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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Rossville football is back in the Class 1A semifinals for the second straight season after a 27-20 road win at previously-unbeaten and No. 1 East seed St. Mary's Colgan Friday night in Pittsburg.

Senior quarterback Canann Mitchell scored a pair of touchdowns Friday in Rossville's 27-20 road win over previously-unbeaten Colgan. [File photo/TSN]

The No. 4-seeded Bulldawgs, now 10-1, never trailed after jumping out to a 14-0 lead over the Panthers, who had not allowed a point in their first two playoff games, but Colgan (10-1) struck with just 32 seconds left in the opening half to cut its halftime deficit to 14-6.

Rossville outscored Colgan 13-7 in the third quarter to take a 27-13 lead into the final quarter before the Panthers scored just five seconds into the fourth to cut their deficit to seven at 27-20.

But that would be the last TD of the night as Rossville was able to close out its eighth straight win.

Rossville senior Andre Johnson scored on a 15-yard run at the 8:15 mark of the opening quarter (Austin Dohrman kick) to put the Bulldawgs up 7-0 and senior quarterback Canann Mitchell scored on a 2-yard run with just 52 remaining in the half (Dohrman kick).

The Bulldawgs padded their advantage with an 11-yard TD run by Cael Horgan with 7:17 left in the third quarter (Dohrman kick) and Mitchell scored his second TD of the night at the 3:41 mark of the third on a 71-yard gallop (kick failed) to end Rossville's scoring.

Rossville will be back on the road next Friday to face No. 2 East seed Jackson Heights (11-0), a 21-14 quarterfinal winner over Riverside.

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By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

The No. 2-ranked Washburn University men's basketball team put together an outstanding offensive performance on Friday night in its first of two games in the Central Region Challenge at Pittsburg State, shooting 61.4 percent from the field and scoring 53 second-half points in a 95-63 win over Minnesota State-Moorhead.

Junior Jack Bachelor led the way with 23 points Friday as No. 2 ranked Washburn improved to 3-0 with a 95-63 win over MSU-Moorhead. [File photo/TSN]

The 3-0 Ichabods took control early with balanced scoring and a surge midway through the first half, then broke the game wide open after halftime with an 18-6 burst that pushed the margin to over 20.

After trailing 5–0 in the opening minutes, Washburn responded with an 8-2 run, capped by a Bryson Smith fast-break layup.

Washburn Rural product Jack Bachelor provided a spark throughout the period, scoring 13 first-half points, highlighted by a pair of transition layups and 6-for-6 shooting at the free throw line.

A late stretch in which Washburn scored 11 of 13 points gave the Ichabods a 42-33 halftime lead.

Washburn shot 46.9 percent in the opening half while scoring 26 points in the paint, turning eight Moorhead turnovers into nine fast-break points.

The Ichabods came out firing in the second half, putting together a 7–0 run in the first 70 seconds thanks to a Brady Christiansen corner 3-pointer and a pair of fastbreak scores from Bachelor and Smith.

That stretch ballooned the lead to 49-33 and forced an early MSU-Moorhead timeout.

Another 9-2 run, capped by a step-back Smith three and a transition layup from Bachelor, extended the margin to 61–38.

The Washburn advantage reached 32 points with 6:20 left as the Ichabods continued to pile up transition points and dominate the paint.

The second-half numbers were staggering as Washburn shot 80 percent from the field (20 of 25) and 70 percent from three (7 of 10) while scoring 53 points on just 25 shot attempts.

At one point in the second half the Ichabods were 18 of 19 from the field.

Bachelor led the way with 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-6 from deep and a perfect 6-for-6 at the line.

Smith delivered a highly efficient 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting with a pair of threes. Christiansen added 11 points and seven rebounds, while Dillon Claussen was a force inside with 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and three blocks.

Jeremiah Jones added 11 points, five assists and two steals.

For the game, Washburn shot 35-of-57 overall (61.4 percent), 9-of-17 from three (52.9 percent) and 16-of-24 at the line while scoring 52 points in the paint, 22 points off turnovers, 20 fast-break points and 27 points from the bench.

Moorhead was held to 40 percent shooting and outrebounded 38–26.

Washburn will face Winona State on Saturday in Pittsburg.

Ichabod women drop 73-61 in Central Region Crossover

Washburn women's basketball led for the majority of the first half Friday but was unable to overcome a second-half run from St. Cloud State in the season-opener, falling 73-61 in day one of the Central Region Crossover in Edmond, Okla.

The Ichabods will wrap up the tournament on Saturday at 1 p.m., facing No. 18 Southwest Minnesota State.

In the opening minutes it was all Washburn (0-1) as the Ichabods led 6-0, beginning with a 3-pointer from Gabi Giovannetti in the opening minute. The Huskies (1-0) did not get on the board until the 6:54 mark, but quickly tied the game at 6-6. Back-to-back baskets inside by WU senior Yibari Nwidadah in the final three minutes of the quarter put the Ichabods in front, 18-17.

The first four points of the second quarter came from Washburn as it held St. Cloud State scoreless until the 6:31 mark in the quarter. The Ichabods led by as many as six before the Huskies turned around their offensive output, shooting 7-15 in the quarter to lead 32-31 going into the break on a last-second 3-pointer.

Coming out of the break Nwidadah got a layup to fall, putting Washburn back in front. The Ichabods held the lead until an 8-0 run by St. Cloud State midway through the quarter put them in front by five. The Ichabods were held to 6-19 (31.6 percent) shooting in the third as the Huskies expanded the lead to nine heading to the fourth.

Washburn began the fourth quarter on a 6-3 run to stay in the game. Another 3-pointer by Giovannetti with 3:01 remaining made it a four-point contest but that was as close as the Ichabods could get. St. Cloud State scored the next eight points and went on to post the 12-point win.

Both teams shot under 40.0 percent in the contest with the Ichabods at 37.7 and the Huskies at 39.7. Both teams also shot under 25.0 percent from deep, with Washburn making three triples to five for St. Cloud State.

Rebounding was dead even at 40 each, with St. Cloud State leading 16-8 in assists and using a 25-18 advantage in second-chance scoring to gain an advantage.

Nwidadah led Washburn with 15 points on 6-9 shooting while adding eight rebounds, a team-high. Payton Sterk scored in double figures with 11 points and Britany Kogbara had 10 off the bench in her Washburn debut.

Jada Eggebrecht and Alana Zarneke had 19 points each to lead the Huskies.

Rick Peterson, Top Sports News Writer — Rick Peterson

Details: Created: 13 November 2025

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

FRIDAY NIGHT'S GAMES

CLASS 3A

JEFFERSON WEST (8-2) at HAYDEN (10-0)

Connor Hanika, Hayden

Kade Mitchell, Hayden

Hayden, the No. 1 East seed in Class 3A, has outscored its first two playoff opponents by a huge 112-7 margin, including a 42-0 romp past Wellsville last Friday night. Friday's state quarterfinal game is a rematch of the Week 8 Hayden-Jefferson West district matchup, with the Wildcats taking a 42-0 win over the Tigers in that game. Jefferson West advanced to Friday's game with a 49-14 win over Prairie View. Hayden senior quarterback Connor Hanika has completed 88 of 146 passes for 1,422 yards and 20 touchdowns with just one interception while senior Kade Mitchell has carried the ball 89 times for 900 yards, caught 19 passes for 410 yards and has scored 21 total TDs. Wildcat senior Jackson McGivern has carried the ball 55 times for 378 yards and scored nine TDs while recording 65 tackles (41) on defense with seven tackles for loss. Senior Jude Krentz leads Hayden with 89 tackles (47 solo) and six tackles for loss while rushing for 317 yards on 49 attempts. Senior Xander Blasing has 66 stops (48 solo) and seven tackles for loss and has caught 18 passes for 230 yards while senior Makhi Kidd has caught a team-high 26 passes for 277 yards. Jefferson West freshman quarterback Brixton Schwinn has completed 150 of 255 passes for 2,101 yards and 29 touchdowns while senior Crayton Holmes has 55 receptions for 689 yards and eight TDs and junior Brody Schwinn has 47 catches for 883 yards and 17 TDs. The winner of Friday's game will move on to a 3A sub-state game to face the winner of Friday's game between Holton (6-4) and Santa Fe Trail (10-0). Game time: 7 p.m.

Xander Blasing, Hayden

Jackson McGivern, Hayden

CLASS 1A

ROSSVILLE (9-1) at PITTSBURG-ST. MARY'S COLGAN (10-0)

Canann Mitchell, Rossville

Cameron Miller, Rossville

Rossville, the No. 4 Class 1A East seed, is coming off a 53-18 home win over Jefferson County North last Friday while Pittsburg Colgan remained undefeated at 10-0 with a 56-0 win over Troy. Rossville senior quarterback Canann Mitchell has completed 87 of 127 passes for 1,311 yards and 16 touchdowns with just one interception and has rushed for 821 yards and 15 TDs on 101 attempts. Senior Cameron Miller has 30 catches for 502 yards and eight TDs while senior Jack Donovan has 34 grabs for 426 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Conner Bush has rushed for 656 yards and 10 TDs on 61 carries while senior Andre Johnson leads the Bulldawgs with 85 tackles. Junior Charlie Chance has registered 40 stops, including 12.5 tackles for loss. Colgan has yet to give up a point in postseason, outscoring its opponents by a 119-0 margin. The winner of Friday's game will advance to the state semifinals to face the winner of Friday's game between Riverside (8-2) and Jackson Heights (10-0). Game time: 6 p.m.

Jack Donovan, Rossville