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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Forty-one year-old Lee Arena will undergo a major renovation in the very near future, with Tuesday's NCAA Division II Central Regional final the last game for Washburn University basketball in Lee's current state.
Washburn senior star Andrew Orr hoists the NCAA Central Regional trophy after scoring 17 points in his final home game. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn coach Brett Ballard celebrates Tuesday's NCAA Central Regional championship in Lee Arena. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
And the Ichabods and a boisterous sellout crowd of 2,711 made sure to send WU's venerable home arena out in style, with top seed Washburn rolling to a 93-65 win over No. 2 seed Minnesota State-Moorhead to advance to next week's Elite Eight in Evansville, Ind.
"What a way to send it out,'' said senior standout Andrew Orr, who scored 17 points (8 of 9 from the field) in his final home game for the 29-3 Ichabods, who went undefeated in Lee (16-0) over the 2024-2025 season.
Feeding off the energy of its home crowd, Washburn led for 36 minutes, 55 seconds and took a 19-11 advantage after three early 3-pointers from Jack Bachelor and two from Brayden Shorter.
"We obviously got off to a great start and made shots early,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. "That helped get our crowd into it. The crowd was huge for us.
"It was kind of a track meet there for the first 10 minutes or so. We kind of settled in and then defensively second half we were real good. Offensively these guys were really clicking and sharing it. I'm just really pleased and proud of our guys. This team has been on an incredible journey all year long and it's not just now. It's been since we got together in August.''
NCAA Central Regional MVP Jacob Hanna slams home a dunk in Tuesday's 93-65 win over MSU-Moorhead. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
A Jacob Hanna dunk put Washburn in command 25-15 and the Ichabods took a 32-21 advantage with 8:39 left in the half on a three-point play from Orr.
The Dragons (25-9) cut their deficit to six (47-41) at the break, but would get no closer as Orr opened the second half with back-to-back buckets to put WU up 51-41.
After two Moorhead free throws Hanna scored four straight points to give Washburn a 55-43 lead with 17:12 remaining.
Washburn went through some scary moments when senior Michael Keegan landed hard into the basket support while going for a rebound, resulting in a technical foul on the Dragons' Logan Kinsey.
Keegan suffered what appeared to be a minor injury to his left knee and left the game, but was able to return later in the half.
Bachelor hit both technical foul shots and Shorter followed with a 3-pointer to give WU a 60-45 lead with at the 16:30 mark.
Washburn made it a 20-point game (67-47) on a Brady Christiansen 3-pointer and went up 81-51 on a Christiansen hoop with 8:01 left.
The Ichabods went on to build their biggest lead of the night (93-61) with 1:56 left.
Washburn sophomore Jack Bachelor cuts down the nets after Tuesday's regional win over MSU-Moorhead. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Shorter led four double-figure scorers with 21 points (5 of 9 3-pointers), while regional MVP Hanna had 19 points and Bachelor was right behind Orr with 16 points (4 of 6 3s) and also dished out 10 assists. Orr and Bachelor were also named to the all-tournament team.
Washburn hit 18 of 32 shots from the field in both halves to finish at 56 percent for the contest.
The Ichabods were also 12 of 25 from deep for the game while hitting 9 of 10 free throws.
The Ichabods held the Dragons to 25 of 57 shooting (44 percent) and 6 of 19 (32 percent) from deep in the game.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural three-time Class 6A state champion and four-time finalist Easton Broxterman headlines the TopSports.news 2025 All-Shawnee County boys wrestling team.
Shawnee County wrestler of the year Easton Broxterman ended his high school career with three Class 6A state titles and four straight trips to the 6A championship match. [Photo by Mac Moore/KSHSAA Covered]
County wrestler of the year Broxterman, who won the 144-pound championship to wrap up a 37-2 season, is joined on the All-Shawnee County team by two-time Washburn Rural state champions Kristjan Marshall and Landen Kocher-Munoz as the Junior Blues finished third as a team.
Washburn Rural senior Kristjan Marshall won his second straight Class 6A state title in 2025. [Photo by Mac Moore/KSHSAA Covered]
Washburn Rural junior Landen Kocher-Munoz won his second Class 6A state title in his third straight state final in 2025. [Photo by Mac Moore/KSHSAA Covered]
Marshall, a senior, won the 157-pound championship to cap a 33-5 season with his second straight title while junior L. Kocher-Munoz won his second state title in his third straight trip to the finals, winning the 138-pound crown with a 30-3 record.
Washburn Rural wrestling coach Josh Hogan has been named the Shawnee County coach of the year after three Rural wrestlers won state titles and Rural finished third as a team. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]
Washburn Rural, which finished third in the 6A team standings, put a county-high nine wrestlers on the all-county first team, while Rural's Josh Hogan was named the county coach of the year and freshman 215-pounder Kaiden Marshall was selected as newcomer of the year.
The TopSports.news all-county team is based in part on selections made by the seven Topeka head coaches as well as at large selections for county schools Rossville and Silver Lake.
Also earning All-Shawnee County first-team honors for Rural in addition to the three state champions were 120-junior Ryder Harrison (27-15), senior 126-pounder Walker Doyal (28-14), junior 132-pounder Cooper Stivers (26-8), sophomore 150-pounder Brodye Kocher-Munoz (16-7), sophomore 190-pounder Jadyn Baum (28-6) and K. Marshall (17-11).
Topeka High and Hayden both put two wrestlers on the all-county first team.
Topeka High is represented by 106-pound sophomore Jose Gomez (24-13) and 165-pound senior Nick Davis (40-7) while Hayden is represented by 175-pound junior Jude Krentz (42-2) and 285-pound senior Hunter Diederich (24-10).
Shawnee Heights is represented on the first team by 113-pound sophomore Jacob Reyes (15-14).
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY BOYS WRESTLING
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Class 5A state champion Makayla Cadet of Highland Park headines the TopSports.news 2025 All-Shawnee County girls wrestling team while third-place teams Washburn Rural and Shawnee Heights combined for 13 spots on the first team.
TopSports.news picked the All-Shawnee County team based in part on city coaches' picks for the All-City team while also adding at-large selections.
Highland Park junior Makayla Cadet has been named the Shawnee County wrestler of the year after winning the Class 5A 190-pound state title. [Photo by Selena Favela/Special to TSN]
County wrestler of the year Cadet, a junior, won the Class 5A state championship at 190 pounds, becoming Highland Park's first-ever girls state champion while posting a 23-4 record on the season.
Washburn Rural senior Molly Spader posted a runnerup Class 6A state finish for the second straight season, leading Rural to a third-place team finish. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural put seven wrestlers on the TSN All-Shawnee County first team, led by senior Molly Spader (37-6), who posted a runnerup Class 6A state finish for the second straight season to lead the Junior Blues to a third-place team finish in 6A after winning back-to-back state titles.
In addition to Spader, Washburn Rural is represented on the all-county team by senior 115-pounder Maddy Blow (35-11), junior 120-pounder Lacey Middleton (37-9), junior 135-pounder Madison Blanco (30-8), junior 140-pounder Emme Blanco (35-10), junior 170-pounder Elia Smith (36-8) and sophomore 235-pounder Justice McBurney (15-7).
Smith placed third in 6A while Blow, Middleton, M. Blanco and E. Blanco all placed fourth at state and McBurney posted a sixth-place finish.
Spader and Blow are three-time first-team all-county selections while M. Blanco and Smith are first-team repeat picks and Middleton and E. Blanco moved up from the second team.
Shawnee Heights senior Isabel Reyes posted a second-place Class 5A state finish at 130 pounds, helping the T-Birds finish third as a team. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights, which earned the third-place team trophy in 5A, is represented on the all-county first team by senior Isabel Reyes (37-3), the 5A runnerup at 130 pounds, along with freshman 100-pounder Ava Gutierrez (19-13), senior 125-pounder Reece Taylor (37-4), senior 140-pounder Madison Freeland (32-7), junior 145-pounder Olivia Stevens (35-10) and junior 155-pounder Cianna Graves (39-3).
Taylor, Freeland and Graves finished third in 5A while Stevens finished fourth.
Shawnee Heights' Chad Parks was named the county coach of the year after the T-Birds posted a program-best third as a team.
Seaman senior Taylie Heston was the 120-pound runnerup in Class 5A. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman senior Koti Best was the 125-pound runnerup in Class 5A. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman put senior state 120-pound runnerup Taylie Heston (32-8) and senior 130-pound runnerup Koti Best (20-3) on the All-Shawnee County first team, along with 110-pound senior Natalie Smith (28-11).
Best was a two-time state finalist will Heston is an all-county first-team repeat pick.
Rounding out the all-county first team are Silver Lake senior 110-pounder Karley Holmes (40-12) and Rossville 145-pounder Madelyn Wonnell (34-11).
Holmes posted a third-place finish in 4A while Wonnell finished fifth in 3A-1A after helping the Bulldawgs win the 3A-1A state team championship in 2024.
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS WRESTLING
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Rossville junior Rylee Dick and Silver Lake junior Kailyn Hanni have been named to the All-Big East girls basketball first team.
Rossville junior Rylee Dick has been named to the All-Big East girls basketball first team. [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake junior Kailyn Hanni has been named the All-Big East first team after leading the Eagles to a second-place state finish. [File photo/TSN]
Dick led to a Class 2A sub-state final while Hanni led Silver Lake to a runnerup state finish in 3A after helping the Eagles win the state title as a sophomore.
Silver Lake freshman Karys Deiter has been named to the All-Big East second team while sophomore Nora Burdiek, who missed considerable time with an injury, was a third-team pick.
Silver Lake senior Ella Bolan received honorable mention.
ALL-BIG EAST LEAGUE GIRLS BASKETBALL
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Rossville junior Jack Donovan and Silver Lake junior Dayne Johnson, who helped lead their teams to state tournament berths, have been named to the All-Big East League boys basketball first team.
Rossville junior Jack Donovan has been named to the All-Big East League first team after helping lead the Bulldawgs to a Class 2A state berth. [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake junior Dayne Johnson (2) earned a spot on the All-Big East first team. [File photo/TSN]
Donovan helped Rossville post a 16-8 record this winter, with the Bulldawgs dropping an 82-78 first-round Class 2A state decision to Ell-Saline, while Johnson helped lead Silver Lake to a 20-6 campaign and a third-place finish in 3A.
Silver Lake senior Jared Johnson and Rossville junior Cameron Miller earned spots on the all-league second team while Silver Lake senior Brody Deiter was a third-team pick.
Rossville senior Kameron Badura and junior Jakoby McDonnell received honorable mention.
ALL-BIG EAST LEAGUE BOYS BASKETBALL
