By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Six champions County football standouts and two local coaches have been selected to play in the 51st annual Kansas Shrine Bowl, which will be played June 29 in Emporia at Welch Stadium.
Hayden's Carter Charvat and Finn Dunshee, Rossville Barrett Lietz, Seaman's Callen Barta, Shawnee Heights' Christian Gonzales and Washburn Rural's JC Heim have been selected to play for the East while Shawnee Heights coach Jason Swift and Washburn Rural coach Steve Buhler have been named to serve as assistant coaches for the East.
Charvat, a 6-foot-2, 225-pound lineman and Dunshee, a 5-10, 185-pound running back, helped lead Hayden to a 12-1 record and a runnerup finish in Class 3A in the 2023 season.
Rossville's Lietz is a 6-1, 235-pound lineman while Seaman's Barta is a 6-2, 180-pound receiver/defensive back, Shawnee Heights' Gonzales a 6-1, 270-pound lineman and Rural's JC Heim a 6-3, 220-pound linebacker.
Lietz started as a sophomore on the Bulldawgs' Class 2A state championship team in 2021 and helped Rossville post a 5-4 record in '23 while Barta, a Kansas State recruit, helped lead Seaman to a 6-5 record and the 5A quarterfinals this past fall, Gonzales helped Heights post an 8-3 record and the 5A quarterfinals and Heim helped lead Rural to an 11-1 record and the 6A semifinals.
All six local players were named to the TopSports.news All-Shawnee County Top 22 for the 2023 season, with Heim named the county defensive player of the year.
Shawnee County Shrine Bowl selections at a glance:
Callen Barta (6), Seaman
CALLEN BARTA, Seaman
Barta, a 6-2, 180 senior wide receiver/defensive back, earned TSN All-Shawnee County Top 22 honors after being a Second 22 pick as a junior. Barta, who is headed to Kansas State, earned All-United Kansas Conference first-team recognition on both offense and defense after helping lead the Vikings to a 6-5 record and the 5A quarterfinal. Barta caught 77 passes for 1,441 yards and 17 touchdowns and was in on 36 tackles with five interceptions, including a pick six.
Carter Charvat (54), Hayden
CARTER CHARVAT, Hayden
Charvat, a 6-2, 225 senior offensive and defensive lineman, played a big role as Hayden won 12 straight games and advanced to the Class 3A state championship game before dropping a 34-7 decision to Cheney to finish second. Charvat moved up to the TSN All-Shawnee County Top 22 in 2023 after earning Second 22 recognition in 2022. Charvat is also a basketball standout for the Wildcats.
Finn Dunshee (33), Hayden
FINN DUNSHEE, Hayden
Dunshee, a 5-10, 185 senior running back/linebacker, fought back from a torn MCL to help 12-1 Hayden advance to the 3A title game. Despite missing five full games, Dunshee rushed for 844 yards and 14 touchdowns on 60 attempts and caught 17 passes for 229 yards and three TDs. The 4A state 100-meter dash champ as a junior, Dunshee earned All-Shawnee County Top 22 honors for the second straight season. Dunshee was the all-county co-offensive newcomer of the year as a junior.
CHRISTIAN GONZALES, Shawnee Heights
A 6-1, 270 senior lineman, Gonzales moved up to the TSN All-Shawnee County Top 22 after being a Second 22 pick as a junior. A first-team All-United Kansas Conference selection on defense, Gonzales helped lead Shawnee Heights to an 8-3 record and the third round of the 5A state playoffs. Gonzales was in on 70 total tackles as a senior, including eight tackles for loss, four sacks, three forced fumbles and a pass interception.
JC HEIM, Washburn Rural
A 6-3, 220 senior running back/linebacker, Heim was a All-Shawnee County Top 22 selection for the second straight season and was named the Shawnee County defensive player of the year after helping lead the Junior Blues to an 11-1 record and the 6A state semifinals. Heim was in on 173 tackles (102 solos) with 17 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, two recovered fumbles (one for a touchdown), two blocked extra points and a blocked punt. Offensively, Heim rushed for 530 yards and 10 TDs on 90 carries.
BARRETT LIETZ, Rossville
A 6-1, 235 senior offensive lineman/defensive end, Lietz was a standout on both sides of the ball for the 5-4 Bulldawgs, earning All-Shawnee County Top 22 honors for the second straight season. Lietz was in on 47 tackles this past season with seven tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Lietz was a multiple time All-Mid-East League selection. Lietz is also a wrestling standout for Rossville, earning second-team all-county honors as a junior.
2024 KANSAS SHRINE BOWL ROSTERS
EAST
Callen Barta, Seaman; Holden Bass, Nemaha Central; Declan Battle, Louisburg; Justyce Betts, Bishop Miege; Cade Brown, Parsons; Colton Brusven, Tonganoxie; Carter Charvat, Hayden; Mark Debiak, Gardner Edgerton; Sawyer Deters, Axtell; Spencer Dohm, St. James Academy; Dylan Dunn, Blue Valley Southwest; Finn Dunshee, Hayden; Hank Fuchs, Free State; Christian Gonzales, Shawnee Heights; Josh Grimm, Sabetha; Elijah Hakim, Olathe West; Braden Hales, Olathe North; Tucker Harrell, St. Mary’s Colgan; Gus Hawkins, Mill Valley; Tanner Heckel, Lyndon; JC Heim, Washburn Rural; Aaron Henson, Piper; Gabe Hoskins, Shawnee Mission Northwest; Sage Huffman, Blue Valley West; Sam Hull, Humboldt; Grant Jennings, Shawnee Mission South; Carson Kraft, St. Thomas Aquinas; Barrett Lietz, Rossville; Nate Livingston, Blue Valley Northwest; Kaedin Massey, Lyndon; Peyton McDonald, Frontenac; Bryce Noernberg, Olathe South; Alex Parks, Blue Valley Southwest; Drew Pettay, Wamego; Jeter Purdy, Atchison; Jack Richards, De Soto; Dalton Roush, Holton; Stetson Schafer, Cherryvale; Kaleb Scott, Basehor-Linwood; Adrion Seals, Eudora; Augustus Thuston, Chanute; RB Tweed, Jefferson County North; Kainen White, Coffeyville; Wyatt Wurtz, Wabaunsee.
Coaches – Weston Moody, Wamego (head); Steve Buhler, Washburn Rural; Jason Swift, Shawnee Heights; Preston Troyer, Tonganoxie; Mark Smith, Frontenac; Garrett Michael, Sabetha; Shawn Seematter, St. Mary’s Colgan.
WEST
Kaiden Abasolo, Mulvane; Malik Bah, Hays; Demaria’e Baker, Derby; Keegun Beims, Concordia; Tre Birch, Wichita Northwest; Karson Butts, Andale; Donald Collier, Wichita Trinity Academy; Tristen Davidson, Kingman; Lucas Dickman, Eisenhower; Sammy Dresie, Maize South; CJ Felder, Maize; Brax Fisher, Abilene; Teegan Haines, McPherson; Roman Hauser, Norton; Brody Hayes, Clay Center; Trey Heitsman, Valley Center; Caiden Hoffman, Hoisington; Mason Hogan, Plainville; Blaise Hoover, McPherson; Mason Hopper, Derby; Mason Jones, Hutchinson; J. Brooks Kappelmann, Liberal; Daniel Kejr, Southeast of Saline; Brayden Kunz, Conway Springs; Weston Langvardt, Chapman; Jack Lanning, Marion; Sebastian Lopez, Garden City; Derrick Lowe, Wellington; Isaac Martin, Hugoton; Logan McCarty, Cheylin; Ryan McCreath, Junction City; Kason Messenger, Cheney; Harlem Miller, Medicine Lodge; DaeOnte’ Mitchell, Wichita East; Hunter Mowery, Salina Central; Kyle Newsom, Andover Central; Hank Purvis, Bishop Carroll; Nick Ruth, Newton; Avante Scales, Wichita Heights; Aydan Spiers, Kapaun Mt. Carmel; Max Stanard, Manhattan; Kooper Tichenor, Holcomb; Jackson Voth, Cheney; Loden West, Ellsworth.
Coaches – Jace Pavlovich, McPherson (head); Dominick Dingle, Wichita Heights; Darrin Fisher, Eisenhower; Jeremiah Meeks, Wellington; Trey Teeter, Holcomb; Mitch Gebhardt, Southeast of Saline; Nick Schmidt, Medicine Lodge.
