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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The 2022-23 Washburn Ichabods will open their 118th season of men's basketball Tuesday night with a 7 p.m. exhibition game at Kansas State, which will be making its debut under new coach Jerome Tang.
"I love playing in the bigger gyms and playing against tougher competition,'' said Ichabod 6-foot-6 sophomore Michael Keegan, a top returner for the Ichabods. "It really tests who you are as a person but also as a team. It will be really fun.''
Michael Keegan (right) is a top returner for Washburn men's basketball after being named the MIAA Freshman of the Year last season. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn men's basketball coach Brett Ballard has led the Ichabods to four NCAA Tournament berths in five seasons. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods are coming off a 22-11 season while recording the program's fourth 20-win season and fourth NCAA Tournament berth in coach Brett Ballard's five seasons at the school.
Ballard is104-49 record at Washburn while Tang takes over at K-State after 19 seasons as an assistant at Baylor, helping lead the Bears to the 2021 national championship.
The Wildcats, picked 10th in the Big 12 preseason poll, return All-Big 12 honorable mention pick Markquis Nowell (12.4 points, 5.0 assists) and junior Ish Massourd (6.8 points, 2.8 rebounds) and signed seven additional players, including five transfers and two freshmen. Kansas State was 14-17 overall and 6-12 in the Big 12 a year ago.
Keegan said the Ichabods have been doing whatever they can to get ready for the new-look Wildcats.
"With a new coach it's kind of tougher, but we'll definitely get a scout one way or another and have an idea of what they're going to try to do and definitely have a game plan for what we're going to do,'' Keegan said.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Katie Borough
KATIE BOROUGH, Washburn Rural
A 5-foot-7 senior libero, Borough helped Washburn Rural win the Class 6A state volleyball title Saturday in Salina, with the Junior Blues capping a 45-1 season with a 25-21, 26-24 win over Blue Valley in the state championship match, Rural's 44th straight win. Saturday's championship was the eighth in Rural school history and first since 2012.
Easton Bradstreet
EASTON BRADSTREET, Washburn Rural
A senior forward, Bradstreet scored a pair of goals in Rural's 5-1 soccer win over Wichita Northwest in last Thursday's Class 6A regional final, earning a share of the school career scoring record. Bradstreet is currently tied with former Junior Blues star Austin Halsey with 57 career goals and has 29 goals on the season, one behind Halsey's single-season record of 30.
Brooklyn DeLeye
BROOKLYN DELEYE, Washburn Rural
The 6-foot-2 senior was a dominant force throughout the Class 6A state tournament, helping lead 45-1 Washburn Rural to the eighth state volleyball championship in school history, capped by a 25-21, 26-24 win over Blue Valley. Also a state champ in basketball, DeLeye played on Rural volleyball teams that finished 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th at state over her four seasons.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural in Class 6A, Shawnee Heights in 5A, Hayden in 3A and Rossville in 2A all kept their state championship hopes alive with Friday night victories in the opening round of the state playoffs.
Washburn Rural advanced with a 36-0 victory over Dodge City, while Shawnee Heights took a 28-21 decision over Lansing, Hayden rolled to a 63-8 win over Baldwin and Rossville routed Minneapolis, 57-6.
All four Shawnee County winners last Friday were at home but all four will be on the road Friday, with Washburn Rural traveling to Garden City, Shawnee Heights playing at Mill Valley, Hayden at Wellsville and Rossville at Nemaha Central.
Here's a game-by-game look at last week's Shawnee County Games and this Friday's matchups:
Washburn Rural junior Branton DeWeese passed for 214 yards and four touchdowns in last Friday's 36-0 Class 6A playoff win over Dodge City. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
WASHBURN RURAL 36, DODGE CITY 0 -- Washburn Rural fought through a disheartening injury to senior leader Lukas Hanks early in the game to turn in a dominating opening-round performance in the Class 6A playoffs, the Junior Blues' fourth straight victory.
The Junior Blues, now 7-2, advanced to a second-round clash at Garden City, also 7-2, with the Buffaloes taking a 35-14 first-round win over Campus.
Washburn Rural junior quarterback Branton DeWeese threw for 214 yards and four touchdowns, including three TD strikes to junior Titan Osburn.
DeWeese was 11 of 15 on the night while Osburn had three catches for 117 yards.
Rural also rushed for 328 yards as a team, including 193 yards on 24 carries from senior Ma'Kenttis Adams and 83 yards on 18 attempts from freshman TJ Minikwu.
Washburn Rural junior JC Heim (25) celebrates a big defensive play in the Junior Blues' 36-0 playoff win over Dodge City last Friday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Defensively, Rural came up with a huge goal-line stand while nursing a 2-0 lead late in the opening quarter and the Junior Blues held Dodge City (4-5) in check the rest of the night, holding the Red Demons to 80 total yards, including minus-10 rushing as seniors Wyatt Conklin and Ty Weber came up with several big plays to lead the charge.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman's volleyball team, which won the United Kansas Conference championhip before posting a fourth-place state finish in Class 5A, put three players on the eight-player All-UKC first team while sophomore Maegan Mills was named the conference offensive player of the year and Viking coach Tatiana Dowling was named the UKC coach of the year.
Maegan Mills
Taylor Rottinghaus
Laynee Brown
Brooklyn Gormley
Makinsey Jones
Seaman volleyball coach Tatiana Dowling was named the United Kansas Conference coach of the year after leading the Vikings to the league title and a fourth-place finish in Class 5A. [File photo/TS
Mills was joined on the first team by senior Laynee Brown and junior Brooklyn Gormley as city schools earned five of the eight first-team spots.
Shawnee Heights senior Taylor Rottinghaus was a first-team pick and was also named the UKC defensive player of the year while Topeka West senior MaKinsey Jones also earned first-team honors.
Seaman sophomore Reagan McGivern and Shawnee Heights senior Emily Loy were named to the all-conference second team.
Eight city players received honorable mention.
ALL-UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE VOLLEYBALL
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Diana Floyd was the grand prize winner in the season-long TopSports.news 2022 “Pick 6’’ contest, sponsored by State Farm Insurance Agent Julie Fischer.
Diana Floyd was the grand prize winner in TopSports.news' 2022 "Pick 6'' contest, receiving a football autographed by Washburn University's 2022 football team and a $75 gift certificate. [TSN photo]
Floyd received a football autographed by the 2022 Washburn University football team as well as a $75 gift certificate.
Runner-up prizes of $50 gift certificates will go to Lloyd Tajchman, Craig Cochran and Mark Wilson.
Receiving $25 gift certificates to Sheridan’s Frozen Custard are Delbert Smith, Zachary Nuss, Melissa Thompson, Shanna Perine, Trevor Pleasant and Douglas Desch.
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