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Ichabod softball opens 2026 season with five games in three days in Texas trip
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University opened its 56th season of softball on Friday as the Ichabods begin the 2026 season with five games over three days at the Lone Star Classic in Mansfield, Texas, just south of Dallas.
Brenda Holaday's Washburn University softball team will open the 2026 season with five games over three days this weekend in Texas. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods are coming off a 31-21 season, going 13-11 in the MIAA, and will be looking to return to the NCAA Tournament after missing out last season.
After practicing for several months, in the fall and since returning from the Christmas break, senior infielder Kate Ediger said it's time for the Ichabods to play a game.
"Oh my gosh, it is so time,'' Ediger said. "We have been practicing every day since we've been back in January and we've been scrimmaging and we're just so ready to go out there and play. We're just ready.''
After an up and down season a year ago, Ediger is confident that the Ichabods are poised to take a step forward this season.
"We have five pitchers this year who all are going to be very, very great for us,'' Ediger said. "Last year we had a couple of pitchers that had to do the job every game and this year we have more depth with our pitching and the chemistry that we have in our infield is there.
"I think that we have all the potential in the world. We have a lot of great people. We've just got to get out there and see what we can do, but I know that we're ready for it.''
Senior outfielder Erin Boles, a four-year player for the Ichabods, agreed.
"I think we're all very anxious to get on the field and play different competition and get that competitiveness,'' Boles said. "We're very eager.
"Our goal this year is to start off strong and carry that over into conference and postseason. That is what we're looking for this year.''
Washburn has reached the postseason six times, including three under coach Brenda Holaday in the 2018, 2022 and 2024 seasons.
The Ichabods have hit the 30-win mark for four straight seasons, dating back to the 2022 season, which is the longest streak of 30 wins since a run between the 2002-07 seasons when the Ichabods recorded 30 wins six seasons in a row.
Washburn was tabbed sixth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches poll.
Holaday is in her 10th season as the Ichabod softball head coach, recording a 283-170 overall record and going 136-74 in MIAA contests, leading the Ichabods to two MIAA regular-season titles (2018, 2022). Holaday became Washburn's all-time winningest coach with a 13-0 win over Illinois-Springfield on Feb. 8, 2025.
WU senior pitcher Sadie Walker was 36th in the nation last season in games started (28), 17th in appearances (35) and 39th in shutouts (5) while also ranking 55th in strikeouts (142).
Jenna Sprague ranked 10th in the nation with five saves.
Makenzie Sais led Washburn with 15 multiple-hit games last season.
The Ichabods are scheduled to face Texas Woman's and Southern Nazarene on Friday, Cameron on Saturday and Lubbock Christian and St. Edward's on Sunday.
Wildcats ride balanced attack past SM West, 75-63
By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
Coming off a second straight Baldwin Invitational championship, the Hayden Wildcats welcomed the winless Shawnee Mission West Vikings to the Ken Bueltel Activity Center on Wednesday, building a big halftime advantage en route to a 75-63 non-league win.
Hayden senior Connor Hanika scored a team-high 17 points in Wednesday's 75-63 non-league win over Shawnee Mission West. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Wildcats, who lost three games at the start of January, have since won five of their last six.
Hayden would get things started Wednesday with senior Makhi Kidd scoring the Wildcats' first two baskets to take a 4-3 lead.
The only lead changes of the night would come in the first quarter as the Wildcats and the Vikings would answer each other with six lead changes until Hayden senior Connor Hanika would give his team the lead and score two of his team-high 17 points as the Wildcats would go on an 8-0 run before the Vikings would get a basket with a free throw to make it 14-8.
The Vikings would keep digging and make it a two-point game at 19-17 late in the first quarter before the Wildcats would close with two 3-pointers to make it 25-19 at the end of the first.
Senior Makhi Kidd scored 16 points in Wednesday's 75-63 Hayden non-league win over Shawnee Mission West. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The second quarter would get started with Hayden senior Kade Mitchell, who before the game accepted his invitation to play in the 2026 Kansas Shrine Bowl, would find the basket followed by Kidd, who would score his eighth point of the night on the way to a 16-point night.
Hayden would outscore the Vikings 18-10 in the second quarter to go into halftime with a commanding 43-29 lead.
The Vikings would come out on fire and go on a 7-0 run to make it 43-36 before Wildcat junior Mason Becker would make his second of four 3-pointers on the night to stop the Viking run.
“The same message that we've had all season is our energy and effort have to be consistent,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Anthony said. "And that has to be something that doesn't waver and sometimes we get into the funk of letting that waver.”
After receiving a message from Anthony the Wildcats would go on a 13-0 run to blow the lead to 57-41 and Hayden would close the third out with a 61-47 lead.
Kidd would continue staying hot in the third quarter as he would score six points in the quarter.
“When I would cut, my teammates would give me the ball,'' Kidd said. "My teammates were getting tip passes. I was coming up with them, getting putbacks, doing everything I can to help the team win, really.”
“Makhi is having a good year,'' Anthony said. "And the crazy thing is, I really believe that Makhi has even more that he's going to show us before the season's over because he's just really a strong kid. He has really good skills and he's starting to learn how to play in some areas that may have been uncomfortable for him before. He's really doing a good job.”
Hayden junior Carter Compton scored 16 points Wednesday night against SM West, one of four Wildcats in double figures [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Wildcats would have four players in double figures, with juniors Carter Compton and Mason Becker scoring 16 and 14 points.
“That's the vision I have for this program,'' Anthony said. :You know, if we play basketball with a certain pace and the way that we do, it should be easy for guys to get easy buckets into being double figures a lot more than sometimes they are.”
“It's huge,'' Kidd agreed. "If you look at the games we've won, that's that's how we do it. We have multiple people in double figures and that really pushes us to be great when we're sharing the ball and getting everybody touches because everybody on the floor can score.”
Chargers pull away late for 67-57 UKC win over T-Birds
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.''
