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Tuesday prep BB roundup: West boys snap four-game skid with 77-57 romp past Lansing
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka West's boys got back on the winning track Tuesday night, snapping a four-game losing streak against state-ranked teams with a 77-57 United Kansas Conference road romp past Lansing.
Senior Kamoni Ford was one of five double-figure scorers for Topeka West in Tuesday's 77-57 win over Lansing. [File photo/TSN]
The Chargers, who improved to 9-6 overall and 8-4 in the UKC, had five players crack double figures and seven players score at least seven points.
Seniors Kamoni Ford and Jalen Foy and junior Keimani Paul led the Chargers with 12 points apiece while junior Malakyah Duncan added 11 points and senior Javian Chambers 10.
Topeka West trailed 19-17 at the end of the opening quarter and led by just a 34-31 advantage at the half before breaking open the game with a 28-16 third quarter.
The Chargers then outscored the Lions 15-10 over the final eight minutes to finish off the 20-point win.
Topeka West will travel to Leavenworth on Friday for a UKC contest.
West girls pick up fourth win
Topeka West notched its fourth win overall and second United Kansas Conference victory Tuesday night, posting a 56-40 conference win at Lansing.
With the win the Chargers improved to 4-11 and 2-9 in the UKC.
West will travel to Leavenworth on Friday.
Silver Lake girls improve to 13-2
Defending Class 3A champion Silver Lake, currently ranked No. 6 by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Assocation, improved to 13-2 Tuesday night with a 61-36 home romp past Marysville.
The Eagles took control with a 22-13 opening quarter and put the game out of reach with a 19-4 second quarter, opening up a huge 41-17 halftime advantage and cruising the rest of the way.
Six Silver Lake players scored eight or more points, led by Karys Deiter with 13 points and Kailyn Hanni with 12 points.
Jaylie Whitehead and Taylor Zordel scored nine points apiece and Ella Bolan and Savannah Wende had eight each.
The Eagles will host St. Marys on Thursday.
Junior Dayne Johnson led Silver Lake with 16 points in Tuesday's 54-50 win over Marysville. [File photo/TSN]
Eagle boys top Bulldogs, 64-50
Four Silver Lake players cracked double figures Tuesday night as the Eagles posted a 64-50 home win over Marysville.
Junior Dayne Johnson led the Eagles with 16 points, followed by Brody Deiter with 15 points, Jared Johnson with 11 points and Aemon Coffman with 10.
Silver Lake, now 11-4, led 16-12 at the end of the first quarter and took control with a 21-6 second quarter.
Gragg, Becker power Seaman to 22nd straight win, 64-54 over Shawnee Heights
IBy RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Maddie Gragg was forced to sit and watch from the sidelines when the Vikings dropped a six-point decision at Shawnee Heights last Feb. 20, which just so happened to be Seaman's most recent loss.
Junior Maddie Gragg scored 23 points with five 3-pointers in Seaman's 64-54 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [File photo/TSN]
Senior Anna Becker scored 21 points with three 3-pointers in Seaman's 64-54 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [File photo/TSN]
But the 5-foot-10 junior made up for lost time in a hurry in Tuesday's rematch against the T-Birds, riding a monster first half to a game-high 23 points as the defending Class 5A state champions ran their winning streak to 22 games with a 64-54 home United Kansas Conference victory.
Gragg scored 17 points in the first half with five 3-pointers and formed a dynamic one-two punch with senior Anna Becker, who had 14 first-half points with a pair of 3s on the way to a 21-point night as the Vikings took control in the opening two quarters while improving to 16-0 overall and 11-0 in the conference.
Gragg said Tuesday's win was a welcome bounce back for her and the team after last year's Heights loss.
"I had a concussion, so I didn't play that game,'' Gragg said. "I was there sitting on the bench and I remember that game. The first half was good (tonight). It was high percentage shots and we kept going for like the one more pass. It was just a good half all around. You always want to beat a rival.''
Shawnee Heights (11-5 overall, 8-4) actually outscored Seaman 30-23 in the second half, but the T-Birds were unable to overcome a dismal first half that saw the Vikings lead by as many as 20 points on the way to a 41-24 halftime bulge.
"Obviously we knew what happened last year, it was in the back of our minds,'' Becker said. "We didn't forget.''
Gragg and Becker combined for 12 of Seaman's 16 first-half field goals, including the seven treys, as the Vikings shot 53.3 percent from the field in the half.
"It felt like we were shooting the ball great,'' Becker said. "Shoot, I think Maddie went 5 for 5 (on 3s) and we were passing it around well, so you can't ask for much more than that. It was a great team win and I just love that we got to play another inter-city school. It's always a fun rivalry and a game to look forward to.''
Seaman, Heights' Brede lead city contingent in UKC swimming
By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Seaman boys swim team placed third in the top-heavy United Kansas Conference boys championship meet at Capitol Federal Natatorium Tuesday.
Lansing placed first in all three relays and took first in four of the nine individual events on the night to rack up 264 points. Basehor-Linwood came in second with 227. De Soto finished in fifth but took home three of the individual medals.
Shawnee Heights senior Truman Brede was the lone city gold medalist in Tuesday's UKC swimming championships. [File photo/TSN]
That left just one first-place medal in the Capital City. Shawnee Heights senior Truman Brede took home the gold in the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 56.59.
"I’m a little disappointed on the time,” Brede said. “I took first in the city meet with a (55.83), so I kind of added a little bit. I knew the kid from Lansing is tough competition. He beat me in this meet last year, so I was really focused on beating him this year.”
Brede finished 10th in Class 5A state in the backstroke as a sophomore, then moved up to ninth as a junior. He said he is ranked fourth in the state currently. He said the UKC meet is good preparation for the state meet.
“It’s really about facing the teams that I know are going to be up there, Lansing being a big one. They have a lot of top swimmers coming to state,” Brede said. “The only thing we don’t get with the league meet is the Wichita schools. Wichita schools are also a lot of top placers.”
Peyton Holmes helped lead Seaman to a city-best third-place team finish in Tuesday's UKC swimming championships. [File photo/TSN]
City champ in the 50 yard freestyle, Peyton Holmes, shaved .31 seconds off his time from the city meet to finish second at the UKC meet.
“I still think I can go faster,” said Holmes. “This is a really tough meet. I’m happy with second for now.
“Getting third (in the UKC) is cool. We got third at city and there was less competition there. So third here is a lot better than what we did at city. We kind of redeemed it a little bit.”
“Lansing and Basehor-Linwood are great programs, so we feel good about taking third,” Seaman coach Bernie Tuck said. “We’ve had some challenges this season, so making it to this point is exciting. The guys can be self-reflective on their performance. That’s always good to give you an eye-opener going into the state meet.”
In a poll of league coaches, Tuck was voted UKC co-ocach of the Year.
“It’s always nice to be recognized for the work,” Tuck said. “I know I’m not the only coach that, you know, works seven days a week, so it’s good to be in a great community of the coaches who I admire and look up to.”
UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE SWIMMING
