Topeka West Chargers

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

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Four city players earned spots on the All-United Kansas Conference girls basketball first team, led by senior three-time first-team pick Maddie Gragg of Seaman and Shawnee Heights junior repeat honoree KK Emmot.

Maddie Gragg, Seaman

KK Emmot, Shawnee Heights 

Pearmella Carter, Shawnee Heights

Sydney VanDyke, Topeka West

Also earning All-UKC first-team recognition were Shawnee Heights junior Pearmella Carter and Topeka West junior Sydney VanDyke. Carter was a first-team pick in her first season at Heights after previously being named the Meadowlark Conference player of the year at Highland Park while VanDyke received All-UKC honorable mention as a sophomore.

Bob Wells, Shawnee Heights

Shawnee Heights coach Bob Wells was named the UKC coach of the year after leading the T-Birds to the conference championship and a fourth-place finish in Class 5A in his final season before retiring.

Shawnee Heights senior Imani McGlory was a second-team All-UKC pick.

Seaman junior Cara Beaton and Brynn Spencer received all-conference honorable mention along with Shawnee Heights junior Sami Baum and senior Reianna Vega and Topeka West junior Patience Allen.

ALL-UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE GIRLS BASKETBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

City players earned four of the seven spots on the All-United Kansas Conference boys basketball first team, led by Seaman UKC player of the year KaeVon Bonner.

Seaman senior KaeVon Bonner was named the UKC player of the year while earning all-conference first-team honors for the third straight season. [File photo/TSN]

Bonner, a senior, led the Vikings to a third-place finish in the Class 5A state tournament, earning All-UKC first-team honors for the third straight season.

Malakyah Duncan, Topeka West 

Keimani Paul, Topeka West

Cam Ross, Shawnee Heights

Bonner is joined on the first team by Topeka West seniors Malakyah Duncan and Keimani Paul and Shawnee Heights junior Cam Ross.

Duncan moved up to the first team after earning second-team recognition in 2025 while Paul received honorable mention a year ago.

Duncan and Paul helped lead Topeka West to a fourth-place finish in 5A while Ross helped Heights advance to the 5A state tournament for the third straight season.

Christian Ulsaker, Topeka West

Second-year Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker was picked as the UKC coach of the year after his Chargers won the conference championship on a tiebreaker over Seaman. 

Seaman senior Landon Wiltz, West junior Prince Lassiter and Heights freshman Quincy Dixon earned second-team honors while Viking senior Griffin Zuniga, T-Bird seniors Ja'Veon Alston, JaiMarion Cook and Aiden Scott and West senior Jay'Veon Traylor all earned honorable mention. 

ALL-UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE BOYS BASKETBALL

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

WICHITA -- In what marked the final game of his tenure as Seaman boys basketball coach, Craig Cox saw his team deliver a strong performance Friday, defeating city rival Topeka West 66-50 in the Class 5A third-place game at Koch Arena.

The matchup marked the third meeting of the season between the city and United Kansas Conference foes, but this time Seaman controlled the game early and never fully relinquished its advantage.

Seaman senior KaeVon Bonner (33) had 9 points and 10 assists in the Vikings' 66-50 win over Topeka West in Friday's Class 5A third-place game. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Seaman jumped out to a quick start behind senior KaeVon Bonner, who scored four of the Vikings’ first six points to give his team a 6-0 lead.

Topeka West eventually got on the board when junior Prince Lassiter converted a basket, but Seaman quickly responded with a 7-0 run to stretch the lead to 13-4.

Chargers guard Keimani Paul knocked down a 3-pointer late in the quarter, but the Vikings answered with four more points to take a 17-8 lead into the second period.

Topeka West found momentum early in the second quarter, opening the period on a 10-1 run to pull within two points. However, Viking senior Landon Wiltz halted the Chargers’ surge with a timely 3-pointer.

Seaman regained control from there, closing the half with a flurry of outside shooting.

The Vikings connected on three 3-pointers down the stretch, including one at the buzzer, to push their lead to 11 heading into halftime.

Seaman senior Landon Wiltz (5), defending Topeka West's Keimani Paul, led all scorers with 23 points in Friday's 66-50 win in the Class 5A third-place game. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

Wiltz led all scorers with 11 first-half points and was 3 for 4 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Both teams struggled to find offensive rhythm to start the third quarter, but Topeka West closed the period strong with an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to seven.

Cox emphasized patience and ball movement during the break between quarters.

“We had moved the ball again and were just kind of settling for some shots and missing them,” Cox said. “It’s like, make the extra pass and it’ll be fine. I thought we moved the ball a lot better, got it to the middle and played a little bit from the inside out.

"With these guys having confidence, it makes it easy to not panic when a good team like Topeka West makes a run.”

“(Cox0 just told us to finish the game out,” Bonner said. "We just kept letting them back in. It’s the last game of the season, just have fun.”

Seaman responded with its strongest stretch of the game to open the fourth quarter.

After the Chargers scored five quick points to pull within four, the Vikings erupted on a 9-0 run to extend the lead to 52-39.

Paul briefly halted the surge with a 3-pointer for Topeka West, but Seaman answered with three consecutive 3-pointers of its own to effectively put the game out of reach.

The Vikings were particularly efficient from long range, shooting 13 of 26 from 3-point range, while Topeka West struggled from deep, converting just 3 of 19 attempts.

Wiltz finished with a game-high 23 points, while Bonner impacted the game in other ways. Though held to nine points, the standout guard recorded 10 assists.

“I know scoring is one of my main things, but if my shot’s not falling, I’ll go out and get my teammates involved,” Bonner said. “Landon was hitting his shots, so I just drove and found him. He did his job of shooting for me.”

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

WICHITA -- The Topeka West Chargers were knocked off balance early and never recovered Thursday, losing to Bonner Springs 76-61 in the Class 5A state semifinal round at Wichita State's Koch Arena. 

Junior Prince Lassiter led Topka West with 21 points in Thursday's 76-61 Class 5A semifinal loss to Bonner Springs. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

The third-seeded Chargers fell quickly into foul trouble and found themselves in a 19-8 hole in the opening period. The Chargers played the Braves essentially even on the scoreboard the rest of the way, but never challenged. The closest Topeka West ever came to catching the Braves was eight points.

“We came out flat,” said Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker. “Bonner Springs was ready to play. We were not ready to play. Too many turnovers for us. We didn’t make the 50-50 plays, and they did.”

Topeka West won a grueling double-overtime quarterfinal over rival Piper on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals. Ulsaker admitted the Chargers might have been dealing with a hangover effect.

“It could be. But I think Bonner Springs just has a lot of guys who are pretty good basketball players, and we just weren’t ready for it,” Ulsaker said. “They do the same things we’ve been seeing all year. They hedge ball screens and we didn’t make the right reads to get the ball inside. I think (our) guys were hunting shots they shouldn’t have been hunting for and didn’t stick to the game plan.”

Chargers guard Malakyah Duncan spent a good portion of the first half on the bench in foul trouble. He scored just one basket prior to halftime, by which time Bonner Springs led 37-25.

Senior Gad Munganga, who scored 15 points, reacts during Thursday's 76-61 Class 5A semifinal loss to Bonner Springs. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN] 

Prince Lassiter led the Chargers with 21 points, followed by Gad Munganga with 15.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EMPORIA -- After splitting a pair of knockdown, dragout regular-season United Kansas Conference regular-season matchups with Piper, Topeka West basketball coach Christian Ulsaker knew that Tuesday's Class 5A quarterfinal was going to be another fierce battle.

 Senior Keimani Paul scored 28 of his game-high 30 points in the second half and OTs, leading Topeka West to an 86-78 Class 5A state tournament win over Piper Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

But not even Ulsaker could have predicted what transpired at White Auditorium, a double-overtime thriller that had momentum swing after momentum swing and big play after big play before No. 3 seed Topeka West took control in the second extra session to outlast No. 6 Piper, 86-78, and advance to the state semifinals.

"That's what winners do,'' Ulsaker said. "Give (Piper) coach (Steve) Wallace and DJ (Derrick Jackson) and that team all the credit. They didn't want to go home, you could tell, and we didn't want to go home, so it's fun to see two teams battle it out to get a chance at Wichita.'' 

Topeka West, now 23-3 on the season, advances to an 8 p.m. Thursday night semifinal matchup with No. 2 seed Bonner Springs (25-1), which topped Kansas City-Washington, 68-49.

The stage for Tuesday's Topeka West-Piper marathon was set when Topeka West jumped out to an early 10-4 lead, only to see Piper (18-8) battle back to forge ties at 10-10 and 14-14 before before the Pirates ended the opening quarter with a 5-0 run to take a 19-14 advantage.

Piper went up 21-14, its biggest lead of the night, early in the second stanza, but this time it was West that battled back, with the Chargers tying the game at 23 and eventually going in front 28-23 before the game was tied at 28 and 30.

Piper got the final bucket of the half, on a Cooper Crawford dunk, to take a 32-30 lead at the break.

The back and forth affair continued in the second half, with four lead changes in the third quarter before Piper took a 48-45 advantage into the fourth.

Topeka West almost immediately tied the game on a Malakyah Duncan 3-pointer, one of four ties in the period, including a 59-59 deadlock to force overtime.

West went up 58-56 on a Paul hoop before Jasper Phillips hit a free throw to give the Chargers a 59-56 lead with 7.5 seconds left in regulation before Piper star Jackson drained a clutch 3-pointer at the buzzer.

There were four ties and four lead changes in the first OT and West again had a late lead, at 71-69, before Jackson scored with 8.2 seconds left to send the game to a second extra four-minute period.

But this time the Chargers were able to put the Pirates away after scoring the first nine points of the second OT to open their biggest lead of the night at 80-71 with 1:11 left. 

Piper battled all the way back to get within 81-78 with 26 seconds remaining before West ended the game with a 5-0 run.

Senior Malakyah Duncan scored 17 points in Topeka West's 86-78 Class 5A state tournament win over Piper Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Paul scored 28 of his game-high 30 points in the second half and overtimes while Duncan scored 17 points, Prince Lassiter 13, Jay'Veon Lassiter 11 and Gad Munganga 10 points for the Chargers.

"The first half (Paul) was pretty frustrated, 1 for 2 in the first half,'' Ulsaker said. "He was kind of like, 'Give me the ball, give me the ball,' and I just went in there (the locker room) and said, 'I gave your the ball, OK.' You wanted it, we gave it to you and that's what seniors do. They want the big moments.

"Gad had them, Lok (Duncan) had them, Kei had them. That's a team that wants to win a basketball game.''

"I was mad I wasn't getting (many) touches and they were hounding me first half, but I know that I did not want my season to end today, so I got after it,'' Paul said.

"We took control. We knew the shot that (Jackson) hit to turn it into overtime, we knew that wasn't supposed to happen, so we knew we needed to seal the game with free throws, stay poised and mature, and that's what we did.''  

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Ken Darting’s retirement plans are on hold, at least for a few more days.

Ken Darting, who has coached three high schools to state tournament berths, including five state champions, will close out its Hall of Fame career in this week's Class 5A state tournament. [File photo/TSN]

After back-to-back trips to the Class 5A state tournament in 2024 and 2025 and the graduation of significant players, you might not have expected Darting's Shawnee Heights T-Birds to be back in the dance this year.

“I know one that wouldn’t have expected that,” Darting said with a laugh after his T-Birds defeated Leavenworth Friday in the sub-state final game. The T-Birds survived graduations, injuries, suspensions and midseason player defections to punch their ticket for another state tournament.

Going to state has become a family tradition for the Dartings. This will be the 15th tournament for a Darting-coached team, spread across stints at Silver Lake, Highland Park and Shawnee Heights. Darting’s high school resume is interrupted by a decade spent coaching at Kansas State and Allen County Community College. But still, trips to state have been an important part of their lives. The Dartings cherish the memories from nine appearances in state title games, five which ended in championships.

This year’s state tournament will hold special significance as it will be Darting’s last. The tournament has been a place for him to reconnect with friends made during his lengthy career.

“Last year at the state tournament, we had just lost, and there’s 17 coaches from all over the state that came to our locker room,” Darting recalled. “I sat there and visited for an hour with them, those 17 different guys that came to talk. And that’s fun. I look forward to getting to do that again this year. You know, usually I want to go hide, to go out that hole and sneak out. But to see those former players and old coaches is a fun deal.”

Had his current T-Birds not qualified for the tournament, Darting said the sendoff given by the Shawnee Heights community was sufficient. But another trip to state will provide a chance to celebrate his retirement with other friends.

“Already this year, I’ve got calls from all over, from coaches that I knew 30 years ago,” Darting said. “And I’m proud of how many opposing coaches have sent me notes or come to see me for my last game. That means you did something.”

Still, Darting isn’t looking at the tournament as a farewell tour, but a business trip.

“You say, ‘Oh, it’s just another game.' But things like that, when you stop and think about it, when you get to this point, you’d like to go out as good as you can go out,” Darting said. “I’m not one that is holding myself hostage to a state championship. But whatever it is that we’re good enough to do, I want to do that.”

The tournament takes on a slightly different look this year. Rather than playing the quarterfinal round at the location of the semifinal and final games, KSHSAA has grouped teams in regional locations based on proximity for the higher-seeded teams, regardless of classification.

Shawnee Heights (17-8) will face top-seeded and two-time defending Class 5A state champion Kapaun Mt. Carmel at Koch Arena in Wichita at 6 p.m. Tuesday.

The T-Birds face a tough task in the opening round, but Darting will remain dedicated to this year’s team until the final whistle. His feeling for this current group shows in his eyes.

“I think when they’re that age, yeah, celebrate, go on,” Darting said as he watched the current group celebrate their sub-state championship Friday. “They don’t even know it yet, but they’re gonna see in life, 10, 20 years from now, they’re gonna say, ‘Oh wow, was that fun?’ And when it’s a team that shouldn’t get it done and it gets done, that makes it even more special.”

Darting is invested not just in this current roster of T-Birds but what happens after he’s gone. He spoke passionately about freshmen Quincy Dixon, Fletcher Terrell and Sam Becker, each of whom played a significant role in reaching the tournament.

“I care so much about whoever takes over this job, because these kids deserve it,” Darting said. “There are a lot of good kids on the way up. I wanted to make sure that I left this program better for the next guy than I found it.”

TUESDAY'S OTHER STATE QUARTERFINALS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Granted, my jury is still out on the state's new quarterfinal format, but this remains my favorite week of the high school sports season, and for what it's worth -- and it's not much -- here's my take on all 14 of this week's state basketball tournaments across the state.

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

If I did pick the team/teams you root for, I hope it's not a jinx.

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

CLASS 6A BOYS

Finalists -- Shawnee Mission South (1: 24-1) vs. Mill Valley (2: 22-3).

Champion -- Shawnee Mission South. The Raiders' lone loss on the season was a 69-66 decision to Mill Valley and those two teams could meet again in Saturday's championship game. I give SM South a slight edge in a rematch.

Other contenders -- No. 3 seed Olathe North is 21-4 and is capable of beating any team in the field.

CLASS 6A GIRLS

Finalists -- Wichita Heights (1: 24-0) vs. Shawnee Mission South (2: 21-3).

Champion -- Shawnee Mission South. Wichita Heights has passed each and every test it has faced this season, but I give South a very narrow edge in a championship game matchup.

Kansas coaching legend Ron Slaymaker's Topeka High girls are on a roll entering their Class 6A quarterfinal matchup with Derby. [File photo/TSN]   

Other contenders --The winner of the quarterfinal game between No. 2 seed Derby (22-3) and No. 7 Topeka High (17-8) could mount a title charge. No. 5 seed Olathe South (20-5) has five losses to out-of-state teams and perennial 6A contender Blue Valley North (20-5), the No. 6 seed, also has a shot at the crown.

Senior Malakyah Duncan cuts down the nets after Topeka West's win over Bishop Carroll in a Class 5A sub-state final. [File photo/TSN]

CLASS 5A BOYS

Finalists -- Kapaun Mt. Carmel (1: 25-0) vs. Topeka West (3: 22-3).

Champion -- Kapaun Mt. Carmel. The Crusaders are the two-time defending champion and the team to beat again after running off 25 straight wins this winter, but Topeka West, which lost to KMC in the quarterfinals a year ago, has the firepower to challenge for the title.

Other contenders --The winner of the quarterfinal game between No. 4 seed Maize South (21-4) and No. 5 Seaman (21-4) could definitely make a run at the title as could perennial state contender Piper (18-7), which has split games with Topeka West this season.

CLASS 5A GIRLS

Finalists -- Andover (1: 23-1) vs. Hays (2: 23-1).

Champion -- Hays. The Indians' lone loss came against Class 3A power Silver Lake, the only blemish on a dominating season, while Andover will be looking for its first title under former Topeka High coach Hannah Alexander.

Other contenders -- No. 3 seed Shawnee Heights (21-4) is making its first state appearance since 2011 and has the talent to go all the way as could the winner of the quarterfinal game between No 4 seed Maize South (21-4) and No. 5 St. James Academy (20-5).  

CLASS 4A BOYS

Finalists -- Rock Creek (1: 25-0) vs. McPherson (7: 16-9).

Champion -- Rock Creek. The Mustangs have turned in a dominant season and there's no reason to believe they can't close out a perfect season. 

Other contenders -- No. 2 seed Atchison is also unbeaten in 25 games on the season while No. 5 seed Andale (18-5) is a longshot contender for the crown.

Sophomore Hailey Schmidtlein and the Hayden girls are the No. 4 seed for the Class 4A state tournament with a 19-6 record. [File photo/TSN]

CLASS 4A GIRLS

Finalists -- Wellington (1: 22-1) vs. Rock Creek (2: 22-3).

Champion -- Rock Creek. The Mustangs have put together a string of impressive victories this season, including a win over Class 3A contender Silver Lake.

Other contenders --You can never count out perennial state champion Bishop Miege, the No. 6 seed this season at 17-8. The quarterfinal winner between No. 4 seed Hayden (19-6) and No. 5 seed Andale (17-6) could also make a run at the championship.

CLASS 3A BOYS

Finalists -- Wichita Collegiate (1: 24-1) vs. Hesston (2: 24-2).

Champion -- Wichita Collegiate. Collegiate's lone defeat on the season came against two-time defending Class 5A state champ Kapaun Mt. Carmel, which is a perfect 25-0 on the season.

Other contenders -- The quarterfinal winner between No. 4 seed Holcomb (21-5) and No. 5 Silver Lake (20-6) is capable of winning the championship while No. 3 seed Pratt is an impressive 21-3.

Senior Kailyn Hanni and the Silver Lake girls enter the Class 3A state tournament with a 25-1 record after winning the state crown in 2024 and advancing to the championship game last season. [File photo/TSN]

CLASS 3A GIRLS

Finalists -- Halstead (1: 25-0) vs. Silver Lake (2: 25-1).

Champion -- Silver Lake. The Eagles won the championship in 2024 and were the runnerup a year ago. Halstead is a perfect 25-0 on the season, but it's hard to pick against Silver Lake.

Other contenders -- Holcomb, the No. 3 seed at 24-2, is likely to give Silver Lake a tough semifinal test if both teams get past their quarterfinal openers.

CLASS 2A BOYS

Finalists -- Sterling (1: 25-0) vs. Berean Academy (2: 22-2).

Champion -- Sterling. The Black Bears appear to be a good bet to close out a perfect season.

Other contenders -- No. 7 seed Rossville (17-7) has the talent and experience to knock off Berean in the quarterfinals and make a run at the crown. Other contenders include No. 5 seed St. Marys (19-7) and No. 6 St. Marys Colgan (18-7), a traditional state title contender.

CLASS 2A GIRLS

Finalists -- Eureka (4: 22-2) vs. Moundridge (2: 23-2).

Champion -- Moundridge. I give Moundridge a slight edge in a balanced field loaded with contenders.

Other contenders -- No. 8 seed Rossville (15-10) is capable of knocking off top seed and 25-1 Ellinwood in the quarterfinals while No. 3 seed St. Marys Colgan (23-2) and No. 6 Sacred Heart (22-4) are defintely title threats.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka West's boys basketball team is known for its explosive offense, with the Chargers scoring 70 or more points in 15 wins, including three in the 80s.

Senior Malakyah Duncan, who led Topeka West with a game-high 15 points, holds up the Class 5A sub-state trophy after Friday's 60-46 win over Bishop Carroll. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But to a man, the Chargers agreed that defense was the difference in Friday's 60-46 win over Bishop Carroll in a Class 5A sub-state championship game on West's home court.

"Absolutely,'' West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "I thought our defense kind of went up a notch or two, just in terms of the physicality and the tenaciousness we played with on defense.

"That just leads to our offense kind of getting going. You can have off nights shooting it, but your defense has to be there every night.''

Now headed to the 5A state tournament for the second straight season, the 22-3 Chargers trailed 16-8 Bishop Carroll 25-20 at halftime and fell behind 28-22 at the 6:09 mark of the third quarter after a 3-pointer from Carroll senior Brody Kreutzer.

But it was at that point that the Chargers' defense really kicked in, with West ending the third quarter on a 16-0 run to build a 38-28 advantage thanks to the 18-3 quarter.

Topeka West senior Jay'Veon Traylor cuts down the nets after the Chargers' 60-46 Class 5A sub-state win over Bishop Carroll Friday night. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"We went into the locker room at halftime, knowing we needed to get more intensity and more rebounds,'' West senior Jay'Veon Traylor said. "The intensity got up, we started playing better defense and just won the game.''

Senior Malakyah Duncan agreed.

"We get defensive stops, we get out on the fastbreak and we just went on from there,'' Duncan said. "Our defensive stops really got our energy up.

"Their defense was suffocating, but we just had to figure out a way to put the ball in the hoop and that's what we did in the second half. We just played defense and do what we do and put the ball in the hoop.''  

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Underdog Hutchinson got Topeka West's attention with a strong first quarter in Tuesday's Class 5A West sub-state semifinal.

But that proved to be the Salthawks' undoing, with the No. 2-seeded Chargers outscoring No. 15 seed Hutch 34-10 over the middle two quarters en route to a 55-32 win at West.

Senior Keimani Paul scored a game-high 16 points in Topeka West's 55-32 Class 5A sub-state win over Hutchinson Tuesday night. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"We came out a little bit slow the first quarter and we just knew that our defense was going to keep us in the game,'' said Topeka West senior Keimani Paul, who scored a game-high 16 points. "If we're not making shots, the defense was going to keep us in the game for sure.''

With the win the 21-3 Chargers advanced to a 6 p.m. sub-state final on Friday at West to face No. 7 seed Bishop Carroll (16-7). The Eagles advanced with a 62-53 win over Andover.

Hutchinson, which finished its season 7-16, led through most of the opening quarter and the game was tied at 12-all at the start of the second period.

"Their coach (Bryan Miller) did a great job,'' West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "I felt like they knew our offense better than we did at times. He was calling out everything, so our guys did a great job of adjusting to that and defensively we threw some different things at them to try to confuse them a little bit and get out and run.'' 

But at that point Topeka West took control, outscoring the Salthawks 18-6 in the second quarter to take a 30-18 lead at the half.

The Chargers then put the game away with a dominant 16-4 third quarter, taking a 46-22 lead into the fourth stanza and forcing a running clock at 55-24 with 4:44 remaining on a 3-pointer from senior Malakyah Duncan.

"We just wanted to get this game out of the way, quick, easy, and get ready for Bishop Carroll,'' Paul said.

"The guys came out a little jittery in the first quarter, but I feel like they settled in and did what they needed to do to get the win and move on to a team (Carroll) that we've kind of had circled now for about a week and a half,'' Ulsaker said.

"We knew this was a possiblity that we'd meet up with Bishop Carroll. They're very well-coached and will be ready to play.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural earned nine of 11 spots on the 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving team, led by Class 6A state champion Daniel Allen, after the Junior Blues capturned their seventh straight city team championship.

The 2026 All-City boys swimming first team -- Front, from left: Alexander Jeffries, Washburn Rural; Davin Potts, Washburn Rural; Braeden Montgomery, Washburn Rural; Benjamin Allen, Washburn Rural; Andres Morao-Jaspe, Washburn Rural. Back, from left: Kinser Barbosa, Seaman; Daniel Allen, Washburn Rural; Thomas Appuhn, Washburn Rural; Zain Chaudhry, Washburn Rural; Castle Wallace, Washburn Rural; Will Stewart, Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

The 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving second team -- Front row, from left: Quenten Jessop, Washburn Rural; Henry Sterling, Cair Paravel/Hayden; William Toland, Topeka High; Wyatt Ratteree, Topeka High; Jackson Wills, Topeka High; Owen Gann, Shawnee Heights. Back row, from left: Patrick Luke, Hayden; Joseph Jensen, Washburn Rural; Miller Reid, Hayden; Camp LeDuc, Seaman; Theron Carlson, Seaman. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Allen capped his junior season with the state title in the 100-yard butterfly while also placing third in the 100 backstroke and swimming on the Junior Blues' fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.

Sophomore Thomas Appuhn also earned four medals in the state meet, posting fourth-place finishes in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and swimming on Rural's fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.

Junior Andres Morao-Jaspe and sophomore Castle Wallace also earned 6A state medals as Washburn Rural placed sixth as team and are joined on the All-City team by Benjamin Allen, Zain Chaudhry, Alexander Jeffries, Braeden Montgomery and Davin Potts. 

Appuhn, Morao-Jaspe and Wallace are all first-team All-City repeat honorees while D. Allen made the team as a freshman before sitting out his sophomore high school season.

Seaman's Kinser Barbosa and Topeka High's Will Stewart are also repeat first-team All-City selections.

All-City capsules:

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Seaman's girls bowling team added a Class 5A regional team title to its city and United Kansas Conference crowns Tuesday at Gage Bowl, with the Vikings taking the regional championship by a 2,958-2,904 margin over Emporia.

Claire LaDuke (facing) celebrates a strike with her Seaman teammates during Tuesday's Class 5A regional at Gage Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Shawnee Heights also earned a berth for next week's state tournament at Wichita, finishing third as a team at 2,831.

Highland Park will also have a competitor in the girls state tournament, with Ra'Lynn Divers qualifying as an individual.

Claire LaDuke led the champion Vikings with a third-place individual finish, shooting a 565 three-game series while Seaman also got a sixth-place individual finish from Paige Snyder, who shot a 555 series.

The Vikings also got a 12th-place individual finish from Laci Cole (521), a 13th showing from Leah Crawford (516) and a 16th from Kayla Duncan (493) while Ava Carlson shot a 448.

Shawnee Heights bowling coach Scott Mercer talks to his girls team during Tuesday's Class 5A regional at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Addison VanMetre shot a 544 series to pace third-place Shawnee Heights with a seventh-place individual finish while the T-Birds' Lauryn Valdivia placed 11th (522), Emma Wederski was 14th (509), Tatum Simpson was 18th (482) and Bailey Liby was 19th (459). Reese Bell rounded out the T-Bird lineup with a 441 series.

Highland Park's Divers shot a 456 series to garner the fifth individual qualifying berth for state.

The city boys 5A contingent will also be well-represented at state, led by Shawnee Heights, which finished second as a team by a 3,417-3,275 margin to United Kansas Conference rival De Soto while Seaman and Highland Park combined for three individual qualifiers.

Evan Jones finished fifth with a 650 series to lead Shawnee Heights to a second-place team finish in Tuesday's Class 5A bowling regional at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Evan Jones shot a 650 series to pace Shawnee Heights with a fifth-place individual finish while the T-Birds also got a seventh-place finish from Braden Evans (637), a ninth from Trey Donath (622), and a 14th-place showing from Henry Schattilly (637). Chevy Stallbaumer added a 581 and Kaden Evans a 523 for Heights.

Seaman's Garrett Shaw shot a 666 series to tie for second and finish third on a tiebreaker in Tuesday's Class 5A regional at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Seaman finished fourth as a team to miss a state team berth by one spot, but the Vikings got a second-place tie (third on a tiebreaker) from Garrett Shaw, who shot a 666 to earn the second individual qualifying berth.

Highland Park earned a pair of individual state berths, with Kayden King shooting a 638 to earn the third individual qualifying spot for staate and Isaac Barnes shooting a 617 to place 10th and earn the fourth individual qualifying berth.      

CLASS 5A REGIONAL BOWLING

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Despite playing short-handed, the Topeka West girls picked up their sixth win of the season by racing past Turner 63-30 Tuesday.

Junior Sydney VanDyke scored a game-high 25 points in Topeka West's 63-30 win over Turner Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Junior Patience Allen scored 14 points in Topeka West's 63-30 win over Turner Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Charger coach Angie Ketterman dug even deeper into her program for players Tuesday as two injured seniors played to be recognized on Senior Night and others missed the game entirely.

Senior Breonnah Keeling made her first appearance for the Chargers since the season opener, in which she injured her knee. Wearing a brace, she received a pass off the opening tip and laid it in to get in the scorebook in her final game.

Addaline Hall, one of the team’s most productive players all season, also started the game to be recognized on Senior Night, then promptly checked out. Keeling said Hall has an injury that may prevent her from playing the rest of the season.

“It was good to get a win, but we have so many players injured right now,” Ketterman said. “We could only play with six tonight.

“It was good to see (Keeling) back on the floor tonight. She played two minutes against Highland Park and tore her ACL. So, it was nice to get her back out there to be recognized.”

The Chargers were led by junior Sydney VanDyke’s 25 points. Fellow junior Patience Allen added 14 on 7-11 shooting.

Freshman Aniyah Perkins scored 13 points in Topeka West's 63-30 win over Turner Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Kettering praised Aniyah Perkins, a freshman who stepped in and scored 13 points.

“She’s got great moves around the basket,” Kettering said of Perkins. “She’s aggressive and plays hard and she’s got a lot of speed.”

Kettering said she thought the players who played increased minutes Tuesday responded well. She expects to rely on the same mix of players in the regular-season finale Friday at Lansing.

“If we’re going to have to play these young kids (in the playoffs), it’s good to have one more game,” Kettering said. “Playing these young girls is only going to help us for the future. They’re great players. They’ve just got to get used to playing that fast-paced game.”

Allen said that although the team is digging deep for players, the Chargers expect to play hard and compete.

“We were just playing aggressive and playing as a team tonight,” Allen said. “It changes things a little bit (to be using new players), but we all practice together. I think they are a little bit nervous, but they know what they’re doing and they’re going to do good.”

TOPEKA WEST GIRLS 63, TURNER 30

Turner             8 11 9 2 -- 30

Topeka West    25 12 15 11 -- 63

Turner (3-18, 0-15) – Chavez 2-13 1-2 3, Olsen 1-6 0-0 2, Henderson 0-3 0-0 0, Benson 1-5 1-4 3, Ollie 4-11 2-6 10, Beery 1-1 0-0 2, High 0-0 0-0 0, Pollard 2-3 4-4 8. Totals 11-42 8-18 30.

Topeka West (6-16, 3-12) – Gonzales 2-15 0-0 5, VanDyke 9-13 7-13 25, Keeling 1-1 0-0 2, Hall 0-0 0-0 0, Kutina 1-7 0-0 2, Allen 7-11 0-3 14, Perkins 6-14 0-2 13, Traylor 1-4 0-0 2, Smith 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-66 7-18 63.

3-point goals – Turner 0, Topeka West 2 (Gonzales, Perkins 1). Total fouls – Turner 12, Topeka West 12. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none. 

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Just 24 hours after the Chargers outlasted rival Topeka High in a grueling battle at The Dungeon, Topeka West withstood a challenge Tuesday from Turner 72-54 to draw within one game of a United Kansas Conference crown.

Malakyah Duncan scored a game-high 16 points to help lead Topeka West to a 72-54 Senior Night win over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Senior Keimani Paul scored 13 points to help lead Topeka West to a 72-54 Senior Night win over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The Golden Bears didn’t go down willingly. They led 21-20 early in the second period and stayed within reach the entire first half. An 8-0 run to start the third quarter gave the Chargers some breathing room.

As the Chargers slowly built a lead Tuesday, Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker went deeper into his bench to rest his starters and allow others to get minutes. Coming off the bench on Senior Nigh, regular junior starter Prince Lassiter scored 12 points and junior J.J. Doby added eight.

“Second game in as many days, I thought we started fast last night,” Ulsaker said. “So, trying to replicate that two nights in a row might be a little bit challenging with how high intensity the game last night was. I’m just proud of our boys for just battling, getting the win.”

The Chargers, ranked fourth in the final ranking of Class 5A teams by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, improved to 18-3, 13-2 in the United Kansas Conference. A win Friday at Lansing would guarantee that they will at least share the crown, if not win it outright.

Ulsaker started all five of his seniors Tuesday and saw them combine for 48 points. Leading the seniors was Malakyah Duncan with 16 and Keimani Paul with 13. Gad Munganga added eight, Jay’Veon Traylor at six and Trey Ware tossed in five.

“It was good to honor the seniors tonight. (Senior Night) is fun to see and it’s also sad at the same time.” said Ulsaker, who came to Topeka West from Wabaunsee two seasons ago. “These guys have been in the program for four years, I’ve had the great opportunity of coaching them for two. I can’t tell you how great of a class this is. You have certain groups and senior groups that you just wish you could have more, and this is definitely one of them.”

After the game, Duncan reflected on his career at Topeka West.

“I feel good. I’m ready for sub-state, hopefully make it to state,” Duncan said. “I have great confidence in my team. We are balanced, talented. I think we can take it all the way. We’ve got the potential to do something this team has never done, to win state for the first time in history. We’ve just got to go do it.”

TOPEKA WEST BOYS 72, TURNER 54

Turner             16 12 14 12 -- 54

Topeka West    20 16 18 18 -- 72

Turner (4-18, 0-15) – Marshall 4-8 0-0 9, Scott 1-3 0-0 2, McBride 1-4 1-2 3, McGee 6-11 2-2 14, Bryant 2-3 0-0 5, Hamilton 5-9 1-2 13, Thomas 3-4 0-0 6, Solido 0-1 0-0 0, Ramanis 0-0 2-2 2, Springer 0-0 0-0 0, King 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-43 6-8 54.

Topeka West (18-3, 13-2) – Munganga 2-6 4-4 8, Ware 2-6 0-0 5, Traylor 2-5 2-4 6, Duncan 7-12 1-1 16, Paul 5-8 2-2 13, Phillips 1-2 0-2 2, Lassiter 5-6 2-5 12, Doby 3-3 1-2 8, Fox 1-5 0-0 2, Lloyd 0-1 0-0 0, Emerson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-54 12-20 72.

3-point goals – Turner 4 (Hamilton 2, Marshall, Bryant), Topeka West 4 (Ware, Duncan , Paul, Doby). Total fouls – Turner 14, Topeka West 10. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After leading by as many as 12 points late in the first half, Topeka West had to withstand threat after threat from USD 501 rival Topeka High the rest of the way Monday night.

Topeka West junior Prince Lassiter had a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds in Monday's 78-73 win at Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But the Chargers had an answer for everything the Trojans threw at them, holding on for a 78-73 win in the Dungeon.

"I felt we were getting high percentage shots and we were doing everything we could to stop those streaks, but they were lights out,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said of the Trojans. "And it was a playoff atmosphere, and that's what you want. I love to see it.'' 

Topeka High got a career-high 30-point game, including six 3-pointers, from Trojan senior Jalen Aldridge and canned 14 3-pointers as a team, but the Chargers exhibited plenty of firepower themselves, with 6-foot-6 junior Prince Lassiter recording a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds to lead four West players in double figures.

"We always have to deal with adversity, so it's really nothing new for us and we always battle through it,'' Lassister said. "There's definitely going to be a lot of teams that are able to shoot that three-ball really good and T-High, they're a good team that can shoot the 3, so that's a good look for what we're going to come up against in sub-state and state.''

Lassiter got West off to a fast start with 11 points in the first quarter and also came up big late, scoring six points in the fourth quarter, including a hoop inside the final minute that put the Chargers up by eight points.

"I appreciate that my teammates are always feeding me the ball so I can go to work,'' Lassiter said.

Topeka West also got 20 points from senior Malakyah Duncan, 17 from senior Keimani Paul and 10 from senior Jay'Veon Traylor en route to improving to 18-3 on the season.

Monday's win was the Chargers' second of the season over the rival Trojans, with Topeka West also topping High in the championship game of the Topeka Invitational Tournament in mid-January.

Topeka High senior Jalen Aldridge (1), battling Topeka West senior Malakyah Duncan for a loose ball, scored a game-high 30 points with six 3-pointers Monday night, while Duncan had 20 points. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

In addition to Aldridge's big night, Topeka High, now 11-11, got 21 points and four 3-pointers from senior Bryson McComas and 10 points and a pair of 3s from senior Octavian McFadden.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Playing its first of two back-to-back games, Topeka High girls basketball did exactly what Trojans coach Ron Slaymaker wanted to see Monday night, tuning up for Tuesday's Centennial League road game at Washburn Rural with a 74-35 win over USD 501 rival Topeka West on Senior Night at High.

Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton came off the bench to score a game-high 22 points Mondsay night in Topeka High's 74-35 win over Topeka West [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Topeka High, which improved to 14-8 on the season, took control early which allowed the Trojans to work on different aspects of their game while Slaymaker was able to empty his bench, playing 14 different players.

"We've got a pretty big game tomorrow night and we tried do some different things tonight that we would have done in practice and we got to do that in game conditions and that's kind of what we wanted,'' Slaymaker said.

Slaymaker said he's not worried by the fact that the Trojans are playing on back-to-back nights.

"The conditioning factor, most kids this time of year, they can play two games in a row,'' Slaymaker said.  "Three, that's a stretch, but two in a row I've never worried about.''

The Trojans, who have now won eight straight games, jumped out to 20-8 first-quarter lead and were in command 41-14 at the half.

Topeka High led by as many as 42 points (65-23) late in the third quarter and took a 65-26 advantage into the fourth quarter, forcing a running clock.

The Trojans started all five of their seniors Monday night, with High junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton coming off the bench to score a game-high 22 points and lead four Trojans in double figures.

Seniors Keimara Marshall and Sasha Gotru backed Rayton with 14 and 12 points while sophomore Hailey Caryl had 11 points and nine rebounds off the bench.

Topeka West was short-handed for Monday's game, playing without injured senior Addaline Hall and lost junior Aveah McGlory to an injury in the second half.

Junior Sydney VanDyke paced the Chargers (5-16) with 10 points while junior Patience Allen added eight points.

Topeka West will also play back-to-back nights, hosting Turner in a United Kansas Conference contest on Tuesday.

TOPEKA HIGH GIRLS 74, TOPEKA WEST 35

Topeka West   8 6 12 9  -- 35

Topeka High 20 21 24 9 -- 74

Topeka West (5-16) – Allen 4-9 0-0 8, Gonzales 0-7 0-0 0, VanDyke 3-9 4-6 10, Kutina 0-3 0-0 0, McGlory 2-4 0-0 4, Ogles 3-6 2-4 8, Perkins 1-2 3-4 5, Robinson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-48 6-10 50.

Topeka High (14-8) – Short 1-3 0-0 2, Triplett 1-2 0-0 2, Whayne 0-0 0-0 0, Marshall 6-12 2-2 14, Gotru 5-6 1-1 12, Hartz 2-4 0-0 4, Rayton 10-19 0-0 22, Caryl 5-10 1-2 11, Brown 1-1 0-0 2, Marshall 0-0 0-0 0, Martin 1-3 0-0 3, Conley 1-3 0-0 2, Robbins 0-1 0-0 0, Cortez 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-64 4-5 74. 

3-point goals – Topeka High 4 (Rayton 2, Gotru, Martin). Total fouls – Topeka West 4, Topeka High 8. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls -- none.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural led the way with 12 state qualifiers for the Class 6A state wrestling tournament as all nine Shawnee County teams qualified at least one competitor for state, with 11 individual regional champions.

Leading Rural to a third-place 6A regional team finish were regional champions Landen Kocher-Munoz, a senior 144-pounder, and junior 215-pounder Jadyn Baum.

Silver Lake led the Shawnee County contingent with a county-high five regional champions and a county-best runnerup regional team finish in 3A-1A, with the Eagles getting regional titles from senior 120-pounder Bryce Cormier, senior 138-pounder Garret Holmes, senior 157-pounder Jayden Waterer, senior 190-pounder Paxton Willett and sophomore 285-pounder Carter Spreer.

Shawnee Heights qualified 10 wrestlers for the 5A state tournament, led by freshman 113-pound regional champion Jacob Bonebrake and 150-pound junior champ Brody Brown while Hayden got 4A regional titles from junior 175-pounder Caleb Menke and senior 190-pounder Jude Krentz.  

Here's a look at Saturday's regional tournaments involving Shawnee County high schools:

Washburn Rural senior 144-pounder Landen Kocher-Munoz, a two-time Class 6A state champion and a three-time state finalist, won a regional title Saturday at Wichita North. [File photo/TSN]

Kocher-Munoz, Baum power Rural to third-place regional showing

Regional champions Landen Kocher-Munoz and Jadyn Baum led 12 Class 6A qualifiers for perennial state contender Washburn Rural, which finished third as a team in the 6A West regional at Wichita North.

Kocher-Munoz, a senior two-time state champion and three-time state finalist, won the regional title at 144 pounds to improve to 35-4 on the season.

Kocher-Munoz, a defending state champion, capped his regional title run with a 13-5 major decision over Manhattan senior Cameron Coonrod (42-5).

Baum, a junior 215-pounder, improved to 25-4 on the season with a 16-1 technical fall over Wichita South senior Jayden Kirk (28-5). Baum posted a third-place state finish in 2025 as a sophomore. 

Washburn Rural got runnerup regional finishes from 113-pound freshman Andrew Peterson (23-10), 120-pound senior Ryder Harrison (25-6), 138-pound senior Cooper Stivers (31-6) and junior Brodye Kocher-Munoz (27-7) while Rural senior Brenner Beninga (175) qualified fourth for state, freshman Hayden Broxterman (106), junior Gavin Homeyer (190) and sophomore Kaiden Marshall (285) placed fifth, sophomore Owen Dowell (132) was sixth at regionals and sophomore Caleb Schwartz (165) seventh.

Topeka High will be represented at state by senior 157-pounder Jordan Stiner and junior 175-pounder Landon Snyder, who both posted eighth-place regional finishes.

Maize won the team title in the 6A West Regional with 272.5 points, followed by Manhattan with 251 points and Rural with 223.5 points. Topeka High placed 16th as a team with 29 points.

The 6A state meet will be contested Friday and Saturday at the Advent Health Sports Park in Overland Park.

T-Birds qualify 10 for 5A state meet

Shawnee Heights placed fourth as a team in Saturday's Class 5A East regional at Lansing while qualifying 10 wrestlers for this weekend's state tournament in Park City.

The T-Birds got regional championships from 113-pound freshman Jacob Bonebrake and 150-pound junior Brody Brown.

Bonebrake improved to 17-1 with a 3 minute, 37-second pin over Blue Valley Southwest junior Caden Magdefran (19-8) in the 113-pound regional final while Brown improved to 33-6 with a 5:27 win by fall over De Soto junior Eli Anderson (27-15).

Evan Johnson, a 175-pound senior (32-8) posted a runnerup regional finish while sophomore Mason Moore (126), freshman Markis Owens (157) and junior Jaiden Converse (165) qualified for state with sixth-place regional finishes, junior Dallas Owens (138) and sophomore Carter Kamanda (144) placed seventh and sophomore Reid Niedfeldt (132) and junior Landyn Bafford (285) qualified eighth.

Highland Park will be represented at state by senior 175-pounder Philiciono Rice (14-19) and junior 165-pounder Joshua Hernandez-Torres (15-15), with Rice placing seventh and Hernandez-Torres eighth at regionals.

Basehor-Linwood won the 5A East regional team crown with 266 points while Heights was fourth with 156.5 points and Highland Park 16th with 17 points.

The 5A state tournament will be held Friday and Saturday in Park City.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights girls basketball protected its share of the United Kansas Conference lead with a 64-51 road win at Basehor-Linwood Tuesday night, the T-Birds' sixth straight win.

Senior KK Emmot (1) scored 21 points Tuesday night as Shawnee Heights improved to 17-4 with a 64-51 UKC win at Basehor-Linwood. [File photo/TSN]

KK Emmot led four T-Birds in double figures with 21 points, including four 3-pointers, as Shawnee Heights improved to 17-4 overall and 13-1 in the conference.

Heights also got 17 points from junior Pearmella Carter, 13 from senior Reianna Vega and 11 points from senior Imani McGlory.

The T-Birds led 15-10 at the end of the opening quarter, 34-25 at the halftime break and 50-35 after three quarters before cruising the rest of the way.

Shawnee Heights will travel to Kansas City-Turner on Friday for a UKC contest.

T-Bird boys take 57-56 thriller over Bobcats

Shawnee Heights boys survived a last-second shot from Basehor-Linwood to take a 57-56 United Kansas Conference road victory over the Bobcats on Tuesday.

With the win the T-Birds improved to 13-7 overall and 9-5 in the UKC and have now won four out of their last five games.

Shawnee Heights will travel to Kansas City-Turner on Friday for a UKC game before hosting Pittsburg on Saturday in a non-league tilt. 

Junior Prince Lassiter led Topeka West with 22 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday's 78-54 win over De Soto. [File photo/TSN]

West boys roll to 78-54 UKC victory at De Soto

Topeka West improved to 17-3 overall and 12-2 in the United Kansas Conference with a 78-54 Tuesday night road win at at De Soto.

West took control from the opening tipoff, outscoring the Wildcats 27-8 in the first quarter.

The Chargers led 45-27 at the half before opening up a 64-40 margin at the start of the final period.

Junior Prince Lassiter led Topeka West with a game-high 22 points while also grabbing eight rebounds.

Seniors Malakyah Duncan and Gad Munganga added 16 and 14 points, respectively, with both Chargers connecting on four 3-pointers as West hit 10 treys as a team.

Brandon Serna led De Soto (7-12, 4-9) with 11 points.

De Soto tops West girls, 70-41

De Soto's girls romped to a 70-41 United Kansas Conference home victory over Topeka West Tuesday night.

De Soto improved to 10-9 overall and 7-6 in the conference while Topeka West fell to 5-15, 2-12.

Pirates knock off UKC-leading Seaman, 59-50

Piper avenged an earlier United Kansas Conference loss to Seaman Tuesday night, taking a 59-50 home win over the Vikings.

The Vikings suffered only their second UKC loss, dropping to 16-4 overall and 11-2 in the conference.

Piper improved to 14-6 overall and 10-3 in the UKC, winning for the seventh time over its last eight games.

Seaman will be at home Friday to host Basehor-Linwood in a UKC matchup.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights' girls wrestling team turned in a strong performance in Saturday's Class 5A East regional at Bonner Springs, posting a runnerup team finish while advancing all 14 competitors to the state tournament Feb. 27-28 at Park City.

Shawnee Heights sophomore Olive Jones (top) won the 135-pound championship in Saturday's Class 5A East regional. [File photo/TSN] 

Shawnee Heights senior Cianna Graves won the 155-pound championship in Saturday's Class 5A East regional. [File photo/TSN]

The T-Birds, ranked No. 3 in 5A by the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association, got individual regional championships from 135-pound sophomore Olive Jones and 155-pound senior Cianna Graves and put four other wrestlers in the finals, finishing second to top-ranked Basehor-Linwood by a 275-212.5 margin.

Jones improved to 35-1 on the season with a 1 minute, 25-second win by pin over Basehor-Linwood sophomore Willow Rademacher (30-10) in the 135 final while Graves improved to 31-2 with a 5-1 decision over Bonner Springs senior Addison Vogel (25-3) at 155.

The T-Birds got second-place finishes from freshman 120-pounder Brinnley Morris (17-3), junior 125-pounder Audrey Hinkly (25-12), senior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens (29-5) and junior 190-pounder Brooklyn Binkley (20-11) while sophomore Bianca Juarez (110 pounds) posted a third-place finish.

Freshmen Makynzie Allen (100) and Stella Engel (235) qualified with fourth-place regional finishes while freshman Raelyn Kelly (130) finished fifth, senior Shelby Watson (170) sixth, sophomores Halle Hill (115) and Evelyn Ruby (140) seventh and freshman Carmarra Smith (105) eighth.

Highland Park senior Makayla Cadet, the defending 5A state champion at 190 pounds, earned a shot to defend her title with a third-place regional finish. Cadet is 20-2 on the season.   

Washburn Rural senior Emme Blanco won the Class 6A West 145-pound regional title Saturday at Wichita South, helping Rural finish third as a team. [File photo/TSN]

 Washburn Rural senior Elia Smith won the 170-pound title in Saturday's Class 6A West regional at Wichita South for the third-place Junior Blues. [File photo/TSN]

Rural regional champs Blanco, Smith lead 13 Junior Blues 6A qualifiers

Washburn Rural seniors Emme Blanco and Elia Smith captured individual regional championships in the Class 6A West regional Saturday at Wichita South, powering the Junior Blues to a third-place team finish with 13 state qualifiers.

Blanco, now 37-3 on the season, won the 145-pound title with a 5:35 pin in the finals over Garden City freshman Aria Cordes while Smith, 32-3, earned a 4-1 decision over Derby senior Chloe Spears (36-6) in the 170-pound regional final.

The Junior Blues got third-place regional finishes from 125-pound senior Lacey Middleton (36-6), 140-pound senior Madi Blanco (35-4) and freshman 155-pounder Raella Ebanez (31-8) while freshman 105-pounder Aliyah Tangpricha (25-5), freshman 135-pounder Alea Estep (21-16), 190-pound junior Lily Davis (33-10) and sophomore Emma Mehl (24-14) placed fourth.

Junior Dixie Day (120) qualified for state with a sixth-place regional finish while freshman Ashlyn Johnson (110) finished seventh and freshman Hadley Rosenbaum (100) and junior Rylee-Jade Ebanez (130) placed eighth.

Topeka High freshman 235-pounder Kya Dawkins qualified for state with a seventh-place regional finish while senior 170-pounder Taniza Huggins advanced with an eighth-place finish.

The 6A state tournament will be contested Feb. 27-28 at the AdventHealth Sports Park in Overland Park.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

The second-best boys team in the United Kansas Conference standings was pushed all night Friday by the second-worst team in the standings. But Topeka West, ranked fourth in the state in Class 5A, held off a feisty Leavenworth team to win 66-57 at West. The win kept the Chargers in the conference title hunt.

Senior Malakyah Duncan tied for team-high scoring honors with 16 points in Friday's 66-57 Topeka West win over Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Leavenworth rallied to take a lead midway through the second period. That ignited a fire in the Chargers. Topeka West ripped off a 10-0 run to lead 32-23. But that fire burned out quickly. The Pioneers repeatedly clawed back from double-digit deficits throughout the second half.

Having trailed by as much as 13 points, Leavenworth scored seven-straight points late in the fourth period to put a scare in the home team. Pioneer senior Kentravion Tolbert drove to the bucket with 1:46 remaining and was knocked to the deck in the process of scoring in traffic. His free throw made the score 58-55 – way too close for comfort in a game that was supposed to be one-sided.

The Chargers responded by outscoring Leavenworth 8-2 down the stretch. But there wasn’t much to celebrate after the victory.

“Leavenworth is a team that has nothing to lose,” said Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker. “They’re going to come out and play hard, because a lot of those guys are playing for playing time next year.

“For us, we were a little sluggish. We’ve got to start a little better. That’s kind of been our motto the last couple of games, we’ve got to start with a better tempo. That’s on me as the coach. I’ve got to get them going early on.”

It seemed every time the Chargers started to pull away, they lost the momentum.

“I think (in those moments) we had a little bit of a loss of concentration. Maybe just getting complacent,” Ulsaker said. “We’ve got to learn how to continue those runs, make them a little bit longer. And be more sound on defense.”

Seniors Keimani Paul and Malakyah Duncan scored 16 points apiece to lead the Chargers. Paul, who connected on 7-10 shots from the field, found some positives from the game, particularly the Chargers’ full-court pressure.

“We didn’t let them just run over us. We came out trying to play defense, trying to score,” Paul said. “We like to speed things up. (The Pioneers) couldn’t handle the pressure, so we just stayed up, got the ball back every time we turned it over.”

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Topeka West girls basketball coach Angie Ketterman found a bright spot in her team’s 63-40 United Kansas Conference home loss to Leavenworth Friday -- the Chargers fought to the end.

Senior Addaline Hall paced Topeka West with 13 points in Friday's UKC loss to Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Despite trailing by double digits from late in the first period on, the Topeka West girls battled and scrapped to the final buzzer. The Chargers’ intensity produced a number of tense exchanges and a bevy of whistles in the fourth period. Ketterman said afterward she appreciated her team’s effort and attitude.

“I feel like we really battled a lot harder than we have in the past,” Ketterman said. “That’s what we’ve been really talking about, especially on defense.”

Topeka West junior Sydney VanDyke scored 10 points in Friday's UKC loss to Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Senior Addaline Hall led Topeka West with 13 points, followed by Sydney VanDyke with 10. But the Chargers struggled at the offensive end, hitting just 13 of 56 shot attempts.

“Tonight, we missed a lot of our free throws,” Ketterman said. “We missed some of those easy things. But I feel like our girls battled. They got very frustrated the last minute and a half. That shows that they really wanted this. They played hard.

“I’m not going to take that away from them. They did play hard. But we missed a lot of free throws and some easy shots.”

Ketterman said that in the Chargers’ three remaining games, she hopes to see similar tenacity and effort, which will serve as a foundation for improvement.

“I hope to see us keep battling like that, to show the younger ones what it takes to get those wins,” Ketterman said.

LEAVENWORTH GIRLS 63, TOPEKA WEST 40

Leavenworth 17 11 16 19 -- 63

Topeka West    9 11 10 10 -- 40

Leavenworth (7-12, 5-7) – Walker 4-12 3-4 14, Huewitt 4-12 6-8 14, Brown 6-11 3-6 16, Allen 1-4 0-0 2, M. McIntyre 4-12 1-2 9, Graham 0-3 0-2 0, P. McIntyre 0-3 2-2 2, McCann 2-3 0-0 6, Noell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 21-60 15-24 63.

Topeka West (5-14, 2-11) – Allen 1-11 2-2 4, Gonzales 2-5 2-2 7, VanDyke 3-17 4-10 10, Hall 4-16 5-8 13, McGlory 1-5 0-0 2, Kutina 2-2 0-0 4, Ogles 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 13-56 13-22 40.

3-point goals – Leavenworth 6 (Walker 3, McCann 2, Brown), Topeka West 1 (Gonzales). Total fouls – Leavenworth 21, Topeka West 21. Fouled out – Allen. Technical fouls – VanDyke. 

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

The Topeka West Chargers entered Tuesday night coming off a four-point United Kansas Conference defeat at Kansas City-Piper Friday and would get off to a sluggish start against 8-9 Lansing.

Senior Malakyah Duncan led four Topeka West players in double figures Tuesday with 22 points as the Chargers rallied for a 74-69 UKC win over Lansing. [File photo/TSN] 

But the Chargers came to life in the second half to pull out a 74-69 home victory over the Lions.

Junior Prince Lassiter would get Topeka West going with the first basket of the game, followed by a Gad Munganga 3-pointer to make it 5-0 Chargers.

But Lansing would answer to tie it up at 5 and the two teams would end the first quarter tied 15-15.

Lansing would come out of the quarter break on a run, going up 22-19, but West senior Keimani Paul would get a basket to take the lead 23-22. Lansing would take the lead back before Paul hit a 3 to make it 28-26.

The Lions then outscored West 11-4 to take the lead into halftime, 37-32.

As the first half belonged to the Lons the second half would be all Chargers.

"We didn't really execute in the first,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "You can tell in the third quarter we went out and we really got transition going.

"The third and fourth quarter, we really tried to push the tempo and use athleticism to our advantage.”

The Chargers would scratch and claw their way back in the third as they would go on a 6-0 run to make it 41-40, but the Lions would answer with a run to go back up 47-43.

Down 53-50, Paul would throw down a huge one-handed dunk to get West within a point.

“I mentioned to him for the last 10 to 12 games, he's been, and this might not be a very crucial word, but he's been steady,'' Ulsaker said. "I mean, he's just been the staple for our program the last 10 or 12 games.”

“That dunk got our energy up and that's what we needed,'' West senior Malakyah Duncan said. "We needed that energy. We just used that and just took it.”

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

Topeka West, winners of three of its last four games, hosted the Lansing Lions in a United Kansas Conference matchup Tuesday night, looking to keep its momentum going.

Senior Teairra Gonzales led a balanced attack with 14 points in Topeka West's 52-16 home UKC win over Lansing Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]

And the Chargers achieved that goal in dominant fashion, rolling to a 52-16 victory.

“We have been playing some good basketball here lately,” said West coach Angie Ketterman.

The Chargers got off to a strong start as senior Patience Allen opened the scoring with two free throws for the early lead.

Lansing answered with a 3-pointer to briefly go ahead, but Allen quickly responded with a personal 6-0 run to give West a 9-5 advantage.

Teairra Gonzales then added five quick points to push the lead to 15-5 at the end of the first quarter.

Allen scored eight of her 13 points in the opening frame.

“I was getting open looks, and coach had been telling me that I need to be more aggressive and if I am open to take the shot,” Allen said.

Lansing struck first in the second quarter, but the Chargers responded with a 15-5 run.

Gonzales led the charge, scoring seven of her game-high 14 points in the quarter.

“Coach kept telling us to get off to a big start and go from there, get open looks and be aggressive,” Gonzales said.

Topeka West took a commanding 30-10 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Allen and Gonzales continued their strong play in the third quarter, helping spark a 6-0 run before Lansing finally broke through to make it 36-12.

The Chargers outscored the Lions 8-3 the rest of the period to extend the lead to 44-15 heading into the fourth quarter, triggering a running clock and all but sealing the victory.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights' girls regained the United Kansas Conference wrestling championship Saturday at Piper, with the Class 5A No. 3-ranked T-Birds topping No. 1 Basehor-Linwood by a 179.5-163 margin.

Shawnee Heights senior Olivia Stevens (left) reached the 100-win milestone in Saturday's UKC wrestling tournament while T-Bird senior Cianna Graves registered her 100th career pin. [Photo courtesy of Shawnee Heights wrestling]

The T-Birds garnered five individual conference titles while posting 10 top-three finishes.

Shawnee Heights got gold-medal performances from freshman 120-pounder Brinnley Morris, junior 125-pounder Audrey Hinkly, sophomore 130-pounder Olive Jones, senior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens and senior 155-pounder Cianna Graves.

Stevens, 27-4 on the season, and Graves, 28-2, both reached career milestones on Saturday, with Graves reaching 100 pins for her career while Stevens notched her 100th career victory.

Shawnee Heights also got runnerup UKC finishes from sophomore Bianca Juarez (110), senior Shelby Watson (170) and junior Brooklyn Binkley (190) while sophomore Halle Hall (115) and freshman Raelyn Kelly (130) placed third.

NOTE: Statistics for city girls basketball teams were compiled by Seaman girls coach Matt Tinsley. The following stats are the second of three statistical reports which will be released during the 2025-2026 season, capped by the season-ending stats. Topeka West statistics were not available.

Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High

SCORING

Name, school                    Gms.  Pts.    Avg

Rayton, Topeka High           13      307     23.6

Schmidtlein, Hayden            13      230     17.7

Emmot, Shawnee Heights    16      275     17.2

Caryl, Topeka High                10      152     15.2

Anderson, Washburn Rural   13       190    14.6

McGlory, Shawnee Heights   15       194    12.9

Gragg, Seaman                      13       163    12.5

Marshall, Topeka High           14       158    11.3

Carter, Shawnee Heights       15        163   10.9

Kincade, Highland Park          13        137   10.5

Beaton, Seaman                     11        114    10.4

Jones, Highland Park              13        134    10.3

Carlgren, Washburn Rural      14        143    10.2

Hirschi, Washburn Rural         14        130      9.3

Backman, CPLS                        13        115     8.8

REBOUNDING

Name, school                    Gms.   Total    Avg.

Caryl, Topeka High                10      116       11.6

Walker, Washburn Rural        14      124         8.9

Gragg, Seaman                      13      105         8.1

Schmidtlein, Hayden              13        92         7.1 

Carter, Shawnee Heights        12        84         7.0

Jones, Highland Park              13        88         6.8

Dreher, Seaman                      13        83         6.4

Vega, Shawnee Heights          13       74          5.7

Gotru, Topeka High                13        72         5.5

Anderson, Washburn Rural     13        71         5.5

Marshall, Topeka High             14       76          5.4 

Watts, Hayden                          13       70         5.4                  

Carlgren, Washburn Rural        14        74         5.3

Barnett, Highland Park             12        60         5.0 

Walter, Hayden                         13        60        4.6

Baum, Shawnee Heights            13       60        4.6

Hailey Caryl, Topeka High

ASSISTS

Name, school                     Gms.   Total    Avg.

Caryl, Topeka High                10          69       6.9

Jones, Highland Park             13          42       3.2

Beaton, Seaman                    11           35      3.2

Gragg, Seaman                      13           41     3.2

Marshall, Topeka High           14           42      4.0

Emmot, Shawnee Heights      13           35      2.7

Baum, Shawnee Heights         13          34      2.6

Foster, Hayden                        13          30      2.3

Cosey, Highland Park              13          30      2.3

Anderson, Washburn Rural     13          29      2.2

Schmidtlein, Hayden               13          28      2.2

Vega, Shawnee Heights           13          28     2.2

Rayton, Topeka High                13          28     2.2

Rutherford, Washburn Rural     13          28     2.2

Watts, Hayden                           13          26     2.0

Kincade, Highland Park             13          26     2.0

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Seaman's girls and Washburn Rural's boys earned bragging rights in Friday's third annual Topeka Shawnee County Bowling Championships at Gage Bowl, with the Vikings winning their third straight girls team championship and Rural repeating as the boys champion.

Seaman girls bowling won its third straight city title Friday at Gage Bowl, putting four bowlers in the top six places individually. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural won its second straight city bowling team title Friday at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Individually, Seaman sophomore Leah Crawford shot a 661 three-game series to win the girls title by 36 pins while Topeka High junior Adrian Meraz Jara shocked the boys field with a 700 to win by 16 pins.

Seaman's girls won the team title by a 3,293-2,970 margin over Washburn Rural, including the four Baker format games, as the Vikings put four bowlers in the top six.

"The girls have really been pretty solid all year,'' Seaman coach Bob Benoit said. "When they get to striking they seem to feed off of each other. I'm really pleased with where they're at. We've just got to clean up the spares.

"Their morale's really good. There's no drama with the girls. It's a real pleasure to coach them.'' 

Washburn Rural junior Megan Glinka and Seaman junior Paige Snyder tied for second with 625 series, with Glinka taking second on a tiebreaker with a 256 high game while Snyder had a high game of 235.

Seaman's Claire LaDuke finished fourth with a 613 series while the Vikings' Ava Carlson finished sixth with a 559 series.

Seaman sophomore Leah Crawford won the city girls individual bowling title Friday at Gage Bowl. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

Crawford bowled games of 224, 211 and 226 as she broke through for the title in her second city meet.

"Last year at the city meet I placed 12th and it was not my best day,'' Crawford said. "I was very surprised with how I did today.

"Normally when I come to Gage I get very nervous because it's not my favorite place to bowl. So I was pretty impressed with how I did and I was trying to keep my head up the whole entire day.''

Washburn Rural took its second straight boys team title by a 3,517-3,474 margin over Shawnee Heights, including the Baker games, as Matthew Richard led the Junior Blues with a runnerup individual finish with a 684 series.

The Junior Blues also got a seventh-place finish from Jackson Keller (644), a ninth from Andrew Faurot (633) and a 10th-place showing from Cody Spangler (631).

"The titles are nice to have, but we're always looking for improvement each time out as we get closer and closer to the end of the season,'' Washburn Rural coach Jo Ricard said. "We know that there's definitely the potential there for them, and it's a matter of staying focused the whole way through the whole time.

"It's not just only about strikes, but also when that spare piece is there you've got to hit your spares and stay focused on that. And that includes Baker. If you're rolling through the first five frames and we're hot and on, we've got to stay focused. That's something obviously we continue to work on constantly because looking ahead we know how tough our regional is going to look like.'' 

Boys runnerup Shawnee Heights put four bowlers in the top six, with Trey Donath third (683), Chevy Stallbaumer fourth (669), Evan Jones fifth (664) and Henry Schattilly sixth (645). Kelton Meier finished eighth (638) for third-place Hayden.

Topeka High's Adrian Meraz Jara won the city boys bowling title with a 700 series. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

 But the star of the day was Merez Jara, who shattered his previous personal best by about 170 pins with games of 212, 255 and 233.

"I hadn't been close to that at all,'' Merez Jara said. "The closest I got was like 530. I didn't think I was ever going to get this high.''

In fact, Friday was the first time Merez Jara had placed in a meet.

"I have never placed, ever,'' he said. "I'm just shocked because I would have never expected to be up there.'' 

TOPEKA SHAWNEE COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights' boys and Seaman's girls captured the United Kansas Conference team championships Wednesday at Lansing while Heights' Henry Schattilly and Kaden Evans posted a one-two boys individual finish.

Senior Henry Schattilly shot a 761 series Wednesday to win the UKC individual title for team champion Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Scott Paske/KSHSAA Covered]

Seaman won the girls team title by a 3,019-2,907 margin over Shawnee Heights, while the T-Bird boys took top honors by a 3,652-3,534 margin over Lansing.

Schattilly shot a banner 761 three-game series with games of 245, 269 and 247 to take the boys individual title while Evans was second with a 707 series, including a first-game 289. Heights' Chevy Stallbaumer posted a 10th-place finish with 658 series, including a 259. 

Seaman sophomore Leah Crawford finished fourth individually to lead Seaman to the UKC team title. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

Seaman's girls rode its balance to the girls team championship, with Leah Crawford finishing fourth (596), Claire LaDuke fifth (590), Paige Snyder seventh (551) and Ava Carlson 10th (536).

Crawford had a high game of 225.

Reese Bell paced girls runnerup Shawnee Heights with a third-place individual finish (610) while Emma Wederski finishing eighth (542).

Bell had a consistent series with games of 204, 200 and 206 while Wederski had a high game of 209.

Shawnee Heights, Seaman and Topeka West will all compete in a 5A regional tournament next Tuesday at Gage Bowl, with the boys competing at 9 a.m., followed by the girls at 12:30 p.m.

UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE BOWLING

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

City and USD 501 girls basketball rivals Topeka West and Highland Park faced off again Wednesday night in a rematch from Dec. 3rd when Topeka West took a 23-point win at Highland Park.

The Chargers finished off the regular-season sweep over the Scots with a 65-33 romp on West's home court.

Senior Addaline Hall scored a game-high 15 points in Topeka West's 65-33 win over Highland Park Wednesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The Chargers were coming off a seventh-place Glaciers Edge finish in Emporia over the past weekend by defeating Shawnee Mission West 57-54 in overtime and the Lady Scots were coming off a 50-31 win over Kansas City-Washington on Tuesday.

With both teams entering the game off wins 6-foot junior Sydney VanDyke stole the show for the Lady Chargers as she would use her length to turn the game into a block party down low all night long.

VanDyke would get the first basket of the night before the Scots' Zayah Kincade would hit two shots at the free throw line to tie it up at 2-2 before VanDyke would score again to give her team the early 4-2 lead.

Kincade tied things back up at 4 before Charger Patience Allen hit the first of her two 3s to make it 7-4.

Highland Park would go on a 9-0 run with Kincade scoring five more points during the run as the Scots would end the first quarter with a13-9 advantage.

The Scots would start the second quarter with nine quick points to stretch the lead to 22-15, but the Chargers would tighten up and go on a 9-2 run to force a tie at halftime, 26-26.

“We kind of challenged them to come out the second half and put it together and they did, they worked hard and earned it,” Topeka West coach Angie Ketterman said.

The Lady Scots would come out of the locker room ice cold as West, led by VanDyke, would out-score the Scots 25-2 with VanDyke scoring nine more points in the third quarter.

“We have been like that all season where we play better in the second half of games then we do in the first half,” VanDyke said.

Topeka West would end the third quarter with a commanding lead of 51-28. The fourth quarter would see Highland Park try to come up with an answer, but the Lady Chargers would lock the Scots down and out-score them 14-5 in the fourth to finish the season sweep with the 32-point victory.

Senior Addaline Hall led Topeka West with a game-high 15 points while Allen had 14 points and VanDyke 13.

The Scots would be led in scoring by Kincade with 12.

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

Class 5A No. 2-ranked Topeka West hosted crosstown rival Highland Park on Wednesday night, seeking a regular-season sweep after dropping two games to the Scots last season.

Senior Malakyah Duncan led Topeka West with 19 points Wednesday as all five Charger starters cracked double figures in West's 84-60 win over Highland Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

And the Chargers delivered in convincing fashion, taking an 84-60 win to improve to 14-2 on the season.

After West trailed 5-2 early, senior Keimani Paul would score five straight points to put his team up 7-5 and the Chargers would go on a 12-0 run to stretch the lead to 19-5 before ending the first quarter with a commanding 26-11 lead.

Paul scored 10 of his 14 points in the first quarter while West senior Gad Munganga would score the first basket of the second quarter and the eighth point of his 16 total on the night.

“Gad is never afraid of the big moment,'' Topek West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "I think he's kind of developed that over the past year with just tons of reps and shots in the gym in the summer. And that's what it takes to become a great shooter, just repetition after repetition.”

Highland Park junior JoJo Kingcannon would get to the basket for the Scots, but they would keep chasing the Chargers, who would turn to their size with 6-foot-4 senior Malakyah Duncan and 6-6 junior Prince Lassiter.

West would start to feed Lassiter but the Scots would crash on Lassiter and force him to pass it out to others.

“I told them just keep on attacking in terms of slashing to the rim,'' Ulsaker said. "When Prince gets it, if they do double, he'll be able to find you either when you relocate for 3 or when you slash backside, cut back door to get an easy bucket from Prince.”

The Scots would hold Lassiter to only seven points at halftime, but West would take a commanding 52-29 lead into the locker room.

Paul would drive to the basket at the start of the third and pick up the and-one for an old fashioned three-point play. Kingcannon would try to get the Scots back in it as he would hit back to back 3-pointers and go on a 10-1 run by himself to make it 56-38.

But that would be the Scots' last gasp of air as the Chargers would just start to pound it inside and force contact with the Scots to get fouls and get to the free throw line.

Lassiter would score six in the third quarter, helping Topeka West push the lead to 70-47 going into the fourth quarter.

Ulsaker would pull his starters and let his backups get some minutes in the fourth as they would pull out the 24-point rivalry win.

“It was good to get the monkey off our back,'' Ulsaker said. "I don't think our boys had ever beat Park yet, so it was just another milestone for them. The first one was they beat Shawnee Heights at Shawnee Heights for the first time in their career and the same thing now as beating Highland Park for the first time in their career.

"Whenever you beat a storied program like Highland Park, It's always a monumental thing.”

Duncan led Topeka West with 19 points as all five Charger starters cracked double figures.

Highland Park junior JoJo Kingcannon led all scorers with 23 points in Wednesday's 84-60 loss to Topeka West. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The Scots got another huge night from Kingcannon, who would lead all scorers with 23.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn University football coach Zach Watkins announced a diverse 34-member high school recruiting class on Wednesday, including five city products.

Washburn football coach Zach Watkins announced a 2026 recruiting class on Wednesday that includes 34 high school players and 17 transfers who are already on campus. [File photo/TSN]

"Our staff did a tremendous job of identifying what we needed on the roster and going out and identifying the kids that fit those needs,'' said Watkins, who will be starting his second season as WU's head coach in 2026. "We've been recruiting these guys since February of '25, so to see a full year of recruiting come to fruition and the kids all signed is very satisfying.''

Watkins also confirmed that Washburn, which is coming off a 3-8 campaign, has picked up 17 transfers who are currently enrolled at WU for the spring semester.

"We got hired last year and had a month to recruit,'' Watkins said. "This year we had a year to recruit. We signed 34 high school kids and 17 transfers who are here on campus right now and they started in January. They're the most talented group of transfers we've ever brought in here at Washburn.

"Those transfers provide immediate help and immediate depth and then like I said from Day 1 when we got hired as a staff, we're going to be a high school-based recruiting program. We're going to recuit Topeka, we're going to recruit Kansas, the Midwest and branch out from there and the 34 kids we signed really filled the needs we have and the depth we needed to create, we got that done in this class.''     

Washburn Rural's Jordy Heim (6-foot-1, 220 pounds) and John Hoytal (6-3, 200) signed on Wednesday along with Hayden's Kade Mitchell (5-9, 175), Shawnee Heights' Aiden Scott (6-5, 200) and Topeka West's Logan Hunninghake (6-2, 250).

John Hoytal, Washburn Rural

Kade Mitchell, Hayden

Kade Mitchell, Hayden

Hoytal, Mitchell and Scott earned TopSports.news All-Shawnee County Top 22 honors this past fall while Heim was a Second 22 all-county honoree and Hunninghake earned all-county honorable mention.

Hoytal played quarterback for Washburn Rural but is projected as a tight end in college while Mitchell is a running back, Scott a quarterback, Heim a linebacker and Hunninghake an offensive lineman.

"The kids we got from Topeka we're really excited about,'' Watkins said. 

The Washburn recruiting class includes 11 players that played at Kansas high schools along with 12 Missouri prep products, seven from Texas, three from Florida and one from Nebraska.

There's also diversity among position groups, with eight players projected as defensive backs, six defensive linemen and five offensive linemen, four wide receivers, three linebackers and running backs, two tight ends, two punter/kickers and one quarterback.

Washburn recruiting capsules:

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Daniel Allen

DANIEL ALLEN, Washburn Rural

Allen, a junior boys swimmer, captured four gold medals in Thursday's Topeka City Swimming Championships at the Capitol Federal Natatorium as Washburn Rural extended its city championship streak to seven straight with a dominating 609-371 margin over Seaman. Allen won individual titles in the 100-yard butterfly (52.22 seconds) and 100 backstroke (52.82) and swam on the Junior Blues' winning 200 medley relay (1:41.75) and 400 free relay (3:24.55) teams. 

BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural

A freshman basketball standout, Anderson was named the Most Valuable Player in the Glaciers Edge Tournament at Emporia after scoring a game-high 20 points in the championship game as Washburn Rural captured the tournament title with a 48-42 win over Wichita Southeast. Anderson hit 5 of 10 shots from the field, including a 3-pointer, and went 9 of 10 at the free throw line for the 10-4 Junior Blues. 

Madi Blanco  

MADI BLANCO, Washburn Rural

Blanco, a girls wrestling star, went 3-0 on the day with three pins to capture the 140-pound championship in Saturday's 20-school Washburn Women's Invitational. Blanco, a two-time Class 6A state medalist, needed just 37 seconds in the championship match to win the title after beginning the day with 1:31 and 2:14 pins. Blanco was ranked No. 3 in 6A and No. 5 in the All-Class rankings by the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association.

NOTE: Statistics for city boys basketball teams were compiled by Seaman girls coach Matt Tinsley. The following stats are the second of three statistical reports which will be released during the 2025-2026 season, capped by the season-ending stats.

KaeVon Bonner, Seaman

SCORING

Name, school                    Gms.  Pts.  Avg

Bonner, Seaman                     14   345   24.6

Kingcannon, Highland Park    14   274   19.6

Ross, Shawnee Heights           13   249   19.2

Compton, Hayden                   15   239   15.9

Hanika, Hayden                       15   230   15.3

Paul, Topeka West                   14    202   14.4

Rowley, Washburn Rural         10    144   14.4

Duncan, Topeka West              14   196    14.0

McComas, Topeka High           14   196    14.0

Durbin, Cair Paravel                  13   181    13.9   

Lassiter, Topeka West               14   191     13.6

Marichal, Cair Paravel               13   177     13.6

Aldridge, Topeka High              14   172     12.3

Hastert, Cair Paravel                  13   158     12.2

Ballard, Washburn Rural            12   145     12.1

Bryson McComas, Topeka High

REBOUNDING

Name, school                       Gms.   Total    Avg.

McComas, Topeka High           14      111      7.9

Durbin, Cair Paravel                  13      100      7.7

Fay, Cair Paravel                        13        90      6.9

Hanika, Hayden                         15      101      6.7

Hoytal, Washburn Rural             12       74       6.2

Hastert, Cair Paravel                   13       78       6.0

Lassiter, Topeka West                 14       83       5.9

Zuniga, Seaman                          14       76       5.4

Schmidt, Washburn Rural           12        63      5.3

Scott, Shawnee Heights              13        66      5.1

Kidd, Hayden                              15        76       5.1

Paul, Topeka West                       14        64       4.6

Dixon, Shawnee Heights             12        45       4.5

Tourtillott, Hayden                      15        60       4.0

Bonner, Seaman                          14        56       4.0

Chase Hastert, Cair Paravel [Photo by Barry Benteman/Special to TSN]

ASSISTS

Name, school                       Gms.       Total    Avg.

Hastert, Cair Paravel                   13          75      5.8

Bonner, Seaman                         14          73      5.2

Fay, Cair Paravel                          13          59      4.5

Hoytal, Washburn Rural              12          47      3.9

Guest, Topeka High                     14          52      3.7

Duncan, Topeka West                  14          49      3.5

Traylor, Topeka West                    14          49      3.5

Paul, Topeka West                        14          48      3.4

Mitchell, Hayden                          15           47     3.1

Marichal, Cair Paravel                   13           38     2.9

McComas, Topeka High                14           40     2.9

Cook, Shawnee Heights                13           34     2.6

Scott, Shawnee Heights                13           33     2.5

Nimz, Washburn Rural                  12           30     2.5 

Luarks, Topeka High                     14           34     2.4

Hanika, Hayden                            15           36     2.4

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural swimming ran its string of Topeka City Boys Championships to seven Thursday, running away with the city meet at Capitol Federal Natatorium.

Washburn Rural boys swimming celebrates in the Capitol Federal Natatorium pool Thursday after winning its seventh straight city team title. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]

The Junior Blues were so dominant they claimed all but two of the 11 All-City first-team slots. They racked up 609 points, topping Seaman with 371.

The performance prompted second-year coach Bob Burdick to say that the rebuild from a Class 6A State third-place finish in 2024 is ahead of schedule.

“We lost a lot of seniors (from 2024), and they were really fast seniors. So, we had a rebuild year last year,” Burdick said. “That rebuild went way faster than expected because we got a lot of great swimmers. We’re going to lose 12 seniors this year, but we’re still looking just as solid next year because of all the new freshmen and sophomores coming in as well as the team that will return.

“They’ve got a great attitude and they’ve meshed totally as a team. We don’t have anybody with ego problems or anything like that. So that’s carrying the whole team.”

Daniel Allen won two individual events and swam on two winning relays as Washburn Rural dominated Thursday's city championships. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Braeden Montgomery was a double individual champion Thursday and swam on a winning relay as Washburn Rural won its seventh straight city team title. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN] 

Daniel Allen and Braeden Montgomery led the Junior Blues by taking first in two individual events while Thomas Appuhn, Castle Wallace and Davin Potts each collected one win.

Seaman's Kinser Barbosa won the 50 and 100-yard freestyle in Thursday's city swimming meet. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Kinser Barbosa highlighted the Seaman performance by taking first in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races.

“I was able to push past my limits and break those benchmarks in my individuals and was able to maintain it in both relays too. So, I feel great,” Barbosa said. “This is a special meet where you get to compete with your friends, but also where everyone has that great mindset to push past your limits. Each race is a great race because they all have the same mindset.”

Will Stewart was named to the All-City first team for placing second in two events and for also helping lead Topeka High relay teams to two third-place finishes.

Allen returned to the Junior Blues for his junior year after devoting last season solely to club competition. Burdick knew what he was getting in Allen because, as a freshman, he placed seventh at the state meet in the 500-yard freestyle and also contributed to a relay team that placed third at state.

“Adding Daniel is the anchor for the relays, so we know we’re going to be strong there, but we also have a lot of good swimmers supporting him,” Burdick said. “His attitude is really great for the team. That helps motivate a lot of people and gives us a great role model in the pool.”

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

The No. 2-ranked Topeka West Chargers, coming off a Topeka Invitational Tournament championship and winners of five straight games, would welcome crosstown rival Shawnee Heights T-Birds on Friday and rallied down the stretch to take a 67-57 United Kansas Conference win.

Junior Prince Lassiter scored 22 points to lead Topeka West in Friday's 67-57 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [File photo/TSN]

The Chargers would get the game started with junior Prince Lassiter getting to the rim for the first basket of the game and they would follow that up with senior Keimani Paul hitting a 3-pointer to make it 5-0 West right away.

Ken Darting's Heights team would get on the board when senior Jaimarion Cook would find the hoop to make it 5-2 West and would go on a 6-0 run with junior Cam Ross scoring five of his game-high 26 points to make it 10-10.

West would answer with a 9-0 run of its own to make it 19-10 before Ross found the basket to kill the run.

West would then go on a 10-0 run to make it 29-14 as the T-Birds would battle foul trouble and Ross on the bench with three fouls.

Heights would out-score the Chargers 8-3 in the final minutes of the half to go into halftime chasing West, 32-22.

At halftime Heights would be in huge foul trouble, with four players that had three or more fouls.

The third quarter would see each team counter each other before the T-birds would go on an 18-0 run, with Ross scoring 11 points and tying the game and taking the lead and freshman Quincy Dixon would hit a 3 at the buzzer to give the T-Birds a four-point lead going into the fourth quarter after out-scoring the Chargers 24-10 in the third.

But that would be all the T-Birds would have in the gas tank as they would come out in the fourth quarter flat.

The Chargers would get things started with a Lassiter corner 3-pointer. Heights' Ross would answer with a basket but that would be all as the Chargers would go on a Paul-led 12-0 run in which he would score five of his 20 points in the fourth to help his team put the game away.

“He's a Topeka West stalwart,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "The kid is a basketball coach's dream. The kid just does everything in his power we ask of him. He is 6-foot-6, long, lanky, but can seize the court really well, cuts well. And he's just growing, and in terms of basketball knowledge. So it's really fun to see.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka West had to deal with adversity for much of Monday night's Topeka Invitational Tournament championship game against USD 501 rival Topeka High, fighting through foul trouble and missing shots the Chargers normally make, both from the field and the free throw line.

Topeka Invitational Tournament MVP Prince Lassiter hoists the championship trophy after Monday's 71-57 win over Topeka High at Highland Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

But thanks in part to some key contributions off the bench, the third-ranked (Class 5A) Chargers were able to keep their head above water through three quarters before closing with a 24-11 burst over the final eight minutes to take a 71-57 win over the Trojans before a nearly packed house at Highland Park.

"These guys have played together for three or four years, so they kind of understand that if one guy's maybe having an off night or in foul trouble they understand who needs to step up and make the big shots,'' West coach Christian Ulsaker said.

"Hats off to coach (Robbie) Sanders and Topeka High. They did play a very physical, tough game. Their guys were here ready and prepared to play against us. It's not an easy task, I'll say that. Watching our (junior varsity) guys go against our varsity, our varsity guys are pretty good and Topeka High held their own for three and a half, four quarters basically.''  

Now 12-2 on the season, Topeka West had to play much of the first half without tournament Most Valuable player Prince Lassister and fellow starters Jay'Veon Traylor and Malakyah Duncan, who all got in early foul trouble.

But reserves Jasper Phillips, Corde Fox, Trey Ware and JJ Doby helped West stem the tide and help the Chargers take a 30-27 lead into the locker room at halftime.

"Our guys that might not get a ton of minutes finally got some and they proved to us that they're able to take over that if they need to,'' Ulsaker said.

Topeka High (8-6) continued to keep the heat on West throughout the third quarter, trailing by just a point at the start of the fourth stanza after a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Octavian McFadden.

The Trojans were still within two points (53-51) with six minutes remaining before the Chargers outscored Topeka High 18-6 down the stretch.

The end result was West's first Topeka Invitational title since 2022 and fifth title overall.

Senior Gad Munganga led Topeka West with 17 points, including three 3-pointers, in Monday's 71-57 win over Topeka High. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

"If we're winning by 30, losing by 30 or it's a tie game, we still keep the same composure,'' said Topeka West senior guard Gad Munganga, who led Topeka West with 17 points, including three 3-pointers.

Topeka West junior Prince Lassiter scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Monday's 71-57 win over Topeka High. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Lassiter, a 6-foot-6 junior, was named MVP after scoring 16 points (7 of 8 from the field) and grabbing eight rebounds.

"It's always frustrating,'' Lassister said about his first-half foul problems. "But I've just got to keep my composure and when I keep my composure I can continue to play and I don't get in foul trouble any more and I have fun with the game.''

Seniors Keimani Paul and Duncan added 12 and 10 points, respectively, with Paul and Traylor both named to the all-tournament team.

"We went in at halftime knowing that second half we had to come out and stay composed and not them get under our skin and that's what happened,'' Paul said. 

Senior Jalen Aldridge led Topeka High with 17 points in Monday's 71-57 Topeka Invitational Tournament loss to Topeka West. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Topeka High senior Jalen Aldridge tied Munganga for game-high scoring laurels with 17 points while senior Elisha Guest added 12 points.

Guest and Trojan senior Bryson McComas were both named to the all-tournament team along with Lansing junior Deacon Manthe, who helped lead the Lions to a third-place tournament finish.          

TOPEKA WEST 71, TOPEKA HIGH 57

Topeka High 15 12 19 11 -- 57

Topeka West 15 15 17 24 -- 71

Topeka High (8-6) – Aldridge 6-12 4-7 17, Guest 3-9 3-4 12, McComas 3-10 0-0 6, McFadden 3-5 0-0 8, Redmond 1-5 3-6 5, Carter 0-0 0-0 0, Villegas 0-0 0-0 0, Wilkerson 0-0 1-2 1, Luarks 0-3 0-0 0, Campbell 2-6 4-4 8. Totals 18-50 15-23 57.

Topeka West (12-2) – Munganga 5-9 4-6 17, Traylor 1-1 3-4 5, Duncan 4-10 2-7 10, Paul 3-7 4-4 12, Lassiter 7-8 2-5 16, Phillips 1-2 3-5 5, Fox 1-2 0-0 2, Ware 0-1 0-0 0, Doby 1-1 2-2 4. Totals 23-41 20-33 71. 

3-point goals – Topeka High 6 (Guest 3, McFadden 2, Aldridge), Topeka West 5 (Munganga 3, Paul 2). Total fouls – Topeka High 21, Topeka West 21. Fouled out – Redmond. Technical fouls – Duncan, Guest, McComas. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Dillon Claussen

DILLON CLAUSSEN, Washburn University

A 6-foot-8 sophomore basketball standout, Claussen scored 36 points on the week as No. 1-ranked Washburn improved to 20-0 with a pair of home double-digit MIAA victories. Claussen scored 18 points in Wednesday's 94-44 win over Northwest Missouri State, going 4 of 5 from the field and 10 of 10 from the free throw line. The Omaha, Neb. native also scored 18 points in Friday's 90-78 win over Missouri Western, hitting 7 of 10 shots from the floor and grabbing six rebounds.   

Rylee Dick 

RYLEE DICK, Rossville

Dick, a senior guard, scored a total of 58 points in three Rossville wins on the week as the Bulldawgs won the Jefferson County North Invitational girls basketball tournament. The Rockhurst signee had 27 points in a 60-22 first-round victory over JCN, scored 16 points in a 54-44 semifinal win over Perry-Lecompton and had 15 points in Friday's 59-51 championship game decision over Oskaloosa, moving into the No. 2 spot on Rossville's career scoring list with 1,310 points.

Jack Donovan   

JACK DONOVAN, Rossville

A senior guard, Donovan scored 47 points in two Bulldawg victories on the week as Rossville basketball advanced to the championship game of the Valley Falls Invitational before the title game was postponed due to inclement weather. Donovan scored 13 points with three 3-pointers in a 63-54 win over Jefferson West and scored 34 points with six 3-pointers in a 64-29 semifinal victory over Christ Prep. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee Heights senior Chevy Stallbaumer became the second city boys bowler to roll a perfect 300 game this season in Thursday's De Soto quadrangular at Royal Crest Lanes in Lawrence.

Stallbaumer bowled the 300 in his second game after opening with a 203 and he finished off his 676 three-game series with a 173.

Shawnee Heights' Evan Jones finished third individually with a 686 series while Stallbaumer placed fourth and Seaman's Garrette Shaw was fifth with a 647.

Jones bowled games of 203, 246 and 237.

De Soto won the boys team title with a 2,679 total while Heights was second at 2,588, Seaman third at 2,513 and Bonner Springs fourth at 1,981.

Seaman swept the top four places in the girls individual standings, led by sophomore individual champion Leah Crawford with a 655 three-game series, en route to the team title by a 2,531-2,137 margin over Shawnee Heights.

Seaman's Kayla Duncan was second with a 640 series while Paige Snyder was third at 632 and Claire LaDuke fourth with a 591.

Crawford rolled games of 241, 181 and 233 while Duncan had a high game of 255, Snyder a 235 and LaDuke a 229. 

Shawnee Heights' Reese Bell was fifth individually with a 573, including a high game of 247.

Hayden star junior bowler Kelton Meier registered a personal-record 791 series in Wednesday's bowling quadrangular at Gage Center, including a 280 game. [Photo by Scott Paske/KSHSAA Covered]

Meier dominates bowling quad with 791 series

Hayden junior Kelton Meier, who bowled a 300 game in his season-opener, continued his blistering start to the 2026 bowling season with a personal-best 791 three game series in Wednesday's Shawnee Heights bowling quadrangular at Gage Center.

Kansas City-Turner's boys finished first as a team with a 2,590 total, followed by Shawnee Heights at 2,454, Hayden at 2,436 and Topeka West at 1,992.

Shawnee Heights' Trey Donath finished third individually with a 645 series while Hayden's Reece Renyer placed fifth with a 617.

Addison Van Metre, Shawnee Heights

Shawnee Heights won the girls team title by 430 pins with a 2,140 team score, led by junior individual champion Addison VanMetre with a 593 series.

Hayden's girls were second at 1,710, Turner third at 1,683 and Topeka West fourth at 1,323.

Shawnee Heights' Emma Wederski finished second individually with a 525 series and the T-Birds got a third-place finish from Reese Bell with a 524 as Heights swept the top three places. Heights' Bailey Liby finished fifth with a 483 series.

Paige Snyder, Seaman

Snyder, Seaman girls post quadrangular wins

Seaman's girls posted a 268-pin win in Wednesday's bowling quadrangular at West Ridge while Viking junior Paige Snyder took top individual honors with a 656 three-game series.

Seaman won the team championship by a 2,417-2,149 margin over Emporia while Washburn Rural was third with a 1,793 total and De Soto fourth at 1,690.

Snyder won the girls individual title by 28 pins over De Soto's Avery Lovegren while Seaman's Leah Crawford was third with a 623.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

Topeka High will host the 2026 Capital City Classic girls basketball tournament Thursday through Saturday, with Highland Park, Seaman and Shawnee Heights joining the Trojans in the event.

Shawnee Heights junior KK Emmot returns for the T-Birds, who captured the Capital City Classic championship in 2025 at Topeka West. [File photo/TSN]

Seaman (6-4 on the season) will open the tournament at 3 p.m. Thursday against Garden City (7-5).

Highland Park (4-7) and No. 2-ranked (Class 6A) Wichita Heights (12-0) are on the same side of the bracket with Seaman and Garden City and will play a first-round game at 4:30 p.m.

The Seaman-Garden City and Highland Park-Wichita Heights winners will play a 6  p.m. semifinal on Friday.

On the other side of the bracket, Topeka High (4-6) will take on No. 3-ranked (6A) Derby (11-2) in a 6 p.m. first-round game while No. 6 (5A) Shawnee Heights (10-3) will face Lawrence (6-5) at 7:30.

The Topeka High-Derby winner will face the Shawnee Heights-Lawrence winner in a 7:30 Friday night semifinal.

The tournament will conclude on Saturday, starting with the seventh-place game at 10 a.m., followed by the fifth-place game at 11:30, the third-place contest at 1 p.m. and the championship tilt at 2:30 p.m. in separate gyms.

CAPITAL CITY CLASSIC

At Topeka High
 
Thursday

3 p.m. -- Seaman vs. Garden City.

4:30 -- Highland Park vs. Wichita Heights.

6 -- Topeka High vs. Derby.

7:30 -- Shawnee Heights vs. Lawrence.

Friday

3 p.m. -- Seaman-Garden City loser vs. Highland Park-Wichita Heights loser.

4:30 -- Topeka High-Derby loser vs. Shawnee Heights-Lawence loser.

6 -- Seaman-Garden City winner vs. Highland Park-Wichita Heights winner.

7:30 -- Topeka High-Derby winner vs. Shawnee Heights-Lawrence winner.

Saturday

10 a.m. -- Seventh place.

11:30 -- Fifth place.

1 p.m. -- Third place.

2:30 -- Championship.

Carvel Reynoldson's Hayden girls basketball team will compete in this week's Lady Cat Classic at El Dorado. [File photo/TSN}

Hayden to compete in El Dorado

Hayden, 10-3 on the season, is the No. 2 seed for the 33rd annual Lady Cat Classic in El Dorado Thursday through Saturday.

Hayden, No. 9-ranked in Class 4A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, will open its tournament bid at 6 p.m. Thursday against Gardner-Edgerton (3-7).

With a win the Wildcats will advance to a 6 o'clock semifinal on Friday to face the first-round winner between Mill Valley (9-4) and host El Dorado (5-6).

On the other side of the bracket No. 4 (5A) Maize South (11-2) will play a first-round game against Augusta (3-9) while No. 8 (5A) Kapaun Mt. Carmel (8-4) will face Goddard (5-5). Those two winners will play a 7:45 semifinal on Friday.

By JUSTIN BURKHARDT

TopSports.news

With No. 6-ranked Shawnee Heights girls basketball on an eight-game winning streak it might have been cold outside but it was not cold inside for the Lady T-Birds, who rolled to a 74-26 United Kansas Conference road win at Topeka West.

Shawnee Heights junior KK Emmot scored a game-high 20 points in Friday's 74-26 UKC win at Topeka West. [File photo/TSN]

The T-Birds would get off to a hot start as junior KK Emmot would score 10 of her game high 20 points in the first quarter.

The Chargers would try to keep it close and made it a 9-5 game before the T-Birds would go on a 23-0 run that would stretch from the middle of the first quarter to the three-minute mark of the second quarter.

The Lady Chargers would hit a 3-pointer and then the Lady T Birds would take flight again, going into the locker room with a commanding 41-10 lead and Emmot having 18 of her 20 at the break.

The third quarter would be the same as former Charger and T-bird senior Imani McGlory would score 9 of her 13 points in the quarter.

“It was very nostalgic and lots of memories, but I really just wanted to go out there and play to the best of my abilities,”  McGlory said about her return to West.

The T Birds would leave the third quarter with a 68-21 lead to force a running clock going into the fourth quarter and cruised the rest of the way.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka West entered the 2026 Topeka Invitational Tournament at Highland Park as the pre-tourney favorite, and over the opening two days, the Chargers have certainly lived up to that top billing.

West, ranked No. 3 in Class 5A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, opened its tournament bid on Thursday with a 20-point win over St. Thomas Aquinas and followed that up with an 86-64 win over Wichita Northwest on Friday afternoon, punching its ticket to a second straight Topeka Invitational championship game.

Topeka West senior Malakyah Duncan led Topeka West with a game-high 19 points in Friday's 86-64 Topeka Invitational semifinal win over Wichita Northwest. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

"We turned up the heat in the third quarter and I think really stretched the game to where it was a little bit unattainable for Northwest to get there,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said. 

Due to expected inclement weather over the weekend, the 11-2 Chargers, who lost to Highland Park in the 2025 championship game, will have two days off before facing off with USD 501 rival Topeka High at 7 p.m. Monday in the championship game at Highland Park. The 8-5 Trojans advanced to the title game with a 69-62 semifinal win over Lansing.

Because of the weather-related schedule changes Topeka West played its semifinal at 3:30 p.m., a time slot normally reserved for consolation games, but the Chargers trailed for less than a minute (21-20) against Wichita Northwest and outscored the Grizzlies 49-29 over the middle two quarters to turn the game into a rout.

"We started a little slow, but it was a 3:30 game with no crowd,'' Ulsaker said. "The guys did what they needed to do for the most part, high intensity. I think Northwest was trying to match what we were doing as well, but we just did it just a notch above and that's about it.''  

All five Charger starters cracked double figures against 6-7 Wichita Northwest, led by senior Malakyah Duncan with 19 points.

Junior Prince Lassiter scored 18 points in Friday's 86-64 Topeka West win over Wichita Northwest. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Senior Jay'Veon Traylor had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds in Topeka West's 86-64 win over Wichita Northwest. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Junior Prince Lassiter added 18 points, senior Jay'Veon Traylor recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, senior Keimani Paul had 13 points and senior Gad Munganga 12 points on four 3-pointers.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

As a four-year member of the Topeka High boys basketball program, senior Jalen Aldridge has had an up-close look at the Trojans' recent struggles, including a 1-19 record a year ago and nine total victories over the previous three seasons.

Senior Jalen Aldridge led Topeka High with 15 points in Friday's 69-62 Topeka Invitational Tournament win over Lansing. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

And Aldridge and his Trojan teammates are savoring every moment of what has been a dramatic turnaround this season, including a 69-62 win over Lansing on Friday at Highland Park that put High in the Topeka Invitational championship game for the first time since 2019.

"We had a hard time during the years and it's a blessing to be going to the championship,'' Aldridge said. "It comes in practice. You've got to work hard and you've got to get everybody involved and nobody's left out over here.

"We do our best and work hard to get to where we need to be.''  

The 8-5 Trojans have already posted their highest win total since the 2019-2020 season and will be looking for their first Topeka Invitational title since 1998 when they square off with USD 501 rival Topeka West at 7 p.m. Monday in the tournament championship game. West earned its second straight trip to the Topeka Invitational final with an 86-64 win over Wichita Northwest in the first semifinal.

"We wanted to hold up our part of the bargain,'' first-year Topeka High coach Robbie Sanders said of the all-city matchup. "This is the Topeka Invitational Tournament and usually its an out-of-town team, so when we had the opportunity to face off against Topeka West in the championship we had to hold up our end of the bargain.''  

After knocking off Shawnee Mission East in overtime in the opening round of the tournament on Thursday, Topeka High played another nailbiter against Lansing in a game that included 23 lead changes and 11 ties.

Topeka High led 13-11 at the end of the first quarter, trailed the 4-6 Lions 26-25 at the half and led 50-48 at the end of the third quarter.

Freshman Jaxon Luarks scored 11 points, including the go-ahead basket in the closing seconds as Topeka High took a 69-62 victory over Lansing Friday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

The game continued to go back and forth through the bulk of the fourth quarter, with Topeka High trailing 62-61 with less than a minute remaining before freshman Jaxon Luarks converted a follow shot with 42 seconds left to put the Trojans ahead to stay as High scored the final eight points.

Senior Bryson McComas (4) celebrates a big play in Topeka High's 69-62 Topeka Invitational win over Lansing. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Aldridge led the Trojans with 15 points while fellow seniors Elisha Guest and Bryson McComas added 12 apiece and Luarks scored 11.

"We're growing up, and we're getting contributions off the bench from the young players,'' Sanders said. "First of all, hats off to Lansing. That's a well-coached team and that was a tough game, but I'm just proud of the guys.'' 

Junior Mekhi Stephens led Lansing with a game-high 23 points (four 3-pointers) while junior Deacon Manthe added 13 for the Lions.

TOPEKA HIGH 69, LANSING 62

Topeka High 13 12 25 19 -- 69

Lansing          11 15 22 14 -- 62

Topeka High (8-5) – Aldridge 4-7 5-6 15, Guest 5-14 0-0 12, McComas 4-16 3-5 12, McFadden 3-7 1-1 9, Redmond 1-3 4-4 6, Ross 1-5 0-0 2, Carter 0-0 0-0 0, Luarks 5-8 1-1 11, Campbell 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 24-62 14-17 69.

Lansing (4-7) – Mehki Stephens 7-13 5-8 23, Heim 0-1 0-0 0, Manthe 6-8 1-2 13, Anderson 2-3 0-0 4, Wilson 4-8 1-1 9, Mattingly 0-0 1-2 1, Mason Stephens 1-2 0-0 3, Bolden 4-9 0-0 9. Totals 24-44 8-13 62.

3-point goals – Topeka High 7 (Aldridge 2, Guest 2, McFadden 2, McComas), Lansing 6 (Mehki Stephens 4, Mason Stephens, Bolden). Total fouls – Topeka High 17, Lansing 16. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none.

TOPEKA INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT

RESULTS FRIDAY

Topeka West 86, Wichita Northwest 64

Topeka High 69, Lansing 62

St. Thomas Aquinas 68, Highland Park 47

SM East 60, SM North 52 

GAMES MONDAY

(All games in Ken Darting Gym)

3:30 p.m. -- Third place: Wichita NW vs. Lansing.

5 -- Seventh place: Highland Park vs. SM North.

7 -- Championship: Topeka West vs. Topeka High.

Note: St. Thomas Aquinas and SM East will play the fifth-place game Monday at SM East.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Due to a clock malfunction, Topeka High got a late start to Thursday's opening game in the Topeka Invitational Tournament at Highland Park.

And the Trojans also had to endure a late finish, being forced to overtime by Shawnee Mission East before the Trojans took command in the four-minute extra session to advance to the semifinals with a 49-43 win over the Lancers.

Topeka High basketball coach Robbie Sanders talks to his Trojans during Thursday's 49-43 overtime win over Shawnee Mission East. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"I feel like I keep repeating it, but these guys have been through so much,'' Topeka High coach Robbie Sanders said. "They've experienced a lot of losing and a lot of bad times and one of the things that we tend to do is when things go bad we start to pout and hang our heads and I'm just trying to speak that life into them and let them know that they are good enough to beat anybody if we show up to play.'' 

The Trojans, now 7-5, will take on Lansing, a 59-57 winner over Shawnee Mission North, in Friday's 5 p.m. semifinal. The tournament schedule has been revamped due to the forecast of inclement weather, with the place games scheduled for Saturday now being pushed back to Monday.

Topeka High will be joined in the semifinals by top tournament seed Topeka West, a 70-50 winner over St. Thomas Aquinas. The Chargers will play Friday's first semifinal at 3:30 p.m. against Wichita Northwest, a 62-49 first-round winner over Highland Park.

After taking a 14-11 first-quarter lead over SM East (6-6), Topeka High trailed 25-19 at the half, 30-27 at the start of the fourth quarter and 41-39 in the final minute of regulation before 5-foot-7 senior Elisha Guest tied the game with a hoop with 14 seconds remaining and the Lancers missed a late shot to send the game to OT.

Guest then nailed a 3-pointer to open the four-minute overtime period and the Trojans led the rest of the way as High outscored East 8-2 to take the six-point victory.

"Elisha, small in stature, heart of a lion,'' Sanders said. "I just love that kid and I grow more appreciation and more fondness for his game every time I see him play.''

Senior Bryson McComas, who also scored in the overtime, led Topeka High with 12 points while Guest added 11 and sophomore Mar'saun Redmond 10 for the Trojans.

Senior Stephen Hloblik scored a game-high 19 points for SM East while senior Quentin Ochs added 10.

In the semifinals Topeka High will face a Lansing team which won its third straight game to improve to 4-6 with a hard-earned 59-57 win over Shawnee Mission North (6-4).

Deacon Manthe, a 6-foot-7 junior, led Lansing with 16 points, all in the second half, while junior Mehki Stephens added 11 points. 

TOPEKA HIGH 49, SM EAST 43 (OT)

SM East         11 14 5 11 2 -- 43

Topeka High 14 5 8 14 8 -- 49

SM East (6-6) –  Lucas 0-4 0-0 0, P. Ochs 3-9 0-0 8, Dillon 1-7 0-0 3, Hlobik 6-9 7-8 19, Konold 1-13 0-0 3, Zubeck 0-1 0-0 0, Q. Ochs 5-7 0-0 10. Totals 16-40 7-8 43.

Topeka High (7-5) – Aldridge 1-5 1-2 3, Guest 3-10 3-4 11, McComas 6-12 0-3 12, Ross 2-4 1-2 5, McFadden 0-1 0-0 0, Redmond 4-4 0-2 10, Luarks 0-1 1-4 1, Humphrey 3-5 0-1 7. Totals 19-42 6-18 49. 

3-point goals – SM East 4 (P. Ochs 2, Dillon, Konold), Topeka High 5 (Guest 2, Redmond 2, Humphrey). Total fouls – SM East 12, Topeka High 11. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none.

Junior Prince Lassiter scored 15points in Thursday's 70-50 Topeka West win over Aquinas in the Topeka Invitational Tournament. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Chargers pull away in second half for 20-point win

On paper, Thursday's first-round game in the Topeka Invitational between third-ranked (Class 5A) Topeka West and three-win St. Thomas Aquinas looked like a mis-match.

But West coach Christian Ulsaker was well aware of Aquinas' tradition and the fact that the Saints had played one of the state's toughest schedules, and he knew the Chargers would get tested.

"We talked about it, that that record goes out the window when you play St. Thomas Aquinas,'' Ulsaker said. "They're a very well-coached team and very fundamentally sound and it was a battle for three and a half, four quarters.

"So hats off to them, making it a tough game.''

After jumping out to a 22-13 first-quarter lead, Topeka West, now 10-2, got that test in the second quarter, with Aquinas rallying to take a 35-31 advantage in the second stanza and leading 36-34 inside the final minute of the half before senior Keimani Paul hit a 3-pointer and junior Prince Lassiter converted a traditional three-point play to put the Chargers up 40-36 at the half.

Topeka West then showed its dominance after the break, outscoring the Saints 30-14, including a 17-5 advantage over the final eight minutes to pull away for the 20-point victory.

Lassiter, a 6-6 junior, led a balanced West attack with a game-high 15 points as all five Charger starters cracked double figures.

"Prince, he's a workhorse, and it's not easy to guard him for 32 minutes, I'll tell you that,'' Ulsaker said. 

 Jay'Veon Traylor added 14 points while Paul had 13 and Gad Munganga and Malakyah Duncan 11 apiece.

The Chargers did a lot of their damage from outside the 3-point line, hitting 10 3s on the night, while Lassiter dominated things on the inside.

Senior Nic Sabers led Aquinas with 12 points, including three treys.

West will now play a Wichita Northwest team which advanced with a 62-49 win over host Highland Park in Thursday's final first-round game.

TOPEKA WEST 70, ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 50

Aquinas        13 23 9 5 -- 50

Topeka West 22 18 13 17 -- 70

Aquinas (3-9) – Renze 2-6 0-2 5, Gavin 2-5 2-3 6, Wayland 0-0 2-2 2, Browne 5-6 0-0 10, Sabers 3-7 3-4 12, Merfen 2-3 0-0 6, Bertholf 1-5 0-0 2, McCullough 2-4 1-1 5, NA 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 18-37 8-10 50.

Topeka West (10-2) – Munganga 3-9 2-2 11, Traylor 3-10 6-8 14, Duncan 4-9 1-2 11, Paul 5-8 0-0 13, Lassiter 7-13 1-1 15, Phillips 2-3 2-4 6, Fox 0-0 0-0 0, Ware 0-0 0-0 0, Doby 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 24-53 12-17 70.

3-point goals – Aquinas 6 (Sabers 3, Merfen 2, Renze), Topeka West 10 (Munganga 3, Paul 3, Traylor 2, Duncan 2). Total fouls – Aquinas 20, Topeka West 12. Fouled out – Browne. Technical fouls – none.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Prince Lassister, the lone underclassman in Topeka West's starting lineup, has been good all season for the No. 2-ranked Chargers.

Junior Prince Lassiter scored a career-high 25 points in Topeka West's 74-50 home UKC win over Basehor-Linwood. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

But the 6-foot-6 junior frontliner stepped up his game another couple of notches on Tuesday night, scoring a career-high 25 points as the Chargers improved to 9-2 overall and 8-1 in the United Kansas Conference with a 74-50 home win over Basehor-Linwood.

Lassiter hit 10 of 14 shots from the field and five of seven free throws on the night as the Chargers tuned up for the Topeka Invitational Tournament Thursday through Friday at Highland Park with the 24-point victory.

"We always like to attack the rim,'' Lassiter said. "I know a lot of teams like to shoot a lot, but we like to get the easy buckets all the time, especially when we're taller than a lot of teams, we like to use that to our advantage.'' 

"We've been talking for about a week and a half about transition, pitching ahead, and if we don't have anything we're trying to get it inside to the big fella,'' Topeka West coach Christian Ulsaker said. "He's a great basketball player and he understands that if teams are doubling him he's going to kick it and find somebody.

"I'm so happy for Prince. I love seeing that from him.''  

Topeka West went wire to wire for Tuesday's win, opening the game with an 8-0 run, capped by a Lassiter hoop, and he added back-to-back traditional three-point plays later in the quarter as the Chargers went up 14-5.

Basehor-Linwood (6-6, 3-5) was able to stay within striking distance of West in the first half, trailing 31-25 at the break, but the Chargers boosted their lead to double-digits (44-34) by the end of the third quarter and used a 30-point fourth quarter to pull away for the 24-point victory, West's biggest lead of the night.

Topeka West senior Keimani Paul scored 16 points in the Chargers' 74-50 UKC home win over Basehor-Linwood Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]

Lassiter was one of four double-figure scorers for Topeka West, with senior Keimani Paul adding 16 points and Jay'Veon Traylor and Malakyah Duncan 13 each.

After opening the season with five straight wins, the Chargers had gone a so-so 3-2 over their previous five games before turning in a very solid performance against the Bobcats.

"We got back to the standard,'' Ulsaker said. "I told them tonight was the best energy, effort and toughness I've seen all year and this was a pretty dang good Basehor team. They're very physical, they do what they need to do offensively and defensively and I'm very proud of my players.

"Regardless if the shots are falling or not, they're doing what you need to do to win championships.'' 

Senior Chase Young paced Basehor-Linwood with 15 points, the lone Bobcat in double figures.

Topeka West will begin its bid for the Topeka Invitational Tournament championship at 6:30 p.m. Thursday against St. Thomas Aquinas after finishing second in 2025.

"I'm thrilled, especially this year,'' Lassiter said. "We're going for the championship. We want to win it all this year.''

TOPEKA WEST BOYS 74, BASEHOR-LINWOOD 50

Basehor-Linwood 9 16 9 16  -- 50

Topeka West      16 15 13 30  -- 74

Basehor-Linwood (6-6, 3-5) – Brown 2-7 2-2 6, Morrison 2-5 0-0 4, Hofer 1-4 0-0 3, Young 4-9 4-4 15, Calvert 4-10 0-0 8, Hutchinson 2-2 3-4 9, Peek 0-0 0-0 0, Nixon 1-4 0-0 2, Elliott 1-1 0-0 3, Hannah 0-1 0-0 0, Ashley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-43 9-10 50. 

Topeka West (9-2, 8-1) – Munganga 1-3 0-0 3, Traylor 5-8 2-2 13, Duncan 5-10 2-4 13, Paul 4-9 7-8 16, Lassiter 10-14 5-7 25, Phillips 0-2 0-0 0, Fox 1-3 0-0 2, Ware 0-1 0-0 0, Doby 0-1 2-2 2, Lloyd 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-51 18-23 74.

3-point goals – Basehor-Linwood 7 (Young 3, Hutchinson 2, Hofer, Elliott), Topeka West 4 (Munganga, Traylor, Duncan, Paul). Total fouls – Basehor-Linwood 20, Topeka West 14. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls -- Lassiter.

Bobcats ride dominating start to 77-31 UKC win over Chargers

Visiting Basehor-Linwood scored the first 10 points of the game Tuesday night and hit Topeka West with a 29-5 first quarter on the way to a 77-31 United Kansas Conference rout over the Chargers.

Topeka West junior Sydney VanDyke (5) scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Tuesday's 77-31 UKC loss to Basehor-Linwood. [File photo/TSN]

The Chargers, now 2-9 and 1-8 in the UKC, had trouble handling the Bobcats' pressure defense, with West finishing the night with 28 turnovers, including 11 in the opening quarter.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

The Rossville girls and Cair Paravel Latin boys basketball teams got tournament week off to a rousing start with a pair of big wins on Monday.

Rossville opened its girls title bid in the Jefferson County North Invitational with a 60-22 first-round win over the tournament hosts while Cair Paravel's boys rolled to a 64-30 first-round win over West Franklin in the Flint Hills League tournament at Emporia's White Auditorium.

Senior Rylee Dick scored 27 points Monday against JCN to move into the No. 3 spot on Rossville's all-time scoring list. [File photo/TSN]

Lady Bulldawg senior Rylee Dick scored 27 points in Rossville's win over JCN, moving into the No. 3 spot on Rossville's career scoring list with 1,281 points.

Rossville junior Nora Burdiek added 23 points as the Bulldawgs advanced to a 6 p.m. semifinal on Wednesday.

Cair Paravel's boys, playing West Franklin for the second straight game, took control early with a 19-7 first quarter before opening up a 39-16 halftime advantage.

Blaine Durbin led Cair Paravel with 17 points while Lucas Marichal added 14 points and Caleb Cleverson 13 with three 3-pointers.

Now 9-2 on the season, CPLS will play a semifinal at 7:30 p.m. Thursday against Lyndon.

Other area tournament pairings:

TOPEKA INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT

BOYS

At Highland Park

Thursday

3:30 p.m. -- Topeka High vs. Shawnee Mission East.

5 -- Lansing vs. Shawnee Mission North.

6:30 -- Topeka West vs. St. Thomas Aquinas.

8 -- Highland Park vs. Wichita Northwest.

Friday

3:30 p.m. -- Topeka High-SM East loser vs. Lansing-SM North loser.

5 -- Topeka West-St. Thomas Aquinas loser vs. High-Wichita Northwest loser.

6:30 -- Topeka High-East winner vs. Lansing-SM North winner.

8 -- Topeka West-St. Thomas Aquinas winner vs. Highland Park-Wichita Northwest winner.

Saturday

10 a.m. -- Fifth place (main gym); Seventh place (South gym).

11:30 -- Third place.

1 p.m. -- Championship.

By Rick Peterson

TopSports.news

Highland Park will host the 65th annual Topeka Invitational Tournament Thursday through Saturday, with Highland Park, Topeka High and Topeka West's boys teams taking part in the event.

 

Christian Ulsaker's Topeka West Chargers are the No. 1 city seed for this week's Topeka Invitational Tournament at Highland Park. [File photo/TSN]

Topeka High, 6-5, will open the tournament at 3:30 p.m. Thursday against Shawnee Mission East (6-5).

Lansing (3-6) and Shawnee Mission North (6-3) are on the same side of the bracket with Topeka High and SM North and will play a first-round game at 5 p.m.

The Topeka High- SM East winner will face the Lansing-SM North winner in a 6:30 p.m. semifinal on Friday.

Topeka West, 8-2 entering a Tuesday United Kansas Conference home game against Basehor-Linwood, will open its tournament bid at 6:30 p.m. Thursday against St. Thomas Aquinas (3-8).

Host Highland Park (3-7) will close out the first round at 8 p.m. Thursday against Wichita Northwest (5-6), with the Highland Park-Northwest winner advancing to an 8 p.m. semifinal on Friday to face the Topeka West-Aquinas winner.

The tournament will conclude on Saturday, starting with the seventh and fifth-place games at 10 a.m. in separate gyms, followed by the third-place game at 11:30 and the championship contest at 1 p.m.

TOPEKA INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT
 
At Highland Park

Thursday

3:30 p.m. -- Topeka High vs. Shawnee Mission East.

5 -- Lansing vs. Shawnee Mission North.

6:30 -- Topeka West vs. St. Thomas Aquinas.

8 -- Highland Park vs. Wichita Northwest.

Friday

3:30 p.m. -- Topeka High-SM East loser vs. Lansing-SM North loser.

5 -- Topeka West-St. Thomas Aquinas loser vs. High-Wichita Northwest loser.

6:30 -- Topeka High-East winner vs. Lansing-SM North winner.

8 -- Topeka West-St. Thomas Aquinas winner vs. Highland Park-Wichita Northwest winner.

Saturday

10 a.m. -- Fifth place (main gym); Seventh place (South gym).

11:30 -- Third place.

1 p.m. -- Championship.

Hayden boys to compete at Baldwin

Hayden, 4-8 on the season, will compete in the four-school Baldwin Invitational round-robin event this week, opening its tournament bid at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday against Wellsville (5-5).

The Wildcats will play Bishop Seabury (7-2) at 5:30 Friday and will wrap things up 2:30 p.m. Saturday against host Baldwin (9-2).

BALDWIN INVITATIONAL

Tuesday

5:30 p.m. -- Hayden vs. Wellsville.

7 -- Baldwin vs. Bishop Seabury.

Friday

5:30 p.m. -- Hayden vs. Bishop Seabury.

7 -- Baldwin vs. Wellsville.

Saturday

1 p.m. -- Wellsville vs. Bishop Seabury.

2:30 p.m. -- Hayden vs. Baldwin.

Rural boys headed to Pittsburg

Washburn Rural (7-3) will compete this week in the Bill Hanson Memorial Tournament at Pittsburg, opening with a 4 p.m. first-round game on Thursday against Branson, Mo. in Pittsburg's secondary gym.

Also on Rural's side of the tournament bracket are Olathe North and Willard, Mo., who will play at 7 p.m. Thursday.

On the other side of the bracket Webster Groves, Mo. will face Joplin, Mo. and host Pittsburg will take on Wichita West.

The Rural-Branson winner will play the Olathe North-Willard winner in a 4:30 p.m. semifinal on Friday.

The place games will be played on Saturday, capped by the championship game at 2:30 p.m.

BILL HANSON MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT
 
At Pittsburg
 
Thursday

4 p.m. -- Washburn Rural vs. Branson, Mo. (Mallatt gym).

5:30 -- Webster Groves, Mo. vs. Joplin, Mo. (main gym).

7 -- Olathe North vs. Willard, Mo. (Mallatt gym).

8:30 -- Pittsburg. vs. Wichita West (main gym). 

Friday

3 -- Consolation semifinal (Mallatt gym).

4:30 p.m. -- Washburn Rural-Branson winner vs. Olathe North-Willard winner (main gym);

6 -- Consolation semifinal (Mallatt gym).

7:30 -- Pittsburg-Wichita West winner vs. Webster Grove-Joplin winner (main gym).

Saturday

10 a.m. -- Seventh place (Mallatt gym).

11:30 -- Third place (main gym)

1 p.m. -- Fifth place (Mallatt gym).

2:30 p.m. -- Championship game (main gym).

T-Bird boys to compete in Viking Classic

Shawnee Heights, now 7-4, will open competition in the Shawnee Mission West Viking Classic with a 7:30 p.m. Thursday quarterfinal against Blue Valley North (4-4).

Shawnee Heights is coming off a 70-62 non-league road win at Gardner-Edgerton on Saturday.

The T-Birds trailed 35-33 at the half against the Trailblazers but took control with a 20-10 third quarter. 

The Shawnee Heights-BV North winner will advance to a 7:30 semifinal on Friday to take on the first-round winner between Glendale, Mo. and Shawnee Mission West.

On the other side of the bracket Andover Central will play Louisburg in the first round and Raymore-Peculiar, Mo. will play Aurora, Mo. 

The place games will be played on Saturday, with the title game set for 3 p.m.

SHAWNEE MISSION WEST VIKING CLASSIC

Thursday

3 p.m. -- Andover Central vs. Louisburg, 3 p.m.

4:30 -- Raymore-Peculiar, Mo. vs. Aurora, Mo.

6 -- Glendale, Mo. vs. SM West.

7:30 -- Blue Valley North. vs. Shawnee Heights.

Friday

3 p.m. -- Andover Central-Louisburg loser vs. Raymore-Peculiar, Mo.-Aurora, Mo. loser.

4:30 -- Glendale, Mo.-SM West loser vs Blue Valley North-Shawnee Heights loser.

6 -- Andover Central-Louisburg winner vs. Raymore-Peculiar, Mo.-Aurora, Mo. winner.

7:30 -- Glendale, Mo.-SM West winner vs. Blue Valley North-Shawnee Heights winner.

Saturday

10 a.m. -- Seventh place.

11:30 -- Fifth place.

1 p.m. -- Third place.

2:30 -- Championship game.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Led by junior individual runnerups Brodye Kocher-Munoz and Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural boys wrestling captured the team championship Saturday in the 34-school Newton Tournament of Champions by two points over the host Railers, 167.5-165.5.

Washburn Rural boys wrestling won the team championship in the 34-school Newton Tournament of Champions on Saturday. [Photo by Washburn Rural Athletics]

B. Kocher-Munoz, now 20-7 on the season, placed second at 150 pounds, dropping a 7-2 decision to Andale's Tristen Cox in the championship match while Baum, 18-4, finished second at 215 pounds, falling 4-0 to undefeated Cooper Reves in the final.

Rural's Josh Hogan was named the coach of the year.

Washburn Rural had six wrestlers place in the top five, with senior 138-pounder Cooper Stivers (26-6) finishing third, , senior 120-pounder Ryder Harrison (16-5) and senior Landen Kocher-Munoz (23-4) both posting fourth-place finishes and sophomore 285-pounder Kaiden Marshall (6-7) finishing fifth.

Seaman placed 21st as a team with 59.5 points, led by seventh-place 157-pounder Brennen Bowers and eighth-place finishers Deegan Frazier at 150 pounds and Henry Reichart at 285 pounds.

Host Trojans win Topeka Invitational championship

Topeka High won the team title in Saturday's 12-school home tournament, out-distancing Summit Christian Academy by a 171-147 margin as five Trojans earned individual titles.

High got titles from freshman 106-pounder Royal Newman (10-1), junior 113-pounder Jose Gomez (11-3), senior 120-pounder Luis Morones (12-2), senior 157-pounder Jordan Stiner (14-3) and senior 165-pounder Rehabiah Williamson (16-3).    

The Trojans got a second-place finish from junior 132-pounder Asher Filbeck (13-6) while senior 144-pounder Michael Weatherly and senior 150-pounder Brandon Blancas (15-4) posted third-place finishes.

Highland Park got a third-place finish from senior 132-pounder Samuel Portlock (10-3) while Topeka West got a third-place finish from senior 215-pounder Cortez McCutcheon (20-2).

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Seaman senior Claire LaDuke captured the girls individual championship while the Vikings rallied in the Baker format games to claim the team title in Thursday's Free State Invitational bowling tournament at Lawrence's Royal Crest Lanes.

Claire LaDuke (right) won the individual title in the Free State Invitational with a 677 series, helping lead Seaman to the team championship. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

LaDuke won the individual title with a 677 three-game series, rolling games of 214, 210 and 253 while Seaman took control in the Baker games to win the team championship by a 3,171-3,039 margin over Mill Valley after trailing the Jaguars 2,359-2,315 after the three American Ten Pin games.

Seaman posted a four-game total of 856 in Baker (225, 211, 254, 166), which was 126 pins higher than any other team in the 19-school field.

Backing LaDuke for the Vikings were Kayla Duncan with a 554, Paige Snyder with a 546, Leah Crawford with a 525, Laci Cole with a 512 and Ava Carlson with a 464.

Washburn Rural junior Megan Glinka finished fifth in the Free State Invitational with a 628 series. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Shawnee Heights junior Addison VanMetre finished eighth in the Free State Invitational with a 609 series. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]

Washburn Rural finished fourth as a team at 2,991, led by junior Megan Glinka, who placed fifth with a 628 series while Shawnee Heights finished seventh, led by junior Addison VanMetre, who placed ninth with a 609 series.

Results from Friday's boys tournament were not immediately available and will be posted on TopSports.news as soon as they become available.

FREE STATE INVITATIONAL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After Topeka High boys basketball posted just one victory last season, first-year coach Robbie Sanders' Trojans continued their resurgence on Friday, improving to 6-5 with a 72-69 overtime Centennial League road victory at Junction City.

Robbie Sanders' Topeka High team improved to 6-5 with a 72-69 OT win at Junction City Friday night. [File photo/TSN]

The Trojans' win was their second in as many nights, with High topping St. Marys Academy 62-32 on Thursday.

Topeka High posted its first Centennial League win to improve to 1-2 while Junction City fell to 5-5 overall and 0-3 in the league.

Topeka High junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton scored 25 points in Friday's Centennial League road win at Junction City. [File photo/TSN]

Trojan girls roll to 63-29 Centennial win

Topeka High posted its first Centennial League victory of the season Friday night at Junction City, romping to a 63-29 win over the Blue Jays.

Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton paced the Trojans, now 4-6 overall and 1-2 in the league, with 25 points while senior Keimara Marshall added 15 points and sophomore Hailey Caryl had a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds.

Junction City fell to 1-8 overall and 0-3 in the Centennial League.

Washburn Rural girls top Spartans, 45-34

Washburn Rural's girls improved to 6-3 overall and 2-1 in the Centennial League with a 45-34 road victory at Emporia Friday night.

Emporia dropped to 5-7 overall and 0-2 in the league.

Spartans snap Rural boys' six-game win streak

Emporia boys basketball snapped Washburn Rural's six-game winning streak on Friday, taking a 52-46 home Centennial League win.

Emporia, now 11-1 overall and 2-0 in the Centennial League, led 13-12 at the end of the first quarter and 30-23 at the half before Washburn Rural (7-3, 2-1) cut its deficit to three points (37-34) at the start of the fourth quarter.

The Spartans were able to close out the win with a 15-12 advantage over the final eight minutes.

Sophomore Brooks Ballard and senior John Hoytal led Washburn Rural with 13 points apiece while Hoytal registered a double-double with 11 rebounds.

West girls pick up first UKC victory

Topeka West's girls basketball snapped an eight-game losing streak while picking up its first United Kansas Conference win of the season Friday night in a 66-21 road rout at Kansas City-Turner.

The Chargers are now 2-8 overall and 1-7 in the UKC while Turner fell to 2-8 and 0-6.

Chargers get back on track with 20-point road win

The No. 2-ranked (Class 5A) Topeka West boys bounced back from a five-point home loss to No. 3 Seaman on Tuesday with a 60-40 United Kansas Conference road win at Kansas City-Turner Friday night.

Topeka West improved to 8-2 overall and 7-1 in the UKC while Turner fell to 3-7 overall and 0-6 in the league.

Lions protect Flint Hills lead with 27-point road win

Cair Paravel Latin's boys improved to 8-2 overall and remained undefeated in the Flint Hills League at 6-0 with an 86-59 road win at West Franklin Friday night.

The Lions opened up a 20-15 lead at the end of the first quarter and used a 27-17 second quarter to boost its advantage to 47-32 at the half.

Cair Paravel put the game out of reach with a 23-9 third quarter and cruised the rest of the way.

Senior Lucas Marichal and sophomore Chase Hastert led the Lions with 19 points apiece while Blaine Durbin added 18 points, Drew Fay 11 and Caleb Cleverdon 10.

West Franklin, now 1-8 overall and 1-5 in the league, got 22 points from Landon Ohlde and 21 from Zeek Dowd.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

TUESDAY'S GAMES

Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High

Hailey Schmidtlein, Hayden

TOPEKA HIGH (3-5, 0-1 Centennial) at HAYDEN (8-2, 2-0 Centennial)

Hayden is coming off a 38-35 Centennial League win at Washburn Rural last Friday while Topeka High had its three-game winning streak snapped by league foe Manhattan, 67-55. Sophomore Hailey Schmidtlein led Hayden with 17 points, including three 3-pointers, against Rural while senior Lauren Borjon added 8 points with a pair of 3s. Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton led Topeka High with 21 points against Manhattan while sophomore Hailey Caryl added 17 points with three 3-pointers.  

SEAMAN (5-2, 5-1 Centennial) at TOPEKA WEST (1-7, 0-6 Centennial)

Seaman is coming off a 54-12 United Kansas Conference win over Lansing last Friday while Topeka West dropped a 69-36 conference decision at Basehor-Linwood. Junior Brynn Spencer led Seaman with 15 points against Lansing while Baylee Ayres and Lydia Dreher added 10 points. Seaman took a 45-26 win over Topeka West on Dec. 12. The Chargers will be looking to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Koralee Jones, Highland Park 

KANSAS CITY-SUMNER (2-6, 2-4 Meadowlark) at HIGHLAND PARK (2-5, 1-2 Meadowlark)

Highland Park dropped a 66-42 Meadowlark Conference decision to Atchison last Friday while KC-Sumner is coming off a 76-7 loss to KC-Wyandotte. Koralee Jones and Zayah Kincaid paced Highland Park with 14 points apiece against Atchison, with Kincaid draining three 3-pointers.

PIPER (6-2, 5-0 UKC) at SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (6-3, 5-1 UKC)

Shawnee Heights rolled to a 53-22 United Kansas Conference win over Leavenworth last Friday while league-leading Piper is coming off a 69-34 non-league loss to Blue Valley Northwest. T-Bird senior Imani McGlory scored 18 points with four 3-pointers against Leavenworth while juniors Pearmella Carter and KK Emmot scored 12 and 10 points, respectively. Piper handed Shawnee Heights its lone UKC loss on Dec. 9, 50-45.