By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
WICHITA -- The Topeka High Lady Trojans were experiencing the state tournament for the first time since 2022 Tuesday, but they certainly didn’t look like a team new to the stage.
Junior Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton led Topeka High with 17 points in Tuesday's 61-58 state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
Topeka High gave No. 2 Derby a battle to the very end in the Class 6A quarterfinal at Koch Arena, dropping a 61-58 heartbreaker to finish its season 17-8.
The Trojans lost to Derby (22-3) for the second time on the season after dropping a 65-57 decision to the Panthers in the Capital City Classic back in January.
Both teams came out of the gate Tuesday struggling to find the basket.
Derby opened the scoring with a free throw to make it 1-0, but that would be the only point scored for nearly two minutes.
Topeka High coach Ron Slaymaker called a 30-second timeout and the Trojans responded immediately.
Sophomore Hailey Caryl scored 15 points in Tuesday's 61-58 Topeka High state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
Hailey Caryl scored inside, drew the foul, and completed the three-point play to give High an early 3-1 lead.
The teams traded baskets through the rest of the quarter. Derby tied the game at 10-10 with a shot at the rim before Caryl answered with another basket.
Topeka High’s leading scorer, Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, had been held scoreless for most of the opening period, but with 43 seconds left she knocked down a shot to give the Trojans a 16-12 lead.
At the end of the first quarter, Topeka High held a narrow 16-15 advantage.
Derby opened the second quarter with three quick points to take the lead, but Rayton responded with a 3-pointer to tie the game at 19-19.
Late in the quarter, with the Trojans trailing 30-26, Topeka High went on a run.
Sasha Gotru scored inside, Rayton added a basket and Caryl knocked down two free throws. Gotru then scored again with just 0.3 seconds left before halftime, capping an 8-0 run that gave the Trojans a 34-30 lead at the break.
Derby came out of the locker room on fire, opening the third quarter with a 6-0 run to reclaim the lead at 36-34.
Senior Keimara Marshall had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in Tuesday's 61-58 Topeka High state tournament loss to Derby. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]
High's Keimara Marshall answered with a basket in the paint to tie the game. The Trojans then responded with a 7-0 run to push their lead to 41-36.
Derby star Macayla Askew went to work, scoring five quick points to cut into the deficit.
Topeka High held on to a slim 48-46 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Derby opened the final period with five straight points to take a 51-48 lead.
The Trojans tied the game at 51-51 before Askew hit a 3-pointer to give the Panthers another advantage.
With 43.5 seconds remaining, Caryl attacked the rim and was fouled. She calmly sank both free throws to cut the deficit to 59-58.
Topeka High was forced to foul, and Derby knocked down both free throws to extend the lead to three, 61-58.
The Trojans still had one last chance. Marshall brought the ball up the floor but didn’t have a clean look and passed to Trisha Short.
Short swung the ball to Rayton, who appeared ready to launch a potential game-tying three.
However, the buzzer sounded just before she could get the shot off, ending the Trojans’ season as Derby advanced to Thursday's semifinals.
Topeka High relied heavily on its starters throughout the game. Marshall and Caryl each played all 32 minutes, while Rayton and Short played 30 minutes apiece. Despite the heavy workload, they still had energy in the final moments.
“We have asked a lot of those five all year,” Slaymaker said. “They’ve had to play major minutes in every game because we are not deep.
"I'm very, very proud of their effort. I’ve been proud of them for 11 games in a row. We damn near got this one.”
Slaymaker reflected on the team’s journey throughout the season.
“We dug a hole early. We were 0-4 to begin the season, and Caryl had a pretty bad ankle sprain,” Slaymaker said. “A lot of teams start 0-4 and end up 0-8, thinking their season is over. But we didn’t think that way.
"After our tournament in January we had a meeting -- not a chewing type meeting -- just telling them we could still do this. And then we went on that 11-game run against some pretty good competition.''
Slaymaker also pointed to the team’s road win at Liberal as a key moment.
“That was a big deal because they had only lost three games,” Slaymaker said. “So how could I be upset as a coach? I’ve experienced both ends of this. If it didn’t mean something, it wouldn’t hurt so bad. But it meant something. It hurts.
"This was a memorable moment for us. We didn’t want to be satisfied with just going to state, but you realize the other team wants it just as bad. I think we gave it our best shot.”
The Trojans were led in scoring by Rayton with 17 points and Caryl with 15. Marshall recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Derby was led by Askew, who finished with 17 points.
DERBY 61, TOPEKA HIGH 58
Topeka High 16 18 14 10 -- 58
Derby 15 15 16 15 -- 61
Topeka High (17-8) -- Rayton 7-22 1-2 17, Caryl 5-7 5-5 15, Marshall 4-13 2-3 11, Gotru 4-7 1-2 9, Short 1-5 2-4 4, Brown 1-3 0-0 2, Whayne 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-58 11-16 58.
Derby (23-3) -- Askew 7-14 0-0 17, Carter 5-12 2-4 13, Fox 5-7 2-3 12, Dinsmore 0-3 4-4 4, Demel 1-10 1-2 3, Harris 4-8 0-0 10, Graham 0-6 2-2 2. Totals 22-60 11-15 61.
3-point goals -- Topeka High 3 (Rayton 2, Marshall), Derby 6 (Askew 3, Harris 2, Carter). Total Fouls -- Topeka High 15, Derby 16.
