Topeka High Trojans

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

THURSDAY'S GAME

(Kickoff at 7 p.m.)

MANHATTAN (4-2, 2-0 Centennial) vs. TOPEKA HIGH (1-5, 0-2 Centennial)

At Hummer Sports Park

Manhattan has won four straight games since an 0-2 start to the season while Topeka High is fighting a five-game losing streak. The Indians are coming off a 51-6 Centennial League win over Emporia while Topeka High dropped a 41-12 league decision to Junction City. Manhattan junior quarterback Mclain Aslin has completed 30 of 56 passes for 362 yards and six touchdowns and carried the ball 81 times for 576 yards and seven TDs. Senior Joseph Mortensen has carried the ball 32 times for 343 yards and six TDs.

FRIDAY'S GAMES

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural

JUNCTION CITY (2-4, 2-1 Centennial) at WASHBURN RURAL (3-3, 2-0 Centennial )

Junction City is coming off a 41-12 Centennial League victory over Topeka High last Friday while Washburn Rural dropped a 14-7 decision at Millard West, Neb. Senior Jadyn Baum is one of the state's premier running backs for the Junior Blues.

Nas Williams-Brown, Topeka West

BASEHOR-LINWOOD (4-2, 4-2 UKC) vs. TOPEKA WEST (1-5, 1-5 UKC)

At Hummer Sports Park

Basehor-Linwood posted a 42-20 United Kansas Conference decision over Lansing while Topeka West dropped a 57-0 UKC decision to Spring Hill. Junior Nas Williams-Brown is a top player for the Chargers.

DE SOTO (6-0, 6-0 UKC) at SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (1-5, 1-5 UKC)

Shawnee Heights, which is in the midst of a five-game losing streak, dropped a 59-28 United Kansas Conference decision to undefeated Spring Hill last Friday while De Soto remained unbeaten with a 45-6 UKC win over Turner. Shawnee Heights senior quarterback Kolby Kutscher has completed 82 of 142 passes for 1,269 yards and 14 touchdowns while sophomore Fletcher Terrell has caught 35 passes for 757 yards and 11 touchdowns. T-Bird senior Trone Purvis has carried the ball 107 times for 562 yards and eight touchdowns.

CHASE COUNTY (4-2, 2-1 8-Man I District 3) vs. CAIR PARAVEL LATIN (4-2, 2-1 8-Man I District 3)

At Seaman

Cair Paravel is coming off a tough 54-50 district road loss at Lyndon while Chase County blanked district foe Northern Heights, 46-0. Cair Paravel senior Cole Haubold has carried the ball 53 times for 596 yards and 14 touchdowns and leads the Lions with 58 tackles (39 solo) with 11 tackles for loss. Junior quarterback Chase Hastert has completed 25 of 49 passes for 512 yards and nine touchdowns and carried the ball 46 times for 411 yards and four TDs.

Jairus Todwong, Hayden

HAYDEN (2-4, 2-0 3A District 3) at SANTA FE TRAIL (4-2, 1-1 3A District 3)

Hayden posted its second straight Class 3A District 3 win last Friday, a 42-13 romp past Perry-Lecompton, while Santa Fe Trail is coming off a 48-6 district loss to Baldwin. Sophomore Jairus Todwong leads Hayden with 494 yards and four touchdowns on 55 carries while senior Mason Becker has carried the ball 32 times for 279 yards and four rushing TDs. Junior quarterback Ryker Tetuan has completed 49 of 100 passes for 435 yards and senior Logan Power has caught 24 passes for 258 yards.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

It took 24 hours to get it done, but the Topeka High soccer team completed a 3-0 win over Seaman Wednesday afternoon at Hummer Sports Park, setting themselves up for a potentially historic finish to the season.

With storms rolling into Topeka Tuesday afternoon, the Trojans’ game with Seaman was moved up in hopes of getting it in before the rains fell.

Sophomore Emyr Vargas (11) scored Topeka High's first goal in a 3-0 soccer win over Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Topeka High sophomore Emyr Vargas spotted the home team a goal just 46 seconds into the contest. A few minutes later, Trojan senior John Martinez added a second goal.

But with the Trojans holding a 2-0 lead, the field was cleared due to lightning strikes. While the teams were in the locker rooms, the sky unleased a deluge, leaving huge puddles on the field. Lightning continued to strike and the game was postponed.

The teams returned Wednesday, picking the game up with 14:00 remaining in the first half. The score remained 2-0 until Topeka High senior Brandon Gomez-Hernandez added an insurance goal on a penalty kick with 7:54 left.

“The first thing we dealt with was that the weather was a heck of a lot different. I think it was 90 degrees when we started the game yesterday,” Topeka High coach Derek Snook said about getting the teams back together after a 24-hour interval. “Today’s cooler weather had them a little hyped, but these guys are just ready to play. Their mindset is, 'It doesn’t matter, let’s just go play. Let’s see if we can’t get better.’ So that’s easy for these guys.”

Junior foreign exchange student Laurenz Fieldler (6) was credited with a pair of assists in Topeka High's 3-0 win over Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Junior Laurenz Fieldler, a foreign exchange student from Dresden, Germany, recorded both assists on Tuesday prior to the interruption. He said when he committed to coming to the U.S. he didn’t know where he would go to school or if that school would have a soccer program. He said the team accepted him and made him feel welcome.

“It’s pretty different from playing in Germany because (my teammates) have a different style of play,'' Fieldler said. "I think this is more fun than in my hometown.”

Topeka High is currently riding an eight-game win streak. The Trojans improved to 10-3 on the season and sit tied for third in the Class 6A West regional. Though the game against Seaman was not against a 6A opponent, nor did it count in the Centennial League standings, the school felt a sense of urgency to get the game completed.

“It’s a city game. These kids all know each other and it means a lot to them,” Snook said. “It might help us in the seeding process which comes up in the next couple of weeks, so we thought we needed to get it in because we’ve got some bangers coming up here the next three games.”

The Trojans travel to Blue Valley West Thursday, then finish the season with games against Washburn Rural and Topeka West.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Rossville, last season's Class 1A state runnerup, opened Distict 2 play Friday night with a 49-0 home romp past Wabaunsee.

Junior quarterback Landen Lewis ran for four touchdowns and threw for a TD as the Bulldawgs improved to 4-2 on the season.

Lewis ran for 17, 2, 9 and 9-yard TDs and hit Cale Horak for a 23-yard score while Cael Horgan opened Rossville's scoring with  for a 1-yard TD and Gavin Sumner scored the final TD on a 1-yard plunge.

Austin Dohrman kicked five extra points and the Bulldawgs got a 2-point conversion on a pass from Cole Graves to Michael Cooney.

Rossville led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 28-0 at the half before adding 21 points in the second half to complete the shutout.

The Bulldawgs will travel to Mission Valley on Friday to face the 1-5 Vikings, who are coming off a 48-6 district loss to St. Marys

Eagles remain unbeaten with 89-0 district rout

Silver Lake continued its dominant 2026 season Friday night, improved to 6-0 Friday with a 89-0 home Class 2A District 3 rout over Maranatha Academy.

The Eagles will travel to Holton Friday night for a Big East League game.

Holton is 1-5 after a 43-0 loss to Nemaha Central.

Lions drop 54-50 district thriller to Tigers

Cair Paravel Latin gave host Lyndon a battle down to the wire Friday, falling 54-50 in an Eight-Man I District 3 game.

The Lions, now 4-2, will host Chase County in a district matchup Friday at Seaman.

Chase County is coming off a 46-0 district victory over Northern Heights.

Vikings stretch winning streak to four games

Seaman posted its fourth straight United Kansas Conference victory Friday night, rolling to a 55-0 road rout over Leavenworth.

The Vikings, 4-2 overall and in the UKC, will face a tough test Friday, going on the road to face 6-0 Spring Hill.

The Broncos are coming off of a 57-0 win over Topeka West.

Scots get back on track with 26-6 road win

Highland Park picked up its second victory of the season Friday night, posting a 26-6 Meadowlark Conference win at Kansas City-Harmon.

Now 2-4 on the year, Highland Park will be back at Hummer Sports Park on Saturday to host KC-Schlagle in a 12 p.m. Meadowlark game.

The Stallions are 2-4 on the season after a 30-26 loss to Atchison. 

T-Birds fall 59-28 at Piper

Shawnee Heights fell to 1-5 overall and in the United Kansas Conference Friday night, dropping a 59-28 decision at Piper.

The T-Birds will be back at home Friday, hosting 6-0 De Soto in a conference matchup.

The Wildcats are coming off a 45-6 UKC win over Turner.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural's cross country team turned in a dominating performance in Saturday's city championships at Shawnee Heights, sweeping the top three individual places in both the girls and boys events while rolling to the team titles.

Sophomore Alyson Hinck (right) captured her first city girls cross country title for team-champion Washburn Rural on Saturday at Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural junior Duke Graf reacts as he crosses the finish line to win the city boys cross country title Saturday at Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"I'm happy with it for sure,'' Rural coach Matt Swedlund said. "City is a good start to championship racing. You kind of get in the mindset and this is when you start talking about trophies and wanting to be our best in October, so this is a nice start to that process.''

Rural sophomore Alyson Hinck won the girls title in a five-kilometer time of 19 minutes, 32.7 seconds while junior Duke Graf took control early in the boys race on the way to a win in 16:42.6.

Rural sophomore Morgan Munson (19:35.8) and junior Reese Beardslee (19:47.3) finished second and third behind Hinck in the girls race, while freshman Kenadee Booher (21:14.7) was fifth and freshman Avery Kennedy (21:32.3) sixth to round out the Junior Blues' top five as Rural captured the team title by a 17-40 margin over Seaman.

Hinck earned her first city individual girls title after finishing second as a freshman. She ran with the top four runners for much of the race before pulling away down the stretch to win by 3.1 seconds over teammate Munson.

"I just wanted to stick with the people in front and not to go out too hard,'' said Hinck, also a state medalist in the 800 meters in track as a freshman. "I definitely locate where I need to start to kick.''

Hinck said a highlight of the day was Rural's one-two-three finish.

"That's so much fun,'' she said. "I'm so happy to run with my teammates and finish with them. It was a blast.''

Juniors Jaxson Adams (16:57.2) and Clayton Fink (17:05.8) posted second and third-place finishes behind Graf for the Junior Blues in the boys race while sophomore Julius Wood-Nichols (17:15.4) finished fifth and senior Bennett Wells (17:19.5) sixth to complete the top five scoring runners for Washburn Rural, which won the title by a 17-59 margin over Seaman.

Graf, who had finished third in the city meet as a sophomore before helping Rural win the Class 6A title, took the lead early in Saturday's race and ended up winning by nearly 15 seconds.

"I kind of had the mentality of either come with me or don't,'' Graf said of his strategy. "It seemed to work pretty well. I went out pretty hard the first mile and got a good gap and kind of just held.

"I fell off a little bit towards the end, but overall, first place, I'm pretty happy with it.'' 

Seaman's girls got a fourth-place individual finish from senior Brynn Spencer (20:07.8) while senior Kinley Robinson (21:46.9) placed seventh, freshman Brinley Cochran (21:57.2) eighth, freshman Morgan Ranson (22:22.6) 10th and senior Hannah Wempe (22:59.5) 11th.

Freshman Charlotte Richards (23:12.1) led third-place Shawnee Heights with a 12th-place finish while junior Emily Womack (23:14.2) paced fourth-place Topeka High with a 13th-place finish. 

Sophomore Trindon Jones (17:10.7) paced the runnerup Seaman boys with a fourth-place finish while sophomore Weston Kennedy (17:23.6) finished seventh.

Hayden junior Nick Newkirk (17:43.3) finished 10th. 

Washburn Rural, Topeka High and Hayden will compete in the Centennial League meet next Saturday at Kanza Park while Seaman, Shawnee Heights and Topeka West will run in the United Kansas Conference meet at De Soto on Thursday and Highland Park will compete in the Meadowlark Conference meet at Atchison on Thursday.  

CITY CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

It's probably safe to say that everybody associated with the Washburn University football program is excited about the big jump the Ichabods have made this fall.

Jayden Norman

And that's especially true for former Topeka High standout wide receiver Jayden Norman, who has earned considerable playing time as a redshirt freshman for the 3-1-1 Ichabods. 

It was clear through his four high school seasons that the 6-foot, 195-pound Norman had considerable talent, but the Trojans struggled as a team throughout his prep career, posting an 8-28 overall record, including a pair of 1-8 campaigns and a 2-7 season.

Norman isn't sure if the lack of team success scared off some of the college recruiters, but it doesn't matter because he still ended up where he wanted to be.

"I do not feel like it really hurt me; I was still the same player,'' Norman said. "I feel like some of the coaches maybe didn't look at me as much because of the losing seasons, but it's all good. I'm glad I'm here right now and just doing well right now.''

When Washburn came calling, Norman said his college decision was an easy one.

"Yes it was,'' he said. "I know it sounds cliche, but Washburn really did feel like home. The coaching staff did a great job of recruiting, the facilities are great, and it's awesome here.''

A multi-time All-Centennial and All-Shawnee County honoree for the Trojans, Norman redshirted his freshman season at WU, which helped get him ready to become a contributor this season. 

"It helped a lot, just getting developed and learning from the older guys,'' he said. "It was great. I did get hurt the last half of the season -- torn meniscus -- but I'm healthy now and it feels good being back.''

Norman has caught six passes for 62 yards thus far, including four passes for 46 yards against MIAA power Northwest Missouri. 

"I've worked so hard for these opportunities and just blessed to keeping getting more of them and can't wait to take advantage of them,'' Norman said.

"Obviously winning more feels good, being part of a winning season. It's just great getting developed and I just want to take advantage of all opportunities.'' 

Washburn coach Zach Watkins said Norman is very deserving of his chance to contribute for the Ichabods.

"His athletic ability and work ethic falls in line with being a really good player now, and moving forward,'' Watkins said. "He's so young in his career, but our program is all about development and he's developed in a big way from when he first got here to now.

"Now it's his first game experience and he's made some big plays in some of our early games and he'll have an increased role this last half of this season and then springboard into future years.

 "Like anything, it takes reps to be perfect at something, but when you're a great kid with great character, great work ethic, very intelligent, good student and all that stuff, you can say it one time and is usually gets done or tries to get done. I'm looking forward to see how he developes moving forward.''

Following a bye week, Norman and the Ichabods will return to action at 12 p.m. Saturday against Pittsburg State in Yager Stadium. 

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

FRIDAY'S GAMES

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

Mason Becker, Hayden

PERRY-LECOMPTON (3-2, 1-1 3A District 3) at HAYDEN (1-4, 1-0 3A District 3)

Hayden picked up its first win of the season last Friday, opening Class 3A District 3 play with a 32-21 home win over Baldwin. Perry-Lecompton picked up a district win by forfeit over KC-Bishop Ward last Friday. Hayden senior Mason Becker scored 19 of the Wildcats 31 points against Baldwin and has rushed for 171 yards and three touchdowns on 27 attempts on the season. Sophomore Jairus Todwong leads the Wildcats with 493 yards and four touchdowns on 54 carries. Junior quarterback Ryker Tetuan, who missed the Baldwin game with an injury, has completed 42 of 91 pass attempts for 376 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Landon Power has 18 catches for 174 yards.

Nas Williams-Brown, Topeka West

SPRING HILL (5-0, 5-0 UKC) at TOPEKA WEST (1-4, 1-4 UKC)

Topeka West dropped a 50-8 United Kansas Conference road decision at Leavenworth last Friday and faces another tough test this week against undefeated Spring Hill. Spring Hill stayed unbeaten last Friday with a 76-35 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. West junior Nas Williams-Brown has established himself as one of the top offensive threats in the conference. 

WABAUNSEE (2-3, 0-0 1A District 2) at ROSSVILLE (3-2, 0-0 1A District 2)

Rossville is coming off a big 47-20 Big East League win at Royal Valley last Friday and opens Class 1A District 2 play this week. Bulldawg junior Landen Lewis had a hand in six touchdowns against Royal Valley, running for four TDs and passing for a pair of scores. Lewis has completed 65 of 93 passes on the season for 831 yards and nine touchdowns and has carried the ball 84 times for 572 yards and 12 TDs. Cael Horgan has 21 catches for 296 yards and a TD while Cale Horak has 13 catches for 255 yards and three TDs and Dalen Dick has 17 catches for 177 yards and two TDs. Wabaunsee is coming off an 18-14 loss to Jackson Heights.

CAIR PARAVEL (4-1, 1-0 8-Man I District 3) at LYNDON (2-2, 1-0 8-Man I District 3)

Cair Paravel Latin is off to a quick start in its return to the Eight-Man ranks, improving to 4-1 on the season and 1-0 in Eight-Man I District 3 with last week's 54-6 romp past Pleasanton. Lyndon is coming off a 56-14 rout over Northern Heights. Cair Paravel senior Cole Haubold has rushed for 453 yards and 11 touchdowns on 38 attempts while junior quarterback Chase Hastert has completed 18 of 32 passes for 353 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 318 yards and four TDs on 36 attempts. Haubold has been in on 42 tackles (25 solo) with eight tackles for loss.

JoJo Kingcannon, Highland Park

HIGHLAND PARK (1-4, 1-2 Meadowlark) at KC-HARMON (3-2, 1-1 Meadowlark)

Highland Park returns to Meadowlark Conference play Friday night and will be looking to bounce back after dropping a 52-0 non-league decision to Blue Valley Southwest last week. The Scots are led by senior quarterback JoJo Kingcannon, who has been forced to shoulder must of the offensive load after the loss of Shawnee County Top 22 running back G'Honi Montgomery in the second game of the season.

Cale Ketter, Seaman

SEAMAN (3-2, 3-2 UKC) at LEAVENWORTH (3-2, 3-2 UKC)

Seaman stretched its winning streak to three games last Friday with a 62-0 home United Kansas Conference romp past KC-Turner. Leavenworth is also coming off a win, taking a 50-8 UKC decision over Topeka West. Seaman senior quarterback Cale Ketter has completed 94 of 146 passes for 1,546 yards and 18 touchdowns while senior Coy Barta has 34 receptions for 747 yards and seven TDs. Junior Quentin Moravec has carried the ball 68 times for 521 yards and five TDs. 

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

The Topeka High boys soccer team shook off a sluggish start to get by Hayden 4-1 Monday at Hayden, improving to 7-3 overall and 4-0 in the Centennial League while giving experience to a lot of players in the process.

Freshman Juan Lopez scored a pair of goals in Topeka High's Centennial League 4-1 road win over Hayden. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Hayden broke out early with a goal barely a minute into the contest – a redirection by Davin McDonald off a pass by Riley Bartley.

The score surprised the Trojans, who realized they needed to regroup. Topeka High responded quickly, with freshman Juan Lopez tying the score seven minutes later.

“That opening goal was a wakeup call because it shouldn’t have happened. We had to respond from that slow start,” said Topeka High coach Derek Snook.

The winless Wildcats kept the score tied 1-1 until halftime. Snook made no excuses, but noted his team had to adjust to a number of factors, including the weekend layoff, an earlier-than-normal game time, and the grass playing surface.

“Coming out of the weekend, we obviously weren’t together and we were a little sluggish,” Snook said. “I think we just weren’t focused on what we needed to do. Credit to (Hayden) for coming out ready. They did a really good job of putting the pressure on us and not allowing us to be comfortable there in the first half.

“Playing on grass instead of turf, it kind of slows us down a little bit and requires us to make some adjustments. We have to be a little bit more conscious of our touches. But all in all, a win’s a win at the end of the day.”

Sophomore Emyr Vargas (11) had a goal and an assist in Monday's 4-1 Topeka High win at Hayden. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Lopez put the Trojans ahead just 1:38 after intermission. Topeka High continued to add on with goals by John Martinez and Emyr Vargas. By midway through the second half, Snook was shuttling in reserves.

“We came out of it and played a lot better in the second half, and that allowed us to play a lot of people. So that was good, kind of saving legs for the rest of the week,” Snook said. “We play two more times this week (Wednesday and Thursday), so we’ve got a loaded week.”

“It was not how we wanted to start, but we ended off the second half in a good way,” Vargas said. “It’s good for those that stepped up from JV and got to play varsity time. I’m proud of them. They’ve been working hard since summer workouts started. They been showing hard work and it’s paying off for them.”

With a number of returners from last year’s 9-6-1 team, Vargas hopes to make a playoff push this season.

“I have high hopes for us. I think we can make it farther than last year,” Vargas said. “We just need to keep our heads high and just keep going forward and looking to the next game. I think we communicate pretty good. We have good relationships off and on the field.”

TOPEKA HIGH 4, HAYDEN 1

Topeka High (7-3-0, 4-0-0) 1 3 -- 4

Hayden (0-11-0, 0-3-0)        1 0 -- 1

Topeka High -- Goals: Lopez 2, Vargas, J. Martinez. Assists: C. Accosta-Martinez, Vargas, Fielder.

Hayden -- Goal: McDonald. Assist: Bartley.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural won its 17th Centennial League girls tennis championship in 23 seasons Monday at Kossover Tennis Center, regaining the crown after a brief two-year absence.

Washburn Rural's tennis team poses for a picture after winning the Centennial League championship Monday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

The Junior Blues rode a one-two doubles finish from Julia Katzer and Halle Owen and Annie Henderson and Kinley Ladd to a 40-31 win over Junction City, with Hayden placing third with 29 points.

Katzer and Owen took a 6-0, 6-0 decision over teammates Henderson and Ladd in the doubles final while the Junior Blues also got a fourth-place singles finish from Bridget Hoopes and a fifth from Karmyn Faul.

"Overall, it's been a very fun, exciting day,'' Washburn Rural coach Michelle Rose said. "I've seen some of our players play with the courage and the desire and the belief in themselves and I think as a coach you always want your players to believe in themselves and when you actually see them do it, it's really satisfying.''

Washburn Rural seniors Julia Katzer (left) and Halle Owen captured the Centennial League doubles title Monday at Kossover Tennis Center, leading the Junior Blues to the team title. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Katzer and Owen won the Centennial Leagues doubles championship after earning their second straight No. 1 doubles title in the recent city tournament.

"It's really nice,'' Owen said of the league title. "We've put in a lot of hard work during this season and the offseason and I know that our (No.) 2 team has, too, so it's nice playing them in this final, which was really fun.''

"It's kind of building our confidence as we go into regionals and state,'' Katzer said. "It's really exciting. We've worked really hard for this moment and I can't wait to see how our season ends.''    

Junction City senior Hannah Micheel won the singles championship with a 6-0, 6-0 decision over Hayden sophomore Lana Hull.

Hayden sophomore Lana Hull posted a runnerup Centennial League singles finish Monday, leading the Wildcats to a third-place team finish. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

In addition to Hull's runnerup singles finish Hayden got a third-place doubles finish from juniors Hailey Caryl and Sophia Wichman.

Washburn Rural and Topeka High will compete in a Class 6A regional Friday at Kossover, vying for state berths.

"We're super excited to be hosting regionals at Kossover,'' Rose said. "We welcome anyone in the community to come out and watch. It's going to be a fun, great day of tennis.''

Hayden will travel to Chanute for a 4A regional Friday and Saturday.  

CENTENNIAL LEAGUE GIRLS TENNIS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Individual champion Brynn Spencer led Seaman to the team title in Saturday's Seaman Invitational at Shawnee North Community Center.

Spencer, a senior, clocked a winning five-kilometer time of 19 minutes, 44.37 seconds to win by more than 39 seconds while the Vikings also got a third-place finish from senior Kinley Robinson (20:39.91) and a fifth from freshman Morgan Ranson (20:47.86) en route to the team title by a 38-45 margin over Piper.

Senior Brynn Spencer captured the girls individual title to lead Seaman to the team championship in Saturday's Seaman Invitational cross country meet at Shawnee North. [File photo/TSN]

Freshman Brinley Cochran finished 15th (21:44.01) and senior Hannah Wempe 20th (22:33.86) to round out Seaman's top five scoring runners.

A split team from Washburn Rural finished fifth with 130 points while Topeka High finished sixth (167) and Shawnee Heights seventh (174).

Sophomore Clara Dillon paced Rural with an 18th-place finish (21:54.28) while junior Emma Womack placed 25th (23:11.43) to lead Topeka High and freshman Claudia Memmet finished 33rd (23:41.07) to lead Shawnee Heights.

Blue Valley Northwest won the boys team title with 23 points while Seaman's boys finished fourth as a team with 94 points as sophomore Trindon Jones led the Vikings with a ninth-place finish in 16:57.52.

A split team for Washburn Rural finished fifth (99 points), with freshman Mariner Svaty placing 16th (17:34.44) and junior Gauge Dial finishing 18th (17:37.42).

Shawnee Heights finished seventh as a team (199 points) and Topeka High eighth (213) while Topeka West had four individual runners.

Senior Andrew Schulte led Shawnee Heights with a 22nd-place finish (17:47.53) while Topeka High junior Oliver Snethen placed a team-high 28th (18:01.35) for the Trojans and senior Ezra Phelps led Topeka West with a 35th-place finish (18:11.02).

The city championships will be contested next Saturday at Shawnee Heights (9 a.m. start).

SEAMAN INVITATIONAL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Junior quarterback Landen Lewis ran for four touchdowns and threw for a pair of scores in Friday's 47-20 non-league road romp past Royal Valley.

Landen Lewis, Rossville

Lewis ran for 1, 5, 35 and 20-yard TDs and hit Dalen Dick for a 17-yard score and Cale Horak for a 57-yard TD.

The 3-2 Bulldawgs also got 16-yard touchdown pass from Cole Graves to Kelton Lacock while Julian Goj kicked five extra points.

The Rossville defense limited Royal Valley (3-2) to six points until the Panthers scored 14 points over the final 3:42 of the game.

Rossville led 7-0 at the end of the first quarter and scored 27 points in the second quarter to take a commanding 34-0 halftime advantage.

The Bulldawgs led 40-6 at the start of the fourth quarter.

Eagles remain unbeaten with 77-6 district rout

Silver Lake improved to 5-0 Friday with a 77-6 home Class 2A District 3 win over 0-5 West Franklin.

The Eagles put the game away with a 42-point first quarter and tacked on 23 points in the second quarter to take a 65-0 halftime lead.

After a scoreless third quarter Silver Lake scored its final 12 points in the final period while West Franklin scored its only points.

Silver Lake will travel to Maranatha Academy next Friday to face a Maranatha team that is coming off a 64-0 loss to Osage City.

Lions improve to 4-1 with 54-6 district romp

Cair Paravel Latin improved to 4-1 on the season Friday night with a 54-6 Eight-Man I District 3 win over Pleasanton at Veritas Christian School in Lawrence.

The Lions will travel to Lyndon next Friday for a district matchup with the 2-2 Tigers. Lyndon is coming off a 56-14 district victory over Northern Heights.

Vikings stretch winning streak to three games

Seaman posted its third straight United Kansas Conference victory Friday night, taking a 62-0 home decision over Turner in a game that was halted early after a serious injury.

The Vikings improved to 3-2 overall and in the UKC, while Turner fell to 0-5.

Seaman will travel to Leavenworth next Friday to face the 3-2 Pioneers, who are coming off of a 50-8 win over Topeka West. 

T-Birds fall to unbeaten Broncos

Spring Hill improved to 5-0 on the season with a 76-35 United Kansas Conference victory at Shawnee Heights Friday night.

Spring Hill led 29-7 at the end of the opening quarter and took a 49-19 advantage to the locker room at halftime.

The scorefest continued in the second half, with the Broncos outscoring the T-Birds by a 27-16 margin.

The 1-4 T-Birds will travel to Piper next Friday, with the Pirates coming off a 24-8 UKC loss to Basehor-Linwood.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

FRIDAY'S GAMES

Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural (26) 

EMPORIA (2-2, 0-1 Centennial) at WASHBURN RURAL (2-2, 1-0 Centennial)

Washburn Rural opened Centennial League play with a 34-7 win over city rival Topeka High at Hummer Sports Park last Friday while Emporia dropped a 32-6 Centennial League game against Junction City. Washburn Rural senior star running back Jadyn Baum carried the ball 34 times for 180 yards and three touchdowns against the Trojans. Emporia sophomore quarterback Cael Claibourn has completed eight of 18 passes for 234 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 289 yards and five TDs on 26 attempts. Spartan senior Ben Collins has 414 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 75 attempts.

Jairus Todwong, Hayden

BALDWIN (3-1, 1-0 3A District 3) at HAYDEN (0-4, 0-0 3A District 3)

Hayden, which has advanced to the Class 3A state championship game three straight seasons, will open Class 3A District 3 competition Friday night. The Wildcats are coming off a 49-28 loss to St. Mary's South Side, Mo. last Friday while Baldwin opened district play with a 28-0 shutout victory over Perry-Lecompton. Hayden sophomore Jairus Todwong carried the ball 18 times for 97 yards and two touchdowns against St. Mary's while senior Logan Power had seven catches for 88 yards. Bulldawg senior quarterback Bryis Alford has completed 28 of 48 passes for 439 yards and four touchdowns and carried the ball 40 times for 345 yards and eight TDs.

Cale Ketter, Seaman

TURNER (0-4, 0-4) at SEAMAN (2-2, 2-2)

Seaman has won two straight games since an 0-2 start, including a 41-17 United Kansas Conference victory over Lansing last Friday, while Turner is still looking for its first win of the season after a 56-7 non-league loss to Leavenworth. Seaman senior quarterback Cale Ketter has completed 80 of 130 passes for 1,322 yards and 12 touchdowns while senior Coy Barta has caught 30 passes for 685 yards and five TDs. Junior running back Quentin Moravec has carried the ball 59 times for 418 yards and four TDs. Bryson Fehr has 50 tackles for the Vikings (30 solo), with six tackles for loss.

BV SOUTHWEST (0-4) vs. HIGHLAND PARK (1-3)

At Hummer Sports Park

Highland Park dropped a 12-6 Meadowlark Conference nailbiter on the road to Kansas City-Sumner Academy last Friday while Blue Valley Southwest remained winless with a 41-28 loss to traditional state power Bishop Miege. Senior JoJo Kingcannon has been the go-to guy for Highland Park, which lost senior star G'Honi Montgomery to a season-ending injury in the second game of the season. Blue Valley Southwest junior quarterback Michael Dunn has completed 64 of 129 passes for 824 yards.

Trone Purvis, Shawnee Heights 

SPRING HILL (4-0, 4-0 UKC) at SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (1-3, 1-3 UKC)

Shawnee Heights will be looking to bounce back from a 58-40 United Kansas Conference road loss to Topeka West while Spring Hill remained unbeaten with a 24-0 conference win over Basehor-Linwood. T-Bird senior quarterback Kolby Kutscher has completed 46 of 85 passes for 760 yards and eight touchdowns while sophomore Fletcher Terrell has caught 17 passes for 366 yards and six TDs. Senior Trone Purvis has carried the ball 74 times for 413 yards and five touchdowns. 

CAIR PARAVEL LATIN (3-1, 0-0 8-Man-I District 3) vs. PLEASANTON (2-2, 1-0 8-Man-I District 3)

At Veritas Christian, Lawrence

Cair Paravel surpassed is 2025 win total with a 54-8 romp past Rural Vista last Friday and will host Pleasanton in a Eight-Man Division I District 3 contest at Veritas Christian School in Lawrence. Pleasanton is coming off a 38-36 win over Northern Heights. Cair Paravel senior Cole Haubold has carried the ball 21 times for 331 yards and seven touchdowns while leading the Lions with 32 tackles (20 solo) and seven tackles for loss. Junior quarterback Chase Hastert has completed seven of 18 passes for 215 yards and four TDs and has 234 rushing yards and four TDs on 24 carries. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka West's volleyball team bounced back from a pair of United Kansas Conference losses a night earlier to sweep Wednesday's USD 501 triangular at Highland Park, with the Chargers taking straight-set wins over the Scots and Topeka High.

West topped Highland Park 25-20, 25-18 in its first match of the night before taking a 25-15, 25-18 win over Topeka High while improving to 10-15 of the season and taking top honors in the 501 triangular for the second straight season.

Topeka West senior Sydney VanDyke spikes the ball in Wednesday's USD 501 volleyball triangular at Highland Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

West senior star Sydney VanDyke said the Chargers get even more fired up than usual when they get the opportunity to face their district rivals. 

"I think so,'' VanDyke said. "It's a lot more competitive and we try our hardest against both teams to win. We all want to beat each other.''

Topeka West celebrates a point in Wednesday's USD 501 volleyball triangular at Highland Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

And VanDyke was proud of how the Chargers bounced back from Tuesday's losses.

"I thought we played great,'' VanDyke said. "We definitely improved since yesterday and we came together more as a team today.

"I think we'll take these matches into next week and the following weeks to improve ourselves over the rest of the season.''

West coach Alyx Nash agreed with VanDyke that the 501 triangular is one the Chargers circle on their schedule.

"One thousand percent,'' Nash said. "And it's always tough coming in here because you've got a triangle of rivals and two good coaches on the other side of the net no matter if its Highland Park or Topeka High and the girls obviously have friendships so they're trying to rival each other and battle each other through the net.

"It's always a fun meet, but we always know we've got to prepare for it because at any point in time it can be anybody's game.''

Hi Park battled the Chargers to a five-point first-set loss before getting five kills and an ace from VanDyke in the second-set win.

West trailed Topeka High 2-0 and 3-2 early in the first set before rallying for 8-3 and 10-4 leads and rolling the rest of the way.

The Chargers never trailed in the second set after building 4-0 and 6-1 leads out of the gate.

Topeka High senior Campbell Dawson (20) goes up for a kill in Wednesday's USD 501 volleyball triangular at Highland Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Bridget Bargmann's Topeka High team bounced back from the West loss to take a 25-11, 25-18 win over Highland Park as senior Campbell Dawson was a force at the net for the Trojans.

Topeka High improved to 5-12 with the win while Isaach Johnson's Scots dipped to 10-13.

Match results

Topeka West def. Highland Park, 25-20, 25-18; Topeka West def. Topeka High, 25-15, 25-18; Topeka High def. Highland Park, 25-11, 25-18.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

A week after posting a nine-stroke victory in the city tournament Seaman senior Chloe Schmidtlein added the United Kansas Conference individual title by two strokes Monday at Painted Hills Golf Course in Kansas City, Kan.

Seaman senior Chloe Schmidtlein shot a 79 to win the UKC individual title by two strokes. [File photo/TSN]

Schmidtlein carded a 79 while De Soto's Mckenzie Laster and Basehor-Linwood's Aubrey Ziolo tied for second with 81s.

The Vikings finished second as a team, with Spring Hill ending Seaman's UKC championship reign by a 367-378 margin.

Seaman also got a tie for eighth from Kaitlynn Frye with a 91 while Penelope Kruesi (99) and Cara Beaton (109) rounded out the Vikings' top four.

Shawnee Heights finished sixth as a team, led by Lauryn Valdivia' tie for eighth (91).   

UNITED KANSAS CONFERENCE GIRLS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

At Painted Hills 

Team scores

Spring Hill 367, Seaman 378, Basehor-Linwood 387, De Soto 387, Piper 399, Shawnee Heights 413, Turner 578.

Individual results

1. Chloe Schmidtlein, Seaman, 79; 2. (tie) Mckenzie Laster, De Soto, and Aubrey Ziolo, Basehor-Linwood, 81; 4. (tie) Claire Fitzgerald, Basehor-Linwood, and Emily Taylor, De Soto, 84; 6. Lydia Herthel, Spring Hill, 85; 7. Kinsley Miller, Spring Hill, 90; 8. (tie) Kaitlyn Frye, Seaman; Addison Nichols, Spring Hill, and Lauryn Valdivia, Shawnee Heights, 91.

Other Seaman -- Penelope Kruesi 99, Cara Beaton 109, Lauren Glasgow 115, Leah Crawford 125.

Other Shawnee Heights -- Elsie Willmann 101, Avery Domme 101, Ashlyn Mattox 120. 

Senior Kailyn Petersen finished second in Monday's Centennial League tournament to lead Washburn Rural to a runnerup team finish. [File photo/TSN]

Petersen, Junior Blues post runnerup Centennial League finishes

Washburn Rural finished second as a team to defending Class 6A state champion Manhattan in Monday's Centennial League tournament at Stagg Hills in Manhattan while Junior Blues senior Kailyn Petersen was the individual runnerup.

Individual champion Maddie Myers shot a sizzling 69 to take medalist honors by 12 strokes over Petersen (81) while the Indians won the team title by a 346-362 margin over the Junior Blues.

Rural's Reese Elliott finished fifth individually (89) while Liz Halstead finished ninth (95) and Emery Hall and LynnLee Mullins tied for 10th (97). 

Senior Brooke Johnson paced Hayden with a third-place individual finish (85) as the Wildcats finished third as a team. 

CENTENNIAL LEAGUE GIRLS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

At Stagg Hill 

Team scores

Manhattan 346, Washburn Rural 362, Hayden 387, Emporia 418, Junction City 458.

Individual results

1. Maddie Myers, Manhattan, 69; 2. Kailyn Petersen, Washburn Rural, 81; 3. Brooke Johnson, Hayden, 85; 4. Taylen Koch, Emporia, 87; 5. Reese Elliott, Washburn Rural, 89; 6. Lilly Nelson, Manhattan, 91; 7. (tie) Gabby Fehr, Manhattan, and Addy Crouch, Manhattan, 93; 9. Liz Halstead, Washburn Rural, 95; 10. (tie) Emery Hall, Washburn Rural; LynnLee Mullins, Washburn Rural, and Emily Hartung, Manhattan, 97.

Other Washburn Rural -- Brynley Scott 99.

Other Hayden -- Avery Becker 100, Morgan Johnson 101, Emma Matthews 101, Esa Herarra 104, Maura Tolin 106.

Topeka High -- Braylin Selk 139, Riley McMillian 148.

Host Eagles win title in invitational

Silver Lake posted an 11-stroke team win in Monday's Silver Lake Invitational at Cypress Ridge, winning by a 384-395 margin over Holton.

 The Eagles' Zara Nilsson shot an 85 to finish a stroke behind medalist Addison Fechter of Jefferson West while Silver Lake's Avenley Head finished third with an 89.

Rossville finished fifth as a team but the Bulldawgs got a sixth-place finish from Elley Sanders (97), an eighth from Maya Donovan (99) and a tie for 10th from Gloria Stebbins (102).

SILVER LAKE INVITATIONAL GIRLS GOLF 

At Cypress Ridge

Team scores

Silver Lake 384, Holton 395, Jefferson West 401, Osage City 403, Rossville 413, Silver Lake 'B' 469.

Individual results

1. Addison Fechter, Jefferson West, 84; 2. Zara Nilsson, Silver Lake, 85; 3. Avenley Head, Silver Lake, 89; 4. Bree Barrow, Holton, 91; 5. Brynlee Harmon, Osage City, 93; 6. Elley Sanders, Rossville, 97; 7. Alyssa Stich, Holton, 98; 8. Maya Donovan, Rossville, 99; 9. Adalie Alley, Holton, 101; 10. (tie) Gloria Stebbins, Rossville, and Sawyer Serna, Osage City, 102.

Other Silver Lake -- Ashley Hanna 105, Savanah Wende 105, Morgan Ackerly 110, Ali Gerber 116, Alissa Thomas 116, Addy Just 117, Addison Beyer 117, Ciara Hall 119.

Other Rossville -- Joan Pottorf 115, Reese Olejnik 118. 

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural rode running back Jadyn Baum to a 34-7 victory over Topeka High at Hummer Sports Park Friday. The Junior Blues improved to 2-2 and picked up a win to open Centennial League play.

Senior Jadyn Baum rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns in Washburn Rural's 34-7 win over Topeka High. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Washburn Rural was without its top two quarterbacks due to injury, but coach Steve Buhler had a plan. He put the Junior Blues on Baum’s back, and the senior came through.

The state wrestling champion carried the ball 32 times for 160 yards in the first half, scoring all three of Washburn Rural’s touchdowns to stake the visitors to a 21-0 advantage. Once the game was in hand, Baum carried just two more times, resting most of the second half.

“When they told me he had 32 carries at halftime, it kind of shocked me a little bit,” Buhler said. “But with a new quarterback, a young sophomore quarterback, (Baum) knew we were going to have to rely on him and on the offensive line. I thought the line did a really nice job of giving him some room to run. And he just does some phenomenal things.”

“That was a first for me,” Baum said about the number of first half carries. “My body feels good. It was definitely draining, but it’s worth it. If the team needs me to have 30 carries in the first half, I’ll do it every game.”

 Sophomore quarterback Jaihonis Wallace made his first career start in Washburn Rural's 34-7 win over Topeka High Friday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Junior Isaiah Whiteside caught a 13-yard touchdown pass in Washburn Rural's 34-7 win over Topeka High. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

With senior quarterbacks Gavin Vantuyl and Gabriel Taylor sidelined, the Junior Blues turned to JV starter Jaihonis Wallace. The sophomore fired a touchdown strike to junior Isaiah Whiteside to open the second half. Wallace, who finished up the fourth period of the Junior Blues’ previous game, completed six of his 10 attempts for 72 yards.

“I was helping him out with signals and just helping him on confidence,” Baum said. “Obviously, a sophomore being put in that position after watching two quarterbacks go down in the same game, that’s pretty nerve-wracking. So, whatever I can do to help him, I’m gonna do. I think he did good.

"There’s always room for improvement, but he’s hungry. I love his dedication. He’s like a sponge in practice, just soaking up everything on the varsity level, adapting to everything.”

After the Junior Blues’ Ryan Austin booted field goals of 28 and 22 yards, Washburn Rural went deep into its bench.

“It’s good for our young guys,” Buhler said. “You know, they put in a lot of work. That’s why we tell them, we suit them up to get an opportunity to play on Friday night. It kind of whets their appetite a little bit. We usually see better practices and better JV and freshman performances. So, it’s good to get them in.”

The Junior Blues are on a four-game string of alternating losses and wins. Buhler said the team remains positive with four games remaining, three in the wide-open Centennial League.

“I think it’s a resilient group,” Buhler said. “Week 1 we had a rough week, but we came back, bounced back with a win against Olathe South. Last week was a rough week for us (losing 34-23 to Bishop Carroll). We came back with a good performance tonight.”

The Junior Blues’ defense totally throttled Topeka High in the first half, during which the Trojans never advanced past their own 41-yard-line. Topeka High managed just five yards of total offense prior to intermission and finished with just 117 yards for the entire game, much of which came on a 53-yard scoring dash by Ricardo Dowd late in the contest.

“(I liked) the consistency of the defense all night,” Buhler said. “We talked about that with them all week. Offensively, we didn’t do that, had some penalties that kind of killed some drives. But defensively we played a clean football game. We were disciplined in the things we were doing, and I really liked the effort and the focus they played with tonight.”

WASHBURN RURAL 34, TOPEKA HIGH 7

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

After a two-year absence, Washburn Rural re-claimed the Topeka city girls tennis team championship Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center.

Washburn Rural poses for a team picture after winning the city girls tennis championship by a 32-28 margin over Seaman Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Two-time city No. 1 doubles champs Julia Katzer and Halle Owen led the way as the Junior Blues won three of four divisions on the way to a 32-28 victory over 2025 champion Seaman while 2024 champ Hayden finished third with 24 points.

Washburn Rural seniors Halle Owen (left) and Julia Katzer won their second straight city title in No. 1 doubles Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Katzer and Owen, both seniors, earned their repeat city title with an 8-3 win over Hayden juniors Hailey Caryl and Sophia Wichman and said their biggest thrill of the day was helping the Junior Blues win the team championship.

"We didn't win as a team last year, so I just really wanted to come through with that win so we could help the team out,'' Katzer said.

"It was a goal going in,'' Owen said of the team title. "I know we have a lot of strong players and we have a lot of strong underclassmen coming up, so I think that with a lot of the hard work that we've put in it's been good and it's paying off to win as a team.''

Washburn Rural also got city titles in No. 2 singles from Karmyn Faul and in No. 2 doubles from Annie Henderson and Kinley Ladd.

Faul topped Cair Paravel Latin's Mia Poole 8-6 in the No. 2 singles final while Henderson and Ladd took an 8-4 win over Seaman in the No. 2 doubles title match.

"The girls stayed patient, they remembered to play their game and stayed focused, and when you have a lead keep that gas pedal down and don't let up because these girls at these other schools are relentless and they're not going to stop,'' Washburn Rural coach Michelle Rose said.

Seaman senior Emma Sweeney won her second straight city title in No. 1 singles Thursday at Kossover Tennis Center, remaining undefeated on the season. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Undefeated Seaman senior star Emma Sweeney won her second straight No. 1 singles championship to pace the runnerup Vikings, taking an 8-0 win over Cair Paravel's Madelyn Poole in the final.

Sweeney, the Class 5A singles runnerup as a junior, lost just one game on the day after receiving a first-round bye, improving to 13-0 on the season.

"I think I've been playing pretty loose so far and that's always the goal, just to play better each day,'' Sweeney said. "I think I can always do better and work harder but so far I think I've been putting my all into each match and not taking anyone easy and just playing loose. That's the whole point.

"We've been working really hard as a team and we talk every single day about how we're going to put it all out there this year. Getting second in singles and as a team last year it was a big hurt, but we're coming back and we're all just ready to leave it out there.''

TOPEKA CITY GIRLS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

THURSDAY'S GAME

Fletcher Terrell, Shawnee Heights [File photo/TSN]

SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (1-2, 1-2) vs. TOPEKA WEST (0-3, 0-3)

At Hummer Sports Park

Shawnee Heights is coming off a 62-7 United Kansas Conference road loss at Seaman last Friday while Topeka West dropped a 42-14 UKC decision at Lansing. Shawnee Heights senior quarterback Kolby Kutscher has completed 39 of 68 passes for 673 yards and six touchdowns while sophomore Fletcher Terrell has caught 15 passes for 537 yards and five TDs. Senior Trone Purvis has carried the ball 45 times for 229 yards and two TDs. Junior Malachi Lee leads the T-Birds with 27 tackles (20 solo). Topeka West junior quarterback Josiah Wilkie has completed 33 of 63 passes for 372 yards and two TDs. Junior Nas Williams-Brown has rushed for 269 yards and two TDs on 25 carries while senior Micah Emerson has 11 catches for 197 yards and three TDs. Sophomore Payson Skelton leads the Chargers with 22 tackles.

FRIDAY'S GAMES

Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural [Photo by Doug Walker/TSN]

TOPEKA HIGH (1-2, 0-0) vs. WASHBURN RURAL (1-2, 0-0)

At Hummer Sports Park

The Trojans and Junior Blues will square off Friday in the Centennial League opener for both schools. Both the Trojans and Junior Blues will be looking to bounce back from losses, with Topeka High dropping a 46-19 road decision at Wichita Southeast and Washburn Rural falling at home to undefeated Wichita Bishop Carroll, 34-23. The Junior Blues were within five points in the fourth quarter despite losing both of their senior quarterbacks, Gavin Vantuyl and Gabriel Taylor,  to injuries. Rural star senior running back Jadyn Baum finished the night with 208 rushing yards and 74 and 70-yard TDs on 23 carries. Senior Courtney Sanders is a top player for Topeka High.

ST. MARY'S SOUTH SIDE, Mo. (2-2) at HAYDEN (0-3)

After three straight games on the road, Hayden wil play its home-opener against its second straight out-of-state opponent. At halftime Hayden will officially re-name its stadium Tom Stringer Family Stadium in honor of the Wildcats' legendary football coach, who passed away in 2025. Hayden is coming off a 57-12 loss at Missouri power St. Pius X, 4-0 on the season. South Side, located in St. Louis, is coming off a 42-7 loss to undefeated Jackson, Mo. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Monday's city high school girls golf championship at Cypress Ridge was marked by something old and something new.

Washburn Rural poses for a team picture after posting a 29-stroke victory in Monday's city girls golf tournament at Cypress Ridge. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

After a one-year absence, Washburn Rural regained its traditional place atop the city ladder, capturing its 12th city team championship in the 14-year history of the event by 29 strokes over Hayden as Hayden Beck won his first city title as the Junior Blues' head coach.

But Monday also saw Seaman senior Chloe Schmidtlein win her first city individual title by nine strokes with a 78 after finishing seventh in 2025.

Seaman senior Chloe Schmidtlein shot a 78 Monday to win her first city individual title by nine strokes at Cypress Ridge. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural rode its balance to the team crown, with the Junior Blues putting all of its top four players in the top eight individually.

Washburn Rural senior Kailyn Petersen shot an 87 to tie for second place in Monday's city girls golf tournament at Cypress Ridge. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Washburn Rural sophomore Reese Elliott tied for second in Monday's city golf tournament with an 87. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Senior Kailyn Petersen and sophomore Reese Elliott tied for second behind Schmidtlein with 87s while Brynley Scott and LynnLee Mullins shot 95s to tie for seventh place.

"I think that we're getting where we need to be, and I think it's a testament to the work they've put in,'' Beck said. "We've been inside because it's been a rough year with the weather. All teams are dealing with it, but our girls have shown up every practice that we've had to move inside and they've got a lot of good work in.

"We've been pounding the short game and I'm starting to see a little bit of a difference from where we were at the start of the year to where we are now, so it's awesome to see us be able to put four scores together and kind of be where we're supposed to be.''

Schmidtlein, who helped Seaman win the city team title as a junior, used a red-hot start to her decisive individual victory, shooting under par over her front nine and holding a comfortable lead for the remainder of her round despite cooling off a bit.

Schmidtlein said that winning the city title was a goal entering Monday's tournament. 

"I talked to my dad about it before the round and I was like, 'It would be really cool to go win city today, I think I could do it,' '' Schmidtlein said.

"But I didn't get too focused on it because if I set a goal and focus too much on it then I sometimes just go completely downhill.''

And now that she did win the city title, Schmidtlein is hoping to ride that momentum into the United Kansas Conference, regional and state meets.

"I feel like I can go perform well,'' she said.

Brooke Johnson tied for second with an 87 to lead Hayden to a runnerup team finish in Monday's city golf tournament. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Brooke Johnson tied for second with an 87 for team runnerup Hayden while Morgan Johnson finished sixth with a 92 and Emma Matthews placed 10th with a 103.

In addition to Schmidtlein's individual victory, third-place Seaman got a fifth-place finish from Kaitlynn Frye, who carded 90.

Shawnee Heights' Lauryn Valdivia earned an individual medal with a ninth-place finish for the T-Birds, shooting a 97.   

Baldwin won the championship in the Topeka West Invitational, held in conjunction with the city tournament, by a 32-stroke margin over Washburn Rural (332-364) as Peyton Wright shot a 73 to post a five-stroke individual win for the Bulldawgs. 

TOPEKA CITY GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Defending Class 6A boys state cross country champion Washburn Rural is off and running again, including a team title in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic at Rural.

Junior Clayton Fink (510) posted a fifth-place individual finish to lead Washburn Rural to the boys team title in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural sophomore Alyson Hinck turned in a fourth-place girls individual finish in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic as Rural finished third as a team. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

The Junior Blues put three runners in the top nine spots on the way to a decisive 50-77 victory over Blue Valley Northwest while Rural's girls also turned in a banner day, with three runners placing in the top eight individually en route to a third-place team finish behind Shawnee Mission East and Mill Valley.

"Both the boys and girls teams ran great,'' Rural coach Matt Swedlund said. "It's always fun to host and show off our beautiful home course.''

Saturday's meet is named in honor of former longtime Washburn Rural coach Scott Shufelberger, who Swedlund ran for in high school.

Junior Clayton Fink paced Rural's boys in Saturday's meet with a fifth-place individual finish among 99 runners in a five-kilometer time of 16 minutes, 29.50 seconds.

Junior Duke Graf (511) placed seventh in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic for the team-champion Washburn Rural boys. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Rural, which captured the 2025 6A team championship by a single point, also got a seventh-place finish from Duke Graf (16:48.40) and a ninth-place showing from junior Jaxson Adams (16:53.30) while sophomore Julius Wood-Nichols placed 13th (17:04.90) and senior Cohen Thiessen 16th (17:13.90) to round out the Junior Blues' top five.

"The boys ran solid and are progressing nicely,'' Swedlund said.

Seaman finished ninth as a team with 186 points, led by sophomore Trindon Jones, who placed 14th (17:09.00).

Shawnee Heights got a 29th-place finish from sophomore Miles Hadley (17:40.40) on the way to an 11th-place team finish while Topeka West finished 12th as a team, getting a team-high 66th-place finish from senior Ezra Phelps (18:40.10).

Washburn Rural junior Reese Beardslee (547) finished sixth in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]  

Sophomore Alyson Hinck led Washburn Rural's girls with a fourth-place individual finish among 85 competitors in 19:26.40 while junior Reese Beardslee was two spots back in sixth place (19:31.20) and sophomore Morgan Munson finished eighth (19:41.80).

Sophomore Quinn Nolte finished 29th (21:05.10) and freshman Kenadee Booher 34th (21:21.30) to round out Rural's scoring runners as Rural finished with 81 points to finish third behind SM East (58) and Mill Valley (68).

Seaman senior Brynn Spencer (496) finished ninth in Saturday's Shufelberger Top City Classic. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Seaman senior Brynn Spencer, a returning 5A state medalist, placed ninth (19:43.00) for the seventh-place Vikings. 

SHUFELBERGER TOP CITY CLASSIC

GIRLS

Team scores

Shawnee Mission East 58, Mill Valley 68, Washburn Rural 81, Olathe North 101, Olathe West 105, Gardner-Edgerton 177, Seaman 185, Olathe South 197, Blue Valley Northwest 206, Junction City 225.

Individual results

1. Charlotte Hardy, SM East, 18:11.80; 2. Audrey Howard, Mill Valley, 18:22.10; 3. Lyla Speicher, SM East, 18:52.20; 4. Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural, 19:26.40; 5. Hailey Hanna, Mill Valley, 19:30.20; 6. Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural, 19:31.20; 7. Molly DeGregorio, Olathe West, 19:34.90; 8. Morgan Munson, Washburn Rural, 19:41.80; 9. Brynn Spencer, sr., Seaman, 19:43.00; 10. Karsyn Hitchcock, Olathe North, 19:43.60.

Other Washburn Rural -- 29. Quinn Nolte, 21:05.10; 34. Kenadee Booher, 21:21.30; 47. Avery Kennedy, 22:35.20; 69. Clara Dillon, 23:38.30;  

Other Seaman -- 33. Morgan Ranson, 21:18.90; 40. Kinley Robinson, 21:56.10; 48. Brinley Cochran, 22:39.90; 64. Hannah Wempe, 23:27.30; 78. Jaydin Frickey, Seaman, 24:44.70; 80. Avery Villines, 25:07.20.

Shawnee Heights -- 79. Claudia Memmet, 24:51.40; 84. Hazel Rondash, 25:51.20; 85. Piper Geil, 28:05.60.

BOYS

Team scores

Washburn Rural 50, Blue Valley Northwest 77, Shawnee Mission East 84, Mill Valley 113, Olathe West 156, Gardner-Edgerton 158, Olathe South 163, Shawnee Mission West 172, Seaman 186, Junction City 214, Shawnee Heights 302, Topeka West 338.

Individual results

1. Jacob D'souza, Blue Valley Northwest, 15:35.20; 2. Graham Anderson,  Mill Valley, 15:58.20; 3. Kallan Horveath, SM West, 16:14.60; 4. Anthony Testa, Junction City, 16:15.90; 5. Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural, 16:29.50; 6. George Clifford, SM East, 16:30.30; 7. Duke Graf, Washburn Rural, 16:48.40; 8. Andrew Kennedy, Blue Valley Northwest, 16:51.40; 9. Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural, 16:53.30; 10. Asher Yager, Mill Valley, 16:54.50.

Other Washburn Rural -- 13. Julius Wood-Nichols, 17:04.90; 16. Cohen Thiessen, 17:13.90; 24. Bennett Wells, 17:33.50 

Seaman -- 14. Trindon Jones, 17:09.00; 31. Conner Bloom, 17:41.50; 41. Emmanuel Armstead, 17:53.70; 57. Maddox Moore,  18:15.80; 62. Tate Oliva, 18:33.10; 74. Camden Dutton, 19:06.30; 78. Cody Miller, 19:10.80; 82. Nick Horton, 19:24.80; 97. Weston Kennedy, 21:14.00.

Shawnee Heights -- 29. Miles Hadley, 17:40.40; 67. Andrew Schulte, 18:41.50; 83. Deyton Coufal, 19:29.00; 95. Carter Vincent, 20:49.30; 99. Marcus Folger, 21:19.20.

Hayden -- 32. Nick Newkirk, 17:42.50. 

Topeka West -- 66. Ezra Phelps, 18:40.10; 85. Westin Soto, 19:31.80; 89. Cameron Parrett, 19:43.20; 91. Rhys Green, 19:49.00; 94. Elijah Hernandez, 20:30.40; 98. Mason Gore, 21:15.70. 

Gerber, Kraus pace Eagles at Hiawatha

Silver Lake senior girls standout Alessandra Gerber placed eighth individually among 64 runners in Thursday's Hiawatha Invitational, leading the Eagles to a sixth-place team finish.

Gerber clocked a five-kilometer time of 22:25.89 while Silver Lake also got a top-20 finish from freshman JessiLyn Mohler (23:59.35).

Silver Lake junior Cason Kraus placed 10th individually in the boys race (19:32.70), leading the Eagles to a runnerup team finish behind Nemaha Central (29-85).

The Eagles also got a 16th-place finish from senior Lane Ray (20:03.52) and a 19th-place showing from freshman Dayton Uhl (20:08.36).

Dawg trio posts top-20 finishes at Wabaunsee meet

Rossville seniors Payton Shaddux and Madelyn Wonnell and freshman Raiden Pollock posted top-20 individual finishes in Saturday's Jason McKinney Memorial meet, hosted by Wabaunsee.

Shaddux (25:08.79) placed 12th and Wonnell 14th (25:21.90) in the girls race while Pollock (21:40.92) finished 17th in the boys race as Rossville finished fifth as a team.

Trojans' Davis top 10 at Baldwin

Topeka High junior Easton Davis placed ninth among 66 runners in Saturday's Baldwin Invitational.

Davis clocked a time of 17:56.53 to lead the Trojans to a sixth-place team finish.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Silver Lake continued its red-hot start to the 2026 season Friday night, improving to 3-0 with a 55-21 home Big East League romp past previously-unbeaten Jefferson West.

Silver Lake sophomore quarterback Kipton Kruger (8) threw for 364 yards and five TDs in Friday's 55-21 romp past Jefferson West. [File photo/TSN]

Jeff West, now 2-1, led 14-7 at the end of the first quarter, but the rest of the night belonged to Silver Lake, which outscored the Tigers 48-7 over the final three quarters.

Silver Lake outscored Jeff West 14-0 in the second quarter to take a 21-14 halftime advantage and then broke the game open with two unanswered TDs in the third quarter and outscored the Tigers 20-7 in the fourth quarter.

Sophomore quarterback Kipton Kruger completed 22 of 34 passes for 364 yards and five touchdowns for Silver Lake, which improved to 3-0 in the Big East League race.

Eagle senior Owen Rottinghaus had seven catches for 121 yards and three TDs.

Senior JoJo Kingcannon (3) rushed for 345 yards Friday night, leading Highland Park to a 50-34 Meadowlark Conference win over Atchison. [File photo/TSN]

Kingcannon powers Scots to first win

Senior quarterback JoJo Kingcannon rushed for 345 yards on 29 carries Friday night, leading Highland Park to a 50-34 Meadowlark Conference victory over Atchison as the Scots improved to 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

Kingcannon also passed for 31 yards while Highland Park got 146 rushing yards on 13 carries from Rashon Pollard.

Highland Park will travel to Kansas City-Sumner Academy for a Meadowlark matchup next Friday.

Dawgs fall to Falcons in 20-15 thriller

Rossville took a 15-14 lead over Big East League foe Riley County with 7:05 remaining in Friday's home game before the Falcons scored the game-winning touchdown with 4:09 left to take the 20-15 win.

After a scoreless first quarter Riley County took a 7-0 lead with 7:58 left before halftime.

The Bulldawgs cut their halftime deficit to 7-3 on a 27-yard Julian Goj field goal with 1:14 left before the break.

The score remained that way until the two teams combined for 25 points in the fourth quarter.

Rossville took a brief 9-7 advantage with 10:03 remaining on a 13-yard run from senior Cael Horgan (kick failed), but Riley County answered 1:21 later on a 35-yard run to go up 14-9.

The Bulldawgs took the 15-14 lead on a 49-yard pass from junior Landen Lewis to Horgan (2-point conversion failed), before Riley County scored the game-winning TD.

Rossville, now 1-2, will be back at home Friday to host 2-1 Reno County Home School, which is coming off a 35-34 win over Hugoton.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

FRIDAY'S GAMES

Kolby Kutscher, Shawnee Heights

Cale Ketter, Seaman

SHAWNEE HEIGHTS (1-1, 1-1 UKC) at SEAMAN (0-2, 0-2 UKC)

Shawnee Heights is coming off a heartbreaking 37-29 overtime United Kansas Conference loss to Leavenworth while Seaman dropped a 55-20 UKC decision to Basehor-Linwood, the 2025 Class 5A runnerup. Shawnee Heights senior quarterback Kolby Kutscher has completed 27 of 43 passes for 533 yards and six touchdowns, while sophomore Fletcher Terrell has 11 catches for 284 yards and five TDs. Senior Trone Purvis has carried the ball 27 times for 177 yards and two TDs while freshman Zayis Barksdale has rushed for 151 yards and two TDs on 11 carries. Seaman senior quarterback Cale Ketter has completed 42 of 73 passes for 665 yards and seven touchdowns while senior Coy Barta has 15 catches for 306 yards and two TDs. Viking junior Quentin Moravec has carried the ball 33 times for 187 yards and a TD. 

JoJo Kingcannon, Highland Park

ATCHISON (1-1, 1-0 Meadowlark) vs. HIGHLAND PARK (0-2, 0-1 Meadowlark)

At Hummer Sports Park

Highland Park dropped a 56-0 Meadowlark Conference decision to KC-Washington last Friday while Atchison is coming off a 34-24 conference win over KC-Wyandotte. Highland Park, which won the Meadowlark championship in 2025, is looking for its first win this fall after dropping a 33-6 non-league decision to USD 501 rival Topeka High in its season opener. Scot senior quarterback JoJo Kingcannon has rushed for 157 yards on 35 carries and has completed 7 of 21 passes for 62 yards and a touchdown.

 Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural

BISHOP CARROLL (2-0) at WASHBURN RURAL (1-1)

Washburn Rural picked up a 21-7 non-league home win over Olathe South last Friday while Wichita Bishop Carroll improved to 2-0 with a 49-16 win over Wichita Southeast. Senior Amir Jones set up Rural's first touchdown against Olathe South when he picked off a pass and returned it to the 2-yard-line and the Junior Blues also scored a defensive touchdown when senior Tyler Tangye recovered a fumble in the end zone. Senior running back Jadyn Baum finished with 124 rushing yards and 2 and 32-yard TDs on 22 attempts to pace Rural's offense. Carroll senior quarterback Jonah Mull has completed 18 of 22 passes for 186 yards and a TD and rushed for 142 yards and four TDs on 19 attempts while senior Cooper Herrman has 24 carries for 180 yards and a TD.

Kipton Kruger, Silver Lake

JEFFERSON COUNTY WEST (2-0, 1-0 Big East) at SILVER LAKE (2-0, 2-0 Big East)

Silver Lake improved to 2-0 with a 42-27 Big East League win over Rossville in the annual War on 24 while Jeff West stayed unbeaten with a 27-0 non-league shutout over Centralia. Silver Lake sophomore quarterback Kipton Kruger has completed 33 of 53 passes for 372 yards and four touchdowns while junior running back Dominic Monhollon has carried the ball 36 times for 281 yards and five TDs. Tiger sophomore quarterback Brixton Schwinn has completed 25 of 38 passes for 421 yards and six TDs while senior Brody Schwinn has nine receptions for 204 yards and three TDs.

Landen Lewis, Rossville 

RILEY COUNTY (1-1, 1-1 Big East) at ROSSVILLE (1-1, 1-1 Big East)

Rossville is coming off a 42-27 road Big East League loss to rival Silver Lake last Friday while Riley County picked up its first victory, a 21-0 league decision over St. Marys. Rossville junior quarterback Landen Lewis has completed 30 of 43 passes for 374 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 301 yards and six TDs on 40 carries. Senior Cael Horgan has caught 12 passes for 162 yards and a TD. Riley County senior quarterback Kadrick Woodard has rushed for 273 yards and three TDs on 42 attempts.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Topeka High's boys cross country team edged USD 501 rival Topeka West in a tiebreaker to win West's Joe Schrag Invitational Saturday at Kanza Park.

Both the Trojans and Chargers finished the meet with 65 team points, but Topeka High took the title by virtue of a higher finish by its sixth runner (28-36).

Junior Easton Davis paced High with a fifth-place individual finish in a five-kilometer time of 18 minutes, 42.17 seconds while the Trojans also got an eighth-place showing from junior Oliver Snethen (18:58.41), a 16th from junior Amir Eljammel (20:16.07), a 17th from Nicholas McDonald (20:18.76) and a 19th from senior William Toland (20:51.08).

Topeka West was led by senior Ezra Phelps' ninth-place finish (19:02.67), while sophomore Cameron Parrett finished 11th (19:24.98), sophomore Maks Rodriguez 13th (19:48.40), junior Rhys Green 14th (20:01.18) and sophomore Elijah Hernandez 18th (20:43.80).

Shawnee Heights sophomore Miles Hadley finished second individually in 18:12.62 to lead the T-Birds to a fourth-place team finish.

Heights also got a seventh-place finish from Andrew Schulte (18:51.28), and a 12th from junior Deyton Coufal (19:46.78).

Shawnee Heights' girls finished second as a team behind Lansing (25-55) as sophomore Hazel Rondash paced the T-Birds with a 10th-place finish (25:31.35).

Heights freshman Claudia Memmet finished 11th (26:00.89), sophomore Kendall Lewis 12th (26:17.09) and freshman Charlotte Richards 15th (26:34.07).

Topeka High junior Emma Womack was the top city girls finisher in eighth place (24:53.37) while High senior Victoria Reynaga was 13th (26:19.32).

Rural, Seaman compete in loaded Olathe Twilight 

Washburn Rural competed in the meet's premier Blue division in Saturday's Olathe Twilight at the Olathe District Activities Center, with junior Clayton Fink and sophomore Alyson Hinck pacing the Junior Blues.

Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural [File photo/TSN]

Fink finished 17th among 167 runners in 16:02.21 in the boys race while Hinck placed 28th among 173 competitors in the girls race (19:15.80).

Rural junior Duke Graf added a 22nd-place finish (16:13.70) and junior Jaxson Adams a 36th-place showing (16:26.70) in the boys race.

Junior Reese Beardslee finished 34th for the Rural girls (19:28.40) while sophomore Morgan Munson placed 43rd (19:53.00).

Seaman senior Brynn Spencer finished 37th in 19:31.40).

Seaman's boys competed in the Red division, with sophomore Trindon Jones placing eighth individually out of 124 runners (16:45.20), sophomore Weston Kennedy 14th (17:11.20), senior Conner Bloom 27th (17:32.60), junior Maddox Moore 45th (17:55.90) and sophomore Tate Oliva 48th (17:57.90).

Ali Gerber, Silver Lake [Submitted photo/Silver Lake cross country]

Gerber paces Eagles at Wamego

Silver Lake senior Ali Gerber finished 18th among 142 runners in the Class 3A-1A division of the Wamego Invitational in a time of 22:18.37 as the Eagles finished ninth among 18 teams.

Eagle freshman JessiLyn Mohler placed 36th (23:55.57) while Rossville senior Madilyn Wonnell finished 40th (24:18.26).

Junior Cason Kraus placed 25th among 185 runners in the 3A-1A boys race (19:33.11) while senior Lane Ray was 30th (19:41.71) as the Eagles finished seventh as a team among 17 schools.

Hayden junior Nick Newkirk competed in the 4A boys division, turning in a 22nd-place finish among 233 runners in 18:02.14.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Topeka High fought valiantly to hang with Dodge City Thursday night, but big plays and mistakes were the Trojans' undoing as they fell 38-21 at Hummer Sports Park.

Topeka High senior Courtney Sanders rushed for 88 yards and scored two touchdowns in Thursday's 38-21 loss to Dodge City. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Coming off a convincing 33-6 season-opening win over Highland Park, the Trojans were disappointed in their many miscues.

“We had a week last week where we didn’t make mental mistakes, and this week we made all of them,” said Topeka High coach Jason Filbeck. “Hats off to Dodge City. They’re well-coached, tough kids, disciplined kids. They didn’t jump offsides. They didn’t do the things that we did tonight.

“We played them a much closer game than (the scoreboard showed). It’s not so much what they did to us as much as we just kept shooting ourselves in the foot on things.”

Breakdowns proved costly to the Trojans, robbing their momentum and negating both their first-half touchdowns.

Topeka High took a 7-3 lead late in the first period on a 44-yard scamper by senior Courtney Sanders. But poor coverage on the ensuing kickoff gave the lead right back to Dodge City. Red Demon return man Elliott Williams took the kick 80 yards to recover the lead 10-7.

Trailing 17-7 late in the second period, the Trojans drove into Dodge City territory, where Sanders once again broke loose for a touchdown. The senior appeared to be stopped at least twice as he ran around the right end, then reversed field and dashed all the way back through the backfield to the left end. Weaving through traffic, slipping numerous tackles, Sanders covered plenty more than the 32 yards necessary to reach the end zone. The score narrowed the deficit to 17-14 with 1:19 left in the half.

But another breakdown once again stole the Trojans’ momentum. Dodge City ran four plays to reach midfield with just 8.8 seconds left. Visiting quarterback Reis Ochs rolled right and was just about to tuck the ball to run when he spotted wide receiver Julian Burillo strolling wide open up the right sideline. Ochs lofted a floater that Burillo hauled in and carried to the goal with no time left on the clock, making the halftime score 24-14.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

(Allkickoffs at 7 p.m.)

THURSDAY'S GAME

Courtney Sanders, Topeka High [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

DODGE CITY (1-0) vs. TOPEKA HIGH (1-0)

At Hummer Sports Park

Senior Courtney Sanders scored three touchdowns to lead Topeka High to a 33-6 season-opening victory over USD 501 rival Highland Park last Thursday. Sanders scored his first touchdown on an 18-yard past from senior quarterback Asher Filbeck, scored on a 40-yard run and returned a punt 94 yards for a touchdown to give the Trojans their 26-0 halftime advantage. Filbeck, making his first career start at quarterback, finished the night with a game-high 128 rushing yards on just seven attempts while his lone pass completion went for the TD to Sanders. Dodge City opened its season with a 42-20 win over Wichita West. The Red Demons are coached by former Seaman coach Glenn O'Neil.

FRIDAY'S GAMES

ROSSVILLE (1-0, 1-0 BIG EAST) at SILVER LAKE (1-0, 1-0 Big East)

Rossville opened its season with a 35-14 home Big East League win over Perry-Lecompton while Silver Lake shut out St. Marys 27-0 in a league game at St. Marys. Junior Landen Lewis, who was making his first start at quarterback for the Bulldawgs, carried the ball 21 times for 167 yards and all five Rossville touchdowns while also completing 13 of 17 passes for 159 yards. Junior Cale Horak led the Bulldawgs with seven tackles. Silver Lake sophomore quarterback Kipton Kruger completed 14 of 29 passes for 165 yards and a TD while junior Dom Monhollon carried the ball 10 times for 118 yards and two touchdowns and caught two passes for 67 yards and a TD. Senior Myles Fisher led the Eagles with 17 tackles.

JoJo Kingcannon, Highland Park [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

KC-WASHINGTON (1-0, 1-0 Meadowlark) vs. HIGHLAND PARK (0-1, 0-0 Meadowlark)

At Hummer Sports Park

Highland Park is coming off a 33-6 non-league loss to USD 501 rival Topeka High last Thursday while Knsas City-Washington rolled to a 48-0 Meadowlark Conference victory over KC-Schlagle. Highland Park scored its lone touchdown on a 27-yard touchdown pass from senior JoJo Kingcannon to senior G'Honi Montgomery. Kingcannon rushed for 64 yards on 12 carries and he passed for 62 yards and the TD. Washington opened up a 38-0 halftime advantage over the Stallions and cruised the rest of the way. Wildcat junior quarterback Benito Morrell completed 12 of 24 passes for 232 yards and four touchdowns while senior Alvin Riley rushed for 103 yards and a TD on eight carries. Highland Park will be beginning defense of its Meadowlark Conference championship.

OLATHE SOUTH (0-1) at WASHBURN RURAL (0-1)

Washburn Rural will be playing its home opener at Bowen-Glaze Stadium Friday night after dropping a 58-13 road decision to 2025 Class 4A state champion Wichita Kapaun Mt. Carmel, which is moving back up to 5A this fall. Olathe South will also be looking for its first victory after the Falcons dropped a 27-0 Sunflower League decision to Olathe Northwest in its opener. 

Cale Ketter, Seaman [File photo/TSN]

BASEHOR-LINWOOD (1-0, 1-0 UKC) at SEAMAN (0-1, 0-1 UKC) 

Seaman dropped a 48-34 United Kansas Conference road decision at De Soto last Friday while Basehor-Linwood took a 59-35 UKC win over Leavenworth. Seaman senior quarterback Cale Ketter completed 27 of 43 passes for 456 yards and five touchdowns while Coy Barta caught 11 passes for 267 yards and two TDs, Josh Brown had five catches for 57 yards and two TDs and Jack Becker had five grabs for 56 yards and a TD. Seniors Bryson Fehr and Bishup Liggett were in on 13 tackles for the Vikings. Basehor-Linwood junior quarterback Dane Forshey completed 7 of 7 passes for 141 yards and four touchdwns against Leavenworth while junior Gavin Mitchell carried the ball seven times for 143 yards and a touchdown. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Cair Paravel Latin's soccer team got Topeka High's attention with an early goal in Tuesday's non-league contest at Hummer Sports Park.

But the Trojans answered with five unanswered goals, taking a 5-1 non-league win over the Lions.

Topeka High senior John Martinez (10), battling Cair Paravel senior David Toenjes, scored a goal in Tuesday's 5-1 Trojan win at Hummer Sports Park. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Cair Paravel drew first blood with an early goal from senior Judah Congdon, but the Lions were shut out for the remainder of the contest as Topeka High took control, rallying for a 2-1 halftime advantage before tacking on its final three goals after the break.

"That's not always a bad thing,'' Topeka High coach Derek Snook said of getting Cair Paravel's early wakeup call. "It started in the middle of the field and its something we've struggled with since last year.

"We pass to the wrong color (jersey) and we were making a pretty good run on the outside and just passed it right to them and they caught us off balance and made a heck of a shot from about 20 yards out. They slapped us in the mouth early and away we go.''

Senior Carlos Acosta-Martinez had a goal and two assists for the Trojans, who also got goals from senior Santi Ovalle, senior John Martinez, sophomore Emyr Vargas and freshman Juan Lopez.

"Overall it was better,'' Snook said of High's performance. "We were a little frustrated in the first half and that comes with maybe being a little rusty because we hadn't placed since last Tuesday.

"But overall I think we came back well. I think we all started doing what we wanted to do and just trying to control the ball and it turned out fantastic, to be quite honest with you.'' 

Topeka High improved to 2-1 on the season, with its lone loss a 2-1 overtime loss to Lawrence, while Cair Paravel fell to 1-2.

The Trojans will travel to Shawnee Heights on Thursday while Cair Paravel will travel to Atchison-Mt. Academy. 

TOPEKA HIGH 5, CAIR PARAVEL LATIN 1

Cair Paravel (1-2)  1 0 -- 1

Topeka High (2-1) 2 3 -- 5

Cair Paravel -- Goal: Judah Congdon.

Topeka High -- Goals: Santi Ovalle, John Martinez, Emyr Vargas, Carlos Acosta-Martinez, Juan Lopez. Assists: Carlos Acosta-Martinez 2.

Hayden freshman Grayson Imming (6) defends Eudora's Caden Dunback in Tuesday's 1-0 Cardinal win over the Wildcats. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Wildcats fall to Eudora on penalty kick

Hayden soccer fell to 0-2 on the season Tuesday night, dropping a heartbreaking 1-0 home non-league decision to Eudora.

The Wildcats and Cardinals battled to a scoreless tie for more than 39 minutes of the first half before Hayden was whistled for a foul in the box and Eudora junior Grant Hurla converted the penalty kick to account for what would be the only goal of the game.

Hayden threatened to tie the game late in the match, but Eudora was able to come up with the save just a few inches outside of the goal.

The Wildcats will be back in action Thursday, hosting Piper in a non-league contest.

EUDORA 1, HAYDEN 0

Eudora 1 0 -- 1

Hayden 0 0 -- 0

Eudora -- Goal: Grant Hurla.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Duke Graf

DUKE GRAF, Washburn Rural

Graf, a junior cross country standout, posted a second-place individual finish in Saturday's 11-school Manhattan Invitational at Warner Park as the Junior Blues edged host Manhattan by a 56-67 margin for the team title, while Lawrence finished third with 91 points. Graf, who helped Rural win the Class 6A state title last fall, clocked a five-kilometer time of 17 minutes, 01.2 seconds. 

 Leah Henke

LEAH HENKE, Washburn University

A sophomore forward, Henke scored two second-half goals to lead then-No. 23-ranked Washburn University soccer to a 3-0 non-conference shutout win over Drury Wednesday night in Yager Stadium. Henke, a Wichita native, now has four goals in three-games for the 2-0-1 Ichabods after she was named the MIAA Freshman of the Year and a first-team all-conference pick in 2025.

Kolby Kutscher

KOLBY KUTSCHER, Shawnee Heights

Kutcher, a senior football standout, completed 12 of 13 passes for 221 yards and four touchdowns in his first start as Shawnee Heights' quarterback Friday night, powering the T-Birds to a 56-0 season-opening home United Kansas Conference victory over Turner at Wetter Field. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Defending Class 6A boys state champion Washburn Rural opened its 2026 cross country season with the team title in Saturday's Manhattan Invitational at Warner Park.

The Junior Blues edged host Manhattan by a 56-67 margin for the team title, while Lawrence finished third in the 11-school meet with 91 points.

Junior Duke Graf paced Washburn Rural with a second-place individual finish behind senior champion Anthony Testa of Junction City, clocking a five-kilometer time of 17 minutes, 01.2 seconds. Testa won in 16:51.9.

Sophomore Julius Wood-Nichols posted an eighth-place finish in the field of 81 runners for the Junior Blues in 17:21.1 while Rural got a 12th-place showing from junior Jaxson Adams (17:34.1), a 13th from junior Clayton Fink (17:36.3) and a 22nd from senior Cohen Thiessen (18:07.2) to round out the Junior Blues' top five.

Hayden junior Nick Newkirk placed 20th in 18:00.3 while junior Oliver Snethen paced Topeka High with a 27th-place finish (18:24.5) and senior Ezra Phelps led Topeka West with a 38th-place showing (18:50.8).

Washburn Rural's girls finished second as a team to Manhattan by a 28-54 margin, with Free State third with 63 points.

Manhattan senior Gabrielle Converse (19:03.3) and sophomore Zara Koehn (19:48.3) posted a one-two finish for the Indians in the field of 49 runners while Washburn Rural sophomore Alyson Hinck finished fourth in 20:18.6.

Rural junior Reese Beardslee finished sixth (20:26.5) while sophomore Morgan Munson placed ninth (20:48.4) to earn individual medals. 

Seaman senior Brynn Spencer finished fourth in the season-opening Bobcat Invitational at Wyandotte County Park. [File photo/TSN]     

Nine Vikings earn medals in season-opener

Seaman's boys posted a second-place team finish in Thursday's season-opening Bobcat Invitational at Wyandotte County Park, edging meet host and United Kansas Conference rival Basehor-Linwood by a single point (70-71) while Blue Valley Southwest won the team title with 32 points.

Sophomore Trindon Jones paced six Seaman individual medalists with an eighth-place finish, posting a five-kilometer time of 17 minutes, 36.78 seconds.

The Vikings also got a 10th-place finish from sophomore Weston Kennedy (17:54.78), a 12th from senior Conner Bloom (18:00.36), a 19th from junior Emmanuel Armstead (18:20.22), a 21st from sophomore Tate Oliva (18:26.12) and a 25th-place showing from junior Maddox Moore (18:43.10).

Shawnee Heights' boys finished ninth in the team standings as sophomore Miles Hadley earned an individual medal with an 11th-place finish (17:59.40).

Seaman girls finished tied for third with Eudora with 79 points, finishing fourth on a tiebreaker.

Blue Valley Southwest won the team title with 18 points while Piper was second, just three points ahead of Eudora and Seaman.                         

Senior Brynn Spencer, a returning Class 5A state medalist, paced Seaman with a fourth-place individual finish (20:47.09) while freshmen Brinley Cochran and Morgan Ransom also earned individual medals.

Cochran finished 12th (22:07.17) and Ransom placed 18th (22:34.81).

Silver Lake senior Ali Gerber opened her 2026 season with a third-place finish in Saturday's Silver Lake Invitational at Kanza Park. [Submitted photo]

Gerber third in Silver Lake Invitational

Silver Lake senior Ali Gerber posted a third-place individual finish in Saturday's Silver Lake Invitational at Kanza Park, leading the Eagle girls to a second-place team finish.

Gerber clocked a five-kilometer time of 22 minutes, 55.01 seconds to finish third behind Osage City freshmen Elizabeth Vehige (20:52.47) and Eliana Lowery (22:38.87). 

Osage City won the team title by a 51-84 margin over Silver Lake.

The Eagles also got a 14th-place finish from freshman Jessilyn Mohler (24:24.29), a 23rd from sophomore Pearl Eisenbarth (26:09.59), a 26th from sophomore Adrianna Gerber (27:53.54) and a 31st from sophomore Lena Jahr (28:29.15). 

Rossville seniors post top-seven finishes

Rossville seniors Payton Shaddox and Madilyn Wonnell finished sixth and seventh, respectively, in Thursday's Mission Valley Invitational girls cross country meet at Mission Valley.

Shaddox was sixth in a five-kilometer time of 25 minutes, 52.76 seconds while Wonnell was right behind in seventh place in 25:53.17.

Sophomore Keegan Pollock paced the Rossville boys with a 34th-place finish in 25:42.31.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

When Highland Park football coach Jermaine Monroe was approached with the possibility of renewing the Scots' rivalry with fellow USD 501 school Topeka High this season it was one of the easiest decisions he'll ever make.

"There were four different schools that were possibilities and when it was presented to me at the time and I saw the first name was Topeka High, I said, 'It's got to be that,' '' Monroe said. "I don't even remember who the other three schools were, but it's something that we always have to play each other.

"I do believe the leagues that we're in are fit for us, but we have to always play each other.''

Topeka High coach Jason Filbeck is also excited for the renewal of the rivalry, which will open the 2026 season at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Hummer Sports Park.

"I'm not from here, but I know what it means,'' Filbeck said. "Everywhere I've been there's been a crosstown rival and I think the kids are very excited to play them. Some of them are their friends from middle school because of the way Topeka is built, so the kids are pumped up.''

Highland Park returns a strong nucleus of players from last year's team that went 5-1 on the field, with G'Honi Montgomery and JoJo Kingcannon headlining a 19-member senior class

The Scots return 10 three-year starters and two four-year starters.

G'Honi Montgomery returns for his senior season at Highland Park after earning All-Shawnee County Top 22 honors last season. [File photo/TSN]

A 5-foot-10, 180-pound running back, Montgomery earned All-Shawnee County and All-Meadowlark Conference first-team honors last fall.

Montgomery carried the ball 69 times for 704 yards (10.2 yards per carry) as a junior, caught 10 passes for 128 yards and scored 12 total touchdowns while compiling 1,268 all-purpose yards.

Senior JoJo Kingcannon will take over as Highland Park's starting quarterback this fall after starring in a variety of roles as a junior. [File photo/TSN]

Kingcannon, a 6-foot, 190-pound quarterback/defensive back, played receiver, running back and quarterback as a junior, scoring from all three positions, and will be the Scots' starting quarterback this fall.

Kingcannon received All-Shawnee County honorable mention for the Scots in 2025, catching 10 passes for 338 yards and rushing for 408 yards on 32 attempts.

Seniors Tayseaun Rouser, Tavion Johnson and Shawnee Heights transfer Zyhir Foster will be counted on to anchor Highland Park's offensive line while Jaiden Smith, Ka'Sioun Drew and Lorenzo Sullivan-Sowell are top receivers.

Defensively, senior Rayshon Pollard is a four-year starter in the defensive backfield and is joined by veterans Drew, Montgomery and Kingcannon.

A three-time all-league honoree, Pollard was in on 22 tackles last season with three sacks and two interceptions.

Topeka High's Courtney Sanders, a senior wide receiver, was a second-team All-Centennial League selection for the second straight season and received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last fall for the Trojans. 

Senior Courtney Sanders is a top returner for Topeka High, earning second-team All-Centennial League recognition the past two seasons. [File photo/TSN]

A junior running back, Ricardo Dowd was a second-team All-Centennial League selection last season as a sophomore while also receiving All-Shawnee County honorable mention. 

Trey Lutz, a senior defensive lineman, received All-Shawnee County honorable mention for the second straight season and also received All-Centennial League honorable mention last season.

Other top returners for Topeka High include seniors Isaac Roman-Chavez, Art Jones and Devin Ponte and juniors Jones Erby and Marion Collins.

Senior Asher Filbeck, the coach's son, and sophomore Kadyn Lucas have been battling it out in preseason for the starting quarterback spot after the graduation of Zane Smith.

FRIDAY'S GAMES

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

There's always a certain amount of excitement surrounding a season-opener.

And the fact that Topeka High football got to kick off 2026 against USD 501 rival Highland Park, renewing a long-standing rivalry after an absence of several seasons, made Thursday night even more special for the Trojans.

Senior Courtney Sanders scored three touchdowns Thursday night to power Topeka High to a 33-6 season-opening win over Highland Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

And High took full advantage of its opportunity, opening up a 26-0 halftime lead on the way to a 33-6 win over the Scots at Hummer Sports Park.

"We had alumni coming out here and everybody else coming out to support us on both sides,'' said High senior standout Courtney Sanders, who scored three touchdowns on a run, a pass reception and a punt return to power the Trojans. "A 501 school, a rivalry game, I had to show out, I had to.''

Topeka High senior lineman Devin Ponte agreed that it was a special night for the Trojans.

"With all the talk leading up to it I was just excited to show that we were truly the better team tonight,'' Ponte said.

Junior Marion Collins scored Topeka High's first touchdown in Thursday's 33-6 season-opening win over Highland Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Topeka High recovered a fumble on Highland Park's first play from scrimmage and went ahead to stay at the 9:38 mark of the opening quarter on a 6-yard run from junior Marion Collins (kick failed).

High coach Jason Filbeck credited the Trojan defense for setting the tone for the night.

"Our defense does that and they did it last year, too,'' Filbeck said. "They get us good field position and give us opportunities, so credit to the defense.''

The rest of the half belonged to Sanders, who made the score 13-0 on an 18-yard TD pass from senior quarterback Asher Filbeck (Saamir Triplett kick) with 3:42 left in the opening half.

Sanders scored on a 40-yard run with two minutes left in the half (kick failed) and turned in the most exciting play of the night when he returned a 60-yard punt from Highland Park's JoJo Kingcannon 94 yards for a touchdown with 1:11 remaining (Triplett kick) to give the Trojans their 26-0 halftime advantage.

"He (JoJo Kingcannon) had a good punt right there and it just went over my head, but I went and go it,'' Sanders said. "It was too close to the end zone and I didn't want to put my team in that particular situation so I had to at least get some yards.

"I didn't know I was going to get the touchdown, but it was open and I cashed it in.''

"He's electric,'' Jason Filbeck said of Sanders. "If the kid was 200 pounds I'd have every school in the world calling me. He's unbelievably talented with the ball.''

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Editor's note:TopSports.news will post preview stories for all 10 Shawnee County high school football programs over the coming days, leading into the opening games of the 2026 season on Sept. 3 and 4.

                                 -----------------------------------------

Topeka High football coach Jason Filbeck knows there's still work to be done to get the Trojans where he wants them to be.

Jason Filbeck begins his third season at Topeka High after leading the Trojans to a 3-6 mark last fall. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

But as Filbeck starts his third season at the school, he knows High is making steady progress.

"You've got things that you just aren't where you want to be, but that's probably every coach,'' said Filbeck, whose Trojans went 3-6 a year ago after a 4-5 campaign in 2024. "I know coaches that win a state title and they're still stressing about how it's not where they want it to be, but there's a familiarity with the kids on the team, the coaches on the team.

"You're a little more established and not having to start from the beginning on the culture things and things like that. We're seeing growth in our kids.''

One of Filbeck's major concerns is trying to boost the Trojans' numbers moving forward. 

"The ones that are here and were here all summer, it was great to see them make strides as individuals and get better,'' Filbeck said. "Our depth is an issue if we don't get more kids out of the hallways.

"Eleven on eleven we're going to be pretty tough. I think we've got the kids in the right places and we've got a scheme that's going to help us, but if you look at the last two years we're 4-0 and then lose five straight and 3-1 and lose five straight and that's indicative to me of a lack of numbers and when injuries happen it snowballs.''

Knowing that the Trojans' frontliners are going to need to play a lot of snaps, Filbeck and his coaching staff are doing everything they can in preseason to get them ready for what is always a tough Centennial League slate.

"We're trying to get tough and focus on toughness and discipline this year so that doesn't become a problem because we don't want to lose late games because we're lacking numbers,'' Filbeck said. 

Courtney Sanders, a senior wide receiver, was a second-team All-Centennial League selection for the second straight season and received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last fall for the Trojans. 

A junior running back, Ricardo Dowd was a second-team All-Centennial League selection last season as a sophomore while also receiving All-Shawnee County honorable mention. 

Trey Lutz, a senior defensive lineman, received All-Shawnee County honorable mention for the second straight season and also received All-Centennial League honorable mention last season.

Other top returners for Topeka High include seniors Isaac Roman-Chavez, Art Jones and Devin Ponte and juniors Jones Erby and Marion Collins.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

The Jones Project’s executive director, Damon Parker, a two-time state wrestling champion as an athlete and a five-time state champ as a coach, is always looking for new mountains to climb.

So after Parker and the Advisors Excel/The Jones Project team completed the equivalent of a climb to the top of Mount Everest over 36 hours last weekend in Steamboat Springs, Colo., they have already turned the page to the next big project: the launching of The Jones Project’s Leadership Academy, a free eight-week program open to students selected from each of the 10 Shawnee County high schools.

The Jones Project, named in honor of the late Josh Jones, a native Topekan who served as a vice-president at Advisors Excel before passing away in March of 2021, provides free mental health programming to secondary students, providing assistance to students who are struggling while emphasizing the importance of specific mental health interventions already in place at schools.

In its first four years The Jones Project has reached more than 115,000 students from 267 different stages. In 2023 TJP created an endowment for The Jones Family Scholarship, which has since provided scholarships to six  Kansas high school graduates who are studying to become mental health professionals.  

The 29029 climb in Steamboat, Colorado kicked off Year 5.

"It's an event where you start at the base of a mountain and you climb it to the summit and then you ride a gondola back down to the bottom and then you do that over and over and over again,'' Parker said. "This year at Steamboat we had to climb 14 times in 36 hours. If you do that then you've reached the vertical gain of Mount Everest.

"The Jones Project and Advisors Excel has had a team that's worked together on this and done it as a fundraiser every year. This is one of the two big fundraisers that keeps The Jones Project afloat. This year we've really made a push on it so that we can use this campaign to fund The Leadership Academy.''

Parker, who has coached the Rural girls to four state titles and coached the Junior Blues to the 2021 boys championship, has served as the executive director of The Jones Project since its inception after being approached by Advisors Excel co-owner Cody Foster.

"He and I had met several times and when he presented the vision he had for The Jones Project to me, I saw it as an opportunity to still work with young people but to do it on a much larger scale and to be able to help kids that were falling through the cracks.  Many of them were in a truly under-served population,'' Parker said. "And it was like, 'How do you say no to the opportunity to do something like that?' 

"I loved teaching, it was wonderful, and I'm still in education, I just have a bigger classroom now. Every year TJP has evolved and we've become more effective with what we've done. It took awhile to find out where those needs were and exactly what kids needed. It started off with just a mental health and suicide prevention talk, but now we do talks on bullying prevention, student leadership, culture building, you name it.  We’ve talked to athletic teams in the locker room before competitions, strength and conditioning programs, and summer STUCO camps.  Wherever there is a school or student organization that needs a speaker, we can help fill that gap.”  

Parker said the Leadership Academy represents another major step forward.

"If we can take a couple of students from each high school in the Shawnee County area and we can give them real, actionable leadership skills, that is going to instantly impact the organization of which they are a part.  Whether it's the basketball team, the debate team, or the marching band is inconsequential.  We’re helping them improve their building culture because now we're taking those kids and we're teaching them how to bring up those younger kids,'' Parker said.

"And when the younger kids are learning from those older kids they realize, 'This is how you do it, this is how you treat people,’ and then they carry that forward with them throughout their remaining time in high school.”

The Leadership Academy is now taking applications and will begin meeting in mid-September.  

"I'll be reaching out to basically every coaching and A.D. contact in my rolodex saying, 'Hey, we're doing this thing and it's definitely something that you want your kids to be involved in,' '' Parker said.     

"We're going to start taking applications now and then the first week in September is when we're going to announce who is accepted into the program. And then we're going to get it kicked off. We will absolutely be up and rolling with students by mid-September, so they’ll want to get in their applications as soon as possible.  This is the start of something HUGE here in Shawnee County.''

Students can use the website www.TopekaLeadershipAcademy.org to apply.

For more information email Coach Parker at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EDITOR'S NOTE: TopSports.news' list of the top Shawnee County football players to watch in 2026, based on performances in the 2025 season, will be updated as needed after practice begins on Aug. 17 and more information is received from county coaches.

RYAN AUSTIN, Washburn Rural

A 6-foot-2, 170-pound senior, Austin was named the All-Centennial League first-team place-kicker last season for the 6-4 Junior Blues. Austin also received All-Shawnee County honorable mention as a junior.

Coy Barta, Seaman [File photo/TSN]

COY BARTA, Seaman

A senior wide receiver, Barta earned second-team TopSports.News All-Shawnee County and second-team All-United Kansas Conference recognition last season for the 3-6 Vikings. Barta caught 38 passes for 642 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior.

Jadyn Baum, Washburn Rural [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

JADYN BAUM, Washburn Rural

A senior running back, Baum helped lead Washburn Rural to a 6-4 record and the second round of the Class 6A state playoffs last fall, earning TSN All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League first-team recognition after carrying the ball 139 times for 1,262 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 9.1 yards per attempt. Baum also won a 6A state wrestling championship at 215 pounds.

Mason Becker, Hayden [File photo/TSN]

MASON BECKER, Hayden

A first-team TSN All-Shawnee County pick, Becker, a 6-foot, 160-pound senior, was a perfect 100 percent on extra-point kicks last season, was two of two on field goals, carried the ball 32 times for 438 yards, caught 13 passes for 224 yards, had nine kickoff returns for 121 yards, scored nine touchdowns and was in on 30 tackles with five pass interceptions for the 12-1 Wildcats, the Class 3A runnerup. Becker is also a basketball and baseball standout for the Wildcats.

Josh Brown, Seaman [File photo/TSN]

JOSH BROWN, Seaman

Brown, a junior wide receiver, was a second-team All-Shawnee County selection for the 3-6 Vikings last season. Brown caught 40 passes for 627 yards and eight touchdowns over the 2025 season. 

STEVEN CANTRELL, Washburn Rural

A senior defensive end, Cantrell is a top returner for Washburn Rural after earning first-team All-Centennial League recognition as a junior for the 6-4 Junior Blues. Cantrell also received All-Shawnee County honorable mention.

CHARLIE CHANCE, Rossville

A senior offensive/defensive lineman, Chance was named the Shawnee County defensive newcomer of the year last season for the Bulldawgs, who posted an 11-2 record and finished second in Class 1A. Chance was in on 54 tackles with 14 tackles for loss and three sacks, earning second-team all-county and All-Big East honors. 

CADE DANIELSON, Washburn Rural

Danielson, a senior outside linebacker, will be counted on to be a team leader for the Junior Blues this fall after helping Washburn Rural post a 6-4 record and reach the second round of the Class 6A playoffs in 2025.

Ricardo Dowd, Topeka High [File photo/TSN]

RICARDO DOWD, Topeka High

Dowd, a junior running back, was a second-team All-Centennial League selection last season for the 3-6 Trojans as a sophomore while also receiving All-Shawnee County honorable mention. 

MYLES FISHER, Silver Lake

A senior offensive/defensive lineman, Fisher received second-team All-Shawnee County honors and All-Big East League honorable mention last season after helping Silver Lake post a 7-3 record. Fisher was in on 73 tackles for the Eagles.

Chase Hastert, Cair Paravel [Photo by Barry Benteman/Special to TSN]

CHASE HASTERT, Cair Paravel Latin

Hastert, a junior quarterback/linebacker/defensive back, is a top returner for Cair Paravel after taking over as the Lions' starting quarterback last fall. The Lions, coming off a 2-6 season, return to the Eight-Man ranks this fall after playing 11-man the past two seasons. Hastert is also a basketball and golf standout for the Lions, earning first-team All-County honors in golf.

COLE HAUBAULD, Cair Paravel Latin

Haubauld, a senior running back/linebacker, earned All-Shawnee County honorable mention as well as All-Flint Hills League recognition as an offensive guard and linebacker last season for the 2-6 Lions and is expected to play running back on offense for CPLS this fall. Cair Paravel returns to Eight-Man Division I competition this season.

CALE HORAK, Rossville

Horak, a junior, received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season as Rossville posted an 11-2 record and finished second in Class 1A. Horak caught 15 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore while also registering 21 tackles (16 solo).  

CAEL HORGAN, Rossville

A senior, Horgan earned All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season as Rossville posted an 11-2 record and finished second in Class 1A. Horgan caught seven passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore while also registering 37 tackles (21 solo) with three interceptions.   

EVAN HUNTLEY, Hayden

A 6-foot-1, 195-pound junior fullback/inside linebacker, is a top returner on both sides of the ball for a Hayden team that posted a 12-1 record and finished second in Class 3A for the third straight season last fall.

ALEX HUSTON, Seaman

A senior linebacker, Huston received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season for the 3-6 Vikings. Huston was in on 106 tackles as a junior, including 61 solo stops.

AMIR JONES, Washburn Rural

Jones, a senior linebacker, received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season after helping Washburn Rural post a 6-4 record and advance to the second round of the Class 6A playoffs.

Cale Ketter, Seaman [File photo/TSN[ 

CALE KETTER, Seaman

Ketter, a senior quarterback, was a second-team All-Shawnee County selection last season for the 3-6 Vikings. Ketter completed 136 of 231 pass attempts for 2,013 yards and 23 touchdowns in eight games.

JoJo Kingcannon, Highland Park [File photo/TSN]

JOJO KINGCANNON, Highland Park

A 6-foot, 190-pound senior quarterback/defensive back, Kingcannon played receiver, running back and quarterback as a junior, scoring from all three positions. Kingcannon received All-Shawnee County honorable mention for the Scots, who went 5-1 on the field, catching 10 passes for 338 yards and rushing for 408 yards on 32 attempts. Kingcannon earned second-team all-county recognition in basketball.

Kipton Kruger, Silver Lake [File photo/TSN] 

KIPTON KRUGER, Silver Lake

A 5-foot-11, 165-pound sophomore quarterback, Kruger was named the Shawnee County offensive newcomer of the year last fall after completing 178 of 252 passes for 2,158 yards and 16 touchdowns for the Eagles. Kruger was a second-team All-Shawnee County pick and received All-Big East honorable mention. Kruger is also a basketball and baseball standout for the Eagles.

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

EDITOR'S NOTE: TopSports.news' list of the top city boys soccer players to watch in 2026, based on performances in the 2025 season, will be updated as needed after practice begins on Aug. 17 and more information is received from county coaches.  

CARLOS ACOSTA-MARTINEZ, Topeka High

Acosta-Martinez, a senior midfielder, is a top returner for the Trojans after earning first-team All-City and All-Centennial League recognition last season as Topeka High posted a 9-6-2 record.

ALAN ARTEAGA, Shawnee Heights

A senior goalkeeper, Arteaga was a first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection last fall for the 15-3-0 T-Birds while also receiving All-City honorable mention.

Judah Congdon, Cair Paravel Latin [Photo by Jan Pabitzky/Special to TSN]

JUDAH CONGDON, Cair Paravel Latin

A senior forward/midfielder, Congdon received All-City honorable mention last season after registering 14 goals and 24 assists for the 11-7-0 Lions, who advanced to the Class 4A-1A state quarterfinals.  

Valentin Del Real, Topeka West [File photo/TSN]

VALENTIN DEL REAL, Topeka West

Del Real, a junior midfielder, is a two-time All-City first-team honoree while also earning All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition for the Chargers, who went 13-3-2 on the season.

BRAYAN DIAZ, Shawnee Heights

Diaz is expected to be a key contributor for the T-Birds this fall after missing the entire 2025 campaign with an injury. 

MYLES DIDDE, Washburn Rural

A senior midfielder, Didde scored the game-tying goal in last season's Class 6A state championship game before the 19-1-1 Junior Blues went on to win the state title in penalty kicks. Didde will serve as a Rural team captain this fall. 

Diego Gonzalez-Talavera, Topeka West [File photo/TSN]

DIEGO GONZALES-TALAVERA, Topeka West

A senior forward, Gonzales-Talavera is a two-time All-City and All-United Kansas Conference first-team honoree for Topeka West, which is coming off of a 13-3-2 record.

Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights [File photo/TSN]

MASON HAAS, Shawnee Heights

Haas, a senior midfielder, earned first-team All-City and All-United Kansas Conference recognition for the second straight season in 2025 for the T-Birds, 15-3-0 last season.

KALEB HOLMES, Seaman

A senior defender, Holmes is a key returner for the Vikings, 8-9-0 in 2025, after receiving All-City honorable mention as a junior.

Brodye Kocher-Munoz, Washburn Rural [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

BRODYE KOCHER-MUNOZ, Washburn Rural

Kocher-Munoz, a senior forward, helped lead Junior Blues to a 19-1-1 record and the Class 6A state championship last fall. A team captain, Kocher-Munoz was a first-team All-City and All-Centennial League honoree as a junior. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EDITOR'S NOTE: TopSports.news' list of the top Shawnee County boys cross country runners to watch in 2026, based on performances in the 2025 season, will be updated as needed after practice begins on Aug. 17 and more information is received from county coaches.

Jaxson Adams

JAXSON ADAMS, Washburn Rural 

 A junior, Adams earned All-Shawnee County first-team recognition for the first time last fall after finishing fifth in the city meet, ninth in the Centennial League, 22nd in a Class 6A regional and 42nd at state as the Junior Blues captured the state team title by a point after earlier winning city and league championships and finishing second on a tiebreaker at regionals. Adams was a 6A state track qualifier in the 3,200 meters, posting a third-place regional finish.

Conner Bloom

CONNER BLOOM, Seaman

A senior, Bloom was a first-time member of the All-Shawnee County first team last fall after finishing ninth in the city meet and 11th in the United Kansas Conference meet for the runnerup Vikings. Bloom finished 24th in a Class 5A regional at Wichita and will be counted on to be a leader for the Vikings this fall. Bloom was a 5A state qualifier in track in the 4x800 relay this past spring. 

EASTON DAVIS, Topeka High 

Davis, a junior, has received All-Shawnee County honorable mention the past two seasons. Davis finished 17th in the city meet last fall and went on to earn an individual berth in the Class 6A state meet with a 14th-place regional finish.

Clayton Fink

CLAYTON FINK, Washburn Rural

A junior first-team All-Shawnee County first-team repeat pick, Fink placed fourth in the city championships and the Centennial League meet for the champion Junior Blues and finished seventh in a Class 6A regional and placed 26th in the state meet as Washburn Rural captured the team championship. Fink received all-county honorable mention this past spring in track.

Duke Graf

DUKE GRAF, Washburn Rural

Graf, a junior, earned All-Shawnee County first-team recognition for the first time after finishing third in the city meet, 14th in the Centennial League, second in Class 6A regional competition and 28th in the Class 6A state meet as the Junior Blues won the team title by a point over Blue Valley. Graf also helped Rural win city and league titles.

Henry Laubach

HENRY LAUBACH, Washburn Rural

A junior All-Shawnee County first-team repeat pick, Laubach bounced back from an injury to post a team-best 22nd-place finish in the Class 6A state meet, helping lead Washburn Rural to the state title. Laubach placed seventh in the Centennial League and 12th in a 6A regional. Laubach received all-county honorable mention in track.

Nick Newkirk

NICK NEWKIRK, Hayden

Newkirk, a junior, posted a sixth-place finish in the city meet, was 18th in the Centennial League meet and earned a individual berth in the Class 4A state meet with a 14th-place finish at regionals. A first-team All-Shawnee County pick, Newkirk capped his season with a 34th-place finish at state. 

HUNTER ROOKS, Silver Lake

Rooks, a senior, is a multi-time Class 3A state qualifier, helping the Eagles qualify as a team last fall. Rooks posted a 60th-place finish in the state meet to pace Silver Lake.

Related Stories and Videos

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

EDITOR'S NOTE: TopSports.news' list of the top Shawnee County volleyball players to watch in 2026, based on performances in the 2025 season and coach recommendations, will be updated as needed after practice begins on Aug. 17 and more information is received from county coaches. 

Brynn Anderson, Washburn Rural [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]

BRYNN ANDERSON, Washburn Rural

Anderson, a 5-foot-11 sophomore hitter, was a first-team TopSports.news All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League selection and named the county and league newcomer of the year last season after helping lead the Junior Blues to the Centennial League championship and a ninth straight Class 6A state tournament berth. Anderson registered 397 kills on the season along with 20 block kills, 96.3 percent serving with 29 aces and 229 digs. Anderson was also a first-team all-county pick in basketball and a state qualifier in track and field.

Nora Burdiek, Rossville [Photo by Jesse Bruner/Special to TSN]   

NORA BURDIEK, Rossville

A senior hitter, Burdiek is a two-time TSN All-Shawnee County first-team selection after being named the county newcomer of the year and earning second-team honors as a freshman. Burdiek has registered 1,373 total kills in her career with 936 digs. Burdiek was a first-team All-Big East selection as a junior after helping lead the Bulldawgs to a Class 2A state berth and earning All-State Tournament and All-2A first-team recognition from the Kansas Volleyball Association. Burdiek is also a basketball and softball standout, helping Rossville advance to the state tournament in both of those sports.

Campbell Dawson, Topeka High [File photo/TSN]

CAMPBELL DAWSON, Topeka High

Dawson, a senior, earned second-team All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League honors last fall in her third season as a varsity player. Dawson also earned second-team All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League recognition as a sophomore. Dawson was a first-team TSN All-Shawnee County and second-team Class 6A All-State selection this past spring in softball after helping lead the Trojans to a third-place state finish.

Karys Deiter, Silver Lake [Photo by Scott Paske/KSHSAA Covered]  

KARYS DEITER, Silver Lake

Deiter, a junior hitter, helped lead the Eagles to the Class 3A state championship with a 46-1 record, including a 37-match winning streak to end the 2025 season. A first-team TSN All-Shawnee County pick and second-team 3A All-State honoree, Deiter finished the year with 313 kills, a 34.7 kill percentage, 18 blocks and 253 digs. Deiter also earned All-Shawnee County first-team honors in basketball and track and field after helping lead Silver Lake to the 3A state championship in basketball and earning a 3A state medal in track.

Kylie Hanni, Silver Lake [Photo by Jesse Bruner/Special to TSN]

KYLIE HANNI, Silver Lake

A senior setter, Hanni was named the TopSports.news Shawnee County Player of the Year last season after helping lead Silver Lake to the Class 3A state championship with a 46-1 record, including 37 straight wins to end the season. Hanni was named to the 3A All-State Tournament team and All-3A first team by the Kansas Volleyball Association and was also a first-team All-Big East League pick after registering 1,181 assists, with 45 kills, 22 blocks, a 91.7 serving percentage with 33 aces and 174 digs. Hanni also helped the Eagles win 3A state titles in basketball and softball.

ADY HENRY, Rossville

Henry, a senior libero, helped Rossville reach the Class 2A state tournament last season while earning second-team TSN All-Shawnee County and third-team All-Big East League recognition. 

HADLEY KILGORE, Washburn Rural

Kilgore is expected to be a key contributor for the Junior Blues at middle hitter this fall in her first season at the varsity level. Kilgore joins a Washburn Rural team that won the 2025 Centennial League championship and advanced to the Class 6A state tournament for the ninth straight season.

Clara Morgan, Shawnee Heights [Submitted photo]   

CLARA MORGAN, Shawnee Heights

A senior setter, Morgan was a second-team TSN All-Shawnee County selection last season while also receiving All-United Kansas Conference honorable mention. Morgan surpassed the 1,000 assist mark for her career last season.

By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Judy Dyer has made a life out of overcoming obstacles. A metaphor for her life would be when she climbed over a fence to try out the hurdles assembled on the Washburn University track, even though her coach told her he didn’t want her to try the event.

Topeka High graduate and former Olympian Judy Dyer will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on July 18. [File photo/TSN]

Without a track team – or any girls sports teams – in the Topeka Public Schools in the early 1960s, Dyer’s only outlet was to compete in track with a club team known as the Topeka Cosmopolitans. She did most of her training on her own and pushed herself to compete against her four brothers.

A Black girl growing up at that time might have seen too many barriers in her path to success, but Dyer didn’t see it that way.

“I still look back at it today when I come to any obstacle that I may have in my life,” Dyer said. “I tell myself, ‘If I can make it to the Olympics and jump over eight hurdles with three steps in between and make it to the highest level, I can do anything.’ It's the mindset. You know, you have to want it in life.”

Dyer applied that desire to a stellar track career that earned her a place among the greatest athletes in state history. On July 25, Dyer will be enshrined in the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Wichita.

What started out as a way to get out of the house at nine years of age turned into an outlet into which she poured her heart and soul. Dyer trained with boys sprinting in the halls of Topeka High and racing around the block under the watchful eyes of her brothers. Her club coach initially targeted her because of her coordination. With no opportunities to play team sports like basketball, softball or volleyball, Dyer gave track and field her all.

“I was a pioneer in those days because we only had a club. We didn't have a team,” Dyer said. “We didn't have all the equipment. We didn't know how to basically train, but we actually had natural talent. And that's what we thrived on was the natural talent.”

Already a nationally-ranked long-jumper and an accomplished sprinter by age 17, Dyer had to convince her club coach to allow her to compete in the hurdles. It proved a fortuitous decision. During her senior year of high school, she won the 60-yard hurdles at a meet in Kansas City and caught the eye of the coach of Texas Southern University, who offered her a full-ride scholarship.

The 1966 Topeka High graduate enjoyed a decorated college career that culminated with a trip to the 1968 Olympic Trials in California. Fortune shined upon Dyer when, despite finishing fifth in the 80-meter hurdles, she was bumped up to the Olympic team by injuries to other runners. Competing in the Mexico City games in October of 1968, Dyer made it to the semifinal round where her best time placed her in the top 15 fastest hurdlers in the world.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Jaiden Wise, who helped lead Silver Lake to the Class 3A state volleyball championship, has been selected as TopSports.news' Shawnee County fall girls senior athlete of the year for the 2025-2026 season.

Jaiden Wise, Silver Lake [Photo by Jesse Newell/Special to TSN]

Wise helped the Eagles post a 46-1 record last fall, including 37 straight wins to end the season, capped by a 25-21, 25-19 win over Holton in the 3A state championship match.

Wise was named to the 3A All-State Tournament team and All-State first team by the Kansas Volleyball Association and was also an All-Shawnee County first-team selection.

Jaiden Wise [Photo by Scott Paske/KSHSAA Covered]

As a senior Wise recorded 407 kills and 19 blocks on .378 hitting with 296 digs and 22 assists while serving 84.7 percent with 29 aces on the season.

Wise was also a state qualifier in track and field.

Other fall girls athlete of the year finalists

Lauren Borjon, Hayden 

LAUREN BORJON | Hayden

SPORT: Golf

A three-sport athlete, Borjon capped her high school golf career with her fourth straight Class 4A state medal. Borjon tied for 12th with a 36-hole total of 170 (88-82) as the Wildcats finished fourth as a team. A three-time All-Shawnee County pick, Borjon finished second in the city tournament, fifth in the Centennial League and earned second-team 4A All-State recognition. Borjon helped lead the Wildcats to the 4A golf team title as a sophomore and junior and also helped Hayden win the 4A state title in basketball and post an undefeated run to the 4A-1A state crown in soccer as a senior.

Madeline Deters, Topeka High

MADELINE DETERS | Topeka High

SPORT: Tennis

Deters earned her second straight Class 6A state tennis medal last fall in her third state tournament appearance. Deters posted a career-best sixth-place state singles finish as a senior while finishing off a 32-6 record on the season. Deters finished second in No. 1 singles in the city tournament before winning Centennial League and 6A regional singles championships. Deters posted a 3-2 record at state.  

Elise Eckert, Seaman

ELISE ECKERT | Seaman

SPORT: Golf

Eckert won her fourth straight Class 5A state golf medal to cap her first season at Seaman, tying for fifth in the state tournament with a 36-hole total of 161 (77-84). Eckert won the city title by eight strokes with a 68 and won the United Kansas Conference individual championship with a 73 before posting a runnerup finish in 5A regional competition. Eckert was a first-team All-State honoree in 5A.

Ella Foster, Hayden 

ELLA FOSTER | Hayden

SPORT: Volleyball

Foster, a 5-foot-4 libero, helped lead 33-10 Hayden to a second-place finish in the 2025 Class 4A state volleyball tournament, earning Kansas Volleyball Association All-State Tournament honors. Foster earned first-team All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League recognition and was named to the KVA 4A All-State second team. Foster helped the Wildcats win the 4A state championship in basketball and the 4A-1A state crown in soccer as a senior and was selected to play in the KVA All-Star Match, helping the Red post a 4-1 victory. 

 Izzy Glotzbach, Hayden

IZZY GLOTZBACH | Hayden

SPORT: Golf

A three-time All-Shawnee County first-team selection, Glotzbach tied for fifth in the 2025 Class 4A state tournament with a 36-hole score of 164 (85-79), finished third in the city tournament and fourth in the Centennial League before tying for second in 4A regional competition. Glotzbach, who earned first-team 4A All-State recognition as a senior, helped lead the Wildcats to 4A state team titles as a sophomore and junior and also helped Hayden win a 4A team title in tennis as a junior. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Editor's note: Over the coming weeks TopSports.news will take a look at all of the senior finalists for the 2025-2026 Shawnee County High School Sports Awards from the fall, winter and spring seasons, followed by the athletes of the year for all three seasons and the overall outstanding girls and boys athletes of the year.

Lauren Borjon, Hayden 

LAUREN BORJON | Hayden

SPORT: Golf

A three-sport athlete, Borjon capped her high school golf career with her fourth straight Class 4A state medal. Borjon tied for 12th with a 36-hole total of 170 (88-82) as the Wildcats finished fourth as a team. A three-time All-Shawnee County pick, Borjon finished second in the city tournament, fifth in the Centennial League and earned second-team 4A All-State recognition. Borjon helped lead the Wildcats to the 4A golf team title as a sophomore and junior and also helped Hayden win the 4A state title in basketball and post an undefeated run to the 4A-1A state crown in soccer as a senior.

Madeline Deters, Topeka High

MADELINE DETERS | Topeka High

SPORT: Tennis

Deters earned her second straight Class 6A state tennis medal last fall in her third state tournament appearance. Deters posted a career-best sixth-place state singles finish as a senior while finishing off a 32-6 record on the season. Deters finished second in No. 1 singles in the city tournament before winning Centennial League and 6A regional singles championships. Deters posted a 3-2 record at state.  

Elise Eckert, Seaman

ELISE ECKERT | Seaman

SPORT: Golf

Eckert won her fourth straight Class 5A state golf medal to cap her first season at Seaman, tying for fifth in the state tournament with a 36-hole total of 161 (77-84). Eckert won the city title by eight strokes with a 68 and won the United Kansas Conference individual championship with a 73 before posting a runnerup finish in 5A regional competition. Eckert was a first-team All-State honoree in 5A.

Ella Foster, Hayden 

ELLA FOSTER | Hayden

SPORT: Volleyball

Foster, a 5-foot-4 libero, helped lead 33-10 Hayden to a second-place finish in the 2025 Class 4A state volleyball tournament, earning Kansas Volleyball Association All-State Tournament honors. Foster earned first-team All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League recognition and was named to the KVA 4A All-State second team. Foster helped the Wildcats win the 4A state championship in basketball and the 4A-1A state crown in soccer as a senior and was selected to play in the KVA All-Star Match, helping the Red post a 4-1 victory. 

 Izzy Glotzbach, Hayden

IZZY GLOTZBACH | Hayden

SPORT: Golf

A three-time All-Shawnee County first-team selection, Glotzbach tied for fifth in the 2025 Class 4A state tournament with a 36-hole score of 164 (85-79), finished third in the city tournament and fourth in the Centennial League before tying for second in 4A regional competition. Glotzbach, who earned first-team 4A All-State recognition as a senior, helped lead the Wildcats to 4A state team titles as a sophomore and junior and also helped Hayden win a 4A team title in tennis as a junior. 

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Twenty Shawnee County softball standouts have received All-State recognition from the Kansas Softball Coaches Association, including nine first-team selections.

Kailyn Hanni, Silver Lake

Riley Mohler, Silver Lake

State champion Silver Lake is represented on the All-Class 3A first team by senior outfielder Kailyn Hanni, junior pitcher Riley Mohler and sophomore infielder Saylor Liggatt. 

London Backman, Topeka High

Kenslee Young, Topeka High

Henley Rapp, Washburn Rural

Olivia Koch, Washburn Rural

Topeka High, which finished third in 6A, put sophomore infielder London Backman and junior utility/designated player Kenslee Young on the All-6A first team while Centennial League champ Washburn Rural is represented by senior catcher Henley Rapp and junior outfielder Olivia Koch on the first team.

 Aubrey Warren, Seaman

Kenna Perine, Rossville

Seaman senior infielder Aubrey Warren was named to the All-5A first team while Rossville freshman outfielder Kenna Perine was a first-team pick in 2A-1A.

Second-team All-State picks included Topeka High senior Taimane Isaia and juniors Campbell Dawson and Madilyn Poole in 6A, Shawnee Heights senior Cianna Graves, Seaman junior Acey Thompson and sophomore Lydia Dreher in 5A, Silver Lake senior Taylor Swygert and junior Savanah Wende in 3A and Rossville senior Brooke Springer in 2A-1A.

Shawnee Heights senior Addison Cooper and Hayden junior Emberly Connell received all-state honorable mention.  

ALL-KANSAS SOFTBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION ALL-STATE

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

Undefeated Class 4A-1A state champion Hayden dominated voting for the 2026 All-Centennial League girls soccer team, including a sweep of the three individual awards.

Hayden senior Carsyn Broxterman has been named the Centennial League girls soccer player of the year after helping lead the Wildcats to an undefeated Class 4A-1A state championship. [File photo/TSN]

Hayden freshman Emma Slyter has been named the Centennial League soccer newcomer of the year after helping the Wildcats win the Class 4A-1A state title. [File photo/TSN]

 Wildcat senior Carsyn Broxterman was named the Centennial League player of the year while Hayden freshman Emma Slyter was selected as the newcomer of the year and veteran coach Klaus Kreutzer was named the league coach of the year.

Joining Broxterman and Slyter on the first team are Hayden seniors Reese Huscher and Kellyn Specht.

Washburn Rural, which posted a third-place finish in 6A, put seniors Allie Schroeder and Dayne Shriver and sophomore Ellie Vogel on the All-Centennial first team while Topeka High is represented by senior Raelee Shipley.

Hayden put seniors Ella Foster and Grace Funk and sophomores Avery Becker and Hailey Schmidtlein on the all-league second team while Rural is represented by seniors Peyton Merrick and Emma Wong and junior Emery Hall and Topeka High by sophomore Emma Schell. 

Five city players received honorable mention.  

ALL-CENTENNIAL LEAGUE GIRLS SOCCER

First team

Lauren Booe, jr., Manhattan; Carsyn Broxterman, sr., Hayden; Kameron Felice, sr., Manhattan; Reagan Herrman, so., Emporia; Reese Huscher, sr., Hayden; Emersyn Johnson, jr., Emporia; Allie Schroeder, sr., Washburn Rural; Raelee Shipley, sr., Topeka High; Dayne Shriver, sr., Washburn Rural; Emma Slyter, fr., Hayden; Kellyn Specht, sr., Hayden; Ellie Vogel, so., Washburn Rural.   

Second team

Avery Becker, so., Hayden; Ella Foster, sr., Hayden; Viveca Fuller, sr., Emporia; Grace Funk, sr., Hayden; Emery Hall, jr., Washburn Rural; Savanna Heitmann, so., Manhattan; Peyton Merrick, sr., Washburn Rural; Emma Schell, so., Topeka High; Hailey Schmidtlein, so., Hayden; Evelyn Thornburg, sr., Manhattan; Emma Wong, sr., Washburn Rural.

Honorable mention

Emporia: Madison Evans, jr.; Emma Swindle, sr. Hayden:Sawyer Wrench, so. Junction City: Michell Sykora, jr. Manhattan: Ava Connell, jr.; Avarye Meeker, so.; Lexie Oehme, fr. Topeka High: Natalie Barnes, sr.; Hailey Caryl, so.; Sara Valera Lopez-Pintor, jr. Washburn Rural: Brecken Murphy, sr. 

Player of the year -- Carsyn Broxterman, Hayden.

Newcomer of the year -- Emma Slyter, Hayden.

Coach of the year -- Klaus Kreutzer, Hayden.

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Class 3A state champion Silver Lake put a county-high four players on the 2026 TopSports.news All-Shawnee County softball first team, while Seaman senior Aubrey Warren and Washburn Rural junior Oliva Koch were named the co-players of the year and Rossville freshman Kenna Perine was named the newcomer of the year.

Seaman senior Aubrey Warren has been named the co-Shawnee County softball player of the year. [File photo/TSN]

Washburn Rural junior Olivia Koch has been named the co-Shawnee County softball player of the year for 2026. [File photo/TSN]

 Rossville freshman Kenna Perine has been selected as the 2026 Shawnee County softball newcomer of the year. [File photo/TSN]

Silver Lake, which finished off a 28-4 season with a 4-0 win over Southeast-Saline in the state championship game, is represented on the all-county first team by seniors Kailyn Hanni and Paige Heiman, junior Riley Mohler and sophomore Saylor Liggatt while Eagles coach Nick Hamilton received Shawnee County coach of the year recognition for the third straight season.

Warren was named the United Kansas Conference player of the year for the second straight season while Koch was a repeat pick as the Centennial League player of the year.

London Backman, Topeka High 

Topeka High, which finished third in 6A, is represented on the first team by sophomore London Backman and juniors Campbell Dawson and Kenslee Young while 2A quarterfinalist Rossville put senior Brooke Springer and sophomore Nora Mitchell on the first team.

Joining Koch on the first team for Washburn Rural are senior Henley Rapp and junior Justice McBurney while Warren is joined on the first team by Seaman teammate Lydia Dreher.

Shawnee Heights put seniors Addison Cooper and Cianna Graves on the first team while Hayden is represented by junior Emberly Connell and sophomore Blakely Walter.

Backman, Hanni, Warren, Koch and Rapp are all all-county first-team repeat picks.   

2026 ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY SOFTBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural senior player of the year Aidan Newbery headlines the TopSports.news 2026 All-Shawnee County baseball team.

Washburn Rural senior catcher Aidan Newbery has been named the Shawnee County Player of the Year after helping lead Rural to the Class 6A state championship. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/TSN]

Newbery, a catcher, helped lead the Junior Blues to the Class 6A state championship last Saturday in Wichita, Rural's first baseball state championship in 74 years.  

Newbery, who was also named the Centennial League player of the year, is joined on the all-county first team by senior teammates Austin Ditch and Nate Selm and junior Tyler Edmiston while Washburn Rural coach Jay Mastin was named the coach of the year after the Junior Blues posted a 22-9 record, capped by a 4-3 win over Free State in the 6A title game.

Connor Hanika, Hayden

Kade Mitchell, Hayden

Class 4A runnerup Hayden (21-6) is represented on the first team by seniors Connor Hanika, Kade Mitchell and Aiden Roberts and junior Caleb Menke while 5A runnerup Shawnee Heights (21-10) put seniors Brody Cooper and Cayden Lindsay on the all-county team and T-Bird sophomore Gabe Escobar has been tapped as the county newcomer of the year.

Brody Cooper, Shawnee Heights

Silver Lake, the 3A runnerup at 18-12, put senior Drew Womack on the first team while Rossville (25-5), third in 2A-1A, is represented by the senior trio of Jacoby McDonnell, Canann Mitchell and Cameron Miller and Seaman put juniors Axton Brewer and Beau Jessop on the first team.

Brewer, Ditch, Menke, Miller, Canann Mitchell, Kade Mitchell and Selm are all first-team All-Shawnee County repeat picks while Cooper, Edmiston, Hanika, Roberts and Womack move up from the second team and Lindsay received honorable mention last season.

Axton Brewer, Seaman 

Brewer received 5A All-State first-team honors from Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches while Womack was a first-team pick in 3A and Miller and Canann Mitchell earned first-team honors in 2A-1A.

Canann Mitchell, Rossville

Newbery was a second-team pick in 6A, Jessop a second-team selection in 5A, Hanika and Kade Mitchell second team in 4A and McDonnell second team in 2A-1A.

 2026 ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY BASEBALL

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

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Shawnee County girls track and filed athletes came up short in their bids for state titles in the 2026 Kansas Track and Field Championships last weekend in Wichita, but the local contingent still had plenty to celebrate, including multiple top-three finishes and 13 total top-eight medal showings in four classes overall.

Washburn Rural senior Morgan Ray finished second in the Class 6A javelin event for the second straight season. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

Hayden junior Sofia Harper was the Class 4A runnerup in the 400-meter dash. [File photo/TSN]

Washburn Rural senior Morgan Ray was the state runnerup in the Class 6A javelin at 145 feet, 1 inch, while Hayden junior Sofia Harper finished second in the 4A 400-meter dash while posting a top time of 58.83.

Washburn Rural junior Kailyn Petersen placed fourth in the Class 6A discus for the second straight season. [File photo/TSN]

Silver Lake junior Ali Gerber was a double medalist in the Class 3A state track meet. [File photo/TSN]

Silver Lake senior multi-sport star Kailyn Hanni posted a third-place finish in the 3A javelin (129-7) while Washburn Rural junior repeat 6A medalist Kailyn Petersen was fourth in the discus (133-2), Seaman freshman Baylee Ayres was fourth in the 5A high jump (5-foot-2) and Silver Lake junior Ali Gerber finished fourth in the 3A 400 (58.75) while also teaming with Eagle teammates Kinley Weber, Jaylie Whitehead and Karys Deiter to place fifth in the 4x400-meter relay (4:09.64).

Washburn Rural freshman Alyson Hinck (3) earned a pair of Class 6A state medals in her first state track meet. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Washburn Rural freshman Alyson Hinck posted a fifth-place finish in the 6A 800 (2:18.43) while Shawnee Heights freshman Tanesia Johnson earned medals with sixth-place finishes in both the 5A 100 and 200-meter dashes. 

Washburn Rural's Ray and Petersen and senior state medalists Emily Graf and Kenzie Maddox are all all-county repeat picks along with Seaman juniors Kinley Robinson and Brynn Spencer, Topeka High senior Keimara Marshall and Silver Lake's Gerber and Deiter.

Also earning spots on the first team are Hayden junior Alana Mitchell, Silver Lake junior Addy Just and Washburn Rural freshman Clara Dillon, who all earned state medals, along with seniors Jurnee Cole of Highland Park, Jayana Washington of Topeka High and Journey Manhart of Silver Lake. 

ALL-SHAWNEE COUNTY 2026 GIRLS TRACK AND FIELD

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

GIRLS

100 METERS

Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights        12.27

Ciera Hartz, Topeka High                        12.51

Keimara Marshall, Topeka High              12.57

Karys Deiter, Silver Lake                         12.59

Jurnee Cole, Highland Park                    12.63

200 METERS

Tanesia Johnson, Shawnee Heights        25.13

Jurnee Cole, Highland Park                    26.04

Sofia Harper, Hayden                             26.40

Ciera Hartz, Topeka High                       26.48

Jaylie Whitehead, Silver Lake                 26.72

Ali Gerber, Silver Lake

400 METERS

Ali Gerber, Silver Lake                            58.48

Sofia Harper, Hayden                             58.83

Keimara Marshall, Topeka High             59.07

Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural               60.13

Julia Molleker, Seaman                           61.88

Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural (3)

800 METERS

Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural         2:16.83

Kinley Robinson, Seaman                 2:20.45

Emily Graf, Washburn Rural              2:20.86

Ryin Miller, Seaman                          2:23.65 

Itzel Woods, Topeka High                 2:31.24

Emily Graf, Washburn Rural

1,600 METERS

Emily Graf, Washburn Rural              5:13.49

Alyson Hinck, Washburn Rural          5:14.04

Brynn Spencer, Seaman                    5:15.09

Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural      5:17.54

Kinley Robinson, Seaman                  5:22.98

3,200 METERS

Emily Graf, Washburn Rural                11:06.46

Kenzie Maddox, Washburn Rural        11:18.10

Brynn Spencer, Seaman                      11:27.63

Reese Beardslee, Washburn Rural       11:34.94

Lily McCoy, Washburn Rural                14:09.97 

100-METER HURDLES

Karys Deiter, Silver Lake                      15.70

Rylee Dick, Rossville                            16.44

Marchayla White, Topeka High           17.74

Megan Alderson, Washburn Rural      18.14

Kaylyn Smith, Topeka West                 18.23

300-METER HURDLES

Rylee Dick, Rossville                           50.00

Marchayla White, Topeka High          51.34

Megan Alderson, Washburn Rural     51.60

Journey Manhart, Silver Lake             53.33

Avery Villines, Seaman                       54.18

4x100-METER RELAY

Topeka High                                        49.60

Silver Lake                                           49.63

Washburn Rural                                   50.53

Seaman                                                51.42

Topeka West                                        52.33

4x400-METER RELAY

Washburn Rural                                  4:06.84

Silver Lake                                          4:07.17

Topeka High                                       4:10.27

Seaman                                               4:11.72

Topeka West                                       4:26.38

4x800-METER RELAY

Washburn Rural                                     9:58.99 

Topeka High                                        10:39.23

Seaman                                                11:17.22

Silver Lake                                            11:18.38

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

BOYS

100 METERS

Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural  10.36

Malachi Murph, Topeka High                      10.91

Braxton Rupp, Silver Lake                            10.96

Emmitt Hochstedler, Seaman                       10.98

Israel Edmonds, Washburn Rural                 11.02

Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural

200 METERS

Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural    21.40

Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural                    22.30

Jayden Lindsey, Topeka West                        22.34

Joel Miller, Silver Lake                                    22.59

Jonel Tibbs, Topeka High                               22.60

400 METERS

Jason Slay, Shawnee Heights                         48.85

Termaine Savage, Highland Park                    49.89

Draden Chooncharoen, Washburn Rural       50.25

Joel Miller, Silver Lake                                    50.68

Thomas Fisher, Silver Lake                              51.28

Brody Anderson, Seaman

800 METERS

Brody Anderson, Seaman                       1:52.08

Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural              1:56.64

Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural           1:56.96

Mason Haas, Shawnee Heights               2:02.62

Everett Un, Washburn Rural                    2:03.26

1,600 METERS

Brody Anderson, Seaman                          4:08.2 (mile converted to meters)

Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural                 4:20.32

Cohen Thiessen, Washburn Rural              4:24.35

Nick Newkirk, Hayden                                4:27.18

Duke Graf, Washburn Rural                        4:32.87

3,200 METERS

Brody Anderson, Seaman                          9:05.70

Brooks Kehoe, Washburn Rural                 9:23.61

Henry Laubach, Washburn Rural               9:24.34

Jaxson Adams, Washburn Rural                9:42.46

Clayton Fink, Washburn Rural                   9:42.94

110-METER HURDLES

Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural                  14.07

Christian Hartman-Babb, Washburn Rural   15.31

Isiah Pennington, Seaman                            15.49

Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park                   15.54

De'sean Lunkins, Topeka High                      15.85

Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural

300-METER HURDLES

Liam Morrison, Washburn Rural                    37.61

Isiah Pennington, Seaman                              41.72

Jackson Tuckwin, Washburn Rural                 42.01

Kellan Parcaro, Seaman                                  42.03

Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park                     42.09

4x100-METER RELAY

Topeka High                                                    42.20

Washburn Rural                                               42.77

Highland Park                                                  42.80

Silver Lake                                                        42.95

Seaman                                                            43.03

4x400-METER RELAY

Washburn Rural                                            3:21.82

Shawnee Heights                                          3:21.91

Silver Lake                                                     3:28.28

Highland Park                                                3:28.48

Topeka West                                                  3:29.56

4x800-METER RELAY

Seaman                                                         8:16.32

Washburn Rural                                            8:16.60

Shawnee Heights                                          8:24.81

Silver Lake                                                     8:35.28

Topeka High                                                  9:09.82

HIGH JUMP

Jack Esser, Seaman                                      6-4

Bryson Burgos, Silver Lake                          6-0

Archer Greene, Seaman                              5-10

Creighton Frisby, Washburn Rural              5-8

Sebastian Kingcade, Washburn Rural          5-8

Cody Quy, Seaman                                      5-8

POLE VAULT

Keygan Breault, Silver Lake                       12-0

Sam Bruntz, Silver Lake                            11-6

Luke Deering, Washburn Rural                 11-6

Sawyer Hermesch, Silver Lake                  10-0

Desmond Grindol, Washburn Rural          10-0

LONG JUMP

Rayshon Pollard, Highland Park                  21-2.25

Josh Brown, Seaman                                   21-0.50

Owen Rottinghaus, Silver Lake                    21-0

Joel Miller, Silver Lake                                 20-8

Lucas Marichal, Topeka High/CPLS             20-7.25

TRIPLE JUMP

Lucas Marichal, Topeka High/CPLS            42-9.25

Cody Quy, Seaman                                     42-8.50

Bryson Burgos, Silver Lake                         42-2.50

Camden Kruger, Silver Lake                       41-7.75

Abe Heffley, Seaman                                  40-5.25

SHOT PUT

Charles Chance, Rossville                            50-5

Amir Bass, Shawnee Heights                       48-4.25

Sam Scott, Washburn Rural                         47-7

Adrian Shuler, Shawnee Heights                 46-7

Kelton Meier, Hayden                                  46-2,50

DISCUS

Zachary Hancock, Washburn Rural               163-4

Myles Fisher, Silver Lake                               158-3

Sam Garner, Shawnee Heights                     156-4

Adam Humphrey, Topeka High                    148-8

Kelton Meier, Hayden                                   142-10

JAVELIN 

Landon Lewis, Rossville                                 202-9

Kelton Meier, Hayden                                   196-6

Jackson Haas, Hayden                                   175-11

Andre Johnson, Rossville                               170-5

Dylan Tjachman, Washburn Rural                 169-11

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 RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural junior Olivia Koch was a repeat selection as the Centennial League softball player of the year as city players earned eight of 11 first-team spots.

Washburn Rural junior Olivia Koch has been named the Centennial League softball player of the year for the second straight season. [File photo/TSN] 

Koch is joined on the all-league first team by senior Henley Rapp and junior Justice McBurney after the Junior Blues went undefeated in league play while Topeka High, third in Class 6A, is represented by sophomore London Backman and juniors Campbell Dawson and Kenslee Young and Hayden by junior Emberly Connell and sophomore Blakeley Walter.

Topeka High's Shane Miles was voted the Centennial League coach of the year while Mamhattan's Foveaux was named the newcomer of the year. 

City players combined to put seven players on the second team while 10 players received honorable mention.

ALL-CENTENNIAL LEAGUE SOFTBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

No. 3 seed Topeka High softball looked to be in a golden position to advance to the Class 6A championship game after opening up an early 3-0 lead Friday at Wilkins Stadium on the campus of Wichita State University.

Topeka High junior standout Campbell Dawson delivers a pitch in Friday's Class 6A semifinal game against Gardner-Edgerton. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/Special to TSN]

But No. 2 seed Gardner-Edgerton forged a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the fifth and pushed across the game-winning run in the sixth to stun the Trojans, 4-3.

Gardner-Edgerton, now 26-2, advanced to face Campus in Saturday's 10 a.m. championship game while Topeka High finished third in 6A at 26-4 on the season.

Topeka High senior Taimane Isaia throws out a base-runner in Friday's Class 6A semifinal against Gardner-Edgerton. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/TSN]

 Junior Madilyn Poole connects with a pitch in Friday's Topeka High Class 6A softball semifinal against Gardner-Edgerton. [Photo by Selena Rivas Favela/TSN]

Topeka High jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second and the score remained that way until the Trailblazers pushed across three runs to pull even in the fifth.

Gardner-Edgerton scored what proved to be the game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth on a bases-loaded walk to junior Kylie Kyle.

Trailblazer sophomore pitcher Kenley Sutton, who turned in a dominating performance in relief, then closed out the game in the top of the seventh to send Gardner-Edgerton to the title game.

Campus, which upset Washburn Rural 4-3 in a regional final, continued its late-season run with a 7-2 semifinal win over Mill Valley, improving to 18-12 on the season.