Cair Paravel Lions
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Over the coming weeks The Jones Project and A1 Lock&Key will sponsor TopSports.news' series of stories recognizing the top senior Shawnee County athletes from the recently completed 2025-2026 school year.
TSN will name girls and boys finalists for the fall, winter and spring seasons, followed by the announcement of the girls and boys athletes of the year for all three seasons.
The project will culminate with the announcement of the overall outstanding girls and boys Shawnee County athletes for 2025-2026.
Six Shawnee County girls teams captured state championships in five sports in '25-26, including a Silver Lake sweep of the Class 3A volleyball, basketball and softball crowns, while Hayden won 4A basketball and put together an undefeated 4A-1A run in soccer and Seaman won the 5A bowling championship by a 358-pin margin.
Washburn Rural's boys won Class 6A team titles in cross country, soccer and baseball while Shawnee Heights won its second 5A state bowling championship in three seasons.
Individually, 10 Shawnee County athletes captured individual state titles, including Washburn Rural senior Cody Spangler in 6A boys bowling, Rural senior Landen Kocher-Munoz in 6A boys wrestling, Seaman senior Brody Anderson in 5A boys track and field and Shawnee Heights senior Cianna Graves in 5A girls wrestling.
TSN will also recognize Washburn University female and male athletes of the year for '25-26 after the Ichabods put together a banner season that included a string of NCAA Tournament appearances.
Next up: The top 10 girls fall finalists.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden, which posted a perfect season on the way to the Class 4A-1A girls state championship this spring, dominates the TopSports.news 2026 All-City girls soccer team.
The Wildcats, who wrapped up the state title with a 1-0 win over Rose Hill, put a city-high four players on the first team while sweeping the individual awards.
Three-time Hayden All-City first-team pick Carsyn Broxterman has been named the city player of the year for 2026. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden freshman Emma Slyter has been named the city soccer newcomer of the year after helping the undefeated Wildcats win the Class 4A-1A state title. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden senior Carsyn Broxterman, a three-time first-team selection, was named the city player of the year while freshman Emma Slyter was tapped for the newcomer of the year honor and Wildcat coach Klaus Kreutzer was selected as the coach of the year.
Joining Broxterman and Slyter on the All-City first team are seniors Reese Huscher and Kellyn Specht.
Washburn Rural senior Dayne Shriver earned first-team All-City soccer honors for the second straight season. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural, which posted a third-place state finish in 6A, put senior repeat pick Dayne Shriver on the first team along with senior Allie Schroeder and sophomore Ellie Vogel.
Seaman, which earned a share of the championship in the United Kansas Conference, is represented on the All-City team by seniors Ava Huston and Savannah Nelson and junior Julia Molleker.
Topeka West junior Micah Williams is a three-time All-City soccer first-team pick. [File photo/TSN]
Shawnee Heights juniors Nina Bolanos and Brylee Garner both earned first-team berths while Topeka West junior Micah Williams earned her third straight first-team honor in her first season with the Chargers and Cair Paravel Latin senior Kelly Ann Chada rounds out the top team.
ALL-CITY 2026 GIRLS SOCCER
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Twenty city standouts have earned All-State recognition from the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association, including eight first-team picks and two players of the year.
Hayden, which posted an undefeated season on the way to the Class 4A-1A girls state championship, put six players on the All-State first team, including senior forward of the year Carsyn Broxterman and senior midfielder of the year Reese Huscher.
Hayden senior Carsyn Broxterman has been named the Class 4A-1A forward of the year by the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden senior Reese Huscher was named the Class 4A-1A midfielder of the year by the Kansas High School Soccer Coaches Association. [File photo/TSN]
Wildcat coach Klaus Kreutzer was selected as the 4A-1A coach of the year.
The Wildcats, who wrapped up the state title with a 1-0 win over Rose Hill, also put senior midfielders Grace Funk and Ella Foster on the first team along with senior defender Kellyn Specht and sophomore defender Sawyer Wrench.
Washburn Rural senior forward Allie Schroeder (14) has been named to the All-6A first team after helping lead the Junior Blues to a third-place state finish. [File photo/TSN]
Seaman senior Ava Huston has been named to the All-5A first team by the KHSSCA. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural, which posted a third-place state finish, put senior senior forward Allie Schroeder on the All-6A first team while Seaman senior midfielder Ava Huston was named to the All-5A first team.
Rural senior defenders Dayne Shriver and Emma Wong were named to the All-6A second team along with junior midfielder Emery Hall and sophomore midfielder Ellie Vogel.
Topeka West junior Micah Williams was named to the All-5A second team by the KHSSCA. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka West junior Micah Williams has been named to the All-5A second team along with Seaman senior forward Savannah Nelson and junior forward Julia Molleker.
Cair Paravel Latin senior forward KellyAnn Chada earned second-team All-4A-1A recognition.
Seaman seniors Maya Martin and Parker Ayres received all-state honorable mention in 5A while Cair Paravel seniors Avry Stafford and Hemi Duehring received honorable mention in 4A-1A.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
State champions Brody Anderson of Seaman, Christian Hartman-Babb of Washburn Rural and Landen Lewis of Rossville headline the 2026 All-Shawnee County boys track and field team.
Brody Anderson posted a state championship and two runnerup finishes in the Class 5A state track meet. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural junior Christian Hartman-Babb won the Class 6A state 100 meters title and finished second in the 200. [File photo/TSN]
Rossville sophomore Landen Lewis won the 2026 Class 2A-1A state title in the javelin. [Submitted photo]
Anderson, a senior, won the Class 5A 800 meters in a 5A meet-record time of 1 minute, 52.08 seconds after finishing second in the 3,200 (9:05.70) and the 1,600 (4:12.48) earlier in the meet.
Junior Hartman-Babb won the 6A 100-meter dash in 10.59 seconds and finished second on a photo-finish in the 200 (21.40) while sophomore Lewis captured the 2A javelin championship at 181-9.
Anderson finished his season as the Shawnee County leader in the 800, the 1,600 (4:08.2 converted from mile) and 3,200 while Hartman-Babb led the county in the 100 (10.36) and 200 and Lewis had a county-best performance of 202-9 in the javelin.
Washburn Rural senior Brooks Kehoe finished second in the Class 6A 1,600 meters in last week's state meet. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural senior Brooks Kehoe was the 6A runnerup in the 1,600 (4:22.04) while the Silver Lake foursome of senior Thomas Fisher, junior Owen Rottinghaus, senior Joel Miller and senior Braxton Rupp finished second in the 4x100 relay (43.14) and the Eagles' Rottinghaus, Fisher, Miller and sophomore Jake Workman placed third in the 4x400 relay (3:28.56).
Shawnee Heights senior Jason Slay finished third in the 5A 400 (49.51) and teamed with senior Xavier Fisher and juniors Dallas Owens and Mason Haas to place fourth in 4x400 relay (3:25.32).
Anderson, Hartman-Babb, Kehoe, Miller and Rupp are all first-team All-Shawnee County repeat picks along with Seaman junior high-jump state placer Jack Esser and Washburn Rural seniors Draden Chooncharoen and Liam Morrison.
Chooncharoen and Morrison missed the postseason with injuries, but the two ran on back-to-back 4x400 state-champion relay teams in 2024 and 2025, including a 6A state meet record in '25, while Morrison also won the 300 hurdles in '25.
Washburn Rural senior Liam Morrison won three Class 6A state titles during his high school career. [File photo/TSN]
Also earning spots on the all-county first team were Rural sophomore Zach Hancock, Rossville junior Charles Chance, Cair Paravel senior Lucas Marichal, Hayden junior Kelton Meier, Highland Park senior Termaine Savage and Washburn Rural junior Cohen Thiessen.
Highland Park senior Termaine Savage earned a Class 5A state medal in the 400-meter dash. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Thiessen, Hancock, Marichal and Savage were state medalists while Meier was a state qualifier.
ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY 2026 BOYS TRACK AND FIELD
The 2026 All-Shawnee County boys golf team: From left -- Evan Michalski, Seaman; Chase Hastert, Topeka High/Cair Paravel Latin; Caleb Cleverdon, Topeka High/Cair Paravel Latin; Peyton Goehring, Washburn Rural; Higgins Hawks, Washburn Rural; Michael Wilson, Washburn Rural; Wyatt Dean, Washburn Rural. Not pictured: Jack Donovan, Rossville. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Eight state qualifiers, including three state medalists and four members of a Washburn Rural team that won its 16th straight city championship, comprise the 2026 All-Shawnee County boys golf team.
Caleb Cleverdon, who competed for Cair Paravel Latin in the postseason and Topeka High in the regular season, finished a county-high second in last week's Class 2A state tournament while Rossville senior Jack Donovan, a three-time all-county first-team selection and four-time state medalist, finished fifth in 2A and CPLS sophomore Chase Hastert placed 17th.
Washburn Rural, which won its 16th straight city team championship, is represented on the All-Shawnee County team by senior repeat pick Higgins Hawks, senior city champion Peyton Goehring, senior Michael Wilson and sophomore Wyatt Dean.
Rounding out the first team is Seaman senior Evan Michalski, a 5A individual qualifier with a tie for sixth place at regionals after tying for fourth in the United Kansas Conference tournament.
All-Shawnee County capsules:
By CHARLES SPURLOCK
Special to TopSports.news
WICHITA -- The final day of the 2026 Kansas state track and field championships got underway on Saturday morning with the final track preliminary races as the 100 meters started at 8:30 a.m. on the campus of Wichita State University and due to two lengthy weather-related suspensions, the meet finally concluded around 11 p.m. Saturday night.
The marathon final day of competition produced three local boys state champions, with Washburn Rural junior Christian Hartman-Babb winning the Class 6A 100-meter dash, Seaman senior Brody Anderson winning the 5A 800 and Rossville sophomore Landen Lewis earning the title in the 2A javelin.
Seaman senior Brody Anderson ended his high school career with the Class 5A state 800 meters championship Saturday night in Wichita. [File photo/TSN]
Anderson capped his outstanding track and cross country career for the Vikings with his first career state title after finishing second to Kapaun Mt. Carmel star Daniel Enriquez in the 3,200 and 1,600 earlier in the weekend.
After finishing finished second in the 3,200 meters Friday morning, Anderson finished second to Enriquez again in the 5A boys 1,600 meters with a time of 4 minutes,12.48 seconds.
Following Saturday's first weather delay, the duo faced one another again in the 800 meters.
In a race where 15 of the 18 runners had qualifying times under two minutes, the competition was going to be at a high level.
Anderson didn’t go immediately to the lead and after the first 400 meters, sitting in fifth place.
“I went into the race trying to play it tactical to see how the field spread out before I made my move, rather than taking the race from the lead like I did in the 3,200 and 1,600 races,'' Anderson said. "After 400 meters, I was trapped against the rail, but I found a gap and took off and never looked back.”
He came all the way back and won the race in a personal best time of 1:52.08, finishing ahead of junior Nathan Webb of Valley Center (1:52.78) and Enriquez (1:52.99).
All three of the runners broke the state meet record in 5A, but it will be Anderson’s name that goes into the record books.
“It feels amazing to wrap up the last race of my high school career with a victory and state title,'' Anderson said. "I’m so grateful for all of my coaches and family that helped me reach this point.”
Washburn Rural junior Christian Hartman-Babb won the Class 6A 100-meter dash and finished second in the 200 Saturday in Wichita. [File photo/TSN]
Hartman-Babb was the first local state champion with his victory in the 6A boys 100 meters.
He finished the final in a winning time of 10.59 seconds after qualifying early on Saturday morning with a time of 10.63.
Hartman-Babb returned later after the first weather delay for the 6A boys 200 race, where he finished second to senior Nicolas Cabral of Olathe East by only 0.003 seconds (21.397 to 21.400).
The third local state champ was Rossville's Lewis, who won the 2A javelin title with a throw of 181 feet, 9 inches.
His championship throw came on his fourth attempt, which was 18 feet further than any of his other attempts during the competition.
Lewis had a long wait for his title, with the 2A event originally scheduled for Friday evening before being pushed back to Saturday by weather. Then the event was delayed further by Saturday's inclement weather before finally being contested.
Saturday's other Shawnee County medalists:
9By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Sixty-seven individual qualifiers in 83 events are set to represent Shawnee County in Friday and Saturday's state track and field championships in and around Wichita State's Cessna Stadium while county teams are also qualified to compete in 19 total relays.
Big-school 3,200-meter runs as well as field event competition are scheduled to get under way at 7:45 a.m. Friday, followed by preliminaties in Class 6A, 5A, 4A.
Competition will resume on Saturday, with field events at 8 a.m. and running events at 8:30.
Shawnee County athletes to watch:
Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural
• Washburn Rural junior Christian Hartman-Babb swept the 100 and 200-meter titles in last Friday's Class 6A regional and ran the leadoff leg on the Junior Blues' winning 4x400-meter relay team.
Hartman-Babb recorded 6A fastest 100 regional time (10.36 seconds) and tied for the fastest time in the 200 (21.83).
Brody Anderson, Seaman
• Seaman senior Brody Anderson finished third in the Class 5A 800 meters last season and is qualified in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 this weekend.
Anderson is likely to go head to head with Kapaun Mt. Carmel star Daniel Enriquez in all three events and is ranked No. 2 based on regional times in the 1,600 (4:15.23), fifth in the 800 (1:55.12) and eighth in the 3,200 (9:29.78).
Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural
• Washburn Rural senior Brooks Kehoe helped lead the Junior Blues to the Class 6A state cross country championship last fall and won the 1,600 and 3,200 meters in last Friday's regional meet.
Kehoe is ranked No. 10 in the 1,600 (4:26.88) and No. 12 (9:52.39) in the 3,200 based on regional performances.
Morgan Ray, Washburn Rural
• Washburn Rural senior Morgan Ray placed second in the Class 6A girls javelin a season ago and is expected to challenge for the title again this weekend.
Ray captured the regional championship in her specialty with a throw of 141 feet, 6 inches and is ranked third in 6A based on regional throws.
• Shawnee Heights freshman girls sprinter Tanesia Johnson has been a star since she stepped on Heights' campus and is expected to be a factor in the 100 and 200 this weekend.
Johnson ranks No. 4 in 5A in the 100 (12.34) and 200 (25.41) based on regional times.
• Rossville's Landen Lewis and Hayden's Kelton Meier are expected to contend for state boys javelin titles this weekend.
Lewis is the No. 1 Class 2A thrower in the state at 181-8 based on regional performances while Meier ranks No. 2 in 4A at 190-7.
SHAWNEE COUNTY STATE TRACK AND FIELD QUALIFIERS
BOYS
Class 6A
Topeka High -- Adam Humphrey (discus), De'sean Lunkins (110 hurdles), Malachi Murph (100), 4x100 relay.
Washburn Rural -- Jaxson Adams (3,200), Christian Hartman-Babb (100, 200), Zachary Hancock (discus), Brooks Kehoe (1,600, 3,200), Sam Scott (shot put), Dylan Tajchman (javelin), Cohen Thiessen (800, 1,600), 4x400 relay, 4x800 relay.
Class 5A
Highland Park -- Termaine Savage (400), 4x100 relay.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin senior Caleb Cleverdon finished second in Wednesday's Class 2A state golf tournament at Quail Creek in Winfield, pacing three local 2A medalists.
Cair Paravel senior Caleb Cleverdon finished second in the Class 2A state golf tournament with a 36-hole total of 149. [File photo/TSN]
Cleverdon shot a final-round 76 to finish with a 36-hole total of 149 while Humboldt's Connor Newman finished at 144 (71-73) to take the state title by five strokes.
Rossville senior Jack Donovon moved up from a tie for eighth individually after the opening round to finish fifth with a 155 total (79-76).
Cair Paravel sophomore Chase Hastert also earned an individual medal, finishing 17th at 166 (85-81) while Rossville's Austin Dohrman finished 42nd at 187 (89-98).
Washburn Rural senior Higgins Hawks narrowly missed a 6A medal at Firekeeper Golf Course, tying for 22nd with a 36-hole total of 153 (76-77)
Hawks finished a single stroke away from a state medal.
.
The 2026 All-City girls swimming and diving team -- Front, from left: Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden; Riley Strother, Seaman; Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High; Rhiannon Good, Washburn Rural; Kaitlyn Aldridge, Shawnee Heights. Back, from left: Avery Skinner, Topeka High; Megan Strobel, Seaman; Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights; Sophie Heinen, Washburn Rural; Ava Von Lintel, Wasnburn Rural; Audrey Appuhn, Washburn Rural. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural senior Rhiannon Good, a two-time Class 6A state diving medalist, and senior 16-time city and Centennial League individual champion Audrey Appuhn headline the 2026 All-City girls swimming and diving team.
Good returned from ACL surgery late in the season to post her second straight top-five finish in the 6A state meet while Appuhn, a multi-time state medalist capped her oustanding career by finishing eight of eight in career individual races in both the city and Centennial League meets.
Rural, which won its 23nd straight city title, put a city-high four swimmers on the All-City first team, which is determined by performances in the city meet.
Washburn Rural put Appuhn, Good and senior repeat picks Sophie Heinen and Ava Von Lintel on the first team while Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo joins Appuhn as a four-time All-City first-team pick.
Shawnee Heights is represented on the All-City first team by junior repeat picks Kaitlyn Aldridge and Clara Sobba while Seaman is represented by senior Megan Strobel and sophomore Riley Strother after the Vikings finished second as a team in the city meet.
Junior Kaelyn Gerdel, a two-time city and Centennial League champ, represents Hayden on the All-City first team while Topeka High freshman city champ Avery Skinner joins Del Castillo on the first team.
All-City first-team capsules:
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Five Shawnee County golfers advanced to Wednesday's final round of state competition, including four players in the Class 2A tournament at Quail Creek in Winfield.
Cair Paravel senior Caleb Cleverdon shot a one-over-par 73 Monday in Winfield and enters the final round of the Class 2A tournament at Winfield in second place. [File photo/TSN]
Cair Paravel Latin senior Caleb Cleverdon shot an opening-round one-over-par 73 and sits in second entering Wednesday's second round while Rossville senior Jack Donovon is tied for eighth individually after a first-round 79.
CPLS, was just two strokes away from advancing as a team, also qualified Chase Hastert, who is tied for 23rd with an 85, while Rossville's Austin Dohrman also qualified for the final round with an 89, which is tied for 37th place.
Washburn Rural senior Higgins Hawks advanced to the final round in 6A at Firekeeper Golf Course, tying for 25th on Monday with a first-round 76.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural senior diver Rhiannon Good completed a successful return from ACL surgery Saturday at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center, posting her second straight top-five Class 6A finish.
Washburn Rural senior Rhiannon Good placed sixth in Saturday's Class 6A diving event, her second straight top-five state finish. [File photo/TSN]
After finishing third as a junior Good finished fifth on Saturday while posting a final score of 379.35 points.
Good was sixth in the 6A standings after Thursday's semifinals before cracking the top five in the finals.
Irene Gettya of Olathe East won her third state title with a 570.85 score.
Cair Paravel freshman Avery Rosenow finished 10th in diving in her first Class 5A-1A state meet. [File photo/TSN]
Rosenow finishes 10th in 5A-1A in state debut
Cair Paravel Latin freshman Avery Rosenow posted a 10th-place finish in Class 5A-1A diving on Saturday's at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center in her state debut.
Rosenow, who competed for Hayden in the regular season, finished with a final score of 304.00.
Allisyn Weiss of Emporia won her third 5A-1A state championship.
Hayden junior Kaelyn Gerdel posted two top-16 finishes in the Class 5A-1A state meet Saturday. [File photo/TSN]
Gerdel posts top-16 finishes in 5A-1A
Hayden junior Kaelyn Gerdel placed in a pair of Class 5A-1A 'B' finals Satursday at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatics Center.
Gerdel finished 13th in the 200-yard freestyle 'B' final in 2:13.51 after qualifying 16th and finished 16th in the 100 breaststroke in 1:18.86.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden soccer opened what has all the signs of being a long postseason run Thursday with a 6-1 win over city rival Cair Paravel Latin in a Class 4A-1A regional final at Hayden.
Hayden soccer hoists the Class 4A-1A regional championship trophy after Thursday's 6-1 win over Cair Paravel Latin. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden soccer's seniors are presented the Class 4A-1A regional championship trophy Thursday at Hayden. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Wildcats finished second in 4A-1A a year ago, dropping a double-overtime decision to perennial state champion Bishop Miege in the championship game, and have not lost since, with Thursday's win Hayden's 18th straight on the year, including a first-round regional bye.
"I think we're definitely all very fired up,'' said Hayden senior Carsyn Broxterman, who recorded a three-goal hat trick. "We've had a really great season and we all really, really want it bad.
"I think winning this one will just only push us farther and make us work harder to keep going.''
Hayden, the top 4A-1A West seed, will be back at home Monday, for a 4 p.m. state quarterfinal game against Wichita Trinity Academy (7-7-3), a 5-1 winner over Circle on Wednesday.
The Wildcats took control Thursday with goals from Broxterman and freshman Emma Slyter in the first 2:22 of the game and Broxterman scored her second goal of the game with 21 minutes left before halftime to put Hayden up 3-0.
Cair Paravel senior standout KellyAnn Chada cut the Lions deficit to 3-1 at the half with a goal at the 14:02 mark, but Hayden added three goals after the break as Broxterman finished off her hat trick and the Wildcats also got goals from seniors Reese Huscher and Avey Uhl.
Junior Avery Becker registered two assists for Hayden while Broxterman, Huscher, senior Grace Funk and sophomore Sawyer Wrench also picked up assists.
"I think we played pretty decent,'' Broxterman said. "There's definitely a couple of things that we could have cleaned up, like our passes were a little off and moving the ball overall, but I think we did a pretty decent job.''
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural senior Rhiannon Good and Cair Paravel Latin freshman Avery Rosenow advanced through Thursday's Class 6A and 5A-1A preliminaries and semifinals to make it to Saturday's state diving finals at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center.
Rhiannon Good, Washburn Rural
Avery Rosenow, Cair Paravel Latin
Rosenow, who competed for Hayden in the regular season, competed in the morning 5A-1A session and will enter Saturday's 10 a.m. finals in seventh place.
Rosenow recorded a preliminary score of 151.05 and had a semifinal score of 230.10.
Maize South's Sydney Schumaker is setting the 5A-1A state pace with a semifinal score of 331.05 while two-time state champion Allisyn Weiss of Emporia is second at 326.00.
Good, who placed third in 6A as a junior before missing most of her senior season after surgery for a torn ACL, is currently in sixth place entering Saturday's 4 p.m. finals.
Good posted a preliminary score of 184.45 and had a semifinal score of 270.50.
Two-time state champ Irene Gettya of Olathe East is leading 6A with a semifinal score of 409.00.
Gerdel, Sobba, Del Castillo to compete in multiple events
Hayden junior Kaelyn Gerdel, Shawnee Heights junior Clara Sobba and Topeka High senior Hara Del Castillo are all scheduled to compete in two individual events in Friday's state prelims at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatics Center.
Kaelyn Gerdel, Hayden
Clara Sobba, Shawnee Heights
Hara Del Castillo, Topeka High
Gerdel will compete in the Class 5A-1A 200-yard freestyle and100 breaststroke while Sobba will compete in the 50 free and 100 free, with the 5A-1A prelims scheduled for for 10 a.m. Friday.
High's Del Castillo will compete in the 100 free and 100 backstroke, with the 6A prelims set for 4 p.m. Friday.
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin girls soccer rode hat tricks from KellyAnn Chada and Avry Stafford to a 9-6 Class 4A-1A regional win over Mulvane in Tuesday's high-scoring affair.
“It was really good to get those passes and get those reps in for our next game,'' said Stafford, a junior. "I'm just excited that we can get to move on and play again.''
CPLS trailed early as Mulvane’s Brittani Peschel scored about five minutes into the match, one of her four goals in the game.
Then, the Lions would get on a roll and score four unanswered.
It started with freshman Avery Rosenow tying the match. Then, senior Chada would trade goals with Rosenow, scoring two apiece before in the first half, one of them Chada crossed to Rosenow as CPLS led 4-1 at halftime.
In that first half alone the Lions had five shots hit the goal post and six overall.
“It was crazy,” Cair Paravel coach Doug Woolery said. “I mean, I guess that stuff happens, you just don't see it that often in a game and I thought we had a couple that, one came off the crossbar and went down and it looked like by its bounce that might have been in, too, and then we had another one that they called a goal.
"We played them once before this season and played pretty well. I think my kids came out a little over confident. They have a good team, well-coached and No. 3 (Peschel) is a dynamic player.”
The second half is when the scoring barrage began, beginning with Stafford pushing the lead to 5-1 off another Chada assist.
The teams would eventually trade goal for goal until the Wildcats brought it to within two (6-4) off of two rebounds that led to goals.
CPLS would then get those two goals back with Chada and Stafford registering their hat tricks, making it an 8-4 contest.
Lions senior Karsyn Hastert scored the ninth goal off a short corner, cleaning up the rebound deep in the box.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Brody Anderson
BRODY ANDERSON, Seaman
A senior track star, Anderson posted a distance triple in Thursday's United Kansas Conference meet at Turner. Anderson won the 1,600 meters in 4 minutes, 30.93 seconds, the 800 in a personal-record time of 1:53.34 and finished his night wiith a victory in the 3,200 in 9:48.57.
Audrey Appuhn
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural
Appuhn, a senior, closed out her competitive swimming career with a pair of individual wins in the Centennial League meet Thursday at the Capitol Federal Natatorium, giving her eight career individual league titles in eight attempts. Appuhn won the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes, 19.72 seconds and the 100 backstroke in 1:02.29 while also teaming with Ava Von Lintel, Stella Berry and Sophie Heinen to win the 400 free relay (4:20.55).
Caleb Cleverdon
CALEB CLEVERDON, Cair Paravel Latin
A senior golfer, Cleverdon took a four-stroke individual victory with a 73 in the Flint Hills League tournament, leading the Lions to a 32-stroke victory (338-372) over Lyndon in the team standings. Cleverdon followed that up with a runnerup finish in Monday's Class 2A regional, shooting a 71 to tie for the championship and losing in a playoff. Cleverdon led the Lions to a state berth with a second-place team finish.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After posting a third-place Class 6A state finish in one-meter diving a year ago, Washburn Rural senior star Rhiannon Good would love to equal or surpass that performance in this week's state meet at the Shawnee Mission District Aquatic Center.
Washburn Rural senior diver Rhiannon Good has fought back from ACL surgery last August to compete in this week's Class 6A state meet. [File photo/TSN]
But Good, who will begin her state quest in Thursday's 4:30 p.m. 6A prelims and semifinals, has already posted her biggest victory just by being in the field.
Good, also a cheerleader for Washburn Rural, suffered a cheer injury last spring and competed at state with a large brace on her right knee but nobody knew how serious her injury was until much later.
"It actually happened in the middle of last year's dive season,'' Good said. "I was doing tryouts for our club cheer team and I tore my ACL and my meniscus. We didn't know it was hurt last season.
"They just kept telling me it was a sprain and then when I went in for my sports physical over the summer they told me to get an MRI and then they told me it was torn and I had to have surgery, so I had surgery in August.''
At that point Good's senior season was in severe jeopardy, but nine months later she was able to return for one regular-season meet before competing in the city and Centennial League championships.
"I was not sure,'' Good said. "They told me my window was that I could be cleared in time or I could be cleared months after the season was over, so I was hoping to be cleared by now, but I didn't want to rush anything. But I'm here now.''
Good is not only back on the diving board, but has quickly regained her status as one of the state's best.
Good won the city championship and then finished second in the Centennial League behind two-time state champion Allie Weiss of Emporia.
Good's 11-dive score of 446.40 in the league meet puts her second in 6A behind two-time defending state champ Irene Gettya of Olathe East.
"I'm just happy to be back,'' Good said. "I wasn't guaranteed to even be able to compete at city or league, so I'm just happy that I was able to compete at city and I did really well, first time ever winning city and I qualified for state.
"It was definitely easier to come back than I thought it would be, but I'm still working out some of the kinks. It is definitely like, 'Man, I haven't done anything for a year and I'm definitely feeling it.' ''
And no matter what happens at state, Good, who will cheer next year at the University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth, has already surprised herself.
"Absolutely,'' she said. "I wasn't expecting to qualify for state. Honestly, I had kind of put that out of my mind. I decided I wasn't going to stress about it, I just wanted to complete the dives I was able to and have fun.
"Then I qualified at city and it was my best scores I think I've ever had and I was shocked. I was like, 'Wow,' so I would love to do well at state but I'm trying not to stress myself out too much because I wasn't even expecting to be able to do this. So everything's just a bonus now.''
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
Monday's Class 2A boys golf sub-state at Western Hills came down to a one-hole playoff. Cair Paravel senior Caleb Cleverdon knew his putt was do-or-die. His opponent’s ball sat just inches from the hole.
Cair Paravel Latin golf finished second in Monday's Class 2A regional, earning a team berth for the state tournament in Winfield. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
“I had about a 12 to 15-feet for birdie and then (Salina Sacred Heart’s Jake Koksal) hit a nice chip to about a foot, kind of put the pressure on a little bit,'' Cleverdon said. "It put me in a must-make situation for sure.
"I liked my line. I liked my speed. It went dead center, but it hit the plastic part at the back of the hole and popped up just on the left edge.”
Cair Paravel Latin senior Caleb Cleverdon finished second with a 71 in Monday's Class 2A regional, leading the Lions to a runnerup team berth for the state tournament in Winfield. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
Koksal edged out Cleverdon for the sub-state championship on the playoff hole after each shot a 1-over-par 71 for the day. Cleverdon said he wasn’t bothered by the pressure of the do-or-die playoff.
“It’s a unique situation. In a regular round, it’s never sudden death. So, it was kind of fun,” the Cair Paravel senior said. “I’m happy to have had the opportunity.”
Cleverdon’s second-place individual finish helped lead the Lions to qualify for state as a team for the fourth straight season with a runnerup finish.
Rossville senior Jack Donovan finished third in Monday's Class 2A sub-state with a 76, qualfying for the state tournament in Winfield. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
Rossville senior Jack Donovan overcame a rough start to finish third with a 6-over-par 76. A couple of hours earlier, you probably couldn’t have convinced him that was possible.
“The way I started off, I didn’t even know if I was gonna make the cut after my front nine,” said Donovan, who has finished in the top 20 at state each of the past three seasons. “I was seven over on the front nine and finished six over. So, I’m glad I finished strong.”
Cleverdon and Donovan tied for sixth at state as juniors and will see each other again at Quail Ridge Golf Course in Winfield, the site of the 2A state championship, May 26 and 27.
Donovan plans to play golf at Southeast Community College in Beatrice, Neb. next year. Having developed a reputation as a sharpshooter on the basketball court as well as the golf course, Donovan said he will try to keep from putting pressure on himself in his final round representing Rossville High School.
“I found in basketball, if I try and score too much, I usually end up not scoring very much,'' Donovan said. I found that golf is kind of like basketball in that you have to just let the game come to you. I was pretty nervous at the start today and after that I just decided to go out there and not really have any expectations and just go hit the next shot and have a positive attitude.
“I (tend to) put a lot of pressure on myself and once I loosen up, I start playing a lot better. For state, I’m going to try to go into it with no expectations, just try to play as good as I can and not think too much about stuff.”
Joining Donovan as an individual qualifying for state was Rossville sophomore Austin Dohrman, who shot an 86.
Cair Paravel will send all six members of its varsity team to the state championship at Winfield. The Lions finished Monday with a team score of 338, 23 strokes behind Sacred Heart, arguably the most dominant golf powerhouse in the state. The Knights have won the last 10 state titles in Class 2A.
Cair Paravel sophomore Chase Hastert finished tied for fourth with a 78.
“I started off really good, went birdie, birdie, then kind of felt like I got a little too confident out there. But overall, I think I played pretty solid,” Hastert said. “It was windy and very wet out there. I had a couple of drives that just plugged in the fairway. (Water) was definitely a factor on the greens, too. They were really wet and slow to start and then they started speeding up.”
The 2026 All-City boys tennis team -- Front, from left: Kieffer O'Connor, Washburn Rural; Greyson Jones, Washburn Rural; Jonah Arnold, Cair Paravel; Zander Rice, Topeka West; Owen Stewart, Seaman; Dayton Schneider, Seaman. Back, from left: Cale Deutscher, Washburn Rural; Dylan Willingham, Washburn Rural; Ben Tryhus, Washburn Rural; Drew Fay, Cair Paravel; Collin McGee, Topeka West; Tres Lassiter, Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Twelve state qualifiers, including 10 state medalists in three different classes, comprise the 2026 All-City boys tennis team.
Cair Paravel Latin senior singles player Drew Fay, a four-time Class 3A-1A state qualifier and three-time state medalist, posted a city-high fifth-place state finish while Lion freshman Jonah Arnold finished 12th in singles as Cair Paravel finished fourth as a team.
Four city doubles teams also earned state medals in 6A and 5A.
Washburn Rural's senior doubles teams of Kieffer O'Connor and Ben Tryhus and Cale Deutscher and Kieffer O'Connor finished ninth and 10th, respectively, in 6A while Topeka West sophomore Collin McGee and junior Zander Rice and Seaman seniors Dayton Schneider and Owen Stewart finished ninth and 10th in 5A doubles.
Rounding out the All-City team are Topeka High senior singles player Tres Lassiter and Washburn Rural junior singles player Greyson Jones.
Lassiter was a runnerup in city, Centennial League and 6A regional tournaments before posting a 2-2 record at state while Jones was the city champion in No. 2 singles and went on to qualify for state while helping the Junior Blues capture city, league and regional championships.
All-City tennis capsules:
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin senior Drew Fay wrapped up his outstanding high school career Saturday in Prairie Village with a fifth-place singles finish in Class 3A-1A.
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay finished fifth in Class 3A-1A singles Saturday, earning his third straight state medal. [File photo/TSN]
A four-time state qualifier, Fay posted his third straight top-five state finish, taking an 8-0 win over Hoisington sophomore Jasper Pawlowski in the fifth-place match.
Fay placed second in 3A-1A state doubles as a junior after finishing fourth in singles as a sophomore.
Cair Paravel freshman Jonah Arnold also earned a state singles medal in his first state tournament with a 12th-place finish, dropping an 8-4 decision to Sterling freshman Lathem Kizzar in the 11th-place match.
Cair Paravel finished fourth in the team standings.
Washburn Rural seniors Ben Tryhus (facing) and Kieffer O'Connor placed ninth in Class 6A doubles Saturday in Wichita. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn Rural's senior doubles teams of Kieffer O'Connor and Ben Tryhus and Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham faced off for the fourth time over the last three tournaments and the second time in the Class 6A state tournament in Saturday's ninth-place match in Wichita, with O'Connor and Tryhus taking an 8-5 win.
Deutscher and Willingham earned state medals for the second straight season, with Saturday's 10th-place showing following a seventh-place showing in the 2025 state tournament.
Rural finished sixth in the 6A team standings.
Topeka West's Collin McGee (left) teamed with Zander Rice to finish ninth in Class 5A doubles Saturday in Andover. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka West's doubles team of sophomore Collin McGee and junior Zander Rice posted a ninth-place doubles finish in 5A, taking a win by default over Seaman seniors Dayton Schneider and Owen Stewart in the ninth-place match.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Ten Topeka high school tennis players in three classes assured themselves of state medals (top12 places) with solid performances in Friday's opening day of state tournaments across the state.
None of the city's 25 state qualifiers got through Friday unbeaten but four city doubles teams punched their tickets to Saturday's place matches while Cair Paravel Latin advanced both singles players, Drew Fay and Jonah Arnold.
Saturday's matches will begin at 9 a.m. across the state.
Seniors Cale Deutscher (left) and Dylan Willingham went 2-1 on the opening day of the Class 6A state tournament to advance to Saturday's place matches. [File photo/TSN]
Class 6A at Wichita Riverside Tennis Complex
Washburn Rural's senior doubles teams of Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham and Kieffer O'Connor and Ben Tryhus both advanced to Saturday's matches and can still finish as high as fifth place.
O'Connor and Tryhus (28-7) went 3-1 on the day, with their lone loss to teammates Deutscher and Willingham while regional champions Deutscher and Willingham (29-5) went 1-1 after receiving a first-round bye.
Deutscher and Willingham, the No. 5 seed, placed seventh in the 2025 state tournament.
Topeka High's doubles team of seniors Victor Arriaga and Christian Sink went 0-2 in the tournament while Trojan senior singles player Tres Lassiter went 2-2 Friday, missing the place matches by one win.
Washburn Rural junior singles player Greyson Jones went 0-2 Friday.
Topeka West sophomore Collin McGee and junior doubles partner Zander Rice advanced to the final day of the Class 5A state tournament. [File photo/TSN]
Class 5A Andover Tennis Complex
Topeka West's doubles teams of sophomore Collin McGee and junior Zander Rice and the Seaman doubles team of seniors Dayton Schneider and Owen Stewart both assured themselves of Class 5A state medals Friday at the Andover Tennis Complex.
McGee and Rice (31-11) are the No. 13 seed and went 3-1 on the day while No. 18 seed Schneider and Stewart (25-10) advanced with a 2-1 record and both teams can finish as high as fifth in 5A.
Seaman sophomore singles player Camden Dutton went 2-2 on the day, coming within one win of moving on to Saturday's place matches.
The Seaman doubles team of sophomores Aaron Sampson and Cooper Hopeck and freshman singles player Kenton Myrick both went 0-2 Friday.
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay has assured himself of a third straight Class 3A-1A state medal. [File photo/TSN]
Class 3A-1A at Prairie Village Harmon Park Tennis Complex
Cair Paravel Latin senior singles player Drew Fay and Lion freshman singles player Jonah Arnold both advanced to the Saturday place matches in the Class 3A-1A state tournament.
Fay (28-3), who finished second in 3A-1A doubles last season, went 2-1 on the day while Arnold (14-6) went 3-1 in his first state tournament.
The Cair Paravel doubles team of senior Joey Thoennes and junior David Toenjes went 0-2.
Class 4A at Topeka Kossover Tennis Center
Hayden's senior doubles team of William Luke and Brock Reynoldson came within a win of advancing to Saturday's Class 4A place matches, going 2-2 on Friday, while the Wildcat doubles team of sophomore Patrick Luke and freshman Miles Allphin and junior singles player Brek Wahlmeier went winless in its two matches.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin senior star Drew Fay plans to close the door on his competitive tennis career after this weekend's Class 3A-1A boys state tournament at Harmon Park in Prairie Village.
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay is 26-2 and the No. 3 singles seed for this weekend's Class 3A-1A state tennis tournament. [File photo/TSN]
And Fay, a state placer in both singles and doubles in his high school career, just wants to make sure he does everything he can to make the most of his farewell event.
"It's my last tennis tournament ever,'' said Fay, who will attend college at Emporia State. "I'm not playing in college, so if I'm not having fun then I'm missing the whole point.
"So I just want to play my best and have fun while I'm doing it. Then I'll be happy.''
Fay teamed with Eric Buchenau to finish second in 3A-1A doubles last season before switching back to singles this season, winning the city title in No. 1 singles.
"I think I enjoy them (singles and doubles) both a lot,'' Fay said. "They're a lot different, but I think they're both fun. By the time the season started I felt comfortable playing singles again.''
Fay, 26-2, enters this year's state tournament as the No. 3 seed behind Wichita Collegiate sophomores Amir Khicha (19-1) and G. Farha (26-6).
And although Fay acknowledges that Khicha is the tournament favorite, he's setting his sights on reaching a second straight state final.
"I think winning it all would probably take a miracle honestly, but I think getting second would be pretty exciting, so I'd say that's my goal,'' Fay said.
Cair Paravel also qualified freshman singles player Jonah Arnold and the doubles team of senior Joey Thoennes and junior David Toenjes after the Lions captured the team title in last Friday's 3A-1A regional at Kossover Tennis Center.
Arnold finished fourth at regionals and is the No. 14 seed with an 11-5 record while Thoennes and Toenjes also finished fourth in the regional tournament and are the No. 19 seed with a 1-2 record.
The 3A-1A state tournament will start at 10:30 a.m. Friday and continue on Saturday with a 9 a.m. start.
Class 6A at Wichita Riverside Tennis Complex
Washburn Rural completed a sweep of city, Centennial League and Class 6A regional team championships last Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center while qualifying five of six players for Friday and Saturday's state tournament at Wichita's Riverside Tennis Complex.
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher (left) and Dylan Willingham won a regional doubles title last Saturday to lead the Junior Blues to the team championship. [File photo/TSN]
The Junior Blues went one-two in doubles at regionals, with seniors Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham defeating senior teammates Kieffer O'Connor and Ben Tryhus 6-3, 6-1 in the championship match.
Deutscher and Willingham, who placed seventh in 6A doubles last season, are 28-4 this spring and earned the No. 5 state seed while O'Connor and Tryhus are 25-6 and the No. 12 seed.
Junior singles player Greyson Jones posted a fourth-place regional finish, retiring with cramping issues in the third-place match.
Jones will take a 21-11 record into the state tournament and is the No. 20 seed.
Topeka High will also be well-represented in the state tournament, qualifying senior singles player Tres Lassister and the doubles team of seniors Victor Arriaga and Christian Sink.
Lassiter finished second at regional and will be the No. 15 state seed with a 28-9 record.
Arriaga and Sink finished fifth in last Saturday's regional and are 23-14 and the No. 21 seed.
The 5A state tournament will start at 10:30 a.m. Friday and continue on Saturday with a 9 a.m. start.
Class 5A Andover Tennis Complex
For the second straight season Seaman qualified all six players for Friday and Saturday's Class 5A state tournament at the Andover Tennis Complex.
The Vikings are coming off back-to-back team championships in the United Kansas Conference and 5A regional tournaments.
Sophomore Camden Dutton led regional champion Seaman with a runnerup singles finish last Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center. [File photo/TSN]
Sophomore singles player Camden Dutton paced Seaman with a runnerup finish in last Saturday's regional tournament at Kossover while freshman Kenton Myrick finished third.
Dutton, 18-11 on the season, is the No. 13 5A singles seed for state while Myrick, 22-7, is the No. 18 seed.
The Vikings' doubles teams of seniors Dayton Schneider and Owen Stewart and sophomores Aaron Sampson and Cooper Hopeck finished third and fourth, respectively at regionals.
Schneider and Stewart are 22-6 and the No. 18 state doubles seed while Sampson and Hopeck are 23-9 and seeded No. 19.
Topeka West sophomore Collin McGee, a two-time Class 5A state qualifier, teamed with Zander Rice to finish second in doubles at regionals. [File photo/TSN]
Topeka West's doubles team of sophomore Collin McGee and junior Zander Rice followed up its runnerup finish in the UKC meet with a second-place showing at regionals.
McGee and Rice are 28-10 on the season and the No. 13 state seed.
The 5A state meet will get under way at 10:30 a.m. Friday and continue at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Class 4A at Topeka Kossover Tennis Center
Hayden posted a second-place team finish in the McPherson Class 4A regional last Friday while qualifying five of six players for the state tournament, which the Wildcats will host this weekend at the Kossover Tennis Center.
Seniors William Luke and Brock Reynoldson paced Hayden with a runnerup doubles finish at regionals while the Wildcats also qualified the doubles team of sophomore Patrick Luke and freshman Miles Allphin, who finished fifth.
Junior Brek Wahlmeier qualifed for state in singles with a third-place finish.
W. Luke and Reynoldson are now 17-18 on the season and are the No. 14 state seed while P. Luke and Allphin are 20-11 and seeded No. 21.
Wahlmeier will take a 20-15 record into state and is the No. 15 singles seed.
Hayden coach Christine Voegeli has announced that she is stepping down after this weekend's state tournament, ending a long stint as an assistant and head coach in the Hayden program.
The state tournament will get under way at 10:30 a.m. Friday and continue at 9 a.m. Saturday.
TOPEKA STATE TENNIS QUALIFIERS
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
Gary Cleverdon is stepping down as Cair Paraval Latin School athletic director after 14 years, during which the school has developed into a contender at the local, regional and state level.
Danielle Maxon, a graduate of Shawnee Heights and a former softball player and coach at Washburn University, will become the Lions’ next head of athletics.
Outgoing Cair Paravel athletic director Gary Cleverdon addresses a crowd of well-wishers during a Wednesday reception. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
Staff, students, parents and alumni gathered at Cair Paravel Wednesday to recognize Cleverdon for his contributions to the school.
Cair Paravel head of schools Melody Congdon talks about Gary Cleverdon's contributions to the school during a Wednesday reception. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
“Gary wasn’t just an AD who came up with the schedules and things like that,” said Cair Paravel head of schools Melody Congdon. “He would be the biggest cheerleader. He was heavily involved with the kids. He loved the kids and he believed in them and he believed in their sports.
“He has grown and expanded our programs here. This job is all behind the scenes and he’s constantly there, taking out the trash, hauling kids, filling in the gaps. It’s a thankless job, but he has done it.”
“Not every student will become a star athlete, but every student deserves the opportunity to participate, belong, and grow,” Cleverdon said about his role at Cair Paravel. “I just hoped to give every student a chance to wear the school colors, be part of a team, travel together, practice together, and compete together, which creates friendships and memories that can last a lifetime.”
Gary Cleverdon receives a gift from CPLS director of schools Melody Congdon during Wednesday's reception. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
For years, the walls of the Cair Paravel gymnasium were decorated with banners showing the school’s championships won when the Lions competed in a series of private school leagues. It was hard for the general public to gauge the significance of these accomplishments, and therefore they went largely unrecognized by the community.
Cleverdon guided the school through the application for KSHSAA membership in 2020. That allowed Cair Paravel to compete on an even footing with the state’s other member schools, thereby giving its students an opportunity to measure themselves against the best in Kansas in playoff competition.
Since that move, Cair Paravel has seen several of its teams compete at the highest level. The 2024 girls soccer team placed second in the state in the Class 4-1A tournament, while the football team reached the Eight-Man Division I semifinals in 2023.
This winter, the boys basketball team achieved statewide ranking for the first time, climbing as high as seventh in Class 2A. The school’s scholars bowl team placed second in Class 1A Division I in 2021 and 2022.
Most significantly, the Cair Paravel cheer squad has claimed four state championships, in two different classifications, since gaining KSHSAA membership.
“Accomplishments like qualifying for state tournaments, winning championships, or competing at a high level are meaningful, but they were never the ultimate goal,” Cleverdon said. “Those moments brought excitement, pride, and recognition to the school, and they helped build community and school spirit. And they gave students opportunities to experience success that came through commitment, discipline, perseverance, and teamwork.”
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin senior Caleb Cleverdon claimed a four-shot individual victory Tuesday in Emporia as the Lions rolled to the Flint Hills League boys golf championship by 34 strokes.
Cair Paravel Latin golf won Tuesday's Flint HIlls League title by 34 strokes Tuesday in Emporia. [Cair Paravel Athletics]
Cair Paravel Latin senior Caleb Cleverdon shot a 73 to take a four-shot individual win in Tuesday's Flint Hills League golf tournament in Emporia. [Cair Paravel Athletics]
Tournament medalist Cleverdon shot a 73 to lead the way as Cair Paravel put five players in the top 10 on the way to a 338-372 win over Lyndon.
CPLS's Chase Hastert finished third with an 80, while Luke Budden was seventh (91), Jude Varney ninth (94) and Brady Budden tied for 10th (96).
Kirby Isch finished second with a 77 to lead league runnerup Lyndon.
FLINT HILLS LEAGUE BOYS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Audrey Appuhn
AUDREY APPUHN, Washburn Rural
Appuhn, a senior swimming star, captured four gold medals in Friday's city swimming championships to lead Washburn Rural to its 23rd straight city girls team title. Appuhn won the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes, 22.00 seconds and the 100 freestyle in 57.23 while also teaming with Sophie Heinen, Resego Mackenzie and Kaci Hodgson to win the 200 medley relay (2:13.84) and with Heinen, Ava Von Lintel and Stella Berry to win the 400 free relay (4:20.97). Appuhn finished her city meet career with eight individual titles in as many starts and with 15 total city championships.
Carsyn Broxterman
CARSYN BROXTERMAN, Hayden
A senior girls soccer standout, Broxterman scored four goals over back-to-back wins Thursday and Friday as Hayden improved to 14-0-0 on the season. Broxterman scored a goal in the Wildcats' 4-1 win over Manhattan and followed that up with a three-goal hat trick in a come-from-behind 5-3 Senior Night win over previously-unbeaten Seaman. With its win over Manhattan, Hayden clinched a share of the Centennial League championship.
Cale Deutscher
CALE DEUTSCHER, Washburn Rural
Deutscher, a senior tennis player, teamed with Dylan Willingham, to capture a Class 6A regional doubles championship Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over teammates Kieffer O'Connor and Ben Tryhus in the final. Deutscher and Willingham, who finished seventh in 6A as juniors, led the way as the Junior Blues won the team title to cap a sweep of the city, Centennial League and regional team crowns. Deutscher and Willingham will take a 28-4 record into the state meet at Wichita.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin senior Drew Fay, a Class 3A-1A state runnerup in the 2025, earned another state title shot with a regional singles championship Friday at Kossover Tennis Center, leading the Lions to the regional team title.
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay won a Class 3A-1A regional singles title Friday at Kossover Tennis Center to improve to 26-2. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Fay, who teamed with Eric Buchenau to finish second in 3A-1A doubles as a junior, posted a 6-4, 6-0 win over Kansas City Christian's Isaac Seitz in the singles championship late Friday after a lengthy rain delay.
Fay, the city champion, will now take a 26-2 record into Friday and Saturday's state tournament at Harmon Park in Prairie Village.
The Lions also qualified freshman singles player Jonah Arnold for the state meet, with Arnold (11-5) finishing fourth at regionals with a 6-1, 6-3 loss to Neodesha's Jackson Delong in the third-place match.
The Cair Paravel doubles team of seniors Joey Thoennes and David Toenjes also advanced to state with a fourth-place finish, dropping a 6-1, 6-1 decision to Neodesha in the third-place match.
Cair Paravel earned the regional championship by a 16-13 margin over Marysville, which went one-two in doubles.
CLASS 3A-1A BOYS TENNIS REGIONAL
At Kossover Tennis Center
Team scores
Cair Paravel Latin 16, Marysville 13, Neodesha 11, Kansas City Christian 11, Bishop Seabury 4, Perry-Lecompton 3.
Individual results
Singles
Championship --Fay, Cair Paravel, def. Seitz, KCC, 6-4, 6-0.
Third -- Delong, Neodesha, def. Arnold, Cair Paravel, 6-1, 6-3.
Fifth -- Wiedeman, Perry-Lecompton, winner by inj. def. over Rinnert, Bishop Seabury.
Doubles
Championship -- Lynch/Busch, Marysville, def. Frese/Fors, Marysville, 6-2, 6-0.
Third -- Marroquin/Leck, Neodesha, def. Thoennes/Toenjes, Cair Paravel, 6-1, 6-1.
Fifth -- Warner/Spears, KCC, def. Rush/Combs, KCC, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2.
Wildcats qualify five players for Class 4A state
Hayden tennis will be well-represented when it hosts the Class 4A state tournament Friday and Saturday at Kossover Tennis Center, with the Wildcats qualifying five players out of the McPherson regional on Friday while posting a runnerup team finish.
Host McPherson took a 25-15 win over the Wildcats in the regional team standings, with the Bullpups sweeping the singles and doubles championships.
Hayden's senior doubles team of William Luke and Brock Reynoldson (17-18) advanced to the championship match before dropping a 6-1, 6-2 decision to McPherson's Jones Emery and Mason Eisenbarth.
The Wildcats also qualified the doubles team of sophomore Patrick Luke and freshman Miles Allphin for state as Luke and Allphin (20-11) finished fifth with a 7-5, 6-0 win over Clay Center's Tarin Pfizenmaier and Caden Peterson.
Hayden junior Brek Wahlmeier posted a third-place finish in singles, winning by injury default over Clay Center's Eli Pfizenmaier in the third-place match to improve to 20-15.
CLASS 4A BOYS TENNIS REGIONAL
At McPherson
Team scores
McPherson 25, Hayden 15, Colby 8, Clay Center 6, Abilene 3, Chapman 1.
Individual results
Singles
Championship --Unruh, McPherson, def. Bohme, McPherson, 6-4, 7-5.
Third -- Wahlmeier, Hayden, winner by inj. def. over E. Pfizenmaier, Clay Center.
Fifth -- Jaeger, Colby, def. Sims, Abilene, 6-1, 6-1.
Doubles
Championship -- Emery/Eisenbarth, McPherson, def. W. Luke/Reynoldson, Hayden, 6-1, 6-2.
Third -- Siemens/Boese, McPherson, def. Shaw/Haines, Colby, 6-0, 6-0.
Fifth -- P. Luke/Allphin, Hayden, def. T. Pfizenmaier/Peterson, Clay Center, 7-5, 6-0.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
She took a long and winding road to get there, but Peyton Williams is finally in the WNBA.
Peyton Williams [Submitted photo]
The product of Cair Paravel Latin School and Kansas State University was listed on the roster of the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday at 5 p.m., when the league required all rosters be finalized.
The Mercury opens its season at Las Vegas on Saturday.
After going undrafted out of Kansas State, Williams played six years of professional basketball overseas, with seasons in Russia and France, then two seasons in Hungary and two in China. Having had only one opportunity to try out for a WNBA team – and that chance wiped out by a Covid diagnosis in 2021 – Williams was not sure another such opportunity would ever come.
“There was a time the past couple of years where I just focused on my international career because that seemed to be what I could expect out of my career,” Williams said. “That was not a bad thing. I enjoyed playing in Europe and then in China. But that was the expectation I had for myself, and that’s what I told my agent, that I’m going to kind of focus over here. I worked really hard over the last six years out of the view of my friends and family, not to mention the local media and the media of the United States.”
After Williams returned to Topeka from China in March, unsure of what was next for her career, her agent told her he was trying to get her into a training camp. That call finally came in late April.
With little advance notice, Williams hopped a plane to Oregon to fight for a roster spot with the expansion Portland Fire. Williams spent exactly one week with the Fire, playing in one preseason game at Seattle. Limited to just seven minutes off the bench, Williams made the most of her opportunity, knocking down a 3-pointer and a driving layup and blocking a shot.
But on May 1, Williams was summoned to the office of the Fire general manager, who informed the Topekan she was being placed on waivers. Williams spent one more evening in Portland, planning to return home unemployed.
Before she boarded a plane to return to Kansas on Saturday, May 2, Williams was told some other teams might be interested in bringing her to their camp. By the time her plane landed in Kansas City, the Phoenix team was working to claim Williams off the waiver wire.
Williams barely had time to drop off the Portland Fire sweats and T-shirts at home and do a load of laundry before she was off again on Sunday, this time to Arizona.
The Mercury coaches were scrambling to replace a recently injured player and waiting for a couple of others to come back to the United States from overseas commitments. Williams filled the void, trying to quickly learn new plays and new terminology, not to mention the names of her teammates.
When it came time for final cuts to be made to the Phoenix roster, Williams was summoned to the office of the Mercury general manager. The feeling was eerily familiar. But this time, she was told that she had made the cut.
“He said it in a nonchalant way, and I had to clarify, like ‘Really?’ He said ‘Yes, you’re on the team,’” Williams recalled. “My reaction to it was that I’d only been there for three days of practice, getting used to this system and new people, so it’s not my best basketball yet. So, I’m appreciative of the grace they’ve allowed me in this time of transition. It was excitement and a little bit of shock for sure.”
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
KellyAnn Chada registered a three-goal hat trick Tuesday night at the Bettis Family Sports Complex as Cair Paravel Latin soccer celebrated Senior Night with a 4-2 win over city rival Shawnee Heights.
KellyAnn Chada (20) scored a hat trick in Cair Paravel's 4-2 Senior Night win over Shawnee Heights Tuesday night. [Photo by Vince Lovergine/TSN]
“Just having so many fans cheering me on knowing my seasons at Cair Paravel are coming to a close, it was just very special to end like that even though we have a couple more games,” said Chada, one of four Lion seniors. “I’ll miss all the times that I’ve had here, so I'm glad that I got something to go off for my final few games.”
It hasn’t been the type of season CPLS has had in recent years, but coach Doug Woolery told TopSports.News that this game against the T-Birds could’ve been the game the Lions needed against a good program.
“It’s been a struggle,'' Woolery said. "We have some talent. I have a lot of young players and I think we're getting them used to our system and kind of gelling together as a team.
“Every coach wants to start peaking at the end of the season and I think we’re peaking. I thought this game was a good representation.”
Chada agreed.
“We've definitely grown so much through the season and Shawnee Heights, they're a good team but we just played to the best of our ability and that was something that was really special finally seeing everything that we've been working on coming together on Senior Night, that was great to see,” Chada said.
Shawnee Heights struck first in the first half when junior Nina Bolanos scored at the 23:00 mark.
Cair Paravel would even the match at 1-1, with senior Hemi Duehring putting one home deep inside the box after the play began from an inbounds play with 17:15 left in the half, ending the first-half scoring.
But then Oral Roberts commit Chada exploded for three second-half goals as the Lions took control.
Chada helped the Lion take their first lead of the match off a hand ball which positioned Chada for a successful penalty kick with 25:31 left.
About three minutes later Chada buried another goal off the right side of the box to make the score 3-1.
The T-Birds got back within one off junior Morgan Robinson’s goal with 16:49 to go in the match, but then Chada put the nail in the coffin, scoring off a rebound from a corner kick with 6:23 remaining.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Dalaney Anderson
DALANEY ANDERSON, Washburn University
Drew FayDREW FAY, Cair Paravel Latin
A senior, Fay captured his second straight city boys tennis championship last Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. Fay earned the No. 1 singles crown with an 8-3 win over Topeka High standout Tres Lassiter after teaming with Eric Buchenau to win the No. 1 city doubles title as a junior en route to a runnerup Class 3A-1A state finish.
Kieffer O'Connor
KIEFFER O'CONNOR, Washburn Rural
O'Connor, a senior tennis player, teamed with Ben Tryhus to claim city and Centennial League doubles championships over a four-day period as Washburn Rural captured team titles in both events. O'Connor and Tryhus won the No. 2 doubles title in Thursday's city meet with an 8-3 win over Seaman, and the Junior Blue duo followed that up with the Centennial League doubles championship on Monday, taking a 1-6, 6-1, 10-8 win over teammates Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural swept the doubles championships in Thursday's city boys tennis tournament at Kossover Tennis Center to lead the Junor Blues to a third straight city team title.
Washburn Rural tennis swept the doubles titles on the way to its third straight city team title Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher and Dylan Willingham captured the No. 1 doubles title with an 8-3 win over Topeka West's Collin McGee and Zander Rice while Junior Blues seniors Ben Tryhus and Kieffer O'Connor repeated as the No. 2 doubles champs with an 8-3 decision in the final as Rural captured the team championship by a 30-27 margin over Seaman.
Cair Paravel Latin swept the singles titles, with senior Drew Fay topping 2025 champion Tres Lassiter of Topeka High in the No. 1 final and freshman Jonah Arnold capturing the No. 2 crown in his first city meet.
Deutscher and Willingham's title came after a tiebreaker loss to Cair Paravel in the 2025 final.
Washburn Rural seniors Cale Deutscher (left) and Dylan Willingham won the city title in No. 1 doubles Thursday to lead the Junior Blues to their third straight city team title. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"I think we just put in the work in the offseason and it just helped us to push through this year,'' Deutscher said about Thursday's win. "We played good tennis today.''
"Being a senior, you want to end it off on the right foot and we did it,'' Willingham said. "I think we've got some good momentum going forward and that's good because we're going into league and regionals and state.''
The Junior Blues also got a third-place finish in No. 1 singles from Greyson Jones and a runnerup finish in No. 2 singles from Jaxon Whitehead to outdistance Seaman, which posted four top-four finishes, including a second-place showing in No. 2 doubles.
Thursday's Rural title was a tuneup for next Monday's Centennial League tournament, followed by Class 6A regional and state meets.
"I think the team's definitely doing good,'' Deutscher said. "We put in a lot of work in practice every day and a lot of us stay after, too, after our regular time. We've all been coming together really well.''
Cair Paravel senior Drew Fay won the city title in No. 1 singles Thursday after winning the No. 1 doubles championship as a junior. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Fay captured his second straight city championship, with an interesting twist.
Fay teamed with Eric Buchenau to win the No. 1 city doubles title as a junior on the way to a runnerup Class 3A-1A state finish before switching back to singles this spring and earning the No. 1 singles crown with an 8-3 win over High standout Lassiter.
Fay said he got the day off to a somewhat slow start in the quarterfinals before picking up steam as the day went on.
"It was honestly my fault,'' said Fay, who has played 13 matches over the past three days. "I didn't warm up before this so I was slowly getting better as it went on.''
Fay admitted that going from doubles back to singles did take some time.
"Especially over the summer it took awhile to even remember how to play singles,'' Fay said. "It was like re-learning almost, so it's been kind of tough, but I feel like I've gotten back to it now.
"I think I've been progressing all season, so hopefully I hit my climax when state comes around and just keep improving.''
CITY BOYS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
London Backman, Topeka High
LONDON BACKMAN, Topeka High
A sophomore infielder who attends Cair Paravel Latin and plays for the Trojans through a co-op agreement, Backman received TopSports.news All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League first-team recognition and was named the co-county and co-Centennial League newcomer of the year last season after helping 19-10 Topeka High advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decisiont to 6A champ Olathe West. Backman received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
Adda Boleski, Washburn Rural
ADDA BOLESKI, Washburn Rural
Boleski, a sophomore infielder, was an All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League second-team pick a year ago as a freshman after helping the Junior Blues post a 22-8 record and a second-place finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with Washburn Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game.
Reagan Chapman, Washburn Rural
REAGAN CHAPMAN, Washburn Rural
A senior pitcher/third baseman, Chapman was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team for the third straight season after helping lead the Junior Blues to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in Class 6A last spring, with Rural dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the championship game. Chapman was a first-team All-Centennial League honoree.
JOSIE CARLGREN, Washburn Rural
Carlgren, a senior outfielder, is a top returner for Washburn Rural, which posted a 22-8 record and finished second in the Class 6A state tournament last season, dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the title game. Carlgren received All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League honorable mention in 2025.
Falyn Clurman, Rossville
FALYN CLURMAN, Rossville
Clurman, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County honoree last season as a freshman for the Bulldawgs, who posted a 17-12 record in 2025. The Bulldawgs were a Class 2A-1A regional runnerup to state champion Oskaloosa.
ADDISON COOPER, Shawnee Heights
Cooper, a senior outfielder, was a first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection and a second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament in 2025. The T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual state champion St. Thomas Aquinas.
Campbell Dawson, Topeka High
CAMPBELL DAWSON, Topeka High
A junior pitcher/outfielder, was a first-team All-Centennial League selection and second-team All-Shawnee County pick last spring after helping the 19-10 Trojans advance to the Class 6A state tournament before dropping an 8-1 quarterfinal decision to 6A state champ Olathe West. Dawson received All-Class 6A honorable mention by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
LYDIA DREHER, Seaman
Dreher, a sophomore pitcher, was a second-team All-Shawnee County selection and a second-team All-United Kansas Conference pick as a freshman last season after helping the Vikings earn a berth in the Class 5A state tournament. Dreher helped Seaman post a 20-9 record last spring, with the Vikings dropping a 3-2 17-inning decision to Maize South in the state quarterfinals.
Cianna Graves, Shawnee Heights
CIANNA GRAVES, Shawnee Heights
A senior catcher, Graves received second-team All-Shawnee County recognition in 2025 after helping Shawnee Heights post a 20-7 record and advance to the Class 5A state tournament before the T-Birds dropped a 3-2 state quarterfinal decision to eventual 5A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas. Graves is also a 2026 5A state wrestling champion.
Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake
KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake
Hanni, a senior left-fielder, earned first-team All-Shawnee County and first-team All-Big East League recognition last spring for the second straight season after helping Silver Lake post a 25-7 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 3A state tournament for the second straight season, with the Eagle falling 2-1 to Frontenac in nine innings. Hanni was named to the All-Class 3A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association. Hanni also led Silver Lake to the 3A state basketball title this past season.
Oliva Koch, Washburn Rural
OLIVIA KOCH, Washburn Rural
A junior pitcher/outfielder, Koch was named to the TSN All-Shawnee County first team and was named the Centennial League player of the year last season after helping lead Washburn Rural to a 22-8 record and a runnerup finish in the Class 6A state tournament, with the Junior Blues dropping an 8-7 decision to Olathe West in the state title game. Koch was named to the All-Class 6A first team by the Kansas Softball Coaches Association.
Carly McAllister, Hayden
CARLEY McALLISTER, Hayden
McCallister, a sophomore, received second-team TSN All-Shawnee County recognition a year ago as a freshman while also receiving All-Centennial League second-team honors.
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
The Hayden girls soccer team intends to make another run at a state title, a prize that was denied them in double overtime a season ago. The Wildcats took the first step in that long journey Friday by defeating Topeka foe Cair Paravel Latin 8-0 at the Bettis Family Sports Complex.
Senior Carsyn Broxterman (4) scored five goals in Hayden's 8-0 season-opening soccer win over Cair Paravel. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Hayden fell to Bishop Miege 2-1 on a golden goal corner kick in the second overtime of the Class 4-1A state championship last June. The returners carried the pain of that defeat with them for nine months, anxious to take another crack at it.
They got that chance Friday and made the most of it. The Wildcats won the right to begin the game with the powerful north wind at their backs on a coin flip. Senior Carsyn Broxterman wasted no time, tallying three goals in the first nine minutes of the contest.
Senior Reese Huscher (14) scored two goals in Friday's 8-0 season-opening Hayden soccer win over Cair Paravel. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Fellow senior Reese Huscher joined the act with two goals in the next nine minutes. Then sophomore Sawyer Wrench put one in the net and the Wildcats led 6-0 at the half.
“Working all through last year, (the championship) was our goal,” Broxterman said. “And then not getting exactly what we wanted but knowing we can get there really kind of helped push us this year to work harder and push ourselves farther than we ever thought we could.
“I think this was a really good start. It was nice seeing all of us work really hard out there and really push ourselves. I think we’re all really excited for the season.”
To make sure no one thought the wind was the reason Hayden dominated the first half, Broxterman knocked home two more goals in less than five minutes of the second half to end the game on a mercy rule with 36:34 still showing on the clock.
Playing with a big lead allowed Hayden coach Klaus Kreutzer to rotate players off the bench and see what they could do.
“We brought up two extra players and they got the opportunity to play. I think that’s worthwhile for them. I think it will motivate them in practice a little bit,” Kreutzer said. “I think offensively we looked for other players. I think we took care of opportunities when we had them and I think we finished well. I liked the effort. I liked the enthusiasm.”
Cair Paravel started the season shorthanded due to several starters missing school for an educational trip. The Lions had the misfortunate timing of starting the season with Bishop Miege – the defending state champs – and Hayden – the state runners up – in the same week. The Lions will try to build off those experiences now that they have their entire complement of players.
Kreutzer, meanwhile, had to deal with absences during the first few weeks as well. The Wildcat basketball team claimed the Class 4A state title less than two weeks ago.
“We haven’t had much in the way of practice since we had six starters who were still playing basketball,” the coach said. “The first week of soccer practice was over state. Then it’s spring break. And then we play (soccer). But it is what it is, and I think everybody else is in the same boat.
“But having said that, I think their work ethic has been pretty good. I like what I’ve seen.”
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Senior co-players of the year KaeVon Bonner of Seaman and Dayne Johnson of Silver Lake headline the 2026 TopSports.news All-Shawnee County boys basketball team.
KaeVon Bonner, Seaman
Dayne Johnson, Silver Lake
Bonner is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after leading the Vikings to a 23-5 record and a third-place finish in the Class 5A state tournament while Johnson was an all-county repeat pick after leading the Eagles to a second straight third-place state finish in 3A and ending his high school career as Silver Lake's all-time leading scorer, eclipsing the record previously held by the legendary Lon Kruger.
Rossville senior Jack Donovan is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 honoree and is joined on the first time by Rossville senior point guard Jakoby McDonnell after the Bulldawgs advanced to the Class 2A state tournament for the second straight season.
Topeka West, which won the United Kansas Conference championship in a tiebreaker over Seaman and placed fourth in Class 5A is represented on the all-county top 10 by seniors Malakyah Duncan and Keimani Paul and junior Prince Lassiter.
Also earning Top 10 honors were Hayden senior Connor Hanika, Shawnee Heights junior Cam Ross and Topeka High senior Bryson McComas.
Quincy Dixon, Shawnee Heights
Shawnee Heights freshman Quincy Dixon was named the county newcomer of the year after averaging 12.4 points and helping the T-Birds advance to the Class 5A state tournament.
Chip Kueffer, Cair Paravel Latin
Robbie Sanders, Topeka High
Cair Paravel's Chip Kueffer and Topeka High's Robbie Sanders were named the Shawnee County co-coaches of the year after leading their teams to 12-win improvements in 2025-2026.
Kueffer led CPLS to a 22-3 record, including 19 straight wins and the Flint Hills League championship while first-year coach Sanders led Topeka High to a 13-11 record in '25-'26 after the Trojans posted just one win in the previous season.
All-Shawnee County capsules:
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Silver Lake senior point guard Kailyn Hanni has been tapped as the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County girls basketball player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state championship in three seasons.
Silver Lake senior Kailyn Hanni has been named the TopSports.news Shawnee County girls player of the year after leading the Eagles to their second Class 3A state title in three seasons. [File photo/TSN]
A three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick, Hanni helped lead Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and a third straight trip to the 3A state championship game, with the Eagles sandwiching titles in 2024 and this past season around a second-place finish in 2025.
Hanni is one of five repeat picks on the All-Shawnee County Top 10, including four-time honoree Maddie Gragg of Seaman, junior repeat selections KK Emmot of Shawnee Heights and Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton of Topeka High and sophomore repeat pick Hailey Schmidtlein of Hayden.
Schmidtlein helped lead Hayden to the 4A state championship while Emmot helped Shawnee Heights post a fourth-place state finish in 5A and Rayton helped Topeka High advance to the state quarterfinals in 6A.
Also earning All-Shawnee County Top 10 spots are Rossville senior Rylee Dick, Shawnee Heights junior Pearmella Carter, Topeka High sophomore Hailey Caryl, Silver Lake sophomore Karys Deiter and Washburn Rural freshman Brynn Anderson.
Anderson was also named the Shawnee County newcomer of the year, while state-champion coaches Kyle Porter of Silver Lake and Carvel Reynoldson of Hayden were named the co-county coaches of the year.
All-Shawnee County capsules:
Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural
BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural -- Anderson was named an All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick and the Shawnee County newcomer of the year for 2025-2026 after averaging 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals and canning 41 3-pointers for the Junior Blues. Anderson was also a first-team all-county selection in volleyball.
Pearmella Carter, Shawnee Heights
PEARMELLA CARTER, Shawnee Heights -- After starring for two seasons at Highland Park, the 5-foot-9 junior had a big season in her first year at Shawnee Heights, helping the 22-6 T-Birds win their first United Kansas Conference championship and post a fourth-place finish in Class 5A in Heights' first trip to state since 2011. Carter, a second-team all-county pick as a sophomore, averaged 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds for Heights while shooting 56 percent from the field on two-point attempts.
Hailey Caryl, Topeka High
HAILEY CARYL, Topeka High -- A 5-foot-10 sophomore, Caryl moves up to the All-Shawnee County Top 10 this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman. Caryl averaged 14.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists this past season while shooting 57 percent from the field from two-point range, helping lead the Trojans to a 17-9 record, the Centennial League championship and a quarterfinal berth in the Class 6A state tournament.
Karys Deiter, Silver Lake
KARYS DEITER, Silver Lake -- Deiter, a 5-foot-6 sophomore, helped Silver Lake post a 28-1 record and win the Class 3A state championship this past season. Deiter moves up to the All-Shawnee County first team this season after being a Second 10 pick as a freshman and also earned first-team All-Big East honors. Deiter was also an all-county pick in volleyball after helping Silver Lake win the 3A state title.
Rylee Dick, Rossville
RYLEE DICK, Rossville -- Dick, a 5-foot-8 senior, helped lead the Bulldawgs to a Class 2A state tournament berth for the first time in 20 years this past season, averaging 20.6 points on the season. A unanimous All-Big East League selection, Dick finished her high school career with 1,578 points, which ranks No. 2 on Rossville's all-time list. Dick scored 31 points in Rossville's quarterfinal state loss to Ellinwood.
KK Emmot, Shawnee Heights
KK EMMOT, Shawnee Heights -- Emmot, a 5-foot-8 junior, is a two-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 pick after earning second-team honors as a freshman. Emmot, who helped lead the T-Birds to a 22-6 record, the United Kansas Conference title and a fourth-place Class 5A finish, earned first-team All-United Kansas Conference honors for the second straight season after averaging 16.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 3.0 assists while connecting on 67 3-pointers and shooting 82 percent from the free throw line.
Maddie Gragg, Seaman
MADDIE GRAGG, Seaman -- A 5-10 senior, Gragg is an All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection for the fourth straight season. Gragg, also a four-time All-United Kansas Conference first-team pick, averaged 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.4 steals while hitting 32 3-pointers. Gragg helped the Vikings win the Class 5A state championship in 2024 and finish second in 2025.
Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake
KAILYN HANNI, Silver Lake -- Hanni, a 5-7 senior, was named the Shawnee County player of the year after leading Silver Lake to a 28-1 record and the Class 3A state championship this past season. Hanni also played a major role in the Eagles' 26-0 state championship run in 2024 and a runnerup state finish in 2025. Hanni is a three-time All-Shawnee County Top 10 selection as well as an All-Big East first-team pick.
Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High
AHSIEYRHUAJH RAYTON, Topeka High --Rayton, a 5-7 junior All-Shawnee County repeat pick, averaged a city-high 23.6 points on the season for the 17-9 Trojans while also averaging 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals and shooting 52 percent from two-point range and 37 percent on 3-point attempts. Rayton helped the Trojans win the Centennial League championship and advance to the Class 6A state tournament.
Hailey Schmidtlein, Hayden
HAILEY SCHMIDTLEIN, Hayden --Schmidtlein, a 6-0 sophomore, earned first-team All-Shawnee County recognition for the second straight season after helping lead the Wildcats to a 22-6 record and Hayden's first Class 4A state championship since 2004. Schmidtlein averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.7 steals, 2.5 assists and 2.0 blocked shots.
2025 TSN ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY GIRLS BASKETBALL
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cale Deutscher, Washburn Rural
CALE DEUTSCHER, Washburn Rural
Deutscher, a senior, teamed with Dylan Willingham to finish seventh in Class 6A doubles last spring. Deutscher and Willingham won Centennial League and regional doubles championhips after finishing second in No. 1 doubles in the city meet. Deutscher was an All-City repeater in 2025, winning the city No. 2 doubles title as a sophomore.
Cole Fay, Cair Paravel Latin
COLE FAY, Cair Paravel Latin
A sophomore, Fay finished off his freshman season with a 10th-place singles finish in the Class 3A-1A state tournament last season. An All-City pick, Fay qualified for the state tournament with a regional championship, helping the Lions win the regional team title, and finished fourth in the city in No. 1 singles.
Drew Fay, Cair Paravel Latin
DREW FAY, Cair Paravel Latin
Fay, a senior, teamed with foreign exchange student Eric Buchenau to finish second in doubles in the 2025 Class 3A-1A state tournament. Fay and Buchenau, who went 29-2 on the season, captured the city championship in No. 1 doubles and also won a regional title. Fay is a three-time 3A-1A state qualifier, posting a fourth-place singles finish as a sophomore. He is a two-time All-City pick.
Greyson Jones, Washburn Rural
GREYSON JONES, Washburn Rural
Jones, a earned a spot on the 2025 All-City team with the No. 2 singles championship in the city tournament and also posted a fifth-place singles finish in the Centennial League tournament. Jones helped the Junior Blues capture team championships in city, Centennial League and regional competition.
Tres Lassiter, Topeka High
TRES LASSITER, Topeka High
A senior, Lassiter captured the city title in No. 1 singles in his first season of high school tennis last spring. Lassiter also posted a runnerup singles finish in the Centennial League and Class 6A regional tournaments and posted a 2-2 singles record in his first Class 6A state tournament.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
AUSTIN BEAN, Hayden
A senior, Bean helped Hayden post a runnerup team finish in the Class 4A state tournament last season, earning second-team All-Shawnee County recognition. Bean finished 10th in the 2025 city championships with a 27-hole score of 127 and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament. He tied for 12th in 4A regional competition with an 81 as the Wildcats finished second as a team.
CALEB CLEVERDON, Topeka High/Cair Paravel Latin
Cleverdon, a senior, competed for Topeka High during the regular season before competing for High's co-op partner, Cair Paravel, in postseason. Cleverdon tied for sixth in the Class 2A state tournament with a 36-hole total of 155 (76-79), leading the Lions to a fourth-place team finish. A second-team All-Shawnee County pick, Cleverdon finished 10th in a 2A regional (83) for team champion CPLS.
Jack Donovan
JACK DONOVAN, Rossville
A senior, Donovan was a first-team All-Shawnee County pick for the second straight season last spring after earning a state medal for the second straight year with a tie for sixth in the Class 2A state event with a 36 hole score of 155 (76-79). Donovan was a 2A regional medalist, shooting a Rossville school-record 68 to win the individual championship by 12 strokes.
Peyton Goehring
PEYTON GOEHRING, Washburn Rural
Goehring is a top senior returner for Washburn Rural, which captured its 15th straight city team championship last season and advanced to the Class 6A state tournament as a team with a third-place team finish. Goehring carded a 27-hole score of 129 in the city tournament, missing the top 10 by two strokes and shot a 78 in the Centennial League tournament and finished 23rd at regionals.
Higgins Hawks
HIGGINS HAWKS, Washburn Rural
Hawks, a senior, earned his first All-Shawnee County first-team honor for the Junior Blues last season. Hawks tied for fifth in the city tournament with a 27-hole score of 124 as Rural won its 15th straight city championship. Hawks shot an 80 at regionals to tie for 10th as the Junior Blues earned a Class 6A team berth with a third-place finish and tied for 36th at state with a 36-hole score of 156 (75-81).
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
The Cair Paravel Latin boys’ exhilarating run that included 19 straight victories came one step short of their goal: to make the school’s first trip to the state basketball tournament.
The Lions fell to St. Marys 67-47 in the Class 2A sub-state final at Mission Valley Saturday. The Lions were unable to keep pace with the efficient Bears, who hit 22-42 shots from the field and 15-19 from the foul stripe.
Cair Paravel Latin's boys basketball team poses for a team picture after Saturday's second-place Class 2A sub-state finish. [Photo by Todd Fertig/TSN]
St. Marys had scored 88 and 89 points in its previous two sub-state tournament wins. Even holding the Bears to 67 points probably wasn’t going to cut it, Cair Paravel coach Chip Kueffer said.
“We gave up too many points. That’s asking a lot for us to score 70. You know, that’s not really our game. So, we had to guard better,” Kueffer said. “We played OK. It was kind of our type of game the first 12 minutes, but second half they started hitting 3-pointers and then it’s tough to scratch and claw back. There are no 20-point plays.”
The Lions trailed by just three points after one period, 15-12. They slipped a bit off the pace, but recovered to cut the St. Marys lead to 30-25 early in the third period. But the Bears outscored Cair Paravel 22-12 in the decisive third quarter.
“They are an exceptional team,” Kueffer said of the Bears. “When you’ve got six or seven guys who can all shoot the three-ball, it makes it tough to guard. I felt like in the first half, we did a really good job of guarding the 3-point line, but then what did that open up? Well, there wasn’t enough help, so they got a lot of curls on shuffle picks and then slips and things like that.”
Kueffer said that when the Lions tried to adjust, St. Marys senior Ben DeVader found room to operate, and he scored 17 points, including four 3-pointers, in the second half. DeVader finished with 23.
“I certainly think we knew personnel and schematics well enough,” Kueffer said. “But if you would have given me two or three weeks, I’d have taken it because they are a tough team to get ready for.”
Lucas Marichal led the Lions with 17 points, nine of which came from the free throw line. Chase Hastert scored 10, and Blaine Durbin and Drew Fay each added eight.
“I don’t want to discredit what (the Lions) accomplished. This year was an exceptional year,” Kueffer said. “It’s one of those games that you kind of wish you could tip the ball again and restart. But life doesn’t work that way.
“It’s over now. We want to just make sure that we focus on all the good things that we did do between November and March. And it’s cool that we got to play in March. That’s a lot better than ending your year in February.”
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
It took some overtime heroics, but the Cair Paravel Latin boys kept their win streak – and their hopes to make the school’s first-ever state tournament appearance – alive Wednesday. The Lions edged Doniphan West 52-45 to advance to the Class 2A sub-state finals.
Lucas Marichal scored six points in overtime to help Cair Paravel post a win over Doniphan West Wednesday night. [File photo/TSN]
The Lions overcame illness, bumps and bruises and foul trouble, but they almost didn’t overcome an ugly first half that found them in a 20-14 hole.
Cair Paravel finally found its footing in the third period, but Doniphan West continued to trade blows with the home team. The Lions trailed 38-33 with one quarter left to extend the season.
Senior Caleb Cleverdon dropped a couple of big shots to help the Lions close the fourth-period gap. Missed free throws by the Mustangs opened the door, and the Lions tied the score at 42-42 in the final minute to send it to overtime.
Lucas Marichal, frequently the Lions’ top scorer, scored just three points in regulation and spent much of the game on the bench, weakened by a recent illness. But when the opportunity presented itself in overtime, the senior knew he had to step up.
“I’ve been fever-free since Monday, but I haven’t been full strength,” said Marichal, who missed school and practice on Tuesday and was held out of the starting lineup Wednesday. “I’d been pretty low energy, pretty fatigued for most of the game.
“When I got subbed out in the fourth quarter with about two or three minutes left, I was like ‘Dang, is this really it? Is my season going to end with me on the bench being sick?’ ”
The Lions’ desperation increased when sophomore Chase Hastert, the team’s leading scorer with 13, fouled out with 3:03 remaining in overtime. Marichal began finding creases in the Mustang defense and hit two driving floaters. He then hit two foul shots to give Cair Paravel a 48-44 lead.
“We just needed to score. It was, win the game and move on, or if we lose, you know, I never get to play basketball with these guys again,” Marichal said. “I realized that we needed to get some shots going. So, I just took it to the rim a couple of times and got some takes to go in. We figured it out because good teams find a way to win games.”
The Lions’ defense held Doniphan West to just four points in the fourth quarter and three in the overtime period, paving the way for the comeback.
“It’s technically March, so crazy things happen in March,” said Cair Paravel coach Chip Kueffer. “That was certainly not the way you want to start a game. But I’m proud of the grit they showed to finish it.”
Cair Paravel entered the game on an 18-game winning streak, seeded first in its eight-team bracket. Kueffer said the Lions might have been affected by the importance of the moment.
“I think jitters (bothered us), for certain,” Kueffer said. “I think (Doniphan West) is a good team. They hit shots, they pop you in the mouth and you’re kind of dizzy for a little bit. It felt like when we did hit shots, they responded really quickly. In the third quarter we tried to make a run there, then they’d respond with another three-pointer.
“I felt like we finally played like us in the fourth quarter. We started to pressure them a little bit. We felt like we could see the finish line. All right, probably better empty the gas tank now.”
Following Hastert’s 13 points was Cleverdon with 11 and Marichal with nine. Drew Fay and Blaine Durbin each contributed eight.
The Lions will travel to neutral-site Mission Valley Saturday to face St. Marys in a 6:30 p.m. contest with a state tournament berth on the line. Cair Paravel has only reached the sub-state final round once previously, a heartbreaking 58-57 loss to Troy in 2022.
Kueffer reflected on the now 19-game win streak and the character required to win some of those close games.
“You’ve got to win when you play bad,” the third-year coach said. “And we certainly did that today. We played bad, but I was proud of the resilience that our captains showed.
“There have been a lot of one, two possession basketball games. So, I’m really proud of our senior class. There’s a lot of games we could have very easily lost. And so, you kind of start to develop that identity as seniors of, ‘Maybe we’re winners. If we’re winning close games, maybe we can be competitive. Maybe we can be winners.’ ”
St. Marys (17-7) advanced to Saturday's sub-state final with an 89-65 win over Valley Falls.
CAIR PARAVEL BOYS 52, DONIPHAN WEST 45
Doniphan West 8 12 18 4 3 -- 45
Cair Paravel 8 6 19 9 10 -- 52
Doniphan West (13-12) – Ko. Peterson 5-9 0-0 11, Albers 2-3 0-4 4, Keller 0-5 0-0 0, Veach 4-14 0-0 12, Ke. Peterson 1-7 2-4 4, Shelton 5-10 0-0 14, Paolino 0-0 0-0 0, Harring 0-0 0-0 0. Totals17-48 2-8 45.
Cair Paravel (22-2) – Gossard 1-4 1-2 3, Hastert 5-14 0-0 13, Durbin 3-6 2-6 8, Cleverdon 4-7 0-0 11, Fay 3-9 2-4 8, Marichal 3-6 3-6 9. Totals 19-46 8-18 52.
3-point goals – Doniphan West 9 (Veach 4, Shelton 4, Ko. Peterson 1), Cair Paravel 6 (Hastert 3, Cleverdon 3). Total fouls – Doniphan West 18, Cair Paravel 12. Fouled out – Hastert. Technical fouls – Harring.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural earned nine of 11 spots on the 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving team, led by Class 6A state champion Daniel Allen, after the Junior Blues capturned their seventh straight city team championship.
The 2026 All-City boys swimming first team -- Front, from left: Alexander Jeffries, Washburn Rural; Davin Potts, Washburn Rural; Braeden Montgomery, Washburn Rural; Benjamin Allen, Washburn Rural; Andres Morao-Jaspe, Washburn Rural. Back, from left: Kinser Barbosa, Seaman; Daniel Allen, Washburn Rural; Thomas Appuhn, Washburn Rural; Zain Chaudhry, Washburn Rural; Castle Wallace, Washburn Rural; Will Stewart, Topeka High. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The 2026 All-City boys swimming and diving second team -- Front row, from left: Quenten Jessop, Washburn Rural; Henry Sterling, Cair Paravel/Hayden; William Toland, Topeka High; Wyatt Ratteree, Topeka High; Jackson Wills, Topeka High; Owen Gann, Shawnee Heights. Back row, from left: Patrick Luke, Hayden; Joseph Jensen, Washburn Rural; Miller Reid, Hayden; Camp LeDuc, Seaman; Theron Carlson, Seaman. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Allen capped his junior season with the state title in the 100-yard butterfly while also placing third in the 100 backstroke and swimming on the Junior Blues' fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.
Sophomore Thomas Appuhn also earned four medals in the state meet, posting fourth-place finishes in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and swimming on Rural's fourth-place 200 medley relay and seventh-place 200 free relay.
Junior Andres Morao-Jaspe and sophomore Castle Wallace also earned 6A state medals as Washburn Rural placed sixth as team and are joined on the All-City team by Benjamin Allen, Zain Chaudhry, Alexander Jeffries, Braeden Montgomery and Davin Potts.
Appuhn, Morao-Jaspe and Wallace are all first-team All-City repeat honorees while D. Allen made the team as a freshman before sitting out his sophomore high school season.
Seaman's Kinser Barbosa and Topeka High's Will Stewart are also repeat first-team All-City selections.
All-City capsules:
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
The No. 1 seeded Cair Paravel boys are off to the semifinal round in the Class 2A sub-state bracket, taking down Horton at home Friday night, 68-28.
Chase Hastert paced Cair Paravel with 16 points in Friday's 68-28 win over Horton. [File photo/TSN]
“I love our home crowd, it’s such a cool little atmosphere man,'' Cair Paravel coach Chip Kueffer said. "We have a special community here. Love the student section. We're really grateful that we have another opportunity to pack The Den.”
CPLS got out to a 4-2 lead but the Chargers went on a mini 5-0 run to lead 7-4 before sophomore Chase Hastert rattled off two 3-pointers to put the Lions back in front 10-9 and the hosts would lead 14-11 heading into the second quarter.
“We weren’t particularly strong with the ball against their zone,'' Kueffer said. "They’ve pretty much run it all this season and we knew it was coming. When we did get it to the spots that we wanted to, we caught it and were hesitant and played on our heels, we jumped passes and floated some shots.
“I think we did a much better job of turning defense into offense in the second half than turning them over because in the halfcourt we were not very good at all.''
Cair Paravel opened the second quarter on a 7-0 run as senior Caleb Cleverdon started it with a trey, as the Lions got the lead to 21-11.
The Lions had it going from distance, as Cleverdon and Hastert would hit one three apiece, extending the lead to 13 (27-14).
Horton’s Talon Hooper drilled one from way beyond the arc right before the buzzer as CPLS took a 33-22 lead into the half.
To begin the third quarter, the Lions started out on fire, beginning with a 6-0 run and forcing the Chargers into a timeout just over a minute into the quarter. After that, CPLS had the fullcourt press on and created turnover after turnover, turning into easy buckets and the lead just kept growing.
“We definitely like to be able to get to that fast start in the first two minutes of the game as opposed to the first two minutes of the third quarter, but that’s something we like to do,” Drew Fay said.
“We knew from film that they were a scrappy team and they play really hard and have given teams a lot of trouble and we came out and struggled.''
Kueffer credited Fay, who finished with 13 points, on that hot start to begin the second half.
“He’s so consistent for us. He showed up ready to play today and he always does, but I just think it's misunderstood how much value he brings to our team,'' Kueffer said. "He’s super composed and a high IQ kind of guy and when he’s the guy who puts the ball in the hoop it's great because everyone puts eyes on him.
"I’m excited for him to get those transition finishes because he’s one of those guys who you love to see make plays.''
Hastert got it to 20 (42-22) off a floater and senior Fay converted an and-one, pushing the advantage to 25 (47-22). It eventually got to 34 points at the end of the quarter, 58-24.
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
The Cair Paravel girls’ three-game winning streak was snapped in a 35-30 home loss to Jefferson County North in the final regular season game Thursday. The Lions finished the schedule with an 11-11 record and now await their postseason assignment.
Becca Gateley led CPLS with 11 points, including three 3-pointers, in Thursday's 35-30 loss to Jefferson County North. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Lions stayed in lockstep with the visiting Chargers right to the end. Neither team led by more than four points until the final seconds, and Cair Paravel led by one point, 30-29, with 3:40 left.
It was at that point that the foul disparity became too much for the Lions to overcome. Cair Paravel committed 20 fouls to the Chargers’ 10. The Chargers hit 14-20 free throws to the Lions’ 2-4. Cair Paravel’s two seniors – Karsyn Hastert and KellyAnn Chada – both fouled out in the final minutes.
“Obviously, fouls were a big part of the game, and it was hard because three of my girls were playing with four fouls,” said Cair Paravel coach Jaley Barkley.
The Lions got just three points from their leading scorer, London Backman, and none from Chada.
“You could definitely tell Jefferson County North had scouted us. They were all over Karsyn and they really shut down KellyAnn and London,” said Barkley. “I’m proud of the girls that stepped up. They hit some shots.”
Karsyn Hastert had 10 points in Thursday's 35-30 Cair Paravel loss to Jefferson County North. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Junior Becca Gateley got hot in the second half, hitting three consecutive 3-pointers to keep the Lions in it. She finished with 11 points, followed by Hastert with 10.
Though the loss dropped the Lions to .500, Barkley said the three-game win streak injected a sense of pride in the team.
“The girls have really enjoyed having that winning record,” Barkley said. “It’s kind of brought a different fuel and energy to the team that wasn’t there last year. Being .500 puts us kind of in the middle of the pack (for sub-state) as opposed to some of the years before.”
The Lions are 5-2 in February and hope to be peaking at the right time.
“From our first game of the season ‘til now, we’ve improved in all areas,” Barkley said. “I’m just proud of the girls for everything they’ve learned throughout this season in every individual game. They’ve been very coachable and have grown so much.”
JEFFERSON COUNTY NORTH GIRLS 35, CAIR PARAVEL 30
Jefferson County North 10 4 11 10 -- 35
Cair Paravel 7 8 8 7 -- 30
Jefferson County North (13-9) – Blattner 2-7 3-4 8, Johnson 1-9 2-2 4, Thompson 2-7 4-8 8, Porter 2-6 0-0 4, L. Noll 0-6 2-2 2, Schrick 1-4 0-0 2, R. Noll 1-6 1-2 3, Hernandez 1-2 2-2 4. Totals 10-47 14-20 35.
Cair Paravel (11-11) – Hastert 5-8 0-0 10, Donaldson 0-5 0-0 0, Gateley 4-11 0-0 11, K. Chada 0-7 2-2 2, Backman 1-9 0-2 3, Rosenow 2-5 0-0 4, M. Chada 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 12-45 2-4 30.
3-point goals – Jefferson County North 1 (Blattner), Cair Paravel 4 (Gateley 3, Backman). Total fouls – Jefferson County North 10, Cair Paravel 20. Fouled out – Hastert, Chada. Technical fouls – none.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights girls basketball protected its share of the United Kansas Conference lead with a 64-51 road win at Basehor-Linwood Tuesday night, the T-Birds' sixth straight win.
Senior KK Emmot (1) scored 21 points Tuesday night as Shawnee Heights improved to 17-4 with a 64-51 UKC win at Basehor-Linwood. [File photo/TSN]
KK Emmot led four T-Birds in double figures with 21 points, including four 3-pointers, as Shawnee Heights improved to 17-4 overall and 13-1 in the conference.
Heights also got 17 points from junior Pearmella Carter, 13 from senior Reianna Vega and 11 points from senior Imani McGlory.
The T-Birds led 15-10 at the end of the opening quarter, 34-25 at the halftime break and 50-35 after three quarters before cruising the rest of the way.
Shawnee Heights will travel to Kansas City-Turner on Friday for a UKC contest.
T-Bird boys take 57-56 thriller over Bobcats
Shawnee Heights boys survived a last-second shot from Basehor-Linwood to take a 57-56 United Kansas Conference road victory over the Bobcats on Tuesday.
With the win the T-Birds improved to 13-7 overall and 9-5 in the UKC and have now won four out of their last five games.
Shawnee Heights will travel to Kansas City-Turner on Friday for a UKC game before hosting Pittsburg on Saturday in a non-league tilt.
Junior Prince Lassiter led Topeka West with 22 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday's 78-54 win over De Soto. [File photo/TSN]
West boys roll to 78-54 UKC victory at De Soto
Topeka West improved to 17-3 overall and 12-2 in the United Kansas Conference with a 78-54 Tuesday night road win at at De Soto.
West took control from the opening tipoff, outscoring the Wildcats 27-8 in the first quarter.
The Chargers led 45-27 at the half before opening up a 64-40 margin at the start of the final period.
Junior Prince Lassiter led Topeka West with a game-high 22 points while also grabbing eight rebounds.
Seniors Malakyah Duncan and Gad Munganga added 16 and 14 points, respectively, with both Chargers connecting on four 3-pointers as West hit 10 treys as a team.
Brandon Serna led De Soto (7-12, 4-9) with 11 points.
De Soto tops West girls, 70-41
De Soto's girls romped to a 70-41 United Kansas Conference home victory over Topeka West Tuesday night.
De Soto improved to 10-9 overall and 7-6 in the conference while Topeka West fell to 5-15, 2-12.
Pirates knock off UKC-leading Seaman, 59-50
Piper avenged an earlier United Kansas Conference loss to Seaman Tuesday night, taking a 59-50 home win over the Vikings.
The Vikings suffered only their second UKC loss, dropping to 16-4 overall and 11-2 in the conference.
Piper improved to 14-6 overall and 10-3 in the UKC, winning for the seventh time over its last eight games.
Seaman will be at home Friday to host Basehor-Linwood in a UKC matchup.
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
The red-hot Cair Paravel Lions ran their winning streak to 17 games Thursday, setting themselves up for the post-season with a 64-43 victory over Jefferson County North.
Chase Hastert paced Cair Paravel with 13 points in Thursday's 64-43 win over Jefferson County North. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The 20-2 Lions have not tasted defeat since December 12, when they dropped a hard-fought battle with Axtell, the state’s top-ranked team in Class 1A Div. 2.
Thursday, Cair Paravel overcome a size disadvantage by playing gritty defense and shooting the lights out. The Lions hit 23-47 shots, including eight threes to just two for JCN.
The Lions had to figure out how to stop towering post player Isaac Laird and high-scoring wing man Chance Jenkins. Cair Paravel coach Chip Kueffer decided to put his tallest player, Blaine Durbin, on the lanky Jenkins, leaving senior Caleb Cleverdon to defend Laird in the paint.
“Coach Johnny McDermott put together a flawless scouting report and they followed it to a T,” Kueffer said. "(The Chargers) were a huge matchup problem, and they’re going to make a run, I would be surprised if they don’t win their sub-state. They’ve got a lot of length and they’ve got matchups.
“Caleb Cleverdon, I mean, he doesn’t look like much of an offensive lineman, but he is. So, we just had him sit on (Laird). He had to have help from behind and we had to talk, big time. Really proud of Caleb for the way he showed up tonight.”
Freshman Mateo Gossard reacts after hitting one of his four 3-pointers Thursday night in Cair Paravel's 64-43 win over JCN. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Lions led 18-9 early in the second period when they got an outburst from freshman Matteo Gossard, the only non-starter to play for the Lions. Gossard nearly brought the roof down when he connected on four consecutive 3-pointers in the quarter.
“Stay ready, you don’t have to get ready,” Kueffer said of Gossard’s contribution. “He’s a player. No surprise to anybody, but so happy for him. He’s been a spark all year, but really happy to see those shots fall for him.”
“Our guards, Chase (Hastert) and Lucas (Marichal), were driving in, creating open lanes for me and then just dishing the ball. Then I just basically had to finish the job,” Gossard said. “So, thanks to them. When I hit the first one, I kind of was like, ‘I might be able to get hot.’ Then my teammates just kept giving me the ball when there was no one on me.”
Trailing 34-15 at halftime, Jefferson County North made some adjustments and appeared energized to make a run. But senior Drew Fay, scoreless in the first half, converted all four of his field goal attempts in the quarter to help the Lions stay in front.
“It was a great team win. This was definitely one of our best games of the season,” Fay said. “I felt like we all worked together, we all played hard, and things were just kind of clicking tonight. Our passes felt crisp. We were hitting shots. It seemed like things were just going our way.”
The Lions’ offense produced balanced scoring Thursday. Hastert led with 13 points, followed by Gossard and Durbin with 12 apiece. Cleverdon and Fay each tallied 10, and Marichal added seven.
The Lions entered the final week of the season as the seventh-ranked team in Class 2A. Having never been ranked before this season, they now enter the postseason in an unfamiliar role – the hunted as opposed to the hunter.
“It’s interesting because we’re starting to get a little bit of attention from people,” Kueffer said. “We just got to make sure that we deflect and redirect all that attention towards Christ because that’s what we stand on. That’s the cornerstone of everything we do. We’re getting attention for the school, which is a great thing, but we got to make sure that the main thing stays the main thing.”
CAIR PARAVEL BOYS 64, JEFFERSON COUNTY NORTH 43
Jefferson County North 7 8 16 12 -- 43
Cair Paravel 10 24 15 15 -- 64
Jefferson County North (16-6) – Van Dyke 2-8 0-0 4, Elias 1-5 0-0 3, Fuhrman 3-9 4-8 10, Jenkins 4-9 1-1 10, Laird 5-5 2-4 12, Lindsay 2-3 0-0 4. Totals: 17-39 7-13 43.
Cair Paravel (20-2) – Hastert 4-7 3-8 13, Marichal 1-4 5-6 7, Durbin 6-16 0-0 12, Cleverdon 4-7 0-0 10, Fay 4-6 2-3 10, Gossard 4-7 0-1 12. Totals: 23-47 10-17 64.
3-point goals – Jefferson County North 2 (Elias 1, Jenkins 1), Cair Paravel 8 (Gossard 4, Cleverdon 2, Hastert 2). Total fouls – Jefferson County North 14, Cair Paravel 13. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – None.
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin girls basketball entered Friday's Senior Night game coming off a big win over league rival Council Grove Tuesday and pushed its win streak to two, handling Heritage Christian, 43-9.
Seniors Karysn Hastert and KellyAnn Chada have meant a lot to the Lions program over the last four years and especially the last two years with coach Jaley Barkley, who said she’s loved coaching both of them.
“Their connection is just something special,'' Barkley said. "They’re great friends off the court. They’ve been great leaders for me since I took over as coach. The girls look up to both Karysn and KellyAnn and they’ve stepped up in such a big way.”
“It’s very bittersweet,'' Chada said. "Obviously this isn’t the last game but it symbolizes the last game in a way which is something I will miss. I’ve really enjoyed having Jaley as a coach. She went here and we’ve had a prior connection and it was great to have her come back to CP.''
Hastert started the scoring for CPLS just over two minutes into the game, but then the Lions kicked it into another gear. Junior Becca Gateley drilled a triple to make it 5-0 and after another bucket, Heritage Christian called a timeout with 4:25 left in the first quarter.
Cair Paravel went on a 19-1 run to begin the game, thanks to freshman Avery Rosenow and then a Chada and-one as CPLS led 19-3 after one quarter.
The second quarter started slow for both teams, but CPLS was all over the Eagles forcing turnovers, leading to fastbreak and transition points, as multiple players scored in the game for a balanced scoring attack.
Gateley pushed the advantage to 26-5 after another three and held and Cair Paravel held Heritage Christian to just five points in the half, leading 32-5.
Hastert and Chada scored all six points for CPLS in the third quarter as Hastert would finish with a game-high 14 points and Chada with 13. After the 32 point margin (38-6) the running clock began in the fourth quarter.
“Once we settled in and got into that rhythm, we had a fun game,” Chada said.
Barkley subbed out Hastert and Chada with a little under three minutes left in the game as the Lions picked up win No. 10 on the campaign.
“Once the first basket falls, it opens the lid for the girls,'' Barkley said. "Our 3-2 zone has been our bread and butter creating steals and I have a couple of girls in the top of the steals category for the city. Once Karsyn got that first bucket, it helped get the game flowing.''
CAIR PARAVEL 43, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 9
Heritage Christian 3 2 1 3 – 9
Cair Paravel 19 13 6 5 – 43
Heritage Christian (10-5) – Mullikin 1 0-0 2, Raj 0 1-2 1, Seashols 0 1-4 1, May 2 1-4 5.
Cair Paravel (10-10) – Hastert 6 2-4 14, Rosenow 3 0-0 6, Gateley 2 0-0 6, Welshans 2 0-0 4, Chada 6 1-1 13.
3-point goals – Cair Paravel 2 (Gateley 2). Total fouls – Heritage Christian 3, Cair Paravel 8. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none.
By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin's boys basketball team picked up its 15th straight win Friday on Senior Night, improving to 18-2 with a 73-34 home victory over Heritage Christian.
“It’s obviously super fun,'' CPLS senior Caleb Cleverson said. "I think with this group of guys, I couldn’t pick a better group to do it with. At a Christian school, we talk about God is the middle term and we’re united as a team with God in mind, so when the first five go out there, we are pursuing Christ.”
“It was kind of a weird game,'' Lions coach Chip Kueffer said. "I thought our kids did well. I felt like they did some things fundamentally sound like they should. It’s tough because you want to stay sharp and when things are going well in games like this, it’s really easy to develop some bad habits, get away with one handed passes, jump to pass or take some sloppy shots, but I think we did a pretty good job in spurts of trying to stay disciplined.”
Senior Lucas Marichal continued his stellar season, especially his 3-point shooting, hitting two in the first quarter, pushing CPLS in front 5-4. The team would go on a 9-0 run, leading 13-4. Marichal pushed that lead to 10, 18-8 and pushed the Red Lions to a 22-12 advantage after one.
“We had all the pieces but I don’t think we knew we could play to this level that we’ve been playing at and we’ve played some really good teams this year,'' said Marichael, who finished with a game-high 20 points. "I think we’ll be very well prepared down the road.''
CPLS put up 23 points in the second quarter from a variety of players, thanks to another 12-0 run. Cleverdon knocked down a triple at 29-12. Then at 31-12, the Eagles called timeout with 4:27 before halftime.
Senior Drew Fay, who chipped in 11 points, capped off the 12-0 run with a bucket down low to put CPLS in front, 34-12.
CPLS then ran away with the game late in the second quarter, taking a commanding 45-16 lead while holding Heritage Christian to four points in the quarter.
In the third quarter, CPLS jumped out to another big run of 10-0. Fay got an and-one opportunity, missed the free throw but sophomore Blain Durbin, who provided 19 points, grabbed the rebound for the putback as the Lions opened up a 39-point cushion, their biggest of the game (55-16).
Kueffer did pull the seniors with over five minutes left in the third quarter but they returned to begin the fourth quarter before they were eventually pulled once again.
The Lions led by 43 at one point with the running clock in effect (73-30).
“If you come out and watch some pretty poor basketball you kind of get out of it but I don’t think our guys or their team did that,'' Cleverdon said. "Both of us were playing really hard and fighting for every point so I think it was pretty easy for us on the bench to stay locked in.''
“I think we’re having fun, there’s a lot of season left,'' Kueffer said. "We have big dreams, big aspirations. I think we’re treating people the right way. One of our advantages is we don’t have one guy, we’ve got five or six that can lead the charge.
"Basketball is a crazy sport that’s why March is Madness because anybody can beat anybody. We have to stay disciplined and sharp.''
CAIR PARAVEL 73, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 34
Heritage Christian 12 4 11 7 – 34
Cair Paravel 22 23 21 7 – 73
Heritage Christian (9-6) – Freerksen 2 0-0 5, June 2 0-0 4, May 2 2-4 6, Perry Cruz 7 5-5 19.
Cair Paravel (18-2) – Gossard 1 0-0 2, Turcato 1 2-2 5, Congdon 1 0-0 2, Hastert 4 0-0 9 Marichal 7 3-4 20, Durbin 9 12 19, Cleverdon 2 0-0 5, Fay 5 1-2 11, Bond 0 0-3 0.
3-point goals – Heritage Christian 1 (Freerksen), Cair Paravel 6 (Marichal 3, Hastert, Turcato, Cleverdon). Total fouls – Heritage Christian 8, Cair Paravel 11. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls -- none.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin boys basketball completed a wire to wire 10-0 run to the Flint Hills League regular-season championship on Tuesday night, posting a 61-41 home win over Council Grove.
The Lions also won the Flint Hills League midseason tournament.
Lucas Marichal led the way with 17 points as Cair Paravel wrapped up a perfect Flint Hills League record with Tuesday's 61-41 win over Council Grove. [File photo/TSN]
Now 17-2 overall with 14 straight victories, the Lions took control of Tuesday's game with a 25-9 first quarter.
Cair Paravel led 38-18 at the half and the two teams battled to a 23-23 scoring stalemate over the final two quarters.
Lucas Marichal led Cair Paravel with 17 points while Chase Hastert added 14 points with three 3-pointers and Blaine Durbin had 12 points.
The Lions will host Heritage Christian on Friday.
CPLS girls take 36-31 victory
London Backman led the way with 13 points, including three 3-pointers, as Cair Paravel's girls took a tight 36-31 Flint Hills League decision over Council Grove Tuesday on the Lions' home court.
Cair Paravel led 9-6 at the end of the first quarter and 16-11 at the half before going in front 27-20 through three quarters.
Council Grove held an 11-9 scoring edge over the final eight minutes but Cair Paravel was able to hold on for the win, improving to 9-10 on the season.
Karsyn Hastert added nine points and Avery Rosenow seven points for the Lions.
Rural boys drop 63-54 Centennial League tilt to Manhattan
Washburn Rural dropped its third straight single-digit game on Tuesday, with Manhattan taking a home 63-54 Centennial League decision over the Junior Blues.
Rural fell to 9-8 overall and 2-3 in the league while Manhattan improved to 12-5 overall and 4-1 in the league.
The Junior Blues will be at home Friday to host Junction City in a Centennial League contest.
Manhattan tops Lady Blues, 67-45
Manhattan girls basketball rolled to a 67-45 home Centennial League win over Washburn Rural Tuesday night.
Washburn Rural fell to 11-6 overall and 2-3 in the league.
Scots roll to 26-point Meadowlark Conference win
Highland Park's boys posted their second straight win Tuesday night, taking a 48-22 Meadowlark Conference road decision over Kansas City-Schlagle.
The Scots, now 5-14, have outscored their past two foes by a 116-41 margin.
Highland Park's girls took a 2-0 forfeit win over Schlagle.
Cameron Miller scored 26 points Tuesday in Rossville's 75-43 win over Royal Valley. [File photo/TSN]
Bulldawg boys continue hot streak
Rossville boys basketball has now won six out of its last seven games after a 75-43 Big East League rout Tuesday night at Royal Valley.
The Bulldawgs, now 11-6 overall and 6-4 in the league, took control with a 45-23 first-half onslaught and used a 25-15 third quarter to force a running clock over the final eight minutes.
Senior Cameron Miller paced Rossville with 26 points while Jack Donovan added 21 points and Jakoby McDonnell 11.
Rossville will be at home Friday to host Abilene.
Senior Rylee Dick scored 24 points to pace Rossville to a 63-37 win over Royal Valley Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]
Dick, Burdiek power Rossville past Royal Valley
Senior Rylee Dick scored 24 points and junior Nora Burdiek 21 points as Rossville's girls took a 63-37 Big East League road win at Royal Valley.
Rossville has now won three straight games, improving to 9-8 on the season and 4-6 in the league.
The Bulldawgs will be at home Friday to host Abilene.
NOTE: Statistics for city girls basketball teams were compiled by Seaman girls coach Matt Tinsley. The following stats are the second of three statistical reports which will be released during the 2025-2026 season, capped by the season-ending stats. Topeka West statistics were not available.
Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High
SCORING
Name, school Gms. Pts. Avg
Rayton, Topeka High 13 307 23.6
Schmidtlein, Hayden 13 230 17.7
Emmot, Shawnee Heights 16 275 17.2
Caryl, Topeka High 10 152 15.2
Anderson, Washburn Rural 13 190 14.6
McGlory, Shawnee Heights 15 194 12.9
Gragg, Seaman 13 163 12.5
Marshall, Topeka High 14 158 11.3
Carter, Shawnee Heights 15 163 10.9
Kincade, Highland Park 13 137 10.5
Beaton, Seaman 11 114 10.4
Jones, Highland Park 13 134 10.3
Carlgren, Washburn Rural 14 143 10.2
Hirschi, Washburn Rural 14 130 9.3
Backman, CPLS 13 115 8.8
REBOUNDING
Name, school Gms. Total Avg.
Caryl, Topeka High 10 116 11.6
Walker, Washburn Rural 14 124 8.9
Gragg, Seaman 13 105 8.1
Schmidtlein, Hayden 13 92 7.1
Carter, Shawnee Heights 12 84 7.0
Jones, Highland Park 13 88 6.8
Dreher, Seaman 13 83 6.4
Vega, Shawnee Heights 13 74 5.7
Gotru, Topeka High 13 72 5.5
Anderson, Washburn Rural 13 71 5.5
Marshall, Topeka High 14 76 5.4
Watts, Hayden 13 70 5.4
Carlgren, Washburn Rural 14 74 5.3
Barnett, Highland Park 12 60 5.0
Walter, Hayden 13 60 4.6
Baum, Shawnee Heights 13 60 4.6
Hailey Caryl, Topeka High
ASSISTS
Name, school Gms. Total Avg.
Caryl, Topeka High 10 69 6.9
Jones, Highland Park 13 42 3.2
Beaton, Seaman 11 35 3.2
Gragg, Seaman 13 41 3.2
Marshall, Topeka High 14 42 4.0
Emmot, Shawnee Heights 13 35 2.7
Baum, Shawnee Heights 13 34 2.6
Foster, Hayden 13 30 2.3
Cosey, Highland Park 13 30 2.3
Anderson, Washburn Rural 13 29 2.2
Schmidtlein, Hayden 13 28 2.2
Vega, Shawnee Heights 13 28 2.2
Rayton, Topeka High 13 28 2.2
Rutherford, Washburn Rural 13 28 2.2
Watts, Hayden 13 26 2.0
Kincade, Highland Park 13 26 2.0
NOTE: Statistics for city boys basketball teams were compiled by Seaman girls coach Matt Tinsley. The following stats are the second of three statistical reports which will be released during the 2025-2026 season, capped by the season-ending stats.
KaeVon Bonner, Seaman
SCORING
Name, school Gms. Pts. Avg
Bonner, Seaman 14 345 24.6
Kingcannon, Highland Park 14 274 19.6
Ross, Shawnee Heights 13 249 19.2
Compton, Hayden 15 239 15.9
Hanika, Hayden 15 230 15.3
Paul, Topeka West 14 202 14.4
Rowley, Washburn Rural 10 144 14.4
Duncan, Topeka West 14 196 14.0
McComas, Topeka High 14 196 14.0
Durbin, Cair Paravel 13 181 13.9
Lassiter, Topeka West 14 191 13.6
Marichal, Cair Paravel 13 177 13.6
Aldridge, Topeka High 14 172 12.3
Hastert, Cair Paravel 13 158 12.2
Ballard, Washburn Rural 12 145 12.1
Bryson McComas, Topeka High
REBOUNDING
Name, school Gms. Total Avg.
McComas, Topeka High 14 111 7.9
Durbin, Cair Paravel 13 100 7.7
Fay, Cair Paravel 13 90 6.9
Hanika, Hayden 15 101 6.7
Hoytal, Washburn Rural 12 74 6.2
Hastert, Cair Paravel 13 78 6.0
Lassiter, Topeka West 14 83 5.9
Zuniga, Seaman 14 76 5.4
Schmidt, Washburn Rural 12 63 5.3
Scott, Shawnee Heights 13 66 5.1
Kidd, Hayden 15 76 5.1
Paul, Topeka West 14 64 4.6
Dixon, Shawnee Heights 12 45 4.5
Tourtillott, Hayden 15 60 4.0
Bonner, Seaman 14 56 4.0
Chase Hastert, Cair Paravel [Photo by Barry Benteman/Special to TSN]
ASSISTS
Name, school Gms. Total Avg.
Hastert, Cair Paravel 13 75 5.8
Bonner, Seaman 14 73 5.2
Fay, Cair Paravel 13 59 4.5
Hoytal, Washburn Rural 12 47 3.9
Guest, Topeka High 14 52 3.7
Duncan, Topeka West 14 49 3.5
Traylor, Topeka West 14 49 3.5
Paul, Topeka West 14 48 3.4
Mitchell, Hayden 15 47 3.1
Marichal, Cair Paravel 13 38 2.9
McComas, Topeka High 14 40 2.9
Cook, Shawnee Heights 13 34 2.6
Scott, Shawnee Heights 13 33 2.5
Nimz, Washburn Rural 12 30 2.5
Luarks, Topeka High 14 34 2.4
Hanika, Hayden 15 36 2.4
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Cair Paravel Latin sophomore boys basketball standout Blaine Durbin and Topeka High junior girls basketball standout Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton have been selected by the Dan Key Farmers Insurance Agency as the Rising Stars of the Week.
The Dan Key Agency will recognize top Shawnee County underclassmen throughout the bulk of the 2025-2026 school year.
Here's a brief look at the recent accomplishments of Durbin and Rayton.
Blaine Durbin, Cair Paravel Latin [Photo by Jan Pabitzky/Special to TSN]
BLAINE DURBIN, Cair Paravel Latin
Durbin scored a total of 60 points in three wins last week week as No. 7-ranked (Class 2A) Cair Paravel won the championship in the Flint Hills League Tournament at Emporia. Durbin scored 17 points in a 64-30 win over West Franklin, had 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in a 60-45 win over Lyndon and scored 13 points in the Lions' 64-47 win over Osage City.
Ahsieyrhuajh Rayton, Topeka High [File photo/TSN]
ASHIEYRHUAJH RAYTON, Topeka High
Rayton scored 33 points in Tuesday's 71-33 non-league win over Atchison and followed that up with a 37-point performance in Thursday's 65-57 loss to state-ranked Derby in the opening round of the Capital City Classic, surpassing the 1,000-point milestone for her career. Rayton connected on three 3-pointers against Atchison and four against Derby.
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
After 13 seasons under the leadership of Doug Bonura, the Cair Paravel football program will have a new head coach. Longtime junior high coach Randall Bond will take over for the 2026 season, the school recently announced.
Longtime Cair Paravel Junior High football coach Randall Bond has been promoted to be the Lions' head varsity coach for the 2026 season. [Photo by Jan Pabitzky]
The promotion of Bond to the varsity head coaching position ensures a high degree of familiarity and continuity. Bond has worked closely with Bonura over the years, installing the offensive and defensive systems run at the high school level and promoting similar character traits among the junior high players.
“I think it’s going to be a great transition, and I think he’s going to do a great job,” Bonura said of his successor. “He’s been around the game for a long time. He’s very personable. He loves the boys and really wants to help them grow and mature. The kids know him and trust him. It’s a great opportunity for him to become a head coach.”
Bond is a theatre and choir teacher at Seaman High School. He brings extensive experience to his new coaching position. Prior to joining the Cair Paravel football staff seven years ago, he coached junior high football at Holton for 14 years, where he collaborated with varsity head coach Brooks Barta, a former Kansas State star and son of Kansas coaching legend Roger Barta.
Bond said he is excited to build on the foundation laid by Bonura and to further the relationships he forged with the students as junior high head coach.
“I was lucky enough to coach up at Holton and you talk about a community that is invested in the kids,” Bond said. “It’s not the same here because we’re not a small town, but it has that feel. The parents are invested in the kids. They want what’s best for the kids, and this kind of culture is just hard to find. For me, it’s the best situation to come into. I’ve already coached most of the boys and it’s just a welcoming, supportive community.
“I’ve learned a ton from coach Bonura. He’s a phenomenal leader. He coaches and teaches the boys the right way, has super high expectations for both players and coaches.”
Bonura guided the program as it earned membership in KSHSAA and transitioned to two seasons of 11-man football. The team will return to the 8-man level for 2026. During Bonura’s tenure, the team won Kansas Christian Athletic Association championships in 2013 and 2021, the school’s last year prior to participation in the KSHSAA playoff system.
The decision to resign now was not easy for Bonura, who noted that the team returns a lot of talent for the upcoming season.
“When you have something that you’ve invested in for 13 years and you want to see it continue to grow, it was a very difficult decision for me,” Bonura said. “But I think it was the right decision at this time. And it helps for it to not become my idol. I don’t want it to become about me.”
Family was a motivator for Bonura to coach football at Cair Paravel, and it was a motivator to call it quits. His youngest son was a senior on the 2025 team.
“I have seven kids, so there is a lot of life going on outside of Cair Paravel for me. So, it was the right move for me to be able to do the things my family needs at this time,” Bonura said.
“When I started, I just wanted to have fun with my boys, giving them a chance to play football and to develop a program that honored the Lord and in which young men can learn how to grow up in a world that can be difficult. That’s what football teaches.”
Bonura recalled a situation early in his tenure that illustrated that character development. His team had its undefeated season interrupted by a 50-6 thumping at the hands of Heartland Christian School from Colby. The two teams met again in the playoffs.
“We had a real gut check,” Bonura said. “I told them, ‘You guys were scared.’ There were only 12 boys on that other team, but they were tough as nails. I challenged our guys, that ‘suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope’ from (the Biblical book of) Romans.”
In the rematch, Cair Paravel lost 62-58 in what Bonura calls one of the best games during his time at the school.
“Our boys really grew from that experience,” Bonura said. “And when I see those guys we still talk about that game. They knew that they fought back and weren’t afraid of those guys anymore.”
Bonura thanked Jeff Brown and Ron Thornburgh who coached the team prior to his assumption of head coaching duties for facilitating a smooth transition and laying a solid foundation. He also credited the assistant coaches who have been on his staff over the years.
“I’ve worked with great people along the way,” Bonura said. “Great men committed to help young men grow in their walk regardless of wins and losses. That’s hard to do, because you want to be successful in the wins column.”
Cair Paravel athletic director Gary Cleverdon said Bonura would not be easily replaced, but that the process that ultimately led to Bond’s promotion had been a positive one.
“Doug took over a program that was just getting started in the eyes of many. Football at this school was not the big item on the block,” said Cleverdon. “It was always more than just football for Doug. He put his blood, sweat and tears into it, every ounce he had. We would have loved to have him until he just couldn’t coach anymore. But he knew the time was right.
“Turning a program over to anyone else is going to be big shoes to fill. We feel like we have the right person who has been with Doug for many years. It’s been a fantastic transition so far and I think it’s going to be a really good situation.”
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
The Cair Paravel girls faced another tough test Tuesday when the Centralia Panthers – ranked third in Class 1A Div. I – came to Topeka. The Lions hung tough for a half but fell off the pace and lost 58-22.
The Lions have been tested by some of the best small school programs in the state, including Wabaunsee, which sits one spot ahead of Centralia in the 1A-I rankings. On Tuesday, Centralia applied a stifling press to the Lions to add its twelfth victory against just two losses on the season. Junior Josie Haverkamp led the Panthers with 22 points on 9-16 shooting.
“It’s always fun (playing Centralia). It’s always a good challenge,” said Cair Paravel coach Jaley Barkley. “It’s tough playing teams that press the whole game. We’ve seen Wabaunsee do a run-and-gun trap against us. Osage City kind of presses. So, we’ve seen it a lot. But I think it’s good for the girls to learn how to adapt. There will be turnovers that come with it, but it helps them learn and grow a lot.”
Barkley hopes that the experience of playing top-ranked teams will pay dividends later in the season.
“There are games on the schedule that I think will be good matchups for us,” Barkley said. “So, I think the hard teams that we’ve faced has allowed us to learn some lessons that will hopefully allow us to be victorious.”
The Lions fell to 5-9 with the loss Tuesday. Their top offensive threat, London Backman, had trouble getting free for shot attempts against the Panthers. She finished with just three points. Junior Becca Gateley led the Lions with eight points.
CENTRALIA GIRLS 58, CAIR PARAVEL 22
Centralia 13 15 22 8 -- 58
Cair Paravel 4 10 4 4 -- 22
Centralia (12-2) – Kramer 4-15 1-2 10, Thompson 2-3 1-2 5, Rempe 1-5 0-0 3, Gibbs 1-8 2-2 4, Haverkamp 9-16 4-6 22, Becker 5-7 4-10 14, Tanking 0-0 0-0 0, Heinen 0-1 0-0 0, Niehaus 0-0 0-0 0, Franklin 0-1 0-0 0, McKee 0-0 0-0 0, Osterhaus 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-57 12-22 58.
Cair Paravel (5-9) – Hastert 3-7 0-0 6, Donaldson 0-4 0-2 0, Gateley 3-5 1-1 8, Chada 0-3 0-0 0, Backman 1-8 0-0 3, Wehlshans 2-4 0-0 4, Rosenow 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 9-31 2-5 22.
3-point goals – Centralia 2 (Kramer, Rempe), Cair Paravel 2 (Gateley, Backman). Total fouls – Centralia 7, Cair Paravel 18. Fouled out – Backman. Technical fouls – None.
