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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It's been a good week for recent Topeka High graduate Jalen Smith.
Smith, who was named to TopSports.news' second-team All-Shawnee County boys basketball team as a senior, made an oral commitment Wednesday to play next season at Cloud County Community College and he has also been selected to play in a Kansas City-area all-star game on Saturday.
Jalen Smith
Smith is scheduled to take part in the Cascade Sports Wave Of The Future Kansas City Metro Black Lives Matter Classic at 10 a.m. Saturday at Lee's Summit North High School in Lee's Summit, Mo.
Smith averaged 15.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.6 steals as a senior.
Smith will play in the Class of 2021 game while all-star contests are also on tap for the class of '25 (11 a.m.), class of '24 (12 p.m.), class of '23 (1 p.m.) and class of '22 (2 p.m.).
Former Topeka High coach Eric King, who coached Smith as a junior and senior, will serve as a coach in the Classic.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural announced Thursday that Elizabeth Stover has been selected as the Junior Blues' head softball coach for the 2022 season.
Stover takes over for Tricia Vogel, who stepped down following the 2021 season. Vogel had been Rural's head coach since the 2018 season and led the Junior Blues to three Class 6A state tournament berths.
Elizabeth Stover
Stover has served an an assistant softball coach at Washburn Rural the past four years and currently teaches in the social science department at Rural and is an assistant powerlifting coach.
“We look forward to the excellent leadership that Coach Stover will provide,'' Washburn Rural athletic director Penny Lane said in a release. "We are confident that she will continue the tradition of excellence of the Rural softball program.”
Stover is a graduate of Baker University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in secondary education and history and is currently working on a Master's Degree in school leadership.
She was team captain of the 2017 Baker softball team and was named a 2016 All-American by the National Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association.
Vogel coached the Junior Blues to a third-place 6A finish in 2018 and a runner-up state finish in '19.
The Junior Blues posted a 20-3 record this spring, dropping a 5-2 decision to Olathe North in the opening round of the state tournament.
"It was a very difficult decision to leave Washburn Rural,'' Vogel said. "I will forever be thankful to Penny Lane and Ed Raines (Rural principal) for giving me the opportunity to coach here. I will miss the girls and my coaching staff greatly. While I have so many great memories from the last six years, the last memory I left the Washburn Rural field with was getting engaged, which is the reason for my departure. I will forever be a supporter and fan of Washburn Rural softball.
"Elizabeth Stover has been my assistant for the last four years. She brings a lot of knowledge and passion to the game. I know that she will do well in this role. I look forward to seeing and hearing about how the team does next year. I wish her, the girls, and the rest of the coaching staff nothing but the best and I am happy to be 'passing the bat' to Liz.''
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Sixteen Shawnee County players have received All-State recognition from the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
Undefeated Class 6A state champion Topeka High put four players on All-Class 6A first team while state quarterfinalist Washburn Rural had two first-team picks.
Topeka High junior NiJaree Canady was one of four Trojans named to the All-Class 6A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association after High went 25-0 and won the 6A state title. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural senior Olivia Bruno earned a spot on the All-Class 6A All-State softball team after helping lead the Junior Blues to a 6A state tournament berth. [File photo/TSN]
The 25-0 Trojans are represented by junior pitcher NiJaree Canady, senior catcher Zoe Caryl, freshman infielder Adisyn Caryl and senior outfielder Mia Kelly while Washburn Rural is represented by senior pitcher Olivia Bruno and sophomore utility/designated player Emmerson Cope.
Seaman senior Raigan Kramer has been named to the All-Class 5A all-state softball first team. [File photo/TSN]
Silver Lake senior Ellington Hogle (15) has been named to the All-Class 3A softball first team after helping lead the Eagles to a second-place finish in the 3A state tournament. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman senior infielder Raigan Kramer was a first-team All-5A pick while Silver Lake senior infielder Ellington Hogle, who helped lead the Eagles to a runner-up state finish, received first-team honors in 3A.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It’s always hard for a high school coach to decide when to retire, due in part to the fact that there's always student-athletes coming up that want and need good coaching
“If you’re going to evaluate just on the kids, there’s never a good time to retire because there’s always great kids,’’ said longtime Washburn Rural hurdles/sprints coach Doug Stanley. “There’s always great kids coming up and in three more years there would be another great kid.’’
But although Stanley knows he’ll miss being around a sport he loves, he was able to walk away with one of the highlights of his career as well as a unique accomplishment.
The 59-year-old Stanley had coached Stephanie Reed (now Bush) to a state hurdles title in his first season as a Junior Blues assistant and he ended his long tenure the same way, with Rural senior Marquel Russell, who had been mentored by Stanley throughout his high school career, capturing the Class 6A state title in the boys 110-meter hurdles.
Longtime Washburn Rural assistant track coach Doug Stanley (middle) with his first state hurdles champ, Stephanie (Reed) Bush, and his 2021 state champ, Marquel Russell, at the state track meet in Wichita. [Submitted]
The fact that Bush, who now is the head coach and coaches hurdlers at Eisenhower High School, and Russell were both able to share the moment with Stanley was an added bonus.
“I saw her at regionals, but I didn’t say anything to her at regionals (about retiring),'' said Stanley, who retired from coaching and as a middle school science teacher at the end of the 2020-21 school year. "But when I saw her at state I told her I was retiring.
"Stephanie was my first state champ my very first year and I was a Rule 10 coach, so that was like 35 years ago and here we are again this year. That’s cool.’’
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Washburn men's basketball coach Brett Ballard talks to campers at the end of Wednesday's morning session at Lee Arena. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Kansas freshman guard Bobby Pettiford signs an autograph for a camper at Wednesday's Washburn Basketball Camp at Lee Arena. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
