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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University's women's basketball team will be aiming to snap a four-game losing skid Thursday night when the Ichabods host Rogers State in a 5:30 p.m. MIAA contest at Lee Arena.
The Ichabods, 7-10 overall, 3-8 in the MIAA, are coming off a tough 55-51 loss to No. 16-ranked Nebraska-Kearney last Saturday while Rogers State has lost five in a row and is 4-15 overall and 2-11 in the MIAA.
Washburn junior point guard Aubree Dewey (3), talking with Ichabod coach Lora Westling, leads WU in scoring, assists and minutes played entering Thursday's home game against Rogers State. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn has been competitive throughout its four-game winless streak, including back-to-back single-digit defeats against MIAA stalwarts Fort Hays State and Nebraska-Kearney, and WU coach Lora Westling said her team continues to be upbeat.
"They've been tremendous,'' Westling said. "We started from early on in preseason talking about small bites of progress and not really being results-driven and they've done an incedible job of that. I think they see the improvement and how we're playing.
"They see the improvement in their personal development and we're close and they're still working as hard as ever and still trying. Against four of the top five teams in the league we were competitive. We're getting there slowly, but surely.''
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
In the 2021-2022 season, Seaman's boys got off to a slow start before catching fire in the second half of the campaign.
It seems as if Craig Cox's Vikings may be following the same script this winter, with the Vikings playing their best basketball of the season.
Seaman senior Kaeden Bonner (left) scored 23 points with five 3-pointers Wednesday night as the Vikings cruised to an 81-45 non-league win over KC-Washington at Seaman. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The defending Class 5A state champions, who suffered heavy graduation losses, got off to a 1-3 start this season but the Vikings have won three straight games after Tuesday's 81-45 home non-league romp past Kansas City-Washington, climbing above the .500 mark for the first time since their season-opener at 6-5.
The Bonner brothers, senior Kaeden and freshman KaeVon, sparked the Vikings against Washington, with Kaeden Bonner hitting a game-high 23 points with five 3-pointers and KaeVon Bonner addding 15 points and three 3-pointers as Seaman canned 12 treys as a team.
Senior Aron Davis joined the Bonners in double figures with 12 points.
"I think we're hitting a stride offensively,'' Cox said. "Kaeden's really stepped up the last couple of games and Aron's so solid and then those other guys are kind of the beneficiaries of those two players and what they create.
"I still feel like we've got some room to improve defensively, but that's something that you can do.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
WASHBURN RURAL GIRLS (7-2) vs. LIFE PREP (6-7)
At Shawnee Heights Lady Thunderbird Classic
Senior Brooklyn DeLeye and No. 3-ranked Washburn Rural will compete in the Lady Thunderbird Classic at Shawnee Heights this week. [File photo/TSN]
No. 3-ranked (Class 6A) Washburn Rural has been off since a 48-32 Centennial League win over Manhattan on Jan. 13 and will return to action in Thursday's 4 p.m. first-round game against Wichita Life Prep. Senior Brooklyn DeLeye finished with 16 points to lead Rural in its win over Manhattan while senior Chloe Carlgren added 12 points. The Rural-Life Prep winner will advance to a Friday semifinal to face No. 1-ranked (6A) Shawnee Mission South. The Rural-Life Prep loser will receive a bye into Saturday's fifth-place game in the seven-school tournament.
Senior Taylor Rottinghaus and Shawnee Heights will host the Lady Thunderbird Classic Thursday through Saturday at Heights. [File photo/TSN]
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS GIRLS (7-3) vs. WICHITA SOUTH (7-2)
Lady Thunderbird Classic
Tournament host Shawnee Heights, ranked No. 9 in 5A, will face Wichita South, No. 10 in 6A, in a 5:30 p.m. first-round game. Shawnee Heights will be looking to bounce back from back-to-back losses to state-ranked teams, including a 35-31 non-league loss to Hayden last Friday. Senior Taylor Rottinghaus led Heights with nine points against Hayden while senior Emari Doby grabbed 16 rebounds. The Heights-Wichita South winner will advance to a Friday semifinal to take on the winner of the first-round game between Hutchinson and Shawnee Mission North.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Silver Lake junior girls basketball player McKinley Kruger and Topeka High junior basketball player Bryson Thrasher have been selected by the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency as the Rising Stars of the Week.
The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the 2022-2023 school year.
Here’s a brief look at the accomplishments of Kruger and Thrasher last week:
Silver Lake junior McKinley Kruger (12) was named the Most Valuable Player in the Burlington Invitational after helping lead the Eagles to the tournament title with three straight double-digit victories. [Photo by Brent Maycock./KSHSAA Covered]
MCKINLEY KRUGER, Silver Lake
Kruger, a 5-foot-6 guard, was named the Burlington Invitational Most Valuable Player after helping lead No. 7-ranked (Class 3A) Silver Lake to the tournament championship.
Silver Lake defeated Independence 52-39 in last Saturday's championship game, with Kruger scoring 20 points and hitting five 3-pointers.
Kruger helped Silver Lake post three straight double-digit tournament victories and the Eagles added a fourth straight double-digit win in Tuesday's 55-36 win at Santa Fe Trail.
Topeka High junior Bryson Thrasher scored a total of 53 points in three Topeka Invitational Tournament games last week, with a high of 23 points. [File photo/TSN]
BRYSON THRASHER, Topeka High
A 6-foot-1 guard, Thrasher scored a total of 53 points in Topeka High's three Topeka Invitational Tournament games last week at Topeka West.
Thrasher scored 23 points in the Trojans' 61-52 overtime loss to Lawrence in the opening round, had 18 points in Topeka High's 63-57 win over Lansing as High picked up its second win of the season and had 12 points with two 3-pointers in Saturday's 64-47 loss to Hayden.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Silver Lake swept a non-league basketball twinbill at Santa Fe Trail Tuesday night, with both Eagle teams posting double-digit victories.
The seventh-ranked (Class 3A) Silver Lake girls improved to 11-1 with a 55-36 win over the Chargers while the Eagle boys snapped a four-game losing streak in an 81-62 win over Trail.
Senior Troy Heiman led Silver Lake with 20 points in Tuesday's 81-62 non-league win at Santa Fe Trail. [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake's girls, coming off the tournament championship in last week's Burlington Invitational, posted their fourth straight double-digit victory while handing Santa Fe Trail its second loss in 12 games on the season.
Silver Lake's boys, who improved to 4-8, were led by senior Troy Heiman with 20 points and three 3-pointers while junior Elijah Lopez added 12 points and freshman Dayne Johnson and sophomore Jared Johnson 10 points each.
Coach Michael Bell's Rossville girls advanced to the semifinals of the Jefferson North Invitational with a 48-9 first-round win over Valley Falls. [File photo/TSN]
ROSSVILLE GIRLS 48, VALLEY FALLS 9 -- Rossville rolled to a 45-9 first-round win over Valley Falls in the Jefferson County North Invitational, improving to 8-3 on the season.
With the win the Bulldawgs, who led 32-2 at the half, advanced to a 7:30 p.m. tournament semifinal on Friday against Atchison County, 10-0 and ranked No. 6 in Class 3A by the KBCA.
Freshman Rylee Dick led Rossville with 13 points while junior Kinsey Perine added 10 pointss, junior Katie Spielman eight points and juniors Emma Mitchell and Kinley Porter seven apiece.
Atchison County advanced to the semifinal with a 63-39 first-round win over Atchison.
DE SOTO BOYS 55, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 48 -- De Soto earned a regular-season sweep over Shawnee Heights, taking a 55-48 home United Kansas Conference decision over the T-Birds.
The Wildcats, ranked No. 8 in Class 5A by the KBCA, improved to 9-2 overall and 7-1 in the UKC while the T-Birds fell to 8-4, 6-3.
