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Heights entered its season-opener with a couple of players already nursing minor injuries and the situation got a lot worse Tuesday, with T-Bird junior standouts Morgan Robinson, Nina Bolanos and Brylee Garner all leaving the game with injuries.
But if there was a bright spot for Nic Simons' T-Birds, it was that none of the injuries appeared to be series and that they happened early in the year and not in crunch time at the end of the season.
"If I'm going to get bit by the injury bug I'd rather have it Game 1 then going into the postseason,'' Simons said. "Like I said to the kids, this is 10 out of 10 times not the speech that I'd be having after the game, but you know what, a little adversity to start the season is not necessarily bad for us.''
Robinson, one of Heights' top offensive threats, left the game at the 24:08 mark of the opening half and Garner was in and out of the game before calling it a night in the second half and Bolanos left the game late in the game with an ankle injury.
Shawnee Heights was still able to go into halftime locked in a scoreless deadlock before the 1-0 Lions took control in the second half.
Senior Stella Comparato scored the only goal Lawrence would need just 2:32 into the second half and Comparato added a second goal at the 23:59 mark and freshman Layla Simmons scored the Lions' final goal with 18:57 remaining.
Shawnee Heights struggled to mount much offense in the game, finishing with just one shot on goal.
"Obviously, losing Morgan early, that's a killer and losing Nina late obviously didn't help us at all,'' Simons said.
The T-Birds will return to action on Thursday, hosting Lawrence Free State at Bettis, before Heights has a week off to try to get back to full strength.
LAWRENCE 3, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 0
Lawrence (1-0) 0 3 -- 3
Shawnee Heights (0-1) 0 0 -- 0
Lawrence-- Goals: Stella Comparato 2, Layla Simmons. Shutout: Lillian Poteete. Redcard: Sidra Besson.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights
KAITLYN ALDRIDGE, Shawnee Heights
A junior, Aldridge earned All-City first-team honors for the second straight season in 2025, winning the city title in the 500-yard freestyle, placing second in the 100 butterfly and helping Shawnee Heights win the 200 free relay and finish third in the 400 free relay. Aldridge placed fourth in the United Kansas Conference in the 100 fly and fifth in the 500 free and swam on the T-Birds' fourth-place 400 free relay. Aldridge competed in the Class 5A-1A state meet.
Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural
Appuhn, a senior three-time All-City honoree, placed in multiple events in the Class 6A state meet for the third straight season last spring, taking third in the 100-yard breaststroke and sixth in the 200 freestyle to lead Rural to an 11th-place team finish. Appuhn won four golds in the city meet (200 free, 100 breast, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay) as Rural won its 22nd straight team title and four golds in the Centennial League meet (200 free, 100 breast, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay). Appuhn was a second-team All-State honoree in 6A in 2025.
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High
HARA DEL CASTILLO, Topeka High
A senior, Del Castillo earned All-City honors for the third straight season in 2025 as the Trojan junior finished second in the city meet in the 100-yard backstroke and third in the 100 freestyle. Del Castillo won Centennial League titles in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and swam on the Trojans' fourth-place 200 medley relay. Del Castillo competed in the 6A state meet last season.
KAILYN GERDEL, Hayden
Gerdel, a junior was an All-City second-team pick last season after placing third in the city meet in the 200-yard freestyle and swimming on the Wildcats' runnerup 200 medley and 200 free relays. Gerdel finished third in the Centennial League in the 200 freestyle and swam on Hayden's second-place 200 medley and 200 free relays.
Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural
SOPHIE HEINEN, Washburn Rural
Heinen, a senior, finished second in the 500-yard freestyle in the city meet and also swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 medley and 400 free relays. Heinen finished second in the Centennial League in the 500 freestyle and swam on Rural's winning 200 medley and 400 free relays. Heinen swam on the Junior Blues' 11th-place 200 medley and 400 free relays at state.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
AUSTIN BEAN, Hayden
A senior, Bean helped Hayden post a runnerup team finish in the Class 4A state tournament last season, earning second-team All-Shawnee County recognition. Bean finished 10th in the 2025 city championships with a 27-hole score of 127 and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament. He tied for 12th in 4A regional competition with an 81 as the Wildcats finished second as a team.
CALEB CLEVERDON, Topeka High/Cair Paravel Latin
Cleverdon, a senior, competed for Topeka High during the regular season before competing for High's co-op partner, Cair Paravel, in postseason. Cleverdon tied for sixth in the Class 2A state tournament with a 36-hole total of 155 (76-79), leading the Lions to a fourth-place team finish. A second-team All-Shawnee County pick, Cleverdon finished 10th in a 2A regional (83) for team champion CPLS.
Jack Donovan
JACK DONOVAN, Rossville
A senior, Donovan was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick for the second straight season last spring after earning a state medal for the second straight year with a tie for sixth in the Class 2A state event with a 36 hole score of 155 (76-79). Donovan was a 2A regional medalist, shooting a Rossville school-record 68 to win the individual championship by 12 strokes.
Peyton Goehring
PEYTON GOEHRING, Washburn Rural
Goehring is a top senior returner for Washburn Rural, which captured its 15th straight city team championship last season and advanced to the Class 6A state tournament as a team with a third-place team finish. Goehring carded a 27-hole score of 129 in the city tournament, missing the top 10 by two strokes and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament and finished 23rd at regionals.
Higgins Hawks
HIGGINS HAWKS, Washburn Rural
Hawks, a senior, earned his first All-Shawnee County first-team honor for the Junior Blues last season. Hawks tied for fifth in the city tournament with a 27-hole score of 124 as Rural won its 15th straight city championship. Hawks shot an 80 at regionals to tie for 10th as the Junior Blues earned a Class 6A team berth with a third-place finish and tied for 36th at state with a 36-hole score of 156 (75-81).
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural three-time Class 6A state champion and four-time finalist Landen Kocher-Munoz headlines the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County boys wrestling team.
TopSports.news' All-Shawnee County team is based on overall records, postseason results and city coaches' All-City selections.
Landen Kocher-Munoz, Washburn Rural [Photo by Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports]
Kocher-Munoz was named the Shawnee County wrestler of the year after winning the 144-pound championship to wrap up a 39-4 season as Washburn Rural a third-place team finish.
Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Kocher-Munoz is one of eight Washburn Rural wrestlers to earn spots on the All-Shawnee County team, including junior 215-pound state champ Jadyn Baum, who went 29-4 on the season.
Also earning all-county first-team honors for Rural were 106-pound freshman Hayden Broxterman (36-16), 113-pound freshman Andrew Peterson (26-11), 120-pound senior Ryder Harrison (28-7), 138-pound senior Cooper Stivers (34-7), 150-pound junior Brodye Kocher-Munoz (31-8) and sophomore 285-pounder Kaiden Marshall (19-4).
Harrison, Stivers, Brodye Kocher-Munoz, Landen Kocher-Munoz, Baum and Marshall are all first-team repeat picks.
Andrew Peterson, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Ryder Harrison, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Peterson, named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year, Harrison and Stivers all advanced to 6A championship matches and posted second-place finishes while Brodye Kocher-Munoz finished third and Broxterman and Marshall fifth in 6A.
Jude Krentz, Hayden [File photo/TSN]
Paxton Willett, Silver Lake [Photo by Rick Peterson Jr./KSHSAA Covered]
Hayden senior Jude Krentz (40-4) was the 4A runnerup at 190 pounds and is an all-county first-team repeat pick while Silver Lake senior Paxton Willett (41-11) was the 3A-1A state runnerup at 190 pounds.
Krentz is joined on the all-county first-team by Wildcat junior 175-pounder Caleb Menke (41-5) while Silver Lake senior 120-pounder Bryce Cormier (33-10) joins Willett on the first team.
Cormier posted a third-place state finish in 3A-1A while Menke finished fourth in 4A.
Seaman put junior 150-pounder Deegan Frazier (38-12), senior 165-pounder Landen Miller (35-14) and junior 285-pounder Henry Reichart (41-14) on the All-Shawnee County first team, with Frazier and Reichart both posting third-place finishes in the 5A state tournament.
Hayden coach Jacob Torrez was named the Shawnee County coach of the year after also being picked by his city coaching counterparts as the City Coach of the Year.
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY BOYS WRESTLING
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Class 5A senior state champion Cianna Graves headines the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County girls wrestling team while third-place teams Heights and Washburn Rural combined for 12 spots on the first team.
Cianna Graves, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
TopSports.news' All-Shawnee County team is based on overall records, postseason results and city coaches' All-City selections.
Graves, the Shawnee County wrestler of the year, is a four-time state medalist and capped her career with the state championship at 155 pounds, finishing off a 35-2 season.
Brinnley Morris, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
Olive Jones, Shawnee Heights [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
Graves was one of three T-Bird state champions, with freshman Brinnley Morris (21-3) winning the 120-pound title title and sophomore Olive Jones (39-1) taking the 135-pound crown as Shawnee Heights earned the third-place team trophy for the second straight season.
Morris was tapped as the Shawnee County newcomer of the year.
Lacey Middleton, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Emme Blanco, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Elia Smith, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural put a county-high seven wrestlers on the TSN All-Shawnee County first team, led by the senior Class 6A state runnerup trio of 125-pounder Lacey Middleton (39-7), 145-pounder Emme Blanco (40-4) and 170-pounder Elia Smith (35-4), who led the Junior Blues to a third-place team finish for the second straight season in 6A after Rural won back-to-back state titles in 2023 and 2024.
In addition to the three second-place finishers, Rural also put freshman 105-pounder Aliyah Tangpricha, senior 140-pounder Madi Blanco, junior 190-pounder Lily Davis and sophomore 235-pounder Emma Mehl on the first team.
Tangpricha (30-6) and Madi Blanco (40-5) both placed third in 6A while Davis (37-12) finished sixth and Mehl (25-16) was a state qualifier.
Madi Blanco and Smith are both three-time first-team all-county honorees while Middleton and Emme Blanco are repeat picks.
Shawnee Heights also put senior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens and sophomore 110-pounder Bianca Juarez on the all-county first team.
A multi-time state medalist, Stevens (33-6) finished third at 145 pounds and Juarez (26-14) was a state qualifier.
Shawnee Heights' Chad Parks was named the county coach of the year after the T-Birds won the United Kansas Conference championship and finished second at regionals before their third-place finish at state.
Makayla Cadet, Highland Park [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/TSN]
Highland Park senior 190-pounder Makayla Cadet (23-3) is a first-team repeat all-county honoree, posting a runnerup 5A state finish this past season after winning the state championship as a junior.
Nora Mitchell, Rossville [Photo by Rick Peterson Jr./KSHSAA Covered]
Rounding out the all-county first team are Rossville sophomore 105-pounder Nora Mitchell and junior 145-pounder Madelyn Wonnell.
Mitchell (37-12) was the 3A-1A runnerup and and Wonnell (38-6), a two-time state medalist, finished third this past season after finishing fifth as a sophomore.
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS WRESTLING
