West golf team makes state tourney

by Clarke Davis

Six Jefferson West High School golfers earned a trip to state over the weekend and placed 10th as a team.

Twelve teams out of 64 4A schools qualified for the tournament held at the Stagg Hill Golf Club in Manhattan.

“We were very proud to represent our school and league at state,” Deiter said.

It was the first trip to state in four years for the boys and the first time for this young team.

“We wanted to finish somewhere in the middle and after nine holes we were in seventh place,” said coach Larry Deiter. “But a couple of mistakes in the back nine proved to be too much to overcome and we finished in 10th place.”

While the coach said they were a little disappointed, he noted there were no seniors on the team and the boys are already looking forward to next year.

Freshman Cass Steele shot the low round for the Tigers with a score of 84. Junior Matt Debus shot an 85 followed by a pair of 86s by sophomores Alex Baker and Adam Fechter.

The lowest four scores out of the six-man team determines the team score, giving the Tigers a 341 score.

“Our team goal was to shoot between 320 and 330. A couple of bad holes kept us from reaching that goal,” Deiter said. “Four scores in the 80s was still good.”

“It was a great experience and we had a great time,” said junior Tanner Crawford. “It was just awesome.”

This season the varsity team placed first at invitationals at Northeran Heights, Osage City, Santa Fe Trail, St. Marys, and Perry-Lecompton. The Tigers also placed first at the Royal Valley quad and second at the Maur Hill quad.

The Tigers finished third in the Big 7 League and took second in the Regionals.

Letterwinners not going to state are juniors Tyler Sands, Chase Farrant, and Michael Zeik, sophomores Sam DeMaranville and Stephen Goodrick, and freshmen Riley Farrant, Mark Flood, and Michael West.

The junior varsity golf team racked up a bunch of trophies as well this season, taking first place at their own and the Horton invitationals and first place at quads at Royal Valley, Maur Hill, Oskaloosa, and Jefferson West. They also captured first in the JV league.

Junior varsity golfers are Casey Murdie, a junior, and freshmen Brent Broxterman, Sam Real, Caleb Riley, Logan Shenk, and Mitch Stansell.

The JV coach is Wes Sturgeon.

Twenty-five individuals, 2 relays headed for state track

Twenty-five county individual high school track and field athletes and two county relay teams have qualified for this year’s state track and field tournament, which is set for Friday and Saturday at Cessna Stadium in Wichita.

The roster of county qualifiers includes defending 4A state high jump champs Briar Ploude and Brianna Ploude of Jefferson West and defending 3A 400-meter champ Abraham Noll of Jefferson County North, as all three will be back in Wichita to defend their titles.

The three county 3A schools of JCN, Oskaloosa and McLouth led the way with 12 individual competitors and two relay teams in a total of 19 events. The 4A schools of Jefferson West and Perry-Lecompton turned out 11 individual competitors in a total of 15 events while 2A school Valley Falls had two competitors in a total of two events.

Following is a list of state qualifiers from county schools.

4A girls – Taryn Brees, freshman, Jefferson West, 3,200-meter run and 1,600-meter run. Megan Elder, junior, Perry-Lecompton, 100-meter hurdles and pole vault. Katie Hirsch, sophomore, PL, 1,600-meter run and 800-meter run. Moriah Dowding, junior, JW, 300-meter hurdles and long jump. Mandy Bostwick, senior, JW, shot put and discus. Brianna Ploude, sophomore, JW, high jump. Andrea Phillips, junior, PL, triple jump.

4A boys – Garrett Stewart, junior, JW, 200-meter dash and long jump. Joel Gantz, junior, PL, shot put. Briar Ploude, junior, JW, high jump. Nick Briney, senior, JW, javelin.

3A girls – Anne Courtney, sophomore, McLouth, 100-meter hurdles and 300-meter hurdles. Lisa Weishaar, junior, JCN, 100-meter dash, 300-meter hurdles, and 200-meter dash. McLouth 4x100 relay team. Gage Funk, freshman, JCN, 400-meter dash. Amelia Noll, junior, JCN, 800-meter run. JCN 4x400 meter relay team. Nicole Rockhold, junior, Oskaloosa, triple jump and high jump.

3A boys – Abraham Noll, senior, JCN, 100-meter dash, 400-meter dash, and 200-meter dash. J.T. Thurston, junior, Osk., 100-meter dash, 300-meter hurdles, 200-meter dash, and long jump. Boone Heston, senior, Osk., discus. Luke Noll, senior, JCN, triple jump. Chase Tenpenny, junior, Osk., high jump. Ely Henry, senior, JCN, pole vault. Quentin McAfee, sophomore, JCN, pole vault.

2A girls – Abbey Kearney, freshman, Valley Falls, triple jump.

2A boys – Josh Kearney, junior, Valley Falls, triple jump.

Kaws bound for 4A softball tourney in Salina

The Perry-Lecompton Kaws softball team entered its 4A regional tournament at Basehor with the proverbial top-seed target on its back. Two shutout wins and a semifinal squeaker later, the Kaws were bound for Salina.

That’s where the Kaws will be the fourth seed in the 4A state softball tournament, which starts Friday at Bill Burke Complex, after capturing the regional title May 13.

The Kaws’ run to state started with the top seed and a 17-2 record, as their only losses were to Bishop Ward and Basehor-Linwood this year. Their first round game in the regional was May 12 versus 5-13 Atchison and, behind the pitching of standout junior Courtney Kasson, the Kaws won, 11-0, to advance to the semifinals.

That set up a chance to avenge a loss as fifth-seeded Basehor-Linwood had defeated fourth-seeded Piper in the first round to move into the semifinals. The Bobcats had defeated the Kaws, 10-5, in early season play.

Kasson, who entered the tournament with a 16-0 record, took the mound against the Bobcats in the semifinals May 13 and held them to 4 hits. The Kaw offense was slow to get going as single runs in the fourth and fifth gave Basehor-Linwood a 2-0 lead late in the game. Kasson doubled home a run in the sixth and, two batters later, sophomore Shelby Erickson hammered a 2-run home run to turn the tables and give Perry-Lecompton a 3-2 lead. The Bobcats got a runner to third in the seventh but Kasson got two crucial strikeouts to end the game.

In the other semifinal, second-seeded Holton had to go nine innings to overcome third-seeded Royal Valley, which had ended Jefferson West’s season in the first round. That gave the Kaws a chance at some more revenge as Holton knocked Perry-Lecompton out of the regional last season and coach Jill Bradney said the Wildcats have ended the team’s season several times over its 15-season history.

This time, Kasson left no doubt with a 3-hit shutout and the Kaws jumped on Holton pitcher Elizabeth Dunn. Junior Emily Huerter scored on a wild pitch and junior catcher LeeAnne Pringle singled home a run in the first to make it 2-0 Kaws, and junior Chelsea Williams made it 3-0 with a run-scoring single in the second. Pringle added another RBI single in the fifth and two runs in the sixth padded the lead. It came down to Kasson, then, who closed the door to improve to 19-0.

The win marked a third milestone for the program this season. The Kaws won their first Kaw Valley League title this year and marked their first regional top seed, and, now, their first state tournament berth. What makes the feat more remarkable is the fact the team has only one senior.

Bradney, who has led the team through the ups and downs of each of its 15 seasons of play, said the team’s hallmarks this season have been solid fundamental play on both sides of the ball. The team has featured a balanced offensive attack and, in a rarity, Bradney allows catcher Pringle to call the pitches in most cases.

“I’m really happy for the kids,” Bradney said. “We’ve had times this year when our seven, eight, or nine hitters have gotten the game-tying or game-winning hits. You never know who’s gonna step up. We had all the same starters from last year’s team and six starters from two seasons ago were still in place. The girls’ ability to get on base and our speed have really made a difference.”

Kasson’s standout pitching has also given Bradney a chance to work freshman Olivia Breitenbach in as the number two pitcher to get some experience that should come in handy next season, if not before. She said the benefits of having so many underclassmen with a great deal of varsity experience have been noticeable.

“The girls have really come together this season,” she said. “A lot of times in the past we’d be down 4 runs and the kids would think, ‘I’ve gotta hit a homer here’ to get us one run. Now they understand what they need to do to come back. Courtney has been our go-to girl this season, but Olivia is coming along. She’s our only freshman on varsity.”

Bradney said the team showed its nerves going into the first-round game against Atchison but she could tell the feel was different going into the semifinals and championship May 13.

“That first game, I saw the girls more nervous than I’d ever seen them this season,” she said. “During warmups I could also tell from how they looked, but they got the job done. The next day, on the bus there, they were laughing and calm and I could just tell they knew what they had to do. We worked on a lot of different styles of pitching this year in practice because we see a lot of high-quality pitchers in our league. The girls just rose to the occasion. That maturity plus working on different pitch locations paid off. Offensively and defensively we’ve been solid overall.”

The Kaws will take on fifth-seeded Colby (18-2) at 7 p.m. Friday in the first round of state at the Burke complex in Salina. The winner of that game will face the winner of the game between top-seeded Girard (21-0) and eighth-seeded Santa Fe Trail (10-12) at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Bradney said the Kaws plan on keeping it business-as-usual in practice as she wants to rely on the tenets that got them this far this season.

“We’re planning on carrying on like we have,” she said. “If we do the things we have done and can do, I don’t see any reason why we can’t make a run at state.”

McLouth softball headed to 3A state in Manhattan

The pitching tandem of “Lulu” and “Sam” and an offense that can and has scored runs in bunches combined to lead the undefeated McLouth High School softball team to its second 3A state tournament berth in three years.

The Bulldogs cashed their ticket to the state tournament in Manhattan May 14 with two regional tournament wins at Pleasant Ridge High School in Easton. The top-seeded Bulldogs, who entered the tourney at 17-0, run-ruled the host Pleasant Ridge Rams in the semifinals and then used one inning of offensive work to coast past the Wellsville Eagles in the championship game.

The aforementioned “Lulu” is junior Lezley Lawson, while “Sam” refers to senior Samantha Farris. The pitching duo has combined to mystify opposing bats throughout the 2008 season and the regional tourney proved no different. Farris took the mound in the semifinals versus Pleasant Ridge and got plenty of offensive support while shutting down the Rams.

Farris was never in much danger of allowing a run throughout the game, and the Bulldogs got started when junior Deanna Durkes cranked a grand slam in the first inning to make it 4-0 McLouth. Farris stranded a couple baserunners in the second and the Bulldogs added 2 runs in the third on a sacrifice fly by sophomore Missy Rome and a wild pitch that scored Lawson to make it 6-0 Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs put the game away in the fourth inning with 4 runs as freshman Jesse Troupe led off with a triple into the right field corner and, with 1 out, a fly ball by junior Kendall Patterson was mishandled in right field to allow Troupe to score. Freshman Kaley Patterson followed with a 2-run single and Lawson drove in a run with a double to centerfield to make it 10-0 Bulldogs. The 10-run deficit invoked the run rule after five innings and Farris again held the Rams in check to end the game after five innings at 10-0.

That set up half of the championship matchup with the Wellsville-Oskaloosa game to determine the other finalist. Oskaloosa entered as the number two seed at 6-6 while Wellsville was the third seed at 7-10. Wellsville trounced the mixed Troy and Wathena team, 17-0, in the first round.

Oskaloosa took the early lead on the Eagles but saw wild pitches and some shaky defense cost them in a big way during the middle innings. The Bears scored 4 runs in the bottom of the first inning as junior Nicole Rockhold scored on an Eagles error and another error helped load the baes before freshman Sarah Cunningham doubled to center to bring in 2 runs and a fielder’s choice hit into by sophomore Audrey Trowbridge brought in the fourth run of the inning.

Bears senior pitcher Hannah Dissinger had worked a fairly quick first inning but ran into trouble in the second with a 1-out walk and then three pitches that were either wild or got away from senior catcher Emily Heston to help fuel a 3-run Wellsville rally to cut the lead to 4-3.

The Bears failed to extend their lead in the second and Wellsville rallied again in the third inning, this time for 8 runs as six Bears errors in the inning were crucial. Four of the runs scored with 2 outs to make it 11-4 Eagles.

The Bears stranded two runners in the third inning but scored 2 runs in the fourth on a run-scoring Eagles error and an RBI single by Dissinger to cut the lead to 11-6. The Eagles got the runs back off Dissinger in the fifth as a wild pitch scored a run and a single off Dissinger’s glove pushed home another run to make it 13-6. The Bears stranded a baserunner in both the fifth and sixth innings and had two on during their final at bats in the seventh but freshman Hailey Kelly popped out to shortstop and Rockhold grounded out to the pitcher to end the game.

That set up the championship between the top seeded Bulldogs and third seed from Wellsville for a berth at the state tournament. Lawson took the mound as Farris took up position at shortstop. The Bulldogs had the advantage of facing Wellsville junior pitcher Chailyn Cummings, who had also pitched the semifinal versus Oskaloosa and struggled at times.

Lawson proved dominant in the game as she started off with 2 strikeouts in the first inning and stranded one Eagle. Lawson struck out the side in the second inning and the Bulldogs grabbed a 1-0 lead in their half of the inning on a Rome double to the centerfield fence and a Durkes sacrifice fly. Lawson gave up her only run of the game in the top of the third as Wellsville got a 2-out triple and RBI single to tie the game.

McLouth broke the game open in the third as Kendall Patterson drilled an RBI double to right center and a Kaley Patterson fielder’s choice ended up scoring two runs thanks to a Wellsville throwing error. Rome hit a flyball to right field that the outfielder dove for and couldn’t reach as two runs scored and Rome got to third on the play. Durkes hit another RBI single and the dust settled with a 7-1 Bulldogs lead.

That was all Lawson needed as she struck out the side while stranding two in the fourth, struck out two in the fifth, struck out two in the sixth and then struck out the side in order in the seventh to clinch the state berth for the Bulldogs. Lawson finished with 17 strikeouts out of 21 total outs in the game.

A jubilant Bulldogs squad gathered between home plate and the pitcher’s mound to celebrate the victory, but as the team leaders brought back the regional title plaque to their teammates and coach Ballard Patterson, the coach was quick to keep his team focused on its ultimate goal.

“This isn’t the plaque we’re playing for,” he told the team. “This is one step, but this isn’t the plaque we’re playing for.”

After the team dispersed for more celebration, Patterson said this season’s result is much nicer than last season’s was, when an undefeated Bulldogs squad lost to Silver Lake in the regional championship. This season, Silver Lake cashed its state ticket at another regional and could potentially meet the Bulldogs in the state semifinals.

“Our goal from day one has been to win state, and I knew we had the horses to make a run at it,” Patterson said. “We’ve got a lot of quality players, and they all came in with one goal. At our very first meeting, we had everybody write down one goal, and almost everybody wrote down a state championship. The girls have done a good job of staying focused. Going into today we talked about needing five wins. Now we need three.”

Patterson said there was some strategy in pitching Farris in the semifinals and saving Lawson for the final. He said he likes his team’s defense better with Farris at shortstop, Rome at second and Kaley Patterson at first. When Farris pitches, Lawson plays first base and Patterson and Rome shift to second and short.

“Both (Farris and Lawson) have been pretty dominant this season, so it could really go either way,” Patterson said. “But Sam is also a great shortstop so I feel better about us up the middle with Sam out there.”

Farris, who is making her second trip to the state tournament as a Bulldog, said the team had a good mindset going into the day’s games. She said she found out right before the game versus Ridge she would start that game, and was comfortable with whatever way her coach decided to play the pitching matchups.

“We just wanted to come in and be rowdy and high on energy,” she said. The Bulldog bench cheered loudly throughout the title tilt with Wellsville. “We had one main goal and came out here feeling we had to do it. I think we’re ready this year (for state). We know what it’s like.”

The Bulldogs are the second seed in the tournament and play their first game at 5 p.m. Friday at the Twin Oaks Complex in Manhattan. They take on seventh-seeded Herington-White City, which is the same team that eliminated McLouth in the first round of the 2006 state tournament. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Silver Lake-Thomas More Prep-Marian game at 10 a.m. Saturday at the same complex. The top seed in the field is undefeated Wichita Independent, which comes in at 23-0.