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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Topeka High senior Nate Plankinton and Hayden junior Cooper Grace have been named Centennial League baseball co-players of the year by league coaches after helping lead their teams to state tournament berths this week.
Topeka High senior Nate Plankinton was selected as the co-player of the year in the Centennial League after helping lead the Trojans to a second straight Class 6A state berth. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden junior Cooper Grace has been named the Centennial League co-player of the year after helping lead the Wildcats to a Class 3A state tournament berth. [File photo/TSN]
Plankinton helped 17-4 Topeka High reach the Class 6A state tournament for the second straight season while Grace helped 15-12 Hayden reach the 3A state event.
Plankinton and Grace also earned first-team honors from league coaches, their team's lone first-team selections.
Both Plankinton and Grace made the all-league first team for the second straight season.
Washburn Rural, which posted a 13-10 record this spring, put a league-high four players on the All-Centennial League first team, with seniors Kyle Walker, Colin Redeker, Connor Wells and Braden Hauschel representing the Junior Blues.
Walker moved up to the first team after being a second-team pick as a junior.
Rural coach Jay Mastin was voted the league coach of the year by his peers while Manhattan sophomore Jackson Goos was named the newcomer of the year.
Topeka High put seniors Isaiah Kincade, Hank Stamper and Matt Genrich and sophomore Drayden Acosta on the all-league second team while Hayden is represented by senior Evan Lenherr, junior Brady Heinen and freshman Mason Becker and Washburn Rural by senior Braden Ailslieger.
A total of six city players received all-league honorable mention.
ALL-CENTENNIAL LEAGUE BASEBALL
First team
Cooper Grace, jr., Hayden; Nate Plankinton, sr., Topeka High; Kyle Walker, sr., Washburn Rural; Colin Redeker, sr., Washburn Rural; Jake Wolcott, sr., Manhattan; Connor Wells, sr., Washburn Rural; Sam Spiegel, jr., Manhattan; Braden Hauschel, sr., Washburn Rural; Owen Ruge, jr., Emporia; Lincoln Upham, sr., Junction City; Carter Aslin, jr., Manhattan.
Second team
Jackson Goos, so., Manhattan; Isaiah Kincade, sr., Topeka High; Drayden Acosta, so., Topeka High; Evan Lenherr, sr., Hayden; Brady Heinen, jr., Hayden; Muaadh Harris, fr., Junction City; Hank Stamper, sr., Topeka High; Braden Ailslieger, sr., Washburn Rural; Matt Genrich, sr., Topeka High; Cael Smith, jr., Junction City; Mason Becker, fr., Hayden.
Honorable mention
Landon Ott, sr., Manhattan; Kaeden Fenton, sr., Washburn Rural; Aiden Roberts, so., Hayden; Jamarcus Tyson, so., Junction City; Chris Coy, so., Junction City; Kyler VanDonge, sr., Washburn Rural; Micah Gray, fr., Emporia; Owen Goode, sr., Manhattan; Branton DeWeese, sr., Washburn Rural; Andrew Ruxton, jr., Emporia; Brock Bazan, sr., Junction City; Lee Gonzales, sr., Topeka High; Isaac Ansley, so., Washburn Rural.
Co-players of the year -- Cooper Grace, jr., Hayden, and Nate Plankinton, Topeka High.
Newcomer of the year -- Jackson Goos, so., Manhattan.
Coach of the yer -- Jay Mastin, Washburn Rural.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Nine days after a frustrating 1-0 home United Kansas Conference loss to Basehor-Linwood, Seaman's girls soccer team responded with one of its best performances of the season last Thursday, taking a 4-1 road win over the Bobcats to advance to the Class 5A quarterfinals.
Seaman celebrates its Class 5A regional soccer championship after last Thursday's 4-1 road win at Basehor-Linwood. [Seaman Athletics]
"We played a lot better,'' Seaman coach Kyle Seevers said. "We had probably our best overall game of the season. Every person that went in competed hard, connected, defended, won 50-50 balls. It was just a complete game.''
After dropping three straight one-goal games to end the regular season, the Vikings bounced back with a 10-0 win over Kansas City-Schlagle in its regional opener and never trailed in the regional final after Parker Ayres and Marin Schuler scored first-half goals to give Seaman a 2-0 advantage.
Midway through the second half Basehor-Linwood cut its deficit to 2-1 but Seaman's Taylin Stallbaumer answered with a pivotal goal to put Seaman up 3-1 and Ryin Miller found the net less than a minute after Stallbaumer's goal to give the Vikings their final margin.
Miller had a pair of assists in the Seaman win while Schuler also had an assist.
Now the 12-4-1 Vikings will attempt to build off that win in Tuesday's 6 p.m. quarterfinal at Blue Valley Southwest (15-2-0).
Blue Valley Southwest probably has to be considered the favorite, particularly at home, but Seevers has no doubt his team will put up a fight.
"Anything can happen,'' Seevers said. "When we beat De Soto (1-0) it wasn't always pretty but sometimes you've just go to muddy the waters to get a catfish so that's kind of been our go to ever since the De Soto game, to muddy the waters. It may not be pretty but it gets done.''
Seaman will be looking to continue what has been a magical 2023-2024 school year, with the Vikings winning 5A state titles in volleyball and basketball and punching their ticket to the state tournament in softball.
"We've got such a great group of athletes right now,'' Seevers said. "Not always the best soccer players, but oh my God do we have winners that are great athletes.''
Also looking to extend its season will be 13-5-0 Shawnee Heights, which will be on the road to face 16-1-0 St. Thomas Aquinas in the other 5A East quarterfinal at 7 p.m.
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Two Shawnee County teams and six individuals advanced to Tuesday's final day of boys state golf tournaments accross the state.
Leading the local contingent are Hayden in Class 3A and Cair Paravel Latin in 2A, with both the Wildcats and Lions qualifing as a team for Day 2 of state.
Cair Paravel is sitting in third place in the 2A state tournament after Monday's round at Dodge City's Mariah Hills, three strokes behind second-place Ellinwood. Perennial state champion Salina Sacred Heart is well on its way to another title, entering Tuesday's final round with a 41-stroke lead.
Rich Helmbold, Cair Paravel Latin
Rich Helmbold shot an opening-round 76 to lead the Lions and is tied for seventh place in 2A.
CPLS' Jase Pavlik is tied for 23rd place after an 83 while Luke Budden is tied for 35th (86), Caleb Cleverdon is tied for 38th (89), Simon Everhart is tied for 41st (90) and Ty Gossard tied for 50th (101).
Hayden enters the final round of the 3A tournament at Emporia Municipal in fourth place, but just seven strokes behind first-day leader Hesston.
The Wildcats are three shots behind third-place Sabetha and five strokes behind second-place Wichita Collegiate.
James Kuta, Hayden
James Kuta is tied for second place individuall after shooting a 73 in Monday's first round.
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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Nobody has to tell new Topeka High girls basketball coach Ron Slaymaker how old he is.
But the 87-year-old Kansas basketball legend said he's never lost his love for the game and or his enthusiam to help young people -- two things that drew him to the Trojan coaching vacancy.
Ron Slaymaker, whose career in basketball has spanned more than six decades, including his most recent stint with the Olpe girls, is the new Topeka High girls basketball coach. [Photo by Jenny Schmidt for KSHSAA Covered]
New Topeka High girls basketball coach Ron Slaymaker won 463 games during a storied Hall of Fame coaching career at Emporia State. [Photo courtesy of Emporia State Athletics]
Fresh off a three-year stint with the Olpe girls, including back-to-back state tournament appearances, Slaymaker takes over at Topeka High, pending approval by the USD 501 school board.
"I've got the age, but along with it goes wisdom and I feel like I've got the energy,'' Slaymaker told TopSports.news. "Energy in coaching is a big major issue and I've still got the energy. I don't walk very good, but I've got the energy and I've got the interest and I love a challenge.
"I think this will be a challenge and I think a good challenge because I think it's a good thing waiting to happen. I am excited about it.''
Slaymaker is best known for his long career with the Emporia State men's basketball program, finishing his 28-year career in 1998 with 463 wins, a national coach of the year honor in 1986 (31-5), six NAIA District 10 Coach of the Year awards, five Central States Intercollegiate Conference championships, four District 10 titles and four appearances in the NAIA National Tournament.
Ron Slaymaker (right) chats with former Kansas and North Carolina head coach Roy Williams before a game during Slaymaker's long tenure at Emporia State. [Photo courtesy of Emporia State Athletics]
In 1987, Emporia State inducted him into its Athletic Hall of Honor, while Slaymaker is also a member of the Kansas Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame (1997), the NAIA Hall of Fame (2000) and the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame (2002).
On Feb. 28, 2013 Emporia State re-named the White Auditorium court in Slaymaker's honor.
After retiring from ESU, Slaymaker put together a lengthy career as an official before hip replacement surgery forced him off the court. He eventually returned to coaching as the girls coach at Chase County when the Bulldogs needed a coach after the school year had already begun.
"I really kind of bailed them out and they gave me something to do when I thought I wasn't going to be able to referee,'' Slaymaker said. "I was only going to do it one year and wound up doing it seven years. I really just kind of fell in love with coaching the girls. They were a joy to be around.
"When you're talking about coaching and teaching, it's young people growing and, God, that excites me. It's one of my major motivations.''
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Audrey Appuhn
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural
The Washburn Rural sophomore swimming star earned multiple Class 6A state medals for the second straight season in Saturday's state meet at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center. Appuhn, who posted multiple wins in the city and Centennial League meets, finished fifth in the 200 individual medley (2 minutes, 12.72 seconds) and sixth in the 500 freestyle (5:17.70) to lead Rural to a 13th-place team finish with 73 points.
Kate Hinck
KATE HINCK, Washburn Rural
Hinck, a junior soccer star, scored a total of seven goals last week as Washburn Rural posted two Class 6A regional wins to advance to the state quarterfinals. Hinck scored three goals in the Junior Blues' 10-0 win over Campus last Tuesday and followed that up with four goals, all in the first half, as Washburn Rural rolled to an 8-0 win over Wichita East last Thursday in a regional final at McElroy Field.
Ryin Miller
RYIN MILLER, Seaman
Miller, the Vikings' nationally-ranked sophomore track and field star, qualified for the Class 5A state meet in four events in Friday's regional track and field meet, with three victories. Miller won the 800 meters in 2 minutes, 12.99 seconds, the 1,600 meters in 4:55.24 and the 3,200 in 10:57.40 and also helped Seaman qualify for state in the 4x400 relay with a third-place finish in 4:04.44.
