Senior Jaron Briggs made a move into the lane. Briggs led all scorers with 22 points in the Pirates’ 58-50 win over Eudora. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
by Brian Turrel
With the Frontier League championship on the line, and both teams holding an unblemished league record, the Piper Pirates defeated the Eudora Cardinals 58-50 at home Friday evening.
The game was tight through the first half. The Cardinals used their height to control the boards and extend offensive possessions. Senior Jaron Briggs hit 2 three-pointers during a stretch in the second quarter to open up a 7-point lead midway through, but Eudora scrambled back within a single point at the break.
The Pirates built out a more comfortable lead after the break, extending to 9 points and ending the quarter with the score 39-31. Aaron Simmons and Gannon Roth both hit shots from outside the arc in the quarter.
The Pirates won the game in the fourth quarter at the free throw line. Briggs hit eight free throw attempts and two baskets from the field to dominate the score sheet. A desperate run by the Cardinals, including 2 three-pointers from Logan Sullivan, closed the gap from 14 to 8 at the buzzer.
Briggs led the Pirates’ scoring with 22 points for the game, and Simmons scored 12. The Pirates attempted 39 free throws, and made 22.
In a ceremony before the game, Piper recognized seniors who participated in winter activities, including basketball, cheer, dance, band and power lifting. The four departing seniors from the boys’ basketball team, Briggs, Simmons, Blake Porter and Alex Ivanuska, were all in the starting lineup.
Piper finishes the regular season with a 13-7 overall record. Substate playoffs start next week, and the 10-10 Lansing Lions will travel to play at Piper in the first round. The game will take place on Tuesday, starting at 7 p.m.
The Piper dance team performed at halftime, recognizing senior members of the team. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Senior Aaron Simmons hauled in a contested rebound. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Senior Alex Ivanuska took a shot in the paint. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Senior Blake Porter met some resistance on a drive to the basket. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
The Piper cheerleaders performed stunts featuring their senior members. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Freshman Mikey Burgess drove past Eudora sophomore Braylen Hoobler. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
The referee signaled sophomore Gannon Roth’s three-point shot. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Junior Colin Vigil elevated for a short jumper. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Junior Miguel Martin looked to pass around the perimeter. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Bonner Springs sophomore Olivia Stean showed off her growing collection of state championship medals after winning the 170-pound championship at the KSHSAA 5A-6A girls’ wrestling tournament. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
by Brian Turrel
Bonner Springs sophomore Olivia Stean took the top spot on the podium at the KSHSAA 5A-6A girls’ wrestling tournament Thursday, repeating her championship performance from a year ago.
She capped a group of four Wyandotte County medal winners from Bonner Springs, Harmon and Turner high schools.
The tournament took place Wednesday and Thursday at Hartman Arena in Park City.
Stean defeated Basehor-Linwood senior Mandy Wilson in the championship round of the 170-pound weight class. Familiar adversaries, they had already faced each other twice this season. Stean pinned Wilson just 49 seconds into the match to earn the win.
Forty-nine seconds was Stean’s longest match of the tournament. She blew through Wednesday’s preliminary rounds by pinning opponents in 15, 30 and 22 seconds.
Speaking after the tournament, she dedicated the performance to her friend, Hayleigh Wempe, a wrestler from Baldwin who took her own life last year.
“I’ve been thinking about her a lot,” Stean said. “I want to wrestle in her name. I want to win these titles for her because our goal was to win state together and now sadly that’s not going to happen.”
Stean finished the season undefeated with a 42-0 record, and she has her sights set beyond the Kansas state championship to becoming a finalist at the 16U national championships in Fargo, North Dakota, this summer.
Turner junior Arianna Ortiz earned state finalist honors in the 101-pound weight class, winning her way through the bracket with two falls and a major decision on Wednesday.
Ortiz faced Derby sophomore Amara Ehsa in Thursday’s final. Though Ortiz took control of the match early, Ehsa recovered and caught her momentarily off balance to make a pin and win the match.
Harmon freshman Kamahni Jackson earned sixth place in the 132-pound class. She won her first two matches Wednesday, pinning both opponents, but she lost in the semi-final to eventual champion Breanna Ridgeway of Great Bend.
Bonner Springs junior Jenna Knight won sixth place in the 120-pound class. She defeated Kaylynn Ottenschnieder of Spring Hill and Addison Otte of Hays in her first two rounds, but class winner Hannah Glynn of Blue Valley Southwest pinned her in the semi-final round.
The performances from Stean and Knight helped Bonner Springs place 15th in the team competition out of 58 schools at the tournament.
Bonner Springs sophomore Olivia Stean pointed skyward after her win over Kapaun Mount Carmel’s Gianna Redcorn in their quarterfinal match. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Turner junior Arianna Ortiz subdued Salina Central’s Haylie James in the quarterfinal round. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Harmon freshman Kamahni Jackson wrestled Kapaun Mount Carmel’s Aalyra Arguelles, winning by fall in the second period. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs junior Jenna Knight wrestled Hays’s Addison Otte in a quarterfinal match in the 120-pound weight class. Knight won by fall in the first round. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Turner junior Arianna Ortiz overpowered Garden City’s Anahi Cervantes and won by fall in the second round. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs sophomore Chloie Knapp wrestled Garden City’s Angel Serrano in the opening round of the tournament. Serrano won by fall in the third period. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs junior Olivia Stean rushed Spring Hill’s Lexi Suter for a quick win in the opening round. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Harmon junior Kamahni Jackson received her medal at the end of the two-day tournament. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Turner junior Arianna Ortiz wrestled Derby sophomore Amara Ehsa in the finals of the 101-pound weight class. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Sumner junior Alissa Harris wrestled Washburn Rural’s Alexis Fredrickson in the third round of the tournament. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Harmon freshman Kamahni Jackson was all smiles after a win. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs junior Jenna Knight wrestled Spring Hill’s Kaylynn Ottenschnieder in the opening round of the tournament, getting a pin in the first period. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
Sumner senior B.J. Keith reacted joyfully after his last-second win over Pittsburg’s Cruz Lopez earned him a trip to the state tournament. Keith was one of 16 wrestlers from Wyandotte County schools who earned a spot in next weekend’s state tournament based on their finish in the regional tournaments. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
by Brian Turrel
Six Wyandotte County schools took part in the KSHSAA 5A regional wrestling tournament Friday and Saturday at Blue Valley Southwest High School.
Twelve wrestlers from four of those schools finished eighth or better to earn a spot in the 5A state tournament next weekend in Park City.
Bonner Springs senior Tony Caballero, top-ranked in the 285-pound class all year, pinned all four of his opponents, including Blue Valley Southwest’s Andrew Farrell in the tournament’s final match. Caballero placed second in last year’s state tournament and heads to this year’s tournament with a season record of 24-1.
Braves’ senior Jace Tapia won the 138-pound weight class, winning two matches by fall and another by decision. He pinned Ty Lewis, from wrestling powerhouse Shawnee Heights, in the championship match.
Caballero and Tapia will be joined at the state tournament by Bonner’s Shane Daniels, who took third in the 152-pound class, and Ethan Cook, who placed sixth at 120 pounds.
The Piper Pirates are sending five wrestlers to the state tournament. Piper’s top finisher was Ja’Diz Simmons, who placed third in the 106-pound class. He pinned three opponents, but was bested by Basehor-Linwood’s Brody Ballard in the semi-finals.
Heading to Park City with Simmons are Piper’s Sawyer Vas, who placed fifth at 170 pounds, and Payton Mills, who placed sixth at 126 pounds. Makao Groneman and Nick Hoover placed eighth in the 113- and 132-pound classes to earn their places at state.
Sumner’s B.J. Keith earned his tournament berth in dramatic fashion. He faced Cruz Lopez of Pittsburg in his third match with a trip to state riding on the outcome. The back-and-forth match was tied at 3 points, with neither wrestler having a clear advantage.
With only six seconds remaining, Keith scooped up Lopez and dropped him to the mat, earning a takedown, a match win, and an opportunity in Park City.
After the close-fought contest, Keith recounted his thoughts in those final seconds.
“I was just thinking to myself, ‘I’ve got to go,'” the Sabres’ senior said. “I’m going to state. I’m going to state. I don’t care what happens or what it takes.”
Turner’s Connor Scott and Mechia Marks placed eighth in the 170- and 195-pound brackets to earn two places at the state tournament for the Golden Bears.
Washington and Schlagle high schools had wrestlers participate in the regional tournament, but didn’t have any qualifiers to the state tournament.
In other regional wrestling action, Harmon and Wyandotte high schools participated in the 6A tournament held at Shawnee Mission South.
Harmon’s Juma Ibrahim and nDoma Gazadikwe placed fifth in the 120- and 138-pound weight classes to qualify for the state tournament. Wyandotte’s C.J. Anderson (113) and Franklyn VanBebber (285) both placed sixth and will represent the Bulldogs in Park City.
Bonner Springs senior Tony Caballero defeated Blue Valley Southwest’s Andrew Farrell in the 285-pound championship match. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs senior Jace Tapia wrestled Shawnee Heights’ Ty Lewis in the 138-pound final. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs senior Shane Daniels pinned Spring Hill’s Miles Bell to take third place in the 152-pound class. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Piper’s Ja’Diz Simmons pushed back St. Thomas Aquinas’s Tobius Kriner on his way to winning third place in the 106-pound class. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Piper junior Sawyer Vas took control of Mill Valley’s Holden Zigmant in their fifth place match-up in the 170-pound class. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Piper’s Payton Mills took a ride from Seaman’s Draven Bennett in the fifth place match in the 126-pound class. Bennett won 13-8 decision. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Turner’s Mechia Marks faced off with Draven Pipkin of Spring Hill in a 195-pound match. Pipkin won by major decision (11-1). (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Piper junior Nick Hoover wrestled against Seaman’s Colin Little. Hoover lost by fall in the 1st period, but went on to earn a spot in the state tournament. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Bonner Springs sophomore Ethan Cook sent Basehor-Linwood’s Hudson Strahm flying in their 120-pound match. Cook won by major decision (12-4). (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)Sumner freshman Miles Dean wrestled Seaman’s Jayden Foster in a 113-pound match. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)The referee signaled two points for a takedown as time ran out in the 132-pound match between Sumner’s B.J. Keith and Pittsburg’s Cruz Lopez. (Photo copyright 2022 by Brian Turrel)
