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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
WAMEGO -- Perennial Class 6A state girls golf power Washburn Rural isn't where it wants to be by fhe end of the 2023 season, but the Junior Blues are getting closer.
Washburn Rural senior Olivia Smith carded an 80 to tie for fourth place in Tuesday's Washburn Rural Invitational at Wamego Country Club. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural junior Natalie Peterson helped lead the Junior Blues to a second-place team finish in Tuesday's tournament at Wamego Country Club, tying for fourth place individually with an 80. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Jared Goehring's team shot a season-low 335 on Tuesday at Wamego Country Club to finish second to Centennial League rival Manhattan, which carded a 332 four-person score.
"There's definitely improvement,'' Goehring said. "We've got a long ways to go still, but I like the makeup of this team. I like the leadership on this team so far and we know we've got work to do but there's no doubt that these girls will contine to get better each day.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
If it seems like it's been forever since Collin Wilson ended his high school days at Washburn Rural and embarked on his college football career at Washburn University, Wilson can relate.
"I just turned 25 July 8th,'' Wilson said. "It's crazy, it goes by fast.''
Former Washburn Rural standout Collin Wilson is back for his final season with Washburn University's football team. [File photo/TSN]
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound wide receiver played his final high school season for Rural in 2016 and has played 24 games with five starts for Washburn in three seasons over a seven-year span (including a redshirt year) with 67 catches for 947 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Wilson had his best year for the Ichabods in 2019 with 37 catches for 543 yards while averaging a team-best 14.7 yards per catch and tying for the team lead with seven touchdown receptions while earning All-MIAA honorable mention.
But Wilson was then inactive for two straight seasons due to the Covid-cancelled season in '20 and temporarily transferring out of the WU program during the '21 campaign before returning to the Ichabods in '22.
Having already earned his nursing degree and working in that field, Wilson could have walked away from football and waded full speed into his profession, but he opted instead for a final go-around with the Ichabods.
"It was a couple of things,'' Wilson said about his decision to return. "I wanted to be a leader for some of the young guys on the team, guys who want to get the most our of their career, and just show them how they can do that. And then really I just felt like I didn't accomplish everything I was capable of throughout high school and college.
"I feel like I've always been capable of more and I felt like this is a good opportunity to show that, so I came back. Work's always there. that's not going anywhere. I've been able to work all summer so I haven't really missed out on that too much. It's football. You've only got so long to play it.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman cross country and track and field coaching legend Bob Camien passed away Sunday at the age of 76 after a long illness.
Bob Camien
Camien was living in Naples, Fla. with his wife, Julie, at the time of his death.
Camien and close friend and fellow coach Rick Brading both came to Seaman as shop teachers and coaches in the 1979-1980 school year,
"We taught beside each other in the woodworking shop and metal shop, and coached both track and cross country together for 30 years,'' said Brading, Seaman's head girls cross country and girls track and field coach. "Coach Camien was the real deal. He pushed his athletes hard because he wanted them to be fierce competitors.
"Nothing was more exciting to him than to see two athletes going stride for stride, battling down the stretch all the way to the finish line."
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Allen Baughman
ALLEN BAUGHMAN, Shawnee Heights
Shawnee Heights' star senior running back carried the ball 34 times for 164 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns as the T-Birds opened their 2023 season with a 42-0 United Kansas Conference home victory over Piper last Friday night, avenging an 11-point loss to the Pirates in '22. Baughman also caught two passes for 38 yards.
Jackson Esquibel
JACKSON ESQUIBEL, Shawnee Heights
The T-Bird senior, a state champion in track and multi-time state placer in cross country, opened his 2023 cross country season with the individual championship in last Thursday's Basehor-Linwood Bobcat Invitational at Wyandotte County Park, posting a five-kilometer time of 16:06.1 to best a field of 176 runners by 17 seconds.
JC Heim
JC HEIM, Washburn Rural
A senior running back/linebacker, Heim stood out on offense, defense and special teams as Washburn Rural held on for a 26-25 non-league victory over Wichita East last Friday night at Bowen-Glaze Stadium. Heim had a pass interception on defense, rushed for 39 yards on seven carries and blocked a Blue Aces extra point attempt late in the game to preserve Rural's one-point advantage.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Down 16-0 just 1:35 into its 2023 season-opener, Rossville rallied to knock off '22 Class 1A state champion St. Marys 30-22 Friday night on the Bulldawgs' home field.
Camden Horak
Seth Catron
Derick Hammes' Bulldawgs gave up a rushing touchdown, a pick-six and a pair of 2-point conversions by the 10:25 mark of the opening quarter, but five-time state champ Rossville answered with 30 unanswered first-half points to take control.
Rossville cut its defict to 16-14 by the end of the first quarter, with senior quarterback Camden Horak scoring on a 1-yard rush at the 9:24 mark and junior Seth Catron scoring on a 15-yard run with 2:07 left in the quarter.
The Bulldawgs then tied the game on a safety midway through the second quarter and took the lead on a 39-yard touchdown pass from Horak to sophomore Jack Donavan (5:48 2nd quarter) and Horak hitting junior Kameron Badura for a 5-yard TD with just one second left in the first half to put Rossville up 30-16.
Sophomore Paxton Willett went four of four on extra points for the Bulldawgs.
The scoring pace slowed to a crawl after halftime, with the defensive units taking control.
The Bears scored their final TD with 4:34 remaining in the third quarter, ending the scoring for both teams.
Rossville will be at home next Friday to host Riley County.
HAYDEN 41, OLPE 7 -- Coming off a 10-2 season a year ago, Hayden rolled to a 41-7 season-opening road win over traditional small-school power Olpe
