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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' boys wrestling team bested a 21-school field on Saturday to win the team championship in the Gerald Sadowski Tournament at Holton.
Hayden junior Jude Krentz remained undefeated on the season while earning the 175-pound title in the Gerald Sadowski Tournament at Holton. [File photo/TSN]
The T-Birds got a title from sophomore Brody Brown and six top-three finishes on the way to winning the title by a 188.5-177 margin over Spring Hill.
Brown, now 24-6 on the season, clinched the 138-pound championship with a second-period pin (3:54) over Colton Ball of Chapman.
Shawnee Heights also got third-place individual finishes from freshman Mason Moore (126), sophomore Dallas Owens (132), junior Gavin Hartman (150), junior Evan Johnson (157) and senior Kael Westgate (165).
Topeka High finished sixth as a team with 124 points, getting an individual title from senior Nick Davis at 165 pounds. Davis, now 21-2, recorded a 17-1 technical fall over Brodie Pipkin of Spring Hill.
The Trojans also got third-place finishes from sophomore Jose Gomez (106) and senior Cooper Martin (190).
Hayden posted an eighth-place team finish (76.5 points), led by junior 175-pounder Jude Krentz.
Krentz, now a perfect 29-0 on the season, earned the 175 title with a pin at the 2:30 mark over Nick Allen of Rock Creek.
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--By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Topeka West will host the 2025 Capital City Classic girls basketball tournament Thursday through Saturday, with Highland Park, Shawnee Heights, Topeka West and Washburn Rural all taking part in the event.
Sophomore Pearmella Carter and the 7-1 Highland Park girls will compete in this week's Capital City Classic at Topeka West. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights (6-4 on the season) will open the tournament at 3:15 p.m. Thursday against Blue Valley (3-7).
City rivals Highland Park (7-1) and host Topeka West (1-8) are on the same side of the bracket with Heights and Blue Valley and will play a first-round game at 6:30 p.m.
The Highland Park-West and Shawnee Heights-Blue Valley winners will play a 6:30 p.m. semifinal on Friday.
On the other side of the bracket, Lawrence (5-4) will take on Shawnee Mission West (1-6) in a 4:45 p.m. first-round game while Washburn Rural (5-3) will face Lawrence Free State (3-6) at 8 o'clock.
Rural is ranked No. 6 in Class 6A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association while Lawrence is No. 10 in 6A.
The Lawrence-SM West winner will face the Washburn Rural-Free State winner in an 8 o'clock Friday night semifinal.
The tournament will conclude on Saturday, starting with the third and seventh-place games at 10 a.m. in separate gyms, followed by the fifth-place and championship contests at 11:30 a.m. in separate gyms.
CAPITAL CITY CLASSIC
At Topeka West
Thursday
3:15 p.m. -- Shawnee Heights vs. Blue Valley.
4:45 -- Lawrence vs. Shawnee Mission West.
6:30 -- Highland Park vs. Topeka West.
8 -- Washburn Rural vs. Free State.
Friday
3:15 p.m. -- Lawrence-SM West loser vs. Washburn Rural-Free State loser.
4:45 -- Highland Park-Topeka West loser vs. Shawnee Heights-Blue Valley loser.
6:30 -- Highland Park-Topeka West winner vs. Shawnee Heights-Blue Valley winner.
8 -- Lawrence-SM West winner vs. Washburn Rural-Free State winner.
Saturday
10 a.m. -- Third place (main gym); Seventh place (auxiliary gym).
11:30 -- Championship (main gym); Fifth place (auxiliary gym).
Senior Millie Ramsey and 10-0 Hayden will compete this week in the Lady Cat Invitational at El Dorado. [File photo/TSN]
Undefeated Hayden to compete in El Dorado
Hayden, No. 3-ranked in Class 4A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association and 10-0 on the season, is the top seed for the 32nd annual Lady Cat Classic in El Dorado Thursday through Saturday.
Hayden will open its tournament bid at 6 p.m. Thursday against the host team, El Dorado, which is 1-7 on the season.
With a win the Wildcats will advance to a 7:45 p.m. semifinal on Friday to face the first-round winner between Gardner-Edgerton (5-4) and Goddard (4-6).
On the other side of the bracket Kapaun Mt. Carmel (7-3) will play a first-round game against Mill Valley (5-5) while Maize South (8-1) will face Augusta (3-5). Those two winners will play a 6 p.m. semifinal on Friday.
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Playing in a midseason tournament championship game for the fourth straight season, Shawnee Heights' boys basketball team completed the final piece of the puzzle on Saturday, claiming the championship in Shawnee Mission West's Viking Classic with a 68-41 romp past traditional Class 6A stalwart Blue Valley North, No. 7-ranked by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association.
Shawnee Heights' boys basketball team poses for a picture after winning the Viking Classic championship on Saturday. [Submitted photo]
Senior Jaret Sanchez led Shawnee Heights with 21 points in Saturday's 68-41 win over Blue Valley North. [File photo/TSN]
The No. 4-ranked (5A) T-Birds built a 14-12 first-quarter advantage and poured it on the Mustangs from there.
Shawnee Heights used 14-5 second quarter to take a 28-17 halftime lead and outscored North 26-16 in the third quarter to turn the game into a rout.
Heights (8-2) finished off the win with a 14-8 fourth quarter, with Blue Valley North needing a late 3-pointer to top the 40-point mark.
"Probably one of the biggest wins at SHHS,'' said veteran coach Ken Darting, who coached five state championship teams at Silver Lake and Highland Park. "That (Blue Valley North) team is really good. Our defense took them out of everything they wanted to do. Need to build on it now.''
Senior Jaret Sanchez led Shawnee Heights with 21 points while JaiMarion Cook added 12 points on four 3-pointers and Ontarius Emmot added 11.
The T-Birds also got 8 points from Deacon Pomeroy and 6 from DaQuan Lee.
Silver Lake's girls basketball team poses for a team picture after winning the tournament championship in the Burlington Invitational. [Silver Lake basketball]
Silver Lake girls claim Burlington title
Silver Lake's girls, No. 3-ranked in Class 3A, captured the Burlington Invitational championship with a 70-60 win over previously-unbeaten Labette County.
Junior Kailyn Hanni, who was named the tournament's most outstanding player, led the 8-1 Eagles with 22 points, backed by Savannah Wende with19 points and Jaylie Whitehead with 11.
Labette County, No. 6-ranked in 4A, fell to 10-1.
Hanni, who scored 64 points in the tournament, was joined on the all-tournament team by Ella Bolan.
Silver Lake's boys also advanced to the tournament championship game, with the Eagles dropping a 67-38 decision to Ottawa, top-ranked in Class 4A and 10-0 on the season.
Junior Dayne Johnson led Silver Lake (7-2) with 19 points while tournament most outstanding player Aiden McCullough scored a game-high 26 points for the Cyclones.
D. Johnson, who scored 68 points in the tournament, was named to the all-tournament team along with the Eagles' Jared Johnson, who had 57 points in his three tournament games.
Rossville's boys basketball team poses for a team picture on Saturday after winning the tournament championship in the Valley Falls Invitational. [Rossville Athletics]
Rossville boys claim Valley Falls title
Rossville boys basketball downed Perry-Lecompton 49-41 Saturday to cap off its championship run in the Valley Falls Invitational.
Senior Kameron Badura paced 8-3 Rossville with 21 points and averaged 17 points in the tournament for the Bulldawgs.
Juniors Jack Donovan and Cameron Miller both added 9 points for Rossville, No. 8-ranked in Class 2A, with both Donovan and Miller being named to the all-tournament team.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The No. 1-ranked Washburn University Ichabods tied the program record for the most consecutive wins to start a season on Saturday at Missouri Western, improving to 19-0 and 10-0 in an 85-52 win over Missouri Western at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
Sophomore Brayden Shorter scored 22 points with four 3-pointers as No. 1-ranked Washburn improved to 19-0 with an 85-52 win at Missouri Western on Saturday. [File photo/TSN]
With Saturday's win, Brett Ballard's Ichabods have equaled their win total for the entire 2023-2024 season in a 19-11 campaign.
The Ichabods trailed 5-3 3:18 into the game but after a layup from freshman Dillon Claussen and a 3-pointer by senior Michael Keegan, Washburn found itself up 8-5.
The teams traded baskets and then the Ichabods rung up a 22-2 run over the next 7:45 to take a 32-11 lead, going 8 of 12 from the field and hitting 4 of 6 3-pointers while holding the Griffons to 1 of 7 shooting.
Washburn would go on to lead 41-26 at the break.
Washburn opened the second half hitting their first four shots, including both 3-pointers, but went 1 of 7 from the free throw line as they pushed the lead to 18 at 52-34 with 14:24 to go.
On Washburn's next possession, Brayden Shorter's third 3-pointer of the night jump-started a 17-4 run and his fourth 3-pointer finished off the run as the Ichabods led 69-38 with 7:22 to play.
Washburn would go on to lead by as many as 35 with 48 seconds to play as Washburn won its fourth-straight game in a row over the Griffons (13-7, 5-5).
Shorter, a sophomore, led the Ichabods with a game-high 22 points while adding five rebounds to pace five Washburn players in double figures.
Keegan had 12 points and four rebounds, followed by senior Jacob Hanna and junior Brady Christiansen with 11 points and senior Andrew Orr with 10 points, eight boards and two blocks.
Sophomore Jack Bachelor had double-digit assists for the second straight game with 10, adding eight points.
The Ichabods shot 54 percent from the field for the game, hitting 30 of 56 overall and 11 of 22 from deep, as Washburn held the Griffons to 35 percent shooting on 17 of 48 shooting and 3 of 16 from 3-point range.
Western did hit 15 of 17 free throws compared to 14 of 26 for the Ichabods.
Washburn had a massive 40 to 22 advantage on the glass, including 12 offensive rebounds, and the Ichabods also dominated the transition game, outscoring the Griffons 21 to 0 in fastbreak points.
The Ichabods will look for their 20th win of the season on Thursday, hosting Fort Hays State in Lee Arena (7:30 p.m.).
Junior Payton Sterk led Washburn with 21 points in a 62-56 road loss to Missouri Western on Saturday. [File photo/TSN]
WU women's road bid falls short
Washburn went back and forth with Missouri Western for 40 minutes on Saturday afternoon but came up short, falling 62-56 on the road.
To begin the game Washburn (11-9 overall, 5-5 MIAA) was stingy on defense as it held the Griffons (12-6, 7-3) without a field goal until the 4:12 mark of the first quarter. In that time the Ichabods built a 9-1 lead after a driving layup by junior Payton Sterk.
Missouri Western began hitting from outside, knocking down four 3-pointers in the first quarter to erase the Ichabod lead. A 3-pointer by Sterk in the final seconds of the quarter made it a one-point game after the first.
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By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
Hayden boys basketball entered the Baldwin Invitational coming off a 3-point loss to Manhattan and was looking to get something started as they would face defending Class 3A state champ Wellsville in Round 1.
Sophomore Mason Becker led Hayden with 20 points in Saturday's 63-49 win over Baldwin as the Wildcats captured the tournament title. [File photo/TSN]
The Wildcats topped the Eagles 63-50 and never looked back, rolling to a 74-34 win over Augusta in the second round and capping their tournament run with a 63-49 win over host Baldwin, No. 4-ranked in Class 4A, in Saturday's finale.
Baldwin would have nothing for the Wildcats as the championship game was all Hayden.
The Wildcats would go up 14-8 after the first quarter and roll behind their sharp shooting 5-foot-11 sophomore guard Mason Becker, who would finish the night with 20 points while shooting 5-6 from 3-point range.
“I really love our group, I am not surprised at all with Mason,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Anthony said. "Earlier in the year we were coming off some football legs, is what I call it, and I saw how my guys played and worked with each other. I knew it was a matter of time before the ball goes into the basket.''
Senior James Kuta (3) scored 19 points to help Hayden top Baldwin 63-49 in the final of the Baldwin Invitational. [File photo/TSN]
Junior Connor Hanika (5) scored 15 points in Saturday's 63-49 Hayden win over Baldwin. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden would also get a huge night from their two post players in 6-3 senior James Kuta and 6-4 junior Connor Hanika, who would have 19 and 15 points respectively.
“I am not surprised with Kuta, he has been creeping at the door, he does so many of the hard work things for us,'' Anthony said. "He rebounds, rebounds, rebounds, and is starting to get settled into his offensive game where he puts those right back in the hoop.”
“I thought I played hard,'' Kuta said. "I missed a couple layups, but I also made a lot and just hard defense all over, and I made sure I got the rebounds when I could and do whatever I could to help our team win today.”
“Kuta is a big time player, he does all the dirty work and tonight had some big time threes,'' Becker said. "But Kuta is a hard worker and with him and Hanika down low, it is tough to stop.”
