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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Washburn University men's basketball team won its 32nd straight home opener in a row Wednesday night in Lee Arena, taking a 70-63 decision over William Jewell.
The Ichabods rallied from an early 10-point deficit to improve to 2-1, getting a big lift off the bench from freshmen Jarmell Johnson and Brady Christiansen.
Washburn freshman Jarmell Johnson (right) is congratulated by teammate Connor Deffebaugh after hitting a big shot in Wednesday's 70-63 home win over William Jewell. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn freshman Brady Christiansen (1) pulls down one of his 19 rebounds in Wednesday's 70-63 win over William Jewell at Lee Arena. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Johnson, a 6-foot-6 guard out of Denver, Colo., scored a team-high 14 points for the Ichabods while Christiansen, a 6-7 forward out of Lincoln, Neb., had nine points and grabbed 19 rebounds.
"I saw Brady's motor in high school and his size and a college-ready body, so I was excited about what we was going to be able to do, even as a freshman,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. "But obviously I had no inclination that he'd get 19 rebounds in a big game against a good team. That was amazing.
"Jarmell's been a pleasant surprise. A month and a half ago we were thinking about maybe redshirting the kid. That shows you how much I know about anything. He's aggressive, he's not afraid of the moment and he's been a nice spark for us.''
Johnson scored 11 of his 14 points in the second half as the Ichabods led throughout the half.
"I feel like my teammates trust me, coach trusts me and coach's standard never changes,'' Johnson said. "He always expects us to play how he wants to play no matter if you're a starter, coming off the bench, five minutes, two minutes. Whenever I get on the floor I just give it all I've got.''
Christiansen's 19 boards, including 11 on the offensive end, were the most by a WU player since Brady Skeens grabbed 22 boards on two occasions in 2017.
"I just worry about what the team needs and I just bring my toughness and my energy and I know it's going to pay off and help the team win,'' Christiansen said. "All the hard work you put in over the offseason is paying off and you've just go keep coming in and working and see where things go from there.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural, which captured its 28th straight Centennial League boys championship (outright or shared) and finished fourth in the Class 6A state tournament, leads the 2022 Topeka All-City boys soccer team with four first-team picks.
Senior forward Easton Bradstreet was one of four Washburn Rural players named to the All-City boys soccer first team after scoring 29 goals this fall and 57 in his career. [File photo/TSN]
Highland Park senior Vellamy Diaz was an All-City first-team repeat pick after being named the All-Meadowlark Conference soccer co-player of the year. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights senior Jordan Garvin (9) was a first-team All-City pick after earlier being named the United Kansas Conference player of the year. [File photo/TSN]
The Junior Blues are represented on the 15-member first team by senior forward Easton Bradstreet, senior defender Rishi Sandir, senior midfielder Ty Stead and junior forward Devon Rutschmann while veteran Washburn Rural coach Brian Hensyel was named the city coach of the year after leading Rural to a 16-5 record and a third straight trip to the 6A final four.
Bradstreet ended his high school career with a share of Rural's career scoring record with 57 goals, including 29 goals his senior season.
Topeka High, which went 11-6 on the season, put three players on the All-City team -- sophomore forward CJ Brown, senior forward Aidan Morrison and senior defender Alexis Salas-Garcia.
United Kansas Conference champion Shawnee Heights (11-6-1) is represented by on the first team by senior forward Jordan Garvin, the UKC player of the year, and senior midfielder Isaac Wilson while Hayden (8-9-1) put senior midfielder Chris Hayes and senior forward Jake Muller on the first team and Seaman (3-12-2) is represented by senior defender Joseph Budge and senior goalkeeper Ayden Thompson.
Senior forward Vellamy Diaz, the Meadowlark Conference co-player of the year, made the All-City team for Highland Park (10-7-1) while Topeka West is represented by junior defender Isaac Gonzalez-Talavera.
Diaz, Muller and Wilson are all first-team All-City repeat picks while Hayes, Thompson, Garvin, Brown, Morrison, Salas-Garcia, Bradstreet and Rutschmann all received honorable mention in 2021.
The All-City team was determined by a vote of city coaches.
TOPEKA ALL-CITY SOCCER
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Twenty-five city players have earned All-United Kansas Conference football recognition, led by seven first-team picks.
Shawnee Heights junior running back Allen Baughman was one of four T-Birds to earn first-team spots on the All-United Conference football team. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman senior Bryson Vawter earned All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition at running back. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka West senior Xavier Alexander (32) was named the All-UKC first-team punter and also received honorable mention at running back. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights put a city-high four players on the All-UKC first team, with junior running back Allen Baughman, senior offensive lineman Gavin Zuperku, junior all-purpose pick Jayden Moore and junior defensive lineman Christian Gonzales all earning first-team berths.
Seaman is represented on the first team by senior running back Bryson Vawter and senior offensive lineman Sean Miller while Topeka West senior Xavier Alexander was named the All-UKC first-team punter.
Earning second-team all-conference honors on offense were Topeka West senior quarterback Malachi Berg, Seaman junior receiver Callen Barta, Shawnee Heights junior tight end Jayden Holly and Shawnee Heights junior lineman Rykan Carver.
Eight city players earned second-team spots on defense -- Seaman senior lineman Kasen Hasenkamp, Topeka West junior lineman Kyrece Robinson, Seaman senior linebacker Jaxson Thomas, Shawnee Heights junior linebacker Alex Dittman, Shawnee Heights senior linebacker Sean Wunder, Seaman junior back Jack Bloom, Shawnee Heights senior back Jayden Berry and Heights senior back Jaye Jones.
In addition to earning first-team honors at punter, West's Alexander received All-UKC honorable mention on offense while Seaman's Vawter, a first-team running back, received honorable mention on defense. Six other city players received honorable mention.
ALL-UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE FOOTBALL
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Highland Park senior Vellamy Diaz has been named the Meadowlark Conference soccer co-player of the year after helping lead the Scots to a 10-7-1 record in the 2022 season.
Highland Park senior Vellamy Diaz has been named the All-Meadowlark Conference soccer co-player of the year. [File photo/TSN]
Diaz is joined on the all-conference first team by Scot teammates Ismael Salinas, a senior, and sophomore Antonio Aguirre.
Highland Park senior Manny Hernandez received honorable mention.
ALL-MEADOWLARK CONFERENCE SOCCER
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Highland Park's football team, which ended a 65-game losing streak in its season-opener and went on to a breakout 6-3 season, swept the offensive, defensive and coach of the year honors in its first season in the Meadowlark Conference.
Highland Park senior Tre Richardson has been named the Meadowlark Conference offensive player of the year after helping lead the Scots to a 6-3 record in 2022. [File photo/TSN[
Highland Park senior Mackey James has been named the Meadowlark Conference defensive player of the year. [File photo/TSN]
Highland Park football coach Jermaine Monroe has been named the Meadowlark Conference coach of the year after leading the Scots to a 6-3 record in the 2022 season. [File photo/TSN]
Scot senior Tre Richardson was named the offensive player of the year while senior teammate Mackey James was named the defensive player of the year and Highland Park coach Jermaine Monroe was named the conference coach of the year.
Richardson was also named the Meadowlark returner of the year and was a first-team pick at receiver while James was named the utility player on the first-team defense and senior A'Ydren Drew-Gregory was a first-team selection at defensive back.
Highland Park sophomore linemen Adrian Burney and freshman Andres Ochoa-Perez were second-team all-conference selections on offense while lineman Burney and junior linebacker Isaac Shafer were second-team picks on defense.
Scot senior quarterback Kei'Juan Johnson received All-Meadowland honorable mention.
ALL-MEADOWLARK CONFERENCE FOOTBALL
