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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Editor's note: TopSports.news will post letter of intent signing updates as they are received. Email any signing information and signing day pictures to Rick Peterson at
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Shawnee Heights baseball star Deacon Pomeroy and Highland Park basketball star Ja'Corey Robinson have signed NCAA Division I letters of intent.
Shawnee Heights senior Deacon Pomeroy, surrounded by T-Bird coaches, signs his ceremonial baseball letter of intent with Oklahoma State Wednesday at Heights. [Submitted photo]
Highland Park senior Ja'Corey Robinson, with Scots coach Mike Williams, signed to play basketball at Austin Peay on Wednesday at Highland Park. [Submitted photo]
Pomeroy signed with Oklahoma State on Monday while Robinson signed with Austin Peay Wednesday.
A three-time All-Shawnee County first-team selection, Pomeroy was named the United Kansas Conference and Kansas Asssociation of Baseball Coaches Class 5A player of the year last season after helping lead Shawnee Heights
Robinson, a 6-foot-4 junior, was named the boys basketball player of the year in Shawnee County and the Meadowlark Conference after leading 23-2 Highland Park to a second straight third-place state finish in 5A last season.
Robinson registered three straight double-doubles in the state tournament, scoring a total of 61 points and grabbing 35 rebounds. Robinson was a Second 10 all-county selection as a sophomore.
Four Rural standouts sign college letters
Four Washburn Rural standouts signed letters of intent on Thursday morning, including three with hometown Washburn University.
Layla Collins, Washburn Rural
Kate Hinck, Washburn Rural
Destiny Higgs, Washburn Rural
Zahra Friess, Washburn Rural
Layla Collins signed with Washburn University to play volleyball while Kate Hinck and Destiny Higgs to play soccer for the Junior Blues.
Zahra Friess signed with the Air Force Academy to play soccer.
Collins was named the Centennial League volleyball player of the year and was named to the All-Shawnee County first team while Hinck has received all-league, all-county and All-State honors in multiple sports and Higgs and Friess have received multiple soccer honors.
Other signing pictures:
Former Washburn Rural standouts Max and Sam Bettis have signed letters of intent to play baseball at Kansas State. [Submitted photo]
Perry-Lecompton standout Eli Dean has signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Washburn University. [Submitted photo]
Shawnee Mission North's Cash Messenger has signed to play baseball at Washburn University. [Submitted photo]
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural, which captured its 30th straight Centennial League boys championship (outright or shared) and finished third in the Class 6A state tournament, leads the 2024 Topeka All-City boys soccer team with four first-team picks.
Ryder Nikkel, Washburn Rural
Brandon Hamiton (14), Washburn Rural
Liam Morrison (4), Washburn Rural
Dylan Willingham, Washburn Rural
The Junior Blues are represented on the 16-member first team, selected by city coaches, by senior Ryder Nikkel (defense) and juniors Brandon Hamilton (defense), Liam Morrison (defense) and Dylan Willingham (midfield).
Valentin Del Real (3), Topeka West
Diego Gonzalez-Talavera, Topeka West
Jafet Rodriguez, Topeka West
Topeka West is represented on the All-City team by freshman Valentin Del Real (midfield), sophomore Diego Gonzalez-Talavera (forward) and senior Jafet Rodriguez (defense) while Charger coach Josh Kutter was named the 2024 city coach of the year after being named co-coach of the year in 2023.
Jaime Alvarado, Topeka High
Antonio Aguirre, Topeka High
Billy Lutz, Topeka High
Topeka High also put three players on the All-City team, with first-team repeat pick Jaime Alvarado (forward) joined by senior Antonio Aguirre (midfield) and junior Billy Lutz (goalkeeper).
Camden Granado (6), Shawnee Heights
Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights
Dalton Smith, Seaman
Logan Townsend, Seaman
Shawnee Heights is represented on the All-City team by junior Camden Granado (forward) and sophomore Mason Haas (midfield) while Seaman is represented by senior Dalton Smith (defense) and senior Logan Townsend (midfield).
Cooper Grace (18), Hayden
Hayden senior Cooper Grace (defense) earned All-City first-team honors for the second straight season while Highland Park junior Neri Diaz (midfield) rounds out the first team.
Aguirre, Granado, Lutz, Rodriguez, Nikkel and Willingham all moved up to the first team after receiving honorable mention in 2023.
Willingham was named the Centennial League player of the year this fall while Rural's Hamilton, Morrison and Nikkel and High's Alvarado, Aguirre and Lutz and Hayden's Grace were also first-team picks.
Seaman's Smith and Townsend, Topeka West's Del Real, Gonzalez-Talavera and Rodriguez and Shawnee Heights' Granado and Haas were all named All-United Kansas Conference first team and Highland Park's Diaz made the All-Meadowlark Conference first team.
2024 TOPEKA ALL-CITY SOCCER
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No matter what happens this week, Washburn University has put together a highly-successful 2024 volleyball season, hitting the 20-win mark on the year while topping last season's win total by three victories and earning a No. 25 national ranking.
No. 25-ranked Washburn volleyball will open its MIAA Tournament bid on Thursday night against Northwest Missouri in St. Joseph, Mo. [File photo/TSN]
But Ichabod coach Chris Herron knows there's work to do in the MIAA Tournament if Washburn is going to extend its season.
The fourth-seeded Ichabods (20-6 overall, 11-5 in the MIAA) will face No. 5 seed Northwest Missouri (15-11, 9-7) at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday in a tournament quarterfinal inside the St. Joseph, Mo. Civic Arena, with Washburn looking to enhance its chances for an NCAA Tournament berth.
Washburn volleyball remained No. 6 in the final NCAA Central Regional Rankings released Wednesday. WU is 19-5 inside the region that is led by St. Cloud State in the top spot with a 24-2 overall record and a 20-1 in-region mark. Nebraska-Kearney is second in the region, followed by Concordia-St. Paul, Missouri Western and Central Oklahoma. Behind the Ichabods are Southwest Minnesota State, Wayne State, Northern State and Emporia State.
Automatic bids are granted to the winners of the MIAA, GAC and NSIC postseason tournaments, with the remaining five spots awarded on an at-large basis. The bracket will be revealed on Monday at 6:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
While the clear path to a NCAA berth would be an MIAA championship, Washburn can help itself the further it advances in the conference tourney.
With a win Thursday Washburn will advance to a 7:30 p.m. semifinal match on Friday to face the winner of the quarterfinal beween top seed Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State. The championship match is set for 6 p.m. on Saturday.
The Ichabods split regular-season matches with the Bearcats, with WU dropping a 3-2 road decision and sweeping Northwest in Lee Arena.
"If we play like we've been playing it will be a great game,'' Herron said. "And if not, we're going to come home early because they're good.''
Herron said he feels like WU needs a win over Northwest to give itself an opportunity to make the NCAA field.
"We have to win at least this first match for us to have a chance,'' Herron said. "And if we can win two, I think we're in. I'd probably say for sure, so winning is important.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University athletic director Loren Ferre had nothing but kind words to say about long-time Ichabods football coach Craig Schurig's contributions to the university in a Wednesday meeting with local media members.
But Ferre said WU believed it a time for a change after announcing Monday afternoon that Schurig would not return in 2025.
Washburn athletic director Loren Ferre said the university will move as quickly as possible to get a new football coach in place after Monday's firing of veteran Ichabod coach Craig Schurig. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"We made the decision on Monday that we needed to make a change in the head coaching position,'' Ferre said. "I just think it was a decision we made that was best for the program at this time. Obviously the last two years we haven't been successful (in) win-loss record. This past year we had a lot of close losses, but still the name of the game is winning and we just felt we needed to make a change to improve that record.''
Schurig wrapped up his 23rd year at the school and 22nd football season as Washburn's head coach last Saturday with a 35-28 road win over Northeastern State, finishing a 3-8 season which included five one-possession losses, including four losses by three or fewer points and two one-point defeats. The Ichabods posted a 2-9 record in 2023 after a 7-4 mark in 2022 and a trip to the NCAA Division II playoffs in 2021 (9-3).
Schurig is the all-time winningest coach in program history with a record of 142-109 (.566) and went 122-91 (.603) against MIAA opponents and won the MIAA regular-season championship outright in 2005. Also that year the program recorded its first 10-win season.
"Craig over the years has just been great for the community and for Washburn,'' Ferre said. "When he came here we didn't have near the facilities we have now. He came here on a promise that we would get this built and we would get things done, like the renovations to the football stadium, the weight room, the locker room, a variety of things and he just believed that we would do those things and we got them accomplished and he was a big part of that and has had a big impact on this program and in the community.''
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[Graphic courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Six members of the No. 25-ranked Washburn University volleyball team were recognized as All-MIAA selections by the conference on Wednesday morning, led by three-time first-team pick Jalyn Stevenson.
Washburn senior Jalyn Stevenson has been named to the All-MIAA volleyball first team for the third straight season. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
A senior outside hitter, Stevenson receive her fourth All-MIAA honor in four years, earning honorable mention as a freshman. In 2024 she has played and started in all 26 matches to lead the team with 286 kills (2.92 per set) while hitting .196 and is second on the team with 298 digs (3.04 per set). She has added 51 blocks while serving 51 aces on the year. Among the conference she ranks top-20 in kills, kills per set, points per set and total digs. Her 16 matches with double-digit kills are the most on the team.
Washburn juniors Alex Dvorak and Corinna McMullen and sophomore Taylor Rottinghaus were named to the All-MIAA second team while Austin Broadie and Bella Limback received honorable mention.
Former Washburn Rural star Taylor Russell (3), a Missouri Western sophomore, has been named to the All-MIAA volleyball first team. [File photo/TSN]
Former Washburn Rural state champion Taylor Russell, a Missouri Western sophomore, was named to the All-MIAA first team after being a seond-team pick and an All-MIAA Tournament pick as a freshman.
Russell was named a unanimous All-MIAA first-team selection after recording the third-highest number of kills in league play, achieving a total of 198 kills (3.30 AVG/S). Additionally, Russell contributed the third-highest point total in the conference in the regular season, amassing a total of 227 in 60 sets.
Dvorak lands on the second team as a middle hitter in her first season wearing blue while starting in all 26 matches. The junior is the most efficient hitter on the Ichabods, slashing .381 for the year, and is second with 215 kills (2.19 per set).
Defensively, Dvorak also leads the team in blocks with 126, including 14 solo stops. Her hitting percentage is tops in the conference and she ranks second among all MIAA players in both blocks and blocks per set. Nationally, she ranks in the top-25 in all three categories. She has hit over .400 in 13 of 26 matches on the year.
McMullen earns second team honors for a second straight season after receiving honorable mention as a freshman. The junior leads the passing attack for Washburn with 620 assists (6.39 per set) while ranking third on the team with 231 digs (2.38 per set). Her 41 service aces also lead the team while playing all 26 matches with 24 starts. She ranks third in the MIAA in aces per set and total service aces while sitting eighth in both total assists and assists per set. She has a team-high 13 double-doubles, including one in five of the last six matches.
Rottinghaus, a former Shawnee Heights star, is a second-team selection for the second straight year. Rottinghaus has 498 digs (5.08 per set) to anchor the Washburn back line on defense while playing in all 26 matches. She has a .962 reception percentage on 523 attempts while adding 80 assists and 26 aces on the offensive end. Among the MIAA she is sixth in both total digs and digs per set while ranking in the top-40 nationally in both categories. She scooped a career-high 40 digs earlier in the year against Nebraska Kearney.
Broadie earns All-MIAA honorable mention honors for the first time in her career after playing in 26 matches and making 11 starts. The senior is third on the team with 210 kills (2.14 per set) and a .254 hitting percentage. Defensively, she has made 62 total blocks while adding 50 digs. She has seven matches with double-digits kills.
Limback also received All-MIAA honorable mention for the first time in her career as a junior. She is second on the team with a .359 hitting percentage while accumulating 165 kills (1.72 per set). On the defensive end she is second on the squad with 95 blocks while adding 55 digs. She is one of three players to start in all 26 matches during the regular season. Among the MIAA she is third in hitting percentage and eighth in total blocks. Nationally she is top-100 in both categories.
Former Silver Lake standout Camilla Ossola (18), an Emporia State junior, received All-MIAA volleyball honorable mention. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Former Silver Lake standout Camilla Ossola, an Emporia State junior, also received All-MIAA honorable mention.
Washburn enters postseason play as the No. 4 seed in the MIAA Championship Tournament and will face No. 5 Northwest Missouri on Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m. in St. Joseph, Mo. at the Civic Arena.
2024 ALL-MIAA VOLLEYBALL
