By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
If you've watched Shawnee Heights' girls basketball team this season, you might have thought No. 13 was a new player for the T-Birds.
And in a way that's true because it's been a long time since anyone had seen 5-foot-9 junior Emari Doby on the court.
Emari Doby drives to the basket in Shawnee Heights' 64-55 overtime win over Topeka West Tuesday night. Doby scored a game and career-high 20 points in the win. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Doby earned varsity playing time as a freshman for Shawnee Heights, but missed her entire sophomore campaign as well as her summer season after suffering a serious knee injury in the fall of 2020.
"I tore my ACL (left leg) last October, right before we started practice and I had surgery,'' Doby said. "I was taking a showcase event to try to get more scouts and my last game I did a move and I just fell. I don't even know how to describe it.''
Doby suffered another setback several months later when it was discovered that her injury was more serious than first thought.
"They say six months (for rehab), but at my six-month mark I found that I had tore something more because I wasn't to the point where I should be,'' Doby said. "I found out I tore my LCL (lateral collateral ligament) also.''
That pushed her recovery timetable back even more and kept her out of action in the summer, but Doby is finally back on the court and playing a key role for the 2-1 T-Birds, who ended their pre-holiday slate with a 64-55 overtime win over Topeka West on Tuesday.
"At the start of the summer they suggested I didn't play because why play and get hurt again in the summer when you can just wait?'' Doby said. "So I waited until August to scrimmage and now I'm back and good.''
Like most players who have had to come back from major injuries, Doby has had to fight through the fear of getting re-injured, but feels like she's making progress in that regard.
"I feel like I didn't miss out on 10 months to go out there with fear, so I know I'm scared, but I can push that to the side,'' Doby said. "I trust my knee and it's been over a year, I'm good.''
And a little bit of apprehension is worth a ton of enjoyment being back on the court.
"It is so much fun,'' Doby said. "The girls take so much care of me. I can trip and they're like, 'Emari, Emari, are you OK?' And the coaches care so much. I'm so grateful to have them and my family cares, so I'm just in really good hands.''
Doby scored 10 points in Heights' 38-33 season-opening loss ot Spring Hill and followed that up with eight points in the T-Birds' 49-45 road win over Ottawa before turning in a breakout performance in Tuesday's comeback win over Topeka West, scoring a career-high 20 points.
Shawnee Heights junior Emari Doby has helped the T-Birds get off to a 2-1 start this season after missing the entire 2020-2021 season with an ACL injury. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"Every day I'm doing more and more and every game I'm doing more,'' Doby said. "I'm still very critical of myself, but I think I'm getting back to my old me or better.
"I'm thankful. I made it back and I'm good.''
A look at Friday's Shawnee County games:
GIRLS
WASHBURN RURAL at SEAMAN
Washburn, second-ranked in Class 6A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, improved to 4-0 overall and in the Centennial League with a 56-28 win at Hayden Tuesday night while Seaman (3-1, 3-1) rolled to a 65-30 road win over Highland Park. Junior Brooklyn DeLeye scored 15 points and sophomore Zoe Canfield 10 points for Washburn Rural against Hayden while freshman Anna Becker led Seaman with 17 points in the win over Highland Park and Maegan Mills added 12.
HIGHLAND PARK at TOPEKA HIGH
Topeka High (4-0, 4-0) held off Emporia 38-36 on the road Tuesday night to remain undefeated while Highland Park (0-4, 0-4) is still looking for its first win after dropping a 65-30 home decision to Seaman. Topeka High, ranked No. 6 in Class 6A by the KBCA, was led by junior Kiki Smith's 14 points against Emporia while senior Tae Thomas added 8 points and junior Faith Shields 7. Aisya Taylor scored a team-high 11 points for Highland Park in the loss to Seaman while Amelia Ramsey added nine.
ST. MARYS at SILVER LAKE
Undefeated Silver Lake (3-0) was off Tuesday night after posting a 55-27 win over Riley County last Friday. Sophomore MaKenzie McDaniel had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Eagles while junior Taylor Ross and sophomore McKinley Kruger scored 12 apiece.
ATCHISON at ROSSVILLE
Rossville is coming off a 71-58 loss to Wamego, but the Bulldawgs are off to a 3-1 start to the season. Senior Briar Gillum scored 16 points against the Red Raiders while sophomores Emma Mitchell and Kinley Porter scored 13 points apiece. Atchison is 2-3 on the season.
JUNCTION CITY at HAYDEN
This game was originally scheduled to be played at Junction City, but was switched to Hayden on Thursday. Hayden (2-1, 2-1) is coming off its first loss of the season, dropping a 56-28 home decision to undefeated Washburn Rural, while winless Junction City is coming off a 39-17 loss to Manhattan on Tuesday. Freshman Brylee Meier scored 13 points to lead Hayden against Washburn Rural while senior Carly Stuke added seven.
TOPEKA WEST at MANHATTAN
Topeka West (0-4, 0-4) dropped a tough 64-55 overtime decision at Shawnee Heights on Tuesday while Manhattan notched its first victory, taking a 39-17 Centennial League decision over Junction City. Sophomore Siana Sanchez led Topeka West against Heights with 12 points while Whitley Benson and Zoe Clark added nine each and Rebecca Bearman grabbed 12 rebounds.
BOYS
WASHBURN RURAL at SEAMAN
Washburn Rural (2-2, 2-2) is coming off a 34-27 Centennial League victory over Hayden while Seaman (2-2, 2-2) dropped a 71-69 decision at undefeated Highland Park. Senior Quincey Kidd led Washburn Rural with a game-high 15 points against Hayden. Senior Ty Henry scored 23 points to lead Seaman against Highland Park.
HIGHLAND PARK at TOPEKA HIGH
Topeka High (1-4, 1-3) rallied for its first win of the season on Tuesday, rallying to take a 45-42 Centennial League win at Emporia. Senior Matt Flenoy led the Trojans with 14 points while sophomore BJ Canady added 10 points and senior Germane Mays hit two crucial free throws with 6.5 seconds remaining. Highland Park improved to 4-0, 4-0 with a 71-69 home league win over Seaman. The Scots let a big lead get away before taking the win on a putback by junior Ketraleus Aldridge. Senior Juan'Tario Roberts led the Scots with 22 points and Aldridge added 17.
ST. MARYS at SILVER LAKE
Silver Lake is 2-1 after a 52-41 win over Riley County in its most recent game last Friday. Senior Troy Heiman paced the Eagles with 12 points against the Falcons while junior Kamryn Kaniper added 10 points and senior Sam Kaff went eight of 10 at the free throw line in the fourth quarter. St. Marys is 3-1 after a 55-36 win over Rock Creek.
ATCHISON at ROSSVILLE
Rossville is 1-3 after a 67-30 loss to Wamego on Monday night. In its previous game before the loss to Wamego the Bulldawgs picked up their first win of the season, 59-51 over Chapman in the Irish Classic. Junior Kade Perine scored 18 points and Francesco Patrizi 15 for Rossville in the win over Chapman.
JUNCTION CITY at HAYDEN
This game was originally scheduled to be played at Junction City, but was switched to Hayden on Thursday. Hayden is now 1-2, 1-2 after a 34-27 home Centennial League loss to Washburn Rural Tuesday night and will be facing a Junction City team that is 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the league after a 52-37 win over Manhattan on Tuesday. Junior Joe Otting and sophomore Jacob Padilla scored seven points apiece for Hayden in the low-scoring game against Washburn Rural.
TOPEKA WEST at MANHATTAN
Topeka West improved to 3-1 with a 57-55 non-league win over Shawnee Heights on Tuesday. Senior Zander Putthoff hit two game-winning free throws for the Chargers with 1.7 seconds remaining. Senior Elijah Brooks scored 18 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, to lead West while junior Xavier Alexander had 14 points and four 3-pointers. Manhattan is 1-3 after a 52-37 loss to unbeaten Junction City Tuesday night.
