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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Six Shawnee County players, including three from Class 5A state champion Seaman, have received All-State Tournament recognition from the Kansas Volleyball Assocation.
Seaman senior Brooklyn Gormley was named to the Class 5A All-State Tournament team for the third time after helping lead the Vikings to the 2023 state title. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman junior Maegan Mills (13) earned All-State Tournament honors for the second time after helping the Vikings capture their first Class 5A state title. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman, which capped a 38-6 season with a straight-set win over St. Thomas Aquinas in Saturday's state championship game, is represented by 6-foot-1 senior middle hitter Brooklyn Gormley, 6-2 junior middle hitter Reagan McGivern and 6-1 junior outside hitter Maegan Mills after Tatiana Dowling's Vikings went 5-0 in the state tournament with five straight-set wins.
Gormley, a three-time All-State tournament pick, teamed with Mills, a two-time all-tournament pick and McGivern to help Seaman capture the school's first state volleyball championship after the Vikings posted back-to-back fourth-place state finishes in 2021 and 2022.
Silver Lake, which finished third in the 3A state tournament, put 5-foot-6 senior setter Sarah Wehrli and 5-11 junior outside hitter/middle blocker Ella Bolan on the 3A All-State Tournament team.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Jackson Esquibel
JACKSON ESQUIBEL, Shawnee Heights
A senior cross country star, Esquibel capped a sweep of city, United Kansas Conference, regional and Class 5A individual titles Saturday at Rim Rock Farm, capturing his first state cross country championship. A three-time 5A state medalist in cross country and a state champion in track, Esquibel posted a five-second victory in the state meet, clocking a five-kilometer time of 15 minutes, 34.47 seconds.
Payton Fink
PAYTON FINK, Washburn Rural
Fink, a junior cross country standout, earned her third Class 6A state medal Saturday at Rim Rock Farm, posting a career-best second-place finish. Fink, the Centennial League and regional winner, was the runnerup to four-time state champion Anjali Hocker Singh of Olathe North, clocking a five-kilometer time of 18 minutes, 12.79 seconds. Fink finished fifth in the 2022 state meet and was 19th as a freshman in 2021.
Brooklyn Gormley
BROOKLYN GORMLEY, Seaman
A 6-foot-1 senior middle-hitter, Gormley was named to the Class 5A All-State Tournament team for the third time, helping lead Seaman to its first-ever 5A state volleyball championship Saturday at Salina. Gormley, who helped Seaman to a perfect 5-0 record at state, capped by a 25-19, 25-22 win over St. Thomas Aquinas in the state championship match, was also named to the All-United Kansas Conference first team.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After back-to-back fourth-place state finishes, Seaman;s volleyball team was determined to make a statement in the Class 5A state tournament.
Seaman's volleyball team celebrates Saturday's 25-19, 25-22 win over St. Thomas Aquinas in the Class 5A state championship match. [Photo by Scott Paske/KSHSAA Covered]
Tatiana Dowling's Vikings accomplished that goal in dominant fashion, capping a perfect 5-0 weekend on Saturday at the Tony's Pizza Events Center in Salina with a 25-19, 25-22 win over defending champion St. Thoms Aquinas in the championship match.
The win was the fifth consecutive straight-set victory for the Vikings, who capped a 38-6 season with the first state volleyball championship in school history while avenging a 3-0 dual loss to Aquinas earlier in the month.
"The way that these girls came out and played with confidence and as a team, it’s just awesome to see them come together that way,'' Dowling, who picked up her 200th career coaching victory, told KSHSAA Covered. "They truly did outwork and outplay today.
"We talked about being relentless on offense and relentless on defense. I felt like they were relentless this whole entire state tournament. It was great to see.''
After winning the Pool I championship with a 3-0 record on Friday, the fourth-seeded Vikings advanced to the championship match with a 25-17, 25-21 win over Maize South.
Seaman rode that momentum through its wire-to-wire 25-19 first-set victory over Aquinas before the Vikings showed their meddle by coming from behind on two occasions to close out the title.
"When we got down, we just kept trusting each other and stayed together,'' Viking junior standout Maegan Mills told KSHSAA Covered. "We were telling each other to calm down, it’s going to be OK. Let’s just do us and not worry about what they’re doing on the other side."
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By CHARLES SPURLOCK
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights senior star Jackson Esquibel captured the Class 5A boys individual cross country championship Saturday to pace a large contingent of local competitors in the 6A, 5A and 3A state meets which were held on a cold, overcast day at Rim Rock Farm, just north of Lawrence.
Shawnee Heights senior Jackson Esquibel captured his third Class 5A state XC medal and first individual title Saturday at Rim Rock Farm. [File photo/TSN]
Esquibel, a three-time 5A state medalist, won his first state title on Saturday to go with the 3,200 meters championship he won in track in May.
Esquibel was one of three local runners to post top-three finishes, with Washburn Rural junior Payton Fink earning a runnerup finish in the 6A girls race to four-time state champ Anjali Hocker Singh of Olathe North while Seaman sophomore Ryin Miller posted a third-place finish in the 5A girls race.
Here's a race-by-race look at Saturday's state races:
CLASS 6A BOYS
Micah Blomker of Shawnee Mission North won the individual title in a five-kilometer time of 15 minutes, 18.2 seconds.
Gardner-Edgerton won the team title with 76 points, followed by Olathe East in second place with 93 points. Shawnee Mission North rounded out the top three with 102 points.
Washburn Rural had two runners competing in the race, with Brooks Kehoe finishing 83rd in a time of 17:36.24 seconds and Connor Olsen placing 86th place in 17:43.11.
Seaman sophomore Ryin Miller posted her second straight top-five Class 5A cross country finish Saturday, finishing third. [File photo/TSN]
CLASS 5A GIRLS
The 5A girls race saw the defending champion, Katelyn Rupe of Salina Central, win her second title with a winning time of 17 minutes, 36.11 seconds.
Rupe's teammate, freshman Kaylie Shultz, finished second in 17:58.88 while Seaman's Ryin Miller improved on her fifth-place finish as a freshman by placing third in a time 18:36.73.
The top three team finishers were state champion St. James Academy with 68 points; Great Bend with 78 points and St. Thomas Aquinas third with 103 points.
Ryin Miller led the Seaman girls teams to a sixth-place team finish.
Viking freshman Brynn Spencer finished 32nd in 20:18.07 while Stella Applehanz was 38th (20:35.64), senior Savannah Sampson 56th (21:16.93) and senior Elinore Stallbaumer 78th (22:11.89). The remaining two Seaman runners were freshmen, with Hannah Wempe 79th (22:15.38) and Alex Richardson 81st (22:18.89).
Payton Rice of Topeka West, competing as an individual, finished 51st in 21:05.43.
CLASS 3A BOYS
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By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights left no doubt it was advancing to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs next week. steamrolling Kansas City-Sumner 68-0 Friday night at Wetter Field.
Senior Allen Baughman (5) rushed for 99 yards and four touchdowns on just 10 carries in Shawnee Heights' 68-0 playoff win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Seniors Ryeki Tuley (3) and Jayden Moore (16) celebrate a touchdown in Shawnee Heights' 68-0 Class 5A playoff win over KC-Sumner Friday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
T-Bird coach Jason Swift’s 100th victory at Shawnee Heights was a special one – a home sendoff for 26 seniors in a blowout playoff win.
“We were clicking on all cylinders,” Swift said. “These kids practiced hard this week. They have goals ahead of themselves, but they came out tonight knowing this could be the last time they play together on this football field. That means a lot to them. For them to get this shutout, this big victory, that’s awfully special.”
The T-Birds' romp sets up a playoff matchup with city rival Highland Park next Friday at Hummer Sports Park.
The visiting Sabres never advanced from their end of the field the entire first period. In fact, Shawnee Heights started every one of their possessions of the first quarter inside the Sumner 44-yard line.
The T-Birds scored on each of their four possessions in the opening quarter as three rushing touchdowns from senior Allen Baughman helped put the T-Birds out front, 28-0.
The second period was nearly as lopsided.
Two touchdown receptions by Jayden Moore, another scoring run by Baughman, and a blocked punt for a touchdown gave the T-Birds another 28 points. They led 56-0 at the intermission.
“Man, it was really great, coming out here, probably the last time we’ll ever play on this field, to have a great outcome,” Baughman said. “We took care of business, did everything we’re supposed to do, and we see good results.”
