Washburn University Ichabods
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Longtime former Washburn Rural teacher and tennis coach Kevin Hedberg, Brenda Holaday's 2008 Class 6A state championship softball team and the late Michael Brennan, a Rural graduate and world-renowned musician and composer, will be inducted into the Washburn Rural Hall of Fame Friday night at Rural.
A social hour will be held from 4:30-5 p.m. in the WRHS cafeteria, followed by the induction ceremony from 5-7 p.m. The inductees will also be recognized at halfcourt between the girls and boys varsity basketball games against Emporia.
2025 WRHS Hall of Fame inductees:
2008 GIRLS SOFTBALL TEAM -- Coach Brenda Holaday's Junior Blues won the 2008 Class 6A championship at Hummer Sports Park. The team defeated Olathe Northwest in the championship game by a score of 2-1 and finished with an overall record of 23-2. During the State Tournament, the team did not allow a single earned run and gave up only one run in three games. The Junior Blues also won Centennial League and regional championships. The title was the second state championship for the softball program, which also won titles in 1995 and 2014. Holaday was named the Kansas softball coach of the Year in 2008 and Paige Ladenburger was named the Gatorade Player of the Year. Many of Rural's softball players played more than one sport at Rural and their ability to multitask, be team players, develop tremendous leadership skills and build great work ethic has contributed to their adult life and the impact they continue to have on others and in this community. Four of the 2008 players went on to earn their medical doctorate degrees in their chosen field, three became nurses or work in the medical field, two became teachers in USD 437, and four became business leaders. Seven of the 13 went on to play college ball. Coach Holaday left Washburn Rural in 2016 after being a part of all three state championships and posting a 351-93 record, 14 Centennial League championships and 16 6A state tournaments. In her 19 years of coaching at Rural Holday was named Centennial League and City Coach of the Year nine times. Holaday took over the reins at Washburn University’s softball program before the 2017 season. Her teams have won two MIAA Conference titles, appeared in three NCAA tournaments and she has been named MIAA Coach of the Year twice.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University men's basketball passed its first test playing as the No. 1 team in the nation on Wednesday night, taking an 83-72 win over Emporia State in Lee Arena.
Senior Andrew Orr (right) scored a game-high 21 points Wednesday night as Washburn improved to 16-0 with an 83-72 win over Emporia State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior Michael Keegan had 16 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals in Washburn's 83-72 win over Emporia State Wednesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Brett Ballard's Ichabods won their 16th straight game to open the season, improving to 16-0 overall and 7-0 in the MIAA, while handing the Hornets their sixth loss in a row.
And while Wednesday's win wasn't quite as many games during the Ichabods' win streak WU has still had just one single-digit game on the season.
"It's hard to win in this league so definitely (Ballard) is still happy, but obviously there's things we can work on,'' said Washburn senior Michael Keegan, who turned in a banner overall performance for the Ichabods. "There were some things we let go easy, but kudos to (the Hornets). They really played hard, they played well.
"Overall, we're very happy for a win. Staying undefeated is a very big thing for us right now.''
Ballard said that while his team might not have been as sharp as it wanted to to be,the Ichabods achieved their main objective of getting a win over their rival.
"I think you get somewhat spoiled,'' Ballard said. "You win a rivalry game by double-digits and you feel a certain type of way about it and I understand that. I thought that Emporia deserved a lot of credit.
"They battled us and had a nice game plan. They frustrated us on the defensive end. Luckily we got 16 offensive rebounds and that was really the difference in the game but our first-shot offense was not very good. I thought we got good looks and didn't make some of them. We're not going to apologize for winning by double-digits, but I do think a lot of things we need to clean up.''
Washburn trailed by just one point on four different occasions in the opening minutes, including a 10-9 Hornet lead with 17:23 to play in the half, but Washburn used a 7-0 run over the next 60 seconds to go in front 16-10 and never trailed again, leading for 37:59 of the 40-minute contest.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The newly-minted No. 1-ranked Washburn University Ichabods will host Emporia State on Wednesday night in Lee Arena at 7:30 pm in the second meeting between the Turnpike Tussle rivals in the last 11 days.
Brett Ballard's Washburn Ichabods, off to a perfect 15-0 start, earned No. 1 spot in the national ranking on Tuesday, WU's first No. 1 since 1992. [File photo/TSN]
Senior Michael Keegan (left) has climbed to No. 7 all-time on Washburn's career steals chart. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods improved to 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the MIAA after blasting Northwest Missouri 96-66 in a 30-point win last Saturday while the Hornets are 4-11 overall and 1-5 in the MIAA after falling 69-67 at home to Nebraska-Kearney on Saturday. Washburn defeated Emporia State 105-77 on Jan. 4 in Emporia in the second-largest victory margin in series history.
The Ichabods were last ranked No. 1 in the nation on Jan. 27, 1992. Playing as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation in the NCAA ranks, the Ichabods are 3-2, topping Central Missouri Jan. 15 in their first game as the No. 1 team before falling to Pittsburg State on Jan. 18 by one. After going 2-0 the following week with wins over Emporia State and Missouri Western, the Ichabods moved back into the top spot on Jan. 27, 1992 and topped Fort Hays State on Jan. 27 and Northwest Missouri on Jan. 29 before falling at Truman on Feb. 1.
At 15-0 the Ichabods are off to their best start to begin a season since starting the 2003-04 season 16-0 en route to the MIAA regular-season championship. The Ichabod record for the most wins to start the season is 19 coming in the 1992-93 season.
The Ichabods are now one of two undefeated teams remaining in the NCAA Division II ranks, joining No. 2 Daemen (14-0).
Senior Andrew Orr became the 28th member of the Ichabod 1,000 point club earlier this season and he now has 1,095 career points moving into 19th on the career scoring chart. The next Ichabods ahead of Orr are Todd Alexander and Tom Carlson with 1,099 points.
Senior Jacob Hanna is closing in on 1,000 points in his collegiate career between Washburn and Illinois-Springfield and has scored 962 career points.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University junior stars Payton Sterk and Yibari Nwidadah walked out of Lee Arena last Saturday with a sense of frustration after the Ichabods dropped a 66-61 overtime MIAA decision to Northwest Missouri State.
Washburn junior Payton Sterk scored 26 points and hit 7 of 11 3-pointers in Wednesday's 88-73 MIAA win over Emporia State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn junior Yibari Nwidadah (32) had 23 points and 12 rebounds in Wednesday's 88-73 MIAA win over Emporia State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Sterk was in foul trouble against the Bearcats for most of the game and fouled out with 3:35 remaining in regulation after scoring just six points in 19:23 of action, while Nwidadah, the national leader in field goal percentage, shot under 50 percent from the floor for the first time all season, going 5 of 16 en route to an 11-point performance, 5.6 points below her season average.
Sterk and Nwidadah were back on the court Wednesday night and took out any lingering frustrations on visiting Emporia State, combining for 49 points as the Ichabods completed a regular-season sweep over the Hornets with an 88-73 home MIAA romp.
Stert, who surpassed the 1,000-point career milestone with her first basket of the night, scored a game-high 26 points with a 7 of 11 performance from 3-point range while Nwidadah registered a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds while hitting 10 of 14 shots from the field.
"Tonight was good,'' Sterk said. "Saturday was frustrating just because I was in foul trouble so it wasn't even like I could play anymore, so it was nice to come in tonight and not even get a close win but a big win and that really helps us.''
Nwidadah agreed.
"I feel like everyone was frustrated (Saturday), everyone felt that loss and we used that as motivation,'' Nwidadah said. "We took it into practice each and every day, so we just knew we wanted to get that win (tonight).''
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball and rival Emporia State will square off for the second time in as many weeks when the Ichabods hosts the Hornets at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday inside Lee Arena.
Junior Yibari Nwidadah leads Washburn in scoring, rebounds, field goal percentage and blocked shots entering Wednesday's 5:30 p.m. against Emporia State. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn is 8-8 on the year and 2-4 in the MIAA after losing for the first time at home this season in a 66-61 overtime loss to Northwest Missouri on Saturday while Emporia State is 7-8 overall and 2-4 in the MIAA after dropping a 79-68 decision to Nebraska-Kearney in Emporia on Saturday.
Wednesday's contest against Emporia State will be the 116th all-time meeting between the two teams.
Washburn rallied from a double-digit second-half deficit to defeat Emporia State 64-61 inside of White Auditorium in the opening game of 2025.
Junior Yibari Nwidadah leads Washburn with a 16.6 scoring average while also shooting a team-high 66.0 percent from the field and grabbing a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game. Nwidadah has started all 14 games she has played in while logging 26.9 mpg. She has shot at or above 50.0 perceent in all but one game and has three double-doubles.
The Olathe North product has the best field goal percentage in the nation while ranking fifth in the MIAA in points per game and sixth in rebounding average. She has 15-plus points in nine games this year.
With 187 career offensive rebounds Nwidadah is eighth in program history and is five boards away from moving up to No. 7. In overall rebounds she is 19th in Washburn history with 496. Last time out she passed head coach Lora Westling on the all-time chart
Nwidadah's career field goal percentage of .576 is the third best in program history. In scoring she ranks 39th with 737 career points.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Barring some anomalies in the voting, when the National Association of Basketball Coaches Top 25 is released on Tuesday, the Washburn University men's basketball team will be in the No. 1 spot in the NCAA Division II national rankings.
Brett Ballard's Washburn Ichabods, off to a perfect 15-0 start, are expected to move up to the No. 1 spot in the national ranking on Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]
Senior Michael Keegan has helped Washburn get off to a dominating 15-0 start with just one single-digit game. [File photo/TSN]
And while the ultimate goal for the Ichabods is to be in the top spot at the end of the season, WU coach Brett Ballard wants his team to be proud of the coveted honor.
"I think it's a big deal,'' Ballard said after Saturday's 96-66 romp past perennial power Northwest Missouri State, a four-time Division II national champion. "If we do get that -- and if we don't it's OK -- I think it's a testament to the guys we have now, it's what we've tried to build, and I think it's a testament to our former players and the foundation that they've established and the culture that they established with the program, to our assistants and everybody involved with Washburn.
"To be No. 1 potentially out of over 300 Division II teams, that's a big deal to me.''
WU senior standout Andrew Orr agreed.
"It's special,'' Orr said. "There's 300 and some Division II teams and to be ranked No. 1 is amazing. And we deserve it, if I'm being honest. We play really hard, we're really good and I don't see why we wouldn't be No. 1.''
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball came out on the wrong end of its first overtime game of the season on Saturday as the Ichabods fell 66-61 to Northwest Missouri State in Lee Arena.
Despite fighting foul problems and attempting 14 fewer free throws than the visiting Bearcats, Washburn extended the game to an extra session but couldn't keep up with Northwest in the five-minute period.
Junior Yibari Nwidadah led Washburn with 11 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 66-61 overtime loss to Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Bearcats scored the first five points of overtime to lead 62-57 with 3:16 left. Washburn pulled within three after Gabi Giovannetti hit a 3-pointer with 1:18 remaining in OT, but that was all it could muster as Northwest Missouri put the game at the way at the free throw line to post the five-point win.
"That was frustrating,'' Washburn coach Lora Westling said. "We felt like the ball was where we wanted it to go and it just didn't fall tonight and that's tough.
"But at the same time I thought we lost the game defensively by just not adjusting to some tighter officiating and we lost the game on the free throw line.''
Through the first six minutes of play Washburn (8-8 overall, 2-4 MIAA) jumped out to a 12-6 lead with half of the points coming from junior Payton Sterk.
Junior Amaya Davison knocked down a triple to move the lead up to seven points at the 2:26 mark in the opening quarter.
The Bearcats (9-7, 2-4) were held to just 2-7 shooting in the frame as the Ichabods built a 15-10 lead.
Northwest Missouri bounced back offensively with two made 3-pointers to begin the second quarter and tied the game at 18 on a layup.
Two more connections from deep from the Bearcats quickly put them up by six as they went 5-8 from 3-point range in the quarter.
Washburn settled in on defense, keeping Northwest Missouri off the board for nearly four minutes as they went on an 8-0 run to take the lead. The advantage changed once more before the half and flipped back to the Ichabods after junior Aniyah Wayne sank a 3-pointer to go up 31-29 at the break.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Granted, perennial MIAA and NCAA Division II power Northwest Missouri State is in the midst of a transition season after former Bearcat coach Ben McCollum moved on to Division I Drake following last season and took multiple Bearcats with him.
Brayden Shorter (20), celebrating a big play with Brady Christiansen, led Washburn with 18 points in Saturday's 96-66 win over Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn senior Andrew Orr scored 16 points on Saturday in the Ichabods' 96-66 win over Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
But the Bearcats' tradition -- four national titles and 21 MIAA regular-season championships -- coupled with the fact that the Ichabods had dropped seven straight games to Northwest gave Washburn plenty to play for in Saturday's conference matchup.
And the Ichabods took full advantage of Northwest's inexperience and current struggles, leading for all but 19 seconds in a wire-to-wire 96-66 win in Lee Arena.
"We talk about how there's guys in our program who built us up to where we are today and they went through that Ben McCollom/Northwest era and I went through it, too,'' said Ichabod senior Andrew Orr, who moved into the No. 19 spot on Washburn's career scoring chart with 16 points.
"It feels really good to get this type of win because that's a prideful program and to beat a team of that level by that much is special.''
Ichabod coach Brett Ballard, who entered Saturday's game with a 3-18 career record against the Bearcats, agreed.
"We have a lot of respect for that program and what they've accomplished and it is a big game,'' Ballard said. "Every game is a big game, but that's a big game and that's a good win for us, a good statement win.''
Washburn, which improved to 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the MIAA, is likely to be the top-ranked team in the country for the first time since 1992 when the national rankings are released on Tuesday after previous No. 1 Nova Southeastern lost earlier in the week on the road to Palm Beach Atlantic.
Washburn jumped out to a 9-1 lead and never looked back as the Ichabods recorded their first win over Northwest since Feb. 9, 2013.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The No. 2-ranked Washburn University men are back in action on Saturday afternoon, hosting Northwest Missouri at 3 p.m. in Lee Arena.
Senior Andrew Orr needs just four points in Saturday's game against Northwest Missouri to move into 19th all-time on Washburn's career scoring chart. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods improved to 14-0 overall and 5-0 in the MIAA after rolling over Missouri Western 92-74 on Wednesday in Lee Arena. The Bearcats are 4-10 this season and 2-3 in the MIAA after a 63-62 win at Central Missouri on Thursday night in Warrensburg, hitting a 3-pointer with 4.9 seconds to play to snap a three-game losing streak.
The No. 2 national ranking is the highest by an Ichabod team since earning a No. 2 on Dec. 18, 2012.
Washburn is off to its best start to begin a season since starting the 2003-04 season 16-0 en route to the MIAA regular- season championship.
The Ichabods are now one of three undefeated teams remaining in the NCAA Division II ranks, joining No. 4 Minot State (17-0), and No. 3 Daemen (12-0). The No. 1 team, Nova Southeastern, lost its first game of the season on Wednesday to Palm Beach Atlantic 89-66 on the road.
WU senior Andrew Orr now has 1,079 career points, moving into 20th all time, and is just three points behind former Topeka West star Alex North on the scoring chart. North scored 1,082 points from 2010-15.
Senior Jacob Hanna is closing in on 1,000 points in his collegiate career between Washburn and Illinois-Springfield, scoring 949 career points.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball will put its undefeated home record and two-game MIAA win streak on the line Saturday when the Ichabods host Northwest Missouri State for a 1 p.m. contest in Lee Arena.
Washburn's women will host Northwest Missouri at 1 p.m. Saturday, with the Ichabods looking for their third straight MIAA win. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn is 8-7 on the year overall and 2-3 in the MIAA after an 88-73 takedown of Missouri Western on Wednesday. Northwest Missouri ended a six-game losing streak and picked up its first MIAA win to move to 8-7 on the year and 1-4 in conference after defeating Central Missouri 66-58 on Thursday in Warrensburg.
Saturday's meeting with Northwest Missouri will be the 79th all-time meeting between the two teams. Washburn leads the all-time series between the two teams, 62-14. The Ichabods have gone 35-4 against the Bearcats inside of Lee Arena.
Yibari Nwidadah is averaging 17 points to lead Washburn while also shooting a team-high 70.1 percent from the field and grabbing a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game.The junior has started all 13 games she has played in, logging 26.1 minutes per game.
Nwidadah has shot at or above 50.0 percent in every game this season and has three double-doubles. The Olathe native has the best field goal percentage in the nation while ranking third in the MIAA in points per game and sixth in rebounding average.
Junior Payton Sterk is averaging 15.9 points while starting all 15 contests and playing a team-high 30.6 minutes per gamee. She is shooting 43.2 percent from the floor and a team-high 37.3 percent from deep and drilling a team-high 31 3-pointers.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
With every win No. 2-ranked and 14-0 Washburn University men's basketball continues to set its bar just a little bit higher.
Senior Jacob Hanna, reacting to a basket Wednesday night, led Washburn with 21 points in a 92-74 MIAA romp past Missouri Western. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
But Ichabod coach Brett Ballard also wants his team to enjoy the ride, including Wednesday's 92-74 MIAA romp past Missouri Western in Lee Arena.
"That' a very good team, with seven or eight seniors that play,'' Ballard said of the Griffons. "That's a very experienced team, so that's a good win.
"I told our guys in the locker room, 'Do not take this for granted.' This is special what these guys are doing. To beat a team like that, which is a very good team, by 18, that's a very good win.''
The Ichabods, playing their first home game in 39 days, were never seriously threatened after scoring 19 of the first 21 points of the game over the first seven minutes.
"We got off to a great start, I thought probably as well as we've played defensively all year,'' Ballard said. "The first 10 minutes were tremendous. We went through a little lull there, but I like how we responded. And then the second half, especially offensively, we were really efficient.''
Washburn, now 5-0 in the MIAA, started out the night 6 of 8 from the field and hit all six of its free throw attempts while holding the Griffons to 1 of 5 shooting and forcing four turnovers en route to jumping out to the big lead.
With Washburn holding a 39-24 lead with 3:22 left in the opening half, Western closed the half on a 10-4 run to cut the Ichabod lead to nine at 43-34 heading into halftime.
Missouri Western (10-5 overall, 2-3 MIAA) trimmed the Ichabod lead to 45-39 with 18:06 left before a 13-5 spurt by the Ichabods pushed the lead back to 14.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University's women's basketball celebrated its long-awaited return to Lee Arena Wednesday night with an 88-73 MIAA romp past Missouri Western, snapping the Griffons' seven-game winning streak while handing Western its first conference loss.
Junior Yibari Nwidadah (32) had a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds in Wednesday night's 88-73 home MIAA win over Missouri Western. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Junior Payton Sterk (20) scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Wednesday's 88-73 MIAA win over Missouri Western. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"As we continue to grow the key word for us is maturity and making it about us,'' said Washburn coach Lora Westling, who does not have a senior on her roster. "We told our players that no matter what the result of this game is we're going to evaluate ourselves and how we executed and how we performed.
"I thought we did a nice job in our game plan and had a lot of players step up in big moments. It was nice to be home with a great crowd and I thought we did a good job.''
Missouri Western (9-4 overall, 4-1 MIAA) opened the game with a pair of 3-pointers that put it up 6-2 at the 7:50 mark of the first quarter, but Washburn (8-7, 2-3) got its offense going with five straight points from sophomore Madelyn Amekporfor that put the Ichabods in front 11-8.
It was a balanced offensive effort for Washburn as the Ichabods built a nine-point lead with 1:23 left in the opening quarter after junior Aniah Wayne connected from deep off the bench. Junior Amaya Davison the got a layup to go just before the buzzer to make it 28-22 after one.
After shooting 61.1 percent in the first quarter the Ichabods maintained their pace in the second, shooting 6-11 (54.6). With a 5-0 run in the middle of the quarter Washburn pushed the lead to double figures at 42-32 after junior Yibari Nwidadah hit a jump hook. For a second straight quarter Davison ended it at the buzzer, this time draining a 3-pointer to make it a 47-34 WU advantage heading into the locker rooms.
The Ichabods held Missouri Western from scoring for the first 2:07 of the third quarter. Once the Griffons cut their deficit down to 12, a 3-pointer by Amekporfor began a 6-0 WU burst to open up a game-high 18-point advantage.
Once again Washburn added to its lead just before the end of the quarter, this time with junior Payton Sterk working her way into the paint for a layup to make the score, 64-49.
The beginning of the fourth quarter started strong for the Ichabods again, with back-to-back layups for Nwidadah followed by a free throw by Davison making it a 20-point game with 7:40 left.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
For the first time in over a month Washburn University women's basketball is back home to begin its season-longest four-game homestand on Wednesday, hosting Missouri Western State at 5:30 p.m. in Lee Arena.
Washburn women's basketball begins a four-game homestand on Wednesday against Missouri Western. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Washburn is 7-7 on the season after erasing a double-digit second-half deficit last Saturday to knock off Emporia State 64-61 for its first MIAA win.
Missouri Western moved to 9-3 on the year and stayed undefeated in the MIAA at 4-0 after knocking off No. 3-ranked Fort Hays State 67-66 at home on Saturday.
Wednesday's meeting with Missouri Western will be the 102nd all-time meeting between the two schools. Washburn leads the all-time series between the two teams, 57-47.
Yibari Nwidadah leads the Ichabods with a 16.7 scoring average while also shooting a team-high 70.7 percent from the field and grabbing a team-best 7.3 rebounds per game. The junior has started all 12 games she has played in, logging 25.8 minutes per game.
She has shot at or above 50.0 percent in every game this season and has two double-doubles. The Olathe North product has the best field goal percentage in the nation while ranking fourth in the MIAA in points per game and ninth in rebounds per game.
With 180 career offensive rebounds Nwidadah is ninth in program history. She is six boards away from moving up to No. 8. In overall rebounds she is tied for 23rd in Washburn history with 478. Nwidadah's career field goal percentage of 58.3 percent is the second-best in program history and she ranks 42nd with 705 career points.
Junior Payton Sterk averages 15.7 points while starting all 14 contests and playing a team-high 30.2 minutes per game. Sterk is shooting 42.6 percent from the floor and a team-high 38 percent from 3-point range while hitting a team-high 30 3-pointers.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 2-ranked Washburn University men's basketball will be back in Lee Arena for the first time in 39 days on Wednesday, hosting Missouri Western at 7:30 p.m.
Washburn men's basketball coach Brett Ballard picked up his 150th win at WU in Saturday's 105-77 win at Emporia State and has a 66.7-percent winning percentage with the Ichabods. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods improved to 13-0 overall and 4-0 in the MIAA with a 105-77 win over Emporia State on Saturday in Emporia, with WU scoring its most points in the 222-game series.
The Griffons are 10-4 this season and 2-2 in the MIAA after topping Fort Hays State 47-44 on Saturday in St. Joseph.
The No. 2 ranking is the highest by an Ichabod team since earning a No. 2 ranking on Dec. 18, 2012.
Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard picked up his 150th win at Washburn in the victory over Emporia State and is 150-75 in his eighth season as the WU head coach.
At 13-0 Washburn is off to its best start to begin a season since starting the 2003-04 season 16-0 en route to the MIAA regular-season championship. The Ichabods are one of four undefeated teams remaining in the NCAA Division II ranks, joining Minot State (17-0), Nova Southeastern (13-0) and Daemen (12-0).
Washburn senior Andrew Orr became the 28th member of the Ichabod 1,000 point club earlier this season and now has 1,067 career points, moving into 20th all time by passing Travis Robbins who scored 1,051 points in two seasons. Next on the scoring chart is former Topeka West star Alex North, who scored 1,082 points from 2010-15.
WU senior Jacob Hanna is closing in on 1,000 points in his collegiate career between Washburn and Illinois-Springfield, scoring 928 career points.
Ichabod senior Michael Keegan has 875 career points in 109 career games and he has moved into sixth all-time at Washburn in career blocks with 91. He has also moved into the top 10 on the WU all-time steal chart with 122, sitting eighth.
Sophomore Brayden Shorter, who leads WU with a 16.8 scoring average, is fourth in the nation in 3-pointers per game at 3.77 and he's ranked seventh in total 3-pointers made with 49.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EMPORIA – Washburn University men's basketball christened the new year in style as the No. 2-ranked Ichabods led for 39:33 of the 40-minute contest and by as many as 33 points, cruising to a 105-77 MIAA road win over Emporia State on Saturday in White Auditorium.
Sophomore Jack Bachelor led six double-figure scorers for Washburn with 19 points as the No. 2-ranked Ichabods rolled to a 105-77 road win over Emporia State. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn improved to 13-0 overall and 4-0 in MIAA play and will return to Lee Arena for the first time since Nov. 30 next Wednesday as the Ichabods will host Missouri Western at 7:30 p.m.
Washburn jumped out to a 13-3 lead 3:49 into the game behind Jack Bachelor's 11 points, including three-straight 3-pointers.
The Hornets (4-8, 1-3) trimmed the lead back to five at 17-12, but the Ichabods used another 13 to 3 run, doubling up Emporia State with 9:13 to play in the half.
ESU cut the lead to 11 but that margin was the closest the Hornets would get the rest of the game as the Ichabods finished the frame 9 of 11 from the field over the final 7:01 of the half, taking a 56-39 lead into the break.
Washburn shot 61 percent in the opening half, paced by 17 points from Washburn Rural product Bachelor and 10 points and eight assists from Jacob Hanna as the Ichabods reached at least 50 points in a half since scoring 52 against William Jewell on Nov. 23, 2024 in Lee Arena.
A 12-1 run over a three-minute stretch followed by a 16-7 Ichabod run stretched the Ichabod lead to a game-high 33 with 9:28 to play as Washburn snapped a four-game slide to the Hornets.
Bachelor finished with a game-high 19 points and added eight assists, leading six Ichabods in double figures.
Birthday boy Andrew Orr had 16 points as did Hanna, who also had eight assists and six rebounds.
Dillon Claussen had a career-high 15 points on 7 of 7 shooting while Brayden Shorter hit three 3-pointers en route to 11 points with six boards and Brady Christiansen had 11 points as well.
Malik Edwards scored 13 points to lead the Hornets.
After shooting 61 percent in the first half, the Ichabods improved to 67 percent in the second half, hitting 20 of 30 shots overall to close the game at a season-high 63 percent on 43 of 68 shooting.
Washburn outrebounded the Hornets 34 to 25 in the game and tallied 26 assists on 43 baskets in the game. Washburn also outscored the Hornets 58 to 22 in the paint and forced 22 turnovers, leading to 27 points for the Ichabods.
The 105 points scored by the Ichabods was the second time Washburn reached the century mark in the 222 previous meetings in the series, topping the old record of 103 set against ESU on Jan. 7, 2004 in Topeka.
The Ichabods just missed setting the largest margin of victory in the series as the Hornets hit a 3-pointer with 13 seconds left avoiding the record mark of 31 in a 73-42 Ichabod win on Jan. 16, 2010.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
EMPORIA-- Washburn University women's basketball rallied from a double-digit second-half deficit Saturday to defeat Emporia State 64-61 inside of White Auditorium in the Ichabods' opening game of 2025.
Freshman guard Brooke Gomez (1) scored a career-high 14 points as Washburn rallied for a 64-61 MIAA road win over Emporia State Saturday. [Photo courtesy of Emporia State Athletics]
The Ichabods moved back to .500 on the season with their first MIAA win and will return to Topeka for four straight games, beginning Wednesday against Missouri Western (5:30 p.m. tipoff).
After Washburn (7-7 overall, 1-3 MIAA) scored the opening basket of the game courtesy of Gabi Giovannetti the next 10 points were all scored by the Lady Hornets (7-6, 2-2).
The Ichabods made up ground at the free throw line, connecting on five free throws in the opening quarter to get back within two points.
Late in the quarter the Ichabods briefly went in front after a triple from Giovannetti before Emporia State knotted the game at 16 to end the first.
Both sides struggled to score in the second quarter as defenses tightened up before halftime.
Even with just five combined field goals in the quarter there were five lead changes and three ties as the game went back and forth.
The final four points of the quarter went to the Lady Hornets, all at the free throw line, to lead 28-25 at the break.
Coming out of halftime Emporia State started on a 8-0 run to lead by a game-high 11 points at the 7:32 mark in the third quarter.
Inside of five minutes to play Washburn's Nia McKenzie scored an old-fashioned three-point play which began a 13-2 stretch for Washburn to end the quarter.
They went in front 41-39 after Brooke Gomez got a 3-pointer to go and would enter the fourth tied at 41.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball starts the new year with another chapter against its most storied rival, with the Ichabods facing Emporia State at 4 p.m. on Saturday in Emporia's White Auditorium.
unior Yibari Nwidadah averages team-highs of 17.6 points and 7.5 rebounds for Washburn, which opens 2025 Saturday at Emporia State. [File photo/TSN]
Washburn is 6-7 on the year overall and 0-3 in the MIAA after falling 85-72 on the road to Central Missouri on Dec. 21 in its final game of 2024 while Emporia State moved to 7-5 on the year and 2-1 in the MIAA after defeating Central Missouri 70-66 on Thursday at home.
Saturday's meeting with Emporia State will be the 114th all-time meeting between the two teams.
Junior Yibari Nwidadah leads Washburn with a 17.6 scoring average while shooting a team-high 71.8 percent from the field and grabbing a team-best 7.5 rebounds. Nwidadah has started all 11 games she has played and has shot over 50.0 percent in every game this season while recording two double-doubles. The Olathe North product has the best field goal percentage in the nation.
With 178 career offensive rebounds Nwidadah is ninth in program history and is eight boards away from moving up to No. 8. In overall rebounds she ranks 24th in Washburn history with 473.
Junior Payton Sterk is scoring 15.6 points a game while starting all 13 contests and playing a team-high 29.7 minutes per game. Sterk is shooting 44.0 percent from the floor and a team-high 39.2 percent from deep while dishing out 2.6 assists a game. The Colorado Springs native has drilled a team-high 29 3-pointers.
Former Bishop Miege star Gabi Giovannetti is averaging 11.3 points for the Ichabods, with the junior starting all 13 games and playing 26.3 minutes a game. She is second on the team with 20 made triples and has made a 3-pointer in all but two games.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 2-ranked Washburn University men's basketball will make its 2025 debut at 1:40 p.m. Saturday in Emporia, facing rival Emporia State in White Auditorium.
Senior Andrew Orr has now scored 1,051 career points entering Saturday's MIAA road game against Emporia State. [File photo/TSN]
The Ichabods are 12-0 overall and 3-0 in the MIAA after picking up a 70-52 win over Central Missouri on Dec. 21 in their last action. The Hornets are 4-8, 1-2 after falling 72-69 to Central Missouri at home on Thursday.
Saturday's contest is the MIAA Game of the Week on 38 TheSpot in Kansas City.
The Ichabods and Hornets will play again on Jan. 15 in Topeka, 11 days after Saturday's meeting.
Washburn is off to its best start to begin a season at since starting the 2003-04 season 16-0 en route to the MIAA regular-season championship. The Ichabods are one of five undefeated teams remaining in the NCAA Division II ranks, joining Minot State (15-0), Pace (13-0), Nova Southeastern (12-0) and Daemen (11-0).
Washburn senior Andrew Orr became the 28th member of the Ichabod 1,000 point club with a free throw at Fort Hays State on Dec. 7 and now has 1,051 career points, moving into 22nd all time. Next on the scoring chart is Ron Ford, who scored 1,055 points from 1962-66, and then Topeka West product Alex North who scored 1,082 points from 2010-15.
Senior Jacob Hanna is closing in on 1,000 points in his collegiate career between Washburn and Illinois-Springfield, scoring 912 career points.
Ichabod senior Michael Keegan has 872 career points in 108 career games as an Ichabod and has moved into sixth all-time at Washburn in career blocks with 88. Keegan has also moved into the top 10 on the all-time steal chart with 122 and it leading the MIAA with 29 steals.
WU sophomore Brayden Shorter is fifth in the nation in 3-pointers per game at 3.83 and he's ranked seventh in total 3-pointers made at 46.
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It's been an extremely busy time for Washburn University head football coach Zach Watkins as he began putting his stamp on the Ichabod program since being named the 38th head coach in WU history on Nov. 26.
Zach Watkins, who was named Washburn's head football coach in late November, announced his full-time coaching staff on Thursday. [File photo/TSN]
[Graphic courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Watkins, a Washburn Hall of Famer and former Ichabod defensive coordinator, took a major step in that process on Thursday, announcing his seven member full-time coaching staff as preparations gear up for the 2025 season.
Former Ichabod star Dane Simoneau is the lone full-time holdover from Craig Schurig's 2024 staff and will serve as WU's offensive coordinator while two other members of Watkins' first coaching staff have ties to the school.
"Making some staff changes, that's never easy, but you have to put your vision on the program,'' Watkins told TopSports.news Thursday. "During that time, with the staff changes there were a lot of responsibilities put on just a few people, but Dane Simoneau and our young coaches (primarily graduate assistants) did a great job of handling all the things that needed to be done as we hired fulltime staff.
"It's been a lot with recruiting, to our current players and making sure their grades and finals are good. It's been very hectic but it's been very rewarding to work through all that stuff. Now, to get the full staff here, we have recruiting visits coming up and all the processes that have to happen with that. The entire recruiting process is accellorating from from what it used to be, so between making the staff changes and the new staff coming in, it's put us a little bit behind, but we're going to rebound just fine.''
Watkins said he's very happy with the staff he's been able to assemble.
In addition to Simoneau, Kaleb Koch, who will serve as WU's defensive coordinator, and Jarvis Harrod, who will coach defensive backs and serve as special teams coordinator, both played for the Ichabods and were graduate assistants for WU.
Watkins' staff also includes former Kansas State star and Oklahoma State assistant Travis Britz while all of the new additions have extensive coaching experience at the high school and/or collegiate level.
"I think the most important thing in a program is the people and that's the players, the coaches, the administration,'' Watkins said. "People make every situation good or bad and wanting to be a head coach and preparing to be a head coach that's the No. 1 thing that you have to be aware of is what people are available to your staff and who can you go after.
"So I had a bunch of ideas of guys I wanted to talk to. I had a lot of conversations for limited spots and I think we've got a very good staff put together.''
Watkins said getting his staff in place was a major milestone but he also knows that he and his coaches will be working non-stop all the way until the opening of the 2025 season in the fall.
"It was the hiring process, right into our current players' final grades, right into recruiting, right into the new semester starting, into workouts and spring ball,'' Watkins said. "It never ends and it's really good to be full go all the time because there's no other way to work than to be all in and do it full speed.''
A look at Watkins' full-time coaching staff:
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The names are well known to anyone who has followed area sports over the past several years, but a long and growing list of athletes who starred at Shawnee County high schools have made a big impact at the college and/or professional level this fall and winter.
Here's a look at just some of the stars who continue to make their fans proud:
Sophomore guard Jack Bachelor has helped Washburn University achieve a 12-0 record and a No. 2 national ranking this season. [File photo/TSN]
JACK BACHELOR, Washburn Rural/Washburn -- The 6-foot-2 sophomore guard has played a major role as the Ichabods are off to a 12-0 start this season while achieving a No. 2 national ranking in NCAA Division II. Bachelor, who has started all 12 games for the Ichabods, is currently averaging 12.7 points with 20 3-pointers while hitting 28 of 33 free throws (84.8 percent). Bachelor is also averaging 4.0 rebounds with a team-high 60 assists and 21 steals.
Former Shawnee Heights and Washburn standout Corey Ballentine has put together a six-year NFL career as a defensive back. [packers.com]
COREY BALLENTINE, Shawnee Heights/Washburn/Green Bay Packers --A 5-foot-11, 196-pound cornerback, the former Shawnee Heights and Washburn Univerity star has played in 11 games with one start this season for the 11-4 Packers. The sixth-year pro has played in 65 career games with 11 starts for the Giants, Jets, Lions and Packers, recording 100 tackles, including 76 solo stops with two forced fumbles and an interception.
Former Topeka West star Elijah Brooks had a career-high 29 points for Houston Christian earlier this season. [Houston Christian Athletics]
ELIJAH BROOKS, Topeka West/Houston Christian -- A 6-foot-4 junior guard, the former Mr. Kansas Basketball for Topeka West has appeared in all 13 games with 11 starts for the 4-9 Huskies, averaging 9.9 points and 4.1 rebounds with 25 assists. Brooks, who began his college career at North Dakota, scored a career-high 29 points earlier this season and also had a 21-point game.
Former Washburn Rural star Brooklyn DeLeye was a first-team AVCA All-American, the SEC Player of the Year and a finalist for the AVCA National Player of the Year this fall for Kentucky. [Kentucky Athletics]
BROOKLYN DELEYE, Washburn Rural/Kentucky -- The former three-sport Washburn Rural star, a 6-foot-2 sophomore outside hitter, had a huge 2024 season for Kentucky volleyball, being named the SEC Player of the Year, a first-team American Volleyball Coaches Association All-America selection and one of four finalists for the AVCA National Player of the Year award. DeLeye helped lead the 23-8 Wildcats to their eighth straight conference championship and the fourth round (regional final) of the NCAA Tournament. DeLeye started all 31 matches, leading the Wildcats with 531 kills while also compiling 179 digs and 36 blocks.
