Well, as I often do at 4 a.m. in the morning, today I was thinking about the upcoming high school FB match ups. (No really, I have no life and have nothing better to do in the predawn hours of the morning). This is THE round that decides who gets to go off and play in the state championship venue. A real "Win or Go Home" situation. Which by the way, is one of my most hated cliches I hear from athletes and coaches.

Seriously. What's so bad about your home? Why don't you want to go back there?  And even if you win the game, at the end of the night, aren't you going home anyway?  I know when folks say it, they're just expressing that a win means they move on and a loss means the season's over. ... which would be terrible. So I think a proper sports cliche, that would show the awfulness of losing, should be like "Win or Not Be Able to Show Your Face in The School Cafeteria Again" or Win or Start Getting Ready for Pre-season Basketball and Suicide Sprints" and my personal favorite: "Win or The Smart Kid in Mr. Wilson's History Class Will Stop Letting Me Cheat Off His Work." To me, these would suck a whole lot more than simply going home. But hey, what do I know. ... I was one of those student athletes who went "home" far before reaching semifinal rounds. So here's to all our local teams playing for the right to go to the state title game... and not going home.

Here's the latest Bulletin Board Material. I went 7-2 last week (Louisburg and Harrisonville did me in) which isn't bad but I'm raising the ante this go around. I'm picking winners and final scores. Enjoy!

Kansas 6A semifinals, Olathe North at Blue Valley: This is neither here nor there, but why does undefeated Olathe North have to travel to Blue Valley? The way these state associations seed playoff games are beyond me. Anyway. Winner: Olathe North 40-35

Kansas 5A semifinals, Gardner Edgerton at St. Thomas Aquinas: I'm a little torn. I know I should go with traditions... if a team loses a match up in the regular season, expect them to win the one when it matters in the playoffs. So I should pick Aquinas, right? Plus, throw in the fact that G-E plays every game on field turf but this time it'll be on Aquinas' natural grass, which could be patchy come Friday giving the Saints a true home field advantage. But I'm going against better judgement and picking ... Winner: Gardner Edgerton 14-10

Kansas 4A semifinals, Bishop Miege at Paola: I saw Paola get beat up by G-E earlier this season. But I liked what I saw in the first half, the Panthers' Skylar Hawkins is a hard-to-tackle running back. Miege did a good job silencing Louisburg last week but I just think  this one will play out differently. Winner: Paola 21-16

Missouri Class 6 semifinals, DeSmet at Blue Springs: I'm from the greatest city in this state, ST. LOUIS!, but sorry fellow Lunatics, you're not celebrating a big-class state title this year. Winner: Blue Springs 38-10

Missouri Class 5 semis, Raytown South at Fort Osage: Three cheers for the Mid 6 Suburban Conference. For the third time in as many years, the conference will have a representative in the state title game. By the way, the two of the most underrated QBs in our city will be playing in this game (Fort O's Ed Pearl and Ray South's Dennis Tanner) Winner: Raytown South 21-14

Missouri Class 4 semis, Kearney at Webb City: They're the undefeated and undisputed champs until proven otherwise. Winner: Webb City 20-17

Missouri Class 3 semis, O'Hara at Cassville: The Celtics have had a wild ride in the playoffs, winning by close margins. Last week, they survived 50-49 over Plez Hill. This one should be no different. Winner: O'Hara 28-27

That's all for now. As always, remember to catch me at www.twitter.com/KCCandace. So my "Monster Ballads" promotion didn't exactly pull in the followers that I was expecting. But this time, I'll throw in a leopard-print snuggie if you're my 89th follower. C'mon! Classic Rock AND a Snuggie?!?! Who doesn't want that?

The power of the bulletin board lives on... even when I haven't posted a thing in weeks. You'd be surprised - or maybe not - about the number of e-mails from folks who have taken offense with something I've written or that I haven't written. It's kinda confusing but I just think it's the playoffs. Puts people on the edge. So.... why not add fuel to that paranoia fire, eh? Here's some Bulletin Board material!

Unfortunately, I'll be covering Mo state swimming and diving this weekend in St. Louis so I'll miss all the football action but here are my predictions for Missouri Friday and Saturday quarterfinal games and Kansas action

Olathe North v Lawrence Free State: I saw these teams the first go around and Free State made the score respectable late, but trust... they got it handed to them. Barring a massive letdown, I just can't see Olathe North losing a game this season. Winner: Olathe North

Blue Valley Northwest v Blue Valley: I won't mention names but earlier this season, a Blue Valley parent told me he'd be surprised if the Tigers would win another game for the rest of the year. That would've given them just two wins, but hey... now they've got 4 on the season AND a first-round playoff upset over Shawnee Mission West. Why stop now? Blue Valley has more playoff experience than their neighbors to the Northwest and I think they've finally pulled it together.  Winner: Blue Valley

Gardner Edgerton v Topeka Seaman: Can't we just get to the Gardner-Aquinas rematch already? (That would be Nov. 20 in the semis if the Blazers and Saints win their Friday match ups). Winner: Gardner Edgerton

St. Thomas Aquinas v Tecumseh Shawnee Heights: Read above. Winner: St. Thomas Aquinas

Bishop Miege v Louisburg: With Division I talent around the roster (Justin McCay, Oklahoma football) and Trevor Releford (Alabama, basketball), you'd think that Miege is a lock to win a small-class football title. But as Lee Corso would say, Not so fast, my friend. Despite their sterling 9-2 record, I think Miege could be in trouble facing a team like Louisburg, a team that likes to run the ball and does a darn fine job doing so. Trap game. Winner: Louisburg

Rockhurst v Blue Springs: After reading my Nov. 7 column, a caller and e-mailer implored me to remember Blue Springs. Blue Springs? Hmmm. Who are they? Oh!!! You mean those Wildcats, ranked No. 1 in the preseason in our poll and the state's. That same team who I've picked to win the Class 6 football championship. Oh yeah, I remember now. Yes, it's true, I called Rockhurst is the "most dangerous" team in the state. For sure. And any team that plays the Hawklets will go up against the best team they've faced all season. With that being said, I think Blue Springs learned its lessons from the Week 3 loss against Rockhurst. And whatever bad mojo was working against the Wildcats' offense back then (when they scored just 3 points, seriously) is gone. Game of the night and the winner of this one wins the state title. There I said it. Winner: Blue Springs

Raymore-Peculiar v Fort Osage: This Fort O defense comes at you in so many different ways. I just saw them lock down Park Hill to just 198 yards of total offense in the sectionals playoff win. And with EJ Gaines patrolling the back, he makes any QB think twice about throwing to his side. Earlier this year, I felt that Ray-Pec was going to the Class 5 title game but now I think Fort O has been tested more and passed every single one. So, Fort O remains undefeated and meets Raytown South (playing at Nixa) in the semifinals. Winner: Fort Osage

Harrisonville v Kearney: Big win for the Bulldogs to completely shut down Staley 28-0 in the sectionals while Harrisonville struggled beating Grain Valley 14-12. I'll say this... it was the second time H'ville and Grain Valley had played in 10 days and it can be difficult to beat a team twice in one season. So I'm not bothered by the margin of victory. Winner: Harrisonville

Pleasant Hill v O'Hara: Plez Hill started the playoffs with a 6-4 record and has since survived behind two one-point postseason wins. But the storybook season is coming to an end. Winner: O'Hara.

Enjoy the games and remember to follow me on www.twitter.com/KCCandace. If you're my 88th follower, I'll send you an autographed CD of Monster Ballads... because you know you love "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" as much I do.

Oct 26

Liberty over St. Joe Central:  25-11, 25-16

Oct 27

Liberty over Oak Park:  25-15, 25-19 

Oct. 29

Liberty over Park Hill South:  25-13, 25-23

They said it was just luck.  Show them how it is girls!

Until later. Have a great week!

And when the varsity/JV team arrived for the JV game yesterday, it started raining. Not a light rain. It was a steady rain, starting off steady but lightly but then pounding harder and harder. After the game, Aquinas goalie, Kyle Gress, told me he played in 3 pairs of pants, 3 layers of Under Armour, and 2 goalie jerseys. And we was still cold. Rain froze on his eyelids.

Basically, hell literally froze over.

The JV was able to get a 1-0 result with a goal from Ben Conde and stellar net minding from KG, but the turf field was already done for. JV players were slipping on it even during the first few minutes of the game. And I will not lie to you, I spent most of the 2nd half of the jv game in the bathroom, where it was warm, drying off as much as I could. I stuck paper towels in me shoes, around my socks, and around my feet. And many other parents had the same idea.

Bishop Miege at Blue Valley North. The Mustangs had a nice bounce-back win last week over BV West and RB James Hennahane, especially, stepped up. But if Miege shuts him down, who will North turn to? So... Winner: Bishop Miege

Blue Valley at St. Thomas Aquinas. Silly us for picking Blue Valley as the fourth-ranked team in the preseason poll. I think we put so much stock into QB Anthony Abenoja coming back that we overlooked the glaring holes on the Tigers. Like... Abenoja can't do it by himself. Winner: St. Thomas Aquinas

Blue Valley Northwest at BV West. Trust me, I'm not trying to pick all EKL games but I especially find this one intriguing. These are both offensive-minded teams and although BV West has taken a left turn this season, I think it's going to be a fun shoot out. Winner: BV Northwest

Grain Valley at Pleasant Hill. Grain Valley's turnaround a season could end in disappointment when the Eagles enter districts against Sedalia and Harrisonville. Better get some mojo this week and hope it lasts. Winner: Grain Valley

Lee's Summit at Blue Springs South. Don't call it an upset. Winner: Lee's Summit

Winnetonka at Park Hill. Griffin RB Darrell Jobe hasn't been stopped yet. He has 16 of the team's 24 touchdowns and well over 1,200 yards already. Dude's gooood. But Park Hill is physical and will most definitely key on Tonka's top weapon. I think Jobe will have to put up video game-like stats to pull this one out. Winner: Park Hill

Lincoln Prep at Central. For the past two seasons, this match up helped determine the Interscholastic League champion. But now, the teams only have one win between them. Winner: Lincoln Prep

Park Hill South at Platte County. Two shutouts this season for the Panthers, which is as many as they've had for the past four years combined. Winner: Park Hill South

Well, that's it. Have a good Friday. I'll be out at the Olathe North-Law Free State game. Should be fun. If you can't make it, just follow my updates at www.twitter.com/KCCandace

Today's a writing day for me - got a big story brewing - but I just wanted to pop in for a quick spell. I know last week I didn't post any Bulletin Board Material but I'll get around to Week 7 picks tomorrow (Thursday)

Also, I just want to answer my new friend "Leonides," he's the one with the dude from "300" in his avatar. Here's what he sent me:

"Candace,
I have a question: Can't any of the Kansas Metro high Schools put anybody up to beat the Hutch Salthawks? 3 6A/ 2 5A champs and with all the talent in the schools around here and no one has stopped them? Any thoughts on why? Seriously..."

Well, Leo, even before I learned of your affiliation with Gardner Edgerton, my first response would be: The Blazers can challenge! On my radio spots on 1030 AM every Friday afternoon, I've constantly picked G-E to emerge out of the East to meet Hutch in the Class 5A state championship game. The Blazers, as you know, have the winning components 1.) big veteran D and O lines and overall a good defense, 2.) solid running attack with Jensen and Starling and other guys who can get some positive yardage on limited carries and finally 3.) good coaching and the "want to."

I know the Blazers would love nothing more than to beat Aquinas and step up in the Class 5A playoffs. But you specifically said who can "beat" Hutch... and you saw how I sidestepped that and said G-E can "challenge" the SaltHawks.

Let's be realistic. Although I "expect" G-E to beat the likes of Aquinas, until the Blazers actually do it -- which they couldn't last year -- they still have a lot to prove in our eyes. And although G-E has that balanced running attack and can play ol' school football right with Hutch... have you seen those Salthawks?!?! Their dudes look like grown men. When Rockhurst got it handed to them this season by Hutch, coach Tony Severino half-jokingly told my colleague that it should be illegal for some of the Hutch guys to play HS ball... simply because they're soooo big.

So does G-E have that size? Will G-E be able to stop Hutch's unrelenting running attack when no one has yet? And what will happen if Hutch jumps to an early lead and G-E has to abandon the run, are you confident to stand behind Starling's arm? There's a reason why he's a running quarterback. These are questions I think if you answer honestly, are troubling for G-E.

It just seems that every year, whether the SaltHawks are 6A or 5A, whoever makes it out to represent the East side will be the sacrificial lamb in the Hutch Bowl. They are a a tough, tough football team and seriously... I think the way G-E is built gives the team the best chance to COMPETE with Hutch but I just don't see any one on the East side beating them.

I'm just being honest.

6A: Okay, whose it gunna be to to bring back #1 for East Kansas?

5A: Do we have anyone in the East to match the ferocity of Hutch?

4A: Strange things happening in 4A, but whose going for gold this year ?

3A: Well?

1A-2A: Hmmm, any suggestions?

Again, this is just to get things rolling, keep talk going, sends some love out to your team...With all of the great teams the East side and the Metro of KC have to offer, there has got to be some great debates!!! :) Missouri chime in if you want, could start a thread for MO. too lol.  Lets Get ready to RUMBLE! ;)

Anyway, here are a few thoughts from the game.

*Fort Osage running back/defensive back E.J. Gaines is one of the best players I’ve seen this year. On his touchdown run in the first quarter, Gaines took a shotgun handoff from quarterback Edward Pearl and ran untouched through the middle of the defense for a 64-yard touchdown. He also had another touchdown and a big fourth-down deflection late in the game.

*Raytown South quarterback Dennis Tanner has some magic in his feet. His ability to stop and start again in an instant gave Fort Osage trouble at times, but in all they did a good job containing him.

*Fort Osage used one of the weirdest plays I’ve ever seen to increase its lead from 14 to 21 early in the third quarter. Raytown South had the ball deep in Fort Osage territory, and the Cardinals were lined up in a goofy shotgun formation featuring a bunch of players split out wide and only one offensive lineman. The referee blew a whistle to signify the start of the play, and the center snapped the ball to Tanner. But Tanner wasn’t looking for it, and the ball rolled on the ground several yards behind the line of scrimmage.

By the time any of the Cardinals realized what happened, Fort Osage defensive lineman Chris Hamilton had already scooped up the ball and was being escorted to the end zone by a caravan of white shirts.

*Raytown South is 3-3 now, but I wouldn’t count them out just yet. They definitely have the talent, especially at the skill positions, to make a postseason run. Senior receiver Alex Sanders, who is the nephew of former Detroit Lions star Barry Sanders, was particularly impressive. On one play, the 5-11, 150 pound Sanders took a swing pass from Tanner and accelerated so fast down the sideline that people in the press box let out a collective ooooohhhhh.

*Fort Osage is now 6-0, and I see why. Quarterback Edward Pearl is a dual-threat, while Gaines is a stud. Receiver Kamryn Tillman didn’t do much on Friday – give Raytown South credit for that – but he’s scored a bunch of touchdowns this year and is generally regarded as one of the area’s best receivers. Also, the defense makes plays when it has to. What’s not to like? I’m definitely looking forward to their matchup against Winnetonka, 5-1, on Oct. 16.

*Fort Osage has a freshman receiver named Ishmael Wainright who stands 6-5 and weighs 210 pounds. He doesn't start for the Cardinals and I’m not even sure he played Friday. But word is he's a really good basketball player. Keep your eye out for him.

Yes, friends. Last Friday night, my predictions started out a bit rough with losses from Blue Springs South and Winnetonka but I rallied back to go 6-3 overall. Not bad, I guess I've got mad skillz (notice the "z" that makes it sound much cooler). POINT PLANKN!

So let's get to the picks, shall we?

Bishop Ward at Lansing. Let's hear it for KCK football, eh? I haven't paid much attention to Ward since the Chris Wing days (2007) but the team is off to a decent start. A setback last week against Turner doesn't dissuade me from believing that Ward, a Class 4A team, can handle Class 5A Lansing. Winner: Bishop Ward

Blue Valley Northwest at Bishop Miege. Gotta feel happy for BV Northwest coach Mike Zegunis. Since he's became head coach, he's had two solid teams but since 2005 the Huskies have struggled a bit. Now, BV Northwest is off to an undefeated start and the defense looks unshakeable. But I do recommend this: Don't throw single coverage on Justin McCay. BV West learned that last week the hard way. Winner: BV Northwest

Blue Valley West at St. Thomas Aquinas. Keeping it in the EKL for now, there are a lot of great things going on for the Aquinas athletic program. The girls x-country team looks like one of the best in the state, the volleyball team is on a roll, the boys' soccer squad is undefeated and just beat Rockhurst and then there's the football team. Really, name another metro-area sports program that has won more conference, district and state titles than Aquinas? The football Saints are my pick to add another EKL championship banner to the gymnasium so... Winner: Aquinas

Harrisonville at Pleasant Hill. A pair of 3-1 teams battling for the MRVC West crown. But take a closer look at Plez Hill, they're the great escape artists. Three wins by a total of only nine points. While Harrisonville looks better every week they step on the field, especially after just humbling big-class and improved Winnetonka by two touchdowns. Winner: Harrisonville

Platte County at Hickman Mills. Here's my upset pick for the week. Yeah, it seems kinda weird that a team that has been shut out the last two weeks could beat a 3-1 team...but I just got a feeling. Winner: Hickman Mills

Raymore-Peculiar at Blue Springs. When Ray-Pec gets its running game in order, then holla at me. Winner: Blue Springs

Rockhurst at Jefferson City. Five weeks into the season and I'm finally picking Rockhurst to win a game. Even more than their upset over Blue Springs, the Hawklets' 17-7 loss to Mullen has actually persuaded me that they're a much better than I thought. Yeah, a loss did it for me. If there truly exists such a thing as a "good loss," that would be it. Winner: Rockhurst

Shawnee Mission East at Lawrence. Two 0-3 teams. Hey, somebody's gotta win this one. Winner: Lawrence

Saturday, Lawrence Free State at Shawnee Mission West: Thanks to a new rule in Kansas that allowed coaches and players to work more together in the summer months, the Vikings look far more advanced offensively this early in the season than they have in previous years. But the goal on this day will be stopping the free-flowing Firebirds. Camren Torneden (coolest name in the city), Kirk Resseguie, Keene Niemack to name a few. This week, SM West made their season debut in our Star top 5s poll. So, er, don't mess up now. Winner: SM West

As always, thanks for reading. Leave a comment if you feel the urge. My bosses will be happy to know that actual human beings are reading these blogs. And again, follow me at twitter.com/KCCandace Till later, peeps!

Tuesday: Park Hill at Truman volleyball. It's a quick turnaround but tonight I recommend coming out to Truman to watch one of the most prolific setters in Missouri prep volleyball history. Truman senior Taryn Nash recently served up her 2,000th career assist and tonight I understand that the school plans to recognize this accomplishment. If you're a volleyball fan, it's worth checking her out. Taryn's only the second area setter EVER to reach 2,000.

Wednesday: In Kansas City, you can not seriously talk about soccer without taking about St. Thomas Aquinas and Rockhurst. These teams are defending state champions in their respective home states and they clash on this night at the Blue Valley District Activities Center @ 7 p.m. It's held here because this game always draws a huge crowd. So get there early. It's worth it.

Friday: It's rare that we get to see No. 1 take on No. 2 but that's exactly what we'll get Friday night at Northtown when Staley hosts Kearney. Staley tops our Star small-class poll and Kearney, previously No. 1, comes in at second this week. Last year, Staley could not beat Kearney but a win Friday would continue a perfect season and go a long way towards building confidence in Class 4. Kearney's only loss is to big-class No. 2 Fort Osage.

Saturday: Rim Rock Farm Classic XC Invitational Whatchamacallit. I've seen this cross-country meet called 1,500 different names and I honestly have no clue what the correct name is... all I know is that when you say 'Rim Rock,' you mean 'torture.' Fun for us, not so much for the hundreds of runners climbing up those devastating hills. But if a runner survives and actually places high in this race, that kid has done something. If you want to see the area's best of the best... this is the weekend to do so.

That's all for now. Be sure to check back later for the latest edition of "Bulletin Board Material."

So of course, that means I'll be posting live updates on my twitter page. Follow along, why don't you.

It would make my night if we can make #Bubba a trending topic.

Free State defeated SMNW 25-18. 25-23 and SMS 25-18, 25-16

SMNW defeated SMS 25-19, 25-14

These days it seems like all the cool kids are giving public apologies for their transgressions. Now, I never shouted like a fool "YOU LIE!" to the leader of the free world or threatened a diminutive line judge with my racket or even drunkenedly crashed a teenybopper's acceptance speech (seriously, Kanye, why hate on Taylor Swift? That's like spitting on a teddy bear) ...

But I can join the "apology parade" after last week's horrible showing with my football predictions.

Blue Springs?!?! What in tarnation happened?

Olathe East?!?! How about making me look good next time?

Grain Valley??! Thanks for nothing.

As it turned out, I only went 5-4 last week. So I must apologize for getting those teams wrong. Lo siento. I'm sorry. Mea culpa. I was wrong, Rockhurst, SM West and Chillicothe.

I'll try to do better with this edition of 'Bulletin Board Material.' Remember, to the untrained eye, these are just simple football predictions by some bum sports reporter. But to the paranoid fan/coach/player, this is further proof of a vast media conspiracy against you and your team. If your team isn't picked, use it as motivation to prove to the world that yes, you are somebody.

Blue Springs South at St. Joe Central. Real talk, I didn't think the Jags would be 2-1 at this point in the season. And let's be honest, Jag fans, did you really think the season would be going this well? South still has more challenges in store but hey, ride this thing till the wheels fall off and get that third victory. Winner: Blue Springs South

Blue Valley at Salina Central. What's the deal, Stilwell? Your Tigers are 0-2 and desparately needing a win on the road. Never count out good coaches, so I have to believe that Steve Rampy will not let his team go down three games. Winner: Blue Valley

Lee's Summit North at Raymore-Peculiar. Here's another team that was featured in our preseason Top 5s but has fallen down, down, down. Ray-Pec's 1-2 but this really is a good team. In a couple weeks, I think they're round into shape, especially when they can steady their running game. Winner: Ray-Pec

Odessa at Oak Grove. Quite possibly the last great rivalry on the KC side. This game means something to both towns. Pay no attention that Oak Grove's winless and Odessa's 1-2. This game will be one of the more fun and passionate match ups of the night. Winner: Odessa

Winnetonka at Harrisonville. Believe it, Winnetonka's a solid football team this year. And running back Darrell Jobe is the truth. He's on pace for a 1,900-yard season. Winner: Winnetonka

Sedalia Smith-Cotton at O'Hara. I'm happy for coach Jim DeMarea and his Class 3 Celtics. In the preseason, he felt that they'd almost be back at square one while depending on young players to carry the season. But the veterans have stepped up, especially on the O-line, and the Celts are 3-0. But Smith-Cotton is a Class 4 team and they're very, very good. Sorry, but the first O'Hara home game will disappoint the fans. Winner: Sedalia Smith-Cotton

Shawnee Mission Northwest at Lawrence. SM Northwest is one of those teams that's hard to figure out year after year. And this game probably won't solve many mysteries either. Winner: SM Northwest

Lawson at St. Pius X. So I hear that St. Pius X sells the best concession brats you'll find in the metro area. Hmmmm. Tasty! ...Yeah. You know it's bad when I'm up here talking about sausages instead of the football team. Winner: Lawson

and finally... Mullen (Colorado) at Rockhurst. Three weeks now, and I've yet to pick Rockhurst as a winner. Hawklet fans, I'm not hating. Trust me. Kudos on upsetting Blue Springs, that was mighty impressive. But now you're facing the defending big-class Colorado state champions...who by the way, have only allowed 14 points to their opponents through three weeks. Winner: Mullen

So that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Remember to follow me on Twitter, maybe I'll say something worth the 140 characters. Hit me at twitter.com/KCCandace.

Till later

So let's try this again. Remember, I pick 'em and you post 'em on your bulletin board.

Gardner Edgerton at Baldwin. No match. Gardner has the depth and talent to play with the best in the state in 5A and will easily roll over every small-class opponent remaining on the schedule. Winner: Gardner Edgerton

Grain Valley at Chillicothe. Here comes Grain Valley's first real test of the season. Chilli' made it to the Class 3 semis last year so if Grain Valley wants to start showing some muscle as a Class 4 team, better start this Friday night. Winner: Grain Valley

North Kansas City at Belton. A pair of 0-2 teams coming off close losses. But Belton looks closer to figuring things out than NKC. Winner: Belton

Oak Park at Truman. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...er, still shame on you. I still believe that Truman is not dogawful so I'm going to roll with the Patriots again. Oak Park could barely put away Belton last week so Truman needs to wake up and become the team they claim to be or I'll just start thinking that I'm a fool for believing in them. Winner: Truman

Olathe East at Shawnee Mission West. Isn't it a shame that we didn't get this match up last season? Both were 9-0 in the regular season then went ka-put in the playoffs. But this could still be a tasty match up after both teams showed up well in week 1. Winner: Olathe East

Shawnee Mission Northwest at Olathe North. The Eagles aren't the top team in Kansas for nothin'. I love how Aaron Barnett coaches up his SM Northwest boys but I think Olathe North's on a mission this year and the Cougars are just in the way. Winner: Olathe North

University Academy at West Platte. Did you know that TWO Univ. Academy players are in the Rivals top 20 players list of the city? Alright, Auston LeBlanc and Darrenn White lead your team to 3-0. Winner: University Academy

Lansing at Turner. Call me simple, but I always roll with a team that has a legit kicker and Turner has that in Nick Rodriguez. In the high school game, the kicker brings so many intangibles, it's ridiculous. Winner: Turner

Rockhurst at Blue Springs. Coach Tony Severino told me before the season that they'll be facing a lot of angry teams this year after what Rock did to all of them a year ago. So last week, it was Hutchinson and now it's time to meet Angry Team No. 2. Winner: Blue Springs

Have a happy Friday night and remember follow me at www.twitter.com/KCCandace where I'll live blog from my game, St. Thomas Aquinas at Bishop Miege.

First, I want to talk about football. Last Friday, I watched Liberty turn into a real-deal team as the Blue Jays shut down Raymore-Peculiar, 42-6 ... the second consecutive 42-6 score of the season for Lib. Their QB Kevin VanEgdom was quite impressive. At first, I thought he was overthrowing his receivers but he threw a couple fade patterns for TDs that just looked beautiful. Those weren't rookie passes either. He and Marcus Lucas look to be on the same page. I can't say the same for Cameron Coffman and his receivers. Although THE PANTHERS* put up big offensive numbers in Week 1 against Truman, their passing game couldn't get going against Liberty. The Panthers, previously the top-ranked Class 5 team in the state, have two glaring kinks in their armour

1.) Running game: One reason Coffman couldn't find rhythm against Liberty is because he had no run support to open up the passing lanes. The revolving running backs contributed just 40 yards on the ground. In the preseason, I thought THE PANTHERS would have plenty of folks to replace junior Deron Washington, Derrick's little brother who's out for several weeks with a broken wrist. Ray-Pec has tried Anthony DiIorio and Martin Booze and even pulled Marc Harrison from his linebacker spot to take some carries. But without a clear cut No. 1 back, their running game is unsteady. It showed against Truman and it bit them where it hurts against Liberty.

2.) Special teams: Simply put, Ray-Pec doesn't have a place kicker. Although THE PANTHERS scored first on Friday, they missed the PAT and later in the first half, also missed a 30-yard FG very badly. On top of that, Coffman has to handle punting duties and that's not a bad thing b/c the kid can boot. But... it can place their most prized possession in the line of fire like in he did during one particular sequence in the third quarter. Already woozy from two consecutive sacks, Coffman had to punt away from his end zone. Marcus Lucas, showing he can do more than catch, nearly blocked the kick  but it gets down field and the Liberty returner finds the cracks in Ray-Pec's wall and the last man remaining between the end zone and the 5-yard line is ... Cameron Coffman. So Coffman, as the punter, had to fly in and make the touchdown-saving tackle. But Coffman really had no business being on the field at that time and after making that tackle, he takes off his helmet and leaves the game for good. After the game, coach Tom Kruse did not have a prognosis on Coffman, just saying that he had his "bell rung." No place kicker and the punt return team putting Coffman in the line of danger will be concerns down the road.

Well, on to some other sports. I caught up with several of our Missouri defending champs recently. Rockhurst swimming, Lee's Summit West girls' x-country and O'Hara volleyball. All three teams have big weekends coming up.

First, Rockhurst. This weekend in Springfield, the Hawklets get a look at some teams around the state -- or I should rather say, the state will get a look at Rockhurst. Because really, who can beat the five-time defending champs? Rockhurst has at least five TOP boys back from last year's team and appear to be loaded once again. When you talk about Missouri prep dynasties, you have to mention Rockhurst swimming.

The LS West Titans won their first meet of the season, all without Liga Blyholder who was on a recruiting trip to Wisconsin. Again, here's another team stacked and should be considered as the favorite to win this year. Besides Blyholder, there's Chelsey Phoebus, Joanna Kleinsasser and new kid on the block Ashley Wolkomir, who really isn't new at all since she's previously ran for Lee's Summit Community Christian at state. This weekend, their in Columbia at the MU XC Challenge.

Finally, there's O'Hara, the two-time Class 3 volleyball champs and arguably the best regular-season tournament coming this weekend. O'Hara returns to the Mo-Kan tournament (at LS West) for the first time in two years. As one of the smaller teams in competition, it will be interesting to see how the team led by Tori Hurtt, Lindsey Hanaway and Michala Boehm will compete against the big dogs. And again, here's another team I see winning another title this year. Should be a busy fall for our champions, so I suggest getting out and seeing some of these teams in action before the big November send offs.

Till later. That's all for now. Tomorrow, I'm recapping my football picks from last week and will post a fresh round of 'Bulletin Board Material.' Also, don't forget to follow me at www.twitter.com/KCCandace ... it's a great way to stay in contact with me, ask questions, send your thoughts or just shoot the breeze. Feel free to join the party.

* Refer to a previous blog to explain i must bold THE PANTHERS at every reference.

If you can't make it, you can follow my updates on the game at www.twitter.com/KCCandace

That's where I come in... Coaches and players, I'm making your jobs easier! Introducing the first edition of "Bulletin Board Material" - where I predict the winners of several upcoming Friday night games. To the layman, this is just a picks list but to the trained and paranoid eye of the football fan, this is "bulletin board material" ... if your team isn't picked as the winner, you can view it as a clear and apparent diss and in thus, this perceived slight will motivate your team to play harder.

Trust me, I'm sure somewhere these picks will be printed out and displayed in somebody's locker room. So "You're welcome, Coaches!" I'll provide the bulletin board material and y'all can just worry about playing the game.

Kansas opens this week, so let's start there:

Bishop Miege at Atchison. Hmmm. Miege has a kid committed to Oklahoma (Justin McKay), Atchison doesn't. Easy. Winner: Bishop Miege

Lawrence Free State at Olathe East. I just don't see Olathe East falling off much from its 9-1 season, plus the Hawks should be better balanced offensively. Winner: Olathe East

Shawnee Mission West at Olathe South. Just like Olathe East in many ways, I don't worry about SM West falling off after losing good players. D.J. Balazs is a solid enough QB and the running game's always there. Winner: SM West

Rockhurst at Hutchinson. Rockhurst looked good against a depleted Blue Springs South team. But the Hawklets' best player Sal Belfonte is still nursing a hamstring tweak and really how can you get the most out of your other top player, Illinois recruit DB Dexter McDonald against the run-happy SaltHawks? Gonna be a loooooong ride back home for Rockhurst. Winner: Hutchinson

Kearney at Fort Osage. I believe in Fort O even after Dalton Krysa. The team showed a flair of the aerials last week so I like where they're headed. Winner: Fort Osage

Lee's Summit at Park Hill South. This Friday, the Tigers will match their entire win total from last year. Could get out of hand early if PHS comes with another defensive effort they put up in week 1. Winner: Lee's Summit

Truman at Lee's Summit West. The final score might've looked lopsided last week but the Patriots were tied with Ray-Pec 7-7 at halftime. Truman's better than you think and LS West is rebuilding. Winner: Truman

O'Hara at Oak Grove. O'Hara coughed up the game last year against Oak Grove but I doubt that even the home advantage from the Panther faithful will stop O'Hara from handling bizness this year. Winner: O'Hara

Westport at Northeast. Gotta give the IL some love sometimes. Last year, I attended this game for the Dan Stanley feature I wrote. He's doing Saint's work in trying to build up that Westport program and against equal opponents, his Tigers compete. Winner: Westport

Follow me at www.twitter.com/KCCandace

By I digress. Hey Kids! Welcome back to another Fall season and yes, football is back in the great state of Missouri. Just one more day. The good folks in Kansas will have to wait one more week till they get their kicks, but surely there will be plenty of decent games around this Friday night worthy for them to cross over the state line.

I will be at the revamped Ted Chittwood District Stadium for the intriguing match up of Class 5 state runner-up Raytown South and Class 4 Staley. I like this game because I'm interested in how Raytown South will back up all that championship talk (forget the "one game at a time" nonsense, these guys have been obsessed with getting back to the title game since day one). They need to show themselves that they're ready and Staley will be a good first test. Staley's only a Class 4 team but realistically has Class 5 numbers and with 22 starters back (not a typo) from a 9-3 team, you better believe that the Falcons should do some damage this year.

So yes, Mr. Williams, Jr., I am ready for some football. Okay, I just wanted to drop in with a quick 'hello' here ... we haven't updated Varsity Zone much over the down period. But you'll find all of our KCMO FB preview stuff online already along with the capsules from every single team we cover (Kansas, too) and our preseason Top 5 poll. Lots of stuff to occupy your time.

Oh and shameless plug time. Don't forget to get a Sunday paper this weekend for our special Football section...we've got Chiefs, colleges and of course preps covered. Good stuff, trust me you'll enjoy it.

Also, I decided to jump off a bridge just because everyone else is doing it and so I started my own Twitter page. Since I'm a follower, why don't you "follow" me too? Look me up at www.twitter.com/KCCandace. I'l post pics and running commentary from every Friday night FB game I cover, and every day post some unfiltered thoughts about the local prep scene and just about anything you want to talk about.

Also, Wichita's got some athletes you should know about (Blake Bell for one) so follow the good folks from the Wichita Eagle Joanna Chadwick and Jonathan Long.

And finally, if you're not sick and tired of me yet, I'm still answering all your questions in the Q&A forum. Remember, there's no such thing as a stupid question ... unless it's really, really stupid. Then if you ask such question, you should drop your keyboard and slowly back away from your laptop, my friend.

Till later

KC Power defeated TCA in the championship match 3 games to 1 to win the title.  KC Power finished the tournament with a match record of 9-0.  Power 16s are the first Kansas City team to ever win an OPEN National Championship.

Congratulations to Liz Powell & Shelby Workman who were selected to the National All Tournament Team.  A special Congratulations to Grace Whitley who was selected as the 2009 tournament MVP.  KC is proud of all of you.

KC Power 16-1 Roster:

Taylor Migliazzo - # 3 - Libero - St. Teresa's Academy Sophomore

Liz Powell - #4 - Setter - Bishop Miege Junior

Lauren Longbine - #5 - Middle Blocker - Emporia High Junior

Michala Boehm - #7 - Middle Blocker - O'Hara High Junior

Grace Whitley - #8 - Middle Blocker/Left Side Hitter - Bishop Miege Junior

Hannah Forst - #9 - Left Side Hitter - St. James Academy Junior

Shelby Workman # 10 - Right Side Hitter - Bishop Miege Sophomore

Lauren Ford - #12 - Left Side Hitter/Middle Blocker - St. Thomas Aquinas Junior

Leslie Starks - #15 - Defensive Specialist - Bishop Miege Junior

Coaches - Mike & Danielle Stowell

Director - Gwenn Pike

Even with a State Championship to their credit, the players aren't taking anything for granted.  They began the season with a theme; "Never let your past success overshadow the hard work yet to be done"  The Saints know all to well that they can lose if they are not focused, but they have also learned that the can beat anyone they face if they put it all together.

5A State is turning out to be a very tight grouping of talented teams this year.  Lansing takes the top seed with just one loss for the season.  The next four spots came down to a coin flip, since Aquinas, Bishop Carroll, Andale/Garden Plain and Andover-Central are all going into the post-season 20-2.  Dispite being the defending State Champions, Aquinas didn't fair well in the coin toss event, drawing the number 5 seed and being paired with Andover-Central in the first round.

The Saints will be back in action next Friday (May 29th) at Hummer Sports Park in Topeka, KS.

Saint Thomas Aquinas - Regular Season Wrap-up

The Saints won the Kansas 5A State Championship in 2008 and look to be a genuine challenger for the title again this year.  They return with last year’s All-State pitcher Kellie White and All-State Outfielder Janessa Swinney.  Add to that, returning starters Cayce Jacquinot, Ashley Dobbie, Ellen Drummond, Lauren Thimmesch, Andrea Piezuch and Katelyn Nill, and a Saints defense that has frustrated team after team throughout the season, and you have a dangerous combination.

White and Nill have proven to be to be a deadly duo from the circle and the stingy Saints defense has made it difficult for even the best hitting teams to find a hole.  Saint Thomas Aquinas has out-scored their opponents 138-40 and they have 9 players hitting above .300 for the season.

The team features power hitters, fast runners and a pitcher in Kellie White, who has been athlete-of-the-week. They are led by a dedicated and vocal senior line-up that features two future college athletes in centerfielder Janessa Swinney and Ashley Dobbie at second base. That team is the kind that goes undefeated to win EKL in an 18-2 season, so far.

You can tell this team's excitement in every cheer and in every celebratory Facebook status.  I went to a game recently and the energy was incredible.  The crowd was filled with parents, and unfortunately no student section.  These girls are underappreciated, period.

The seniors, like myself, ended classes last week, but these girls kept practicing and winning.  They even had practice at 3:00 before a 7:00 graduation where we appeared at 6.  I wish them the best of luck in postseason and I hope to see them in some of their last games.

Dobbie will continue at Benedictine next year as Swinney goes to UMKC. 

Game 1

Saint Thomas Aquinas scored a run in the bottom of the first inning on a single by Jenna Boutte, a single by Janessa Swinney and an RBI single by Cayce Jacquinot.

The Saints scored another two runs in the second inning on a single by Kellie White, a Sacrifice bunt by Halie Horn, a single by Ellen Drummond and a 2 RBI double by Boutte.

The Jaguars scored a run in the top of the third inning on a single by Bell, a single by Scopp and an RBI single by Buck.

The Saints came right back to score three more runs in the bottom of the third inning on a walk by Dobbie, a single by Thimmesch, an RBI single by White and a 2 RBI double by Drummond.

The Saints scored another two runs in the fourth inning on a two-out single by Jacquinot, a single by Dobbie and a Jaguars error.

 White & Drummond were 2 for 3.

Game 2

The Saints scored a run in the bottom of the first inning on a single by Boutte, a sacrifice bunt by Swinney and an RBI single by Jacquinot.

Saint Thomas Aquinas broke it open in the fourth inning scoring five runs on a walk by Jacquinot (Paige Mason ran for Jacquinot), a bunt by Dobbie, an RBI single by Thimmesch, a 2 RBI double by Halie Horn, a 2 RBI single by Drummond and an RBI single by Swinney.

The Saints added another run in the fifth inning on a single by Dobbie, a sacrifice bunt by Thimmesch and a Jaguars error.

Blue Valley West scored a run in the sixth inning on a single by Oberdorfer and an RBI single by Lybarger.

The Saints responded with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth on a two-out walk by Boutte, a single by Swinney, a Jaguars error and an RBI single by Dobbie.

 Ashley Dobbie was 3 for 4.

Saint Thomas Aquinas - Regular Season Wrap-up

The Saints won the Kansas 5A State Championship in 2008 and look to be a genuine challenger for the title again this year.  They return with last year’s All-State pitcher Kellie White and All-State Outfielder Janessa Swinney.  Add to that, returning starters Cayce Jacquinot, Ashley Dobbie, Ellen Drummond, Lauren Thimmesch, Andrea Piezuch and Katelyn Nill, and a Saints defense that has frustrated team after team throughout the season, and you have a dangerous combination.

White and Nill have proven to be to be a deadly duo from the circle and the Saints defense has made it difficult for even the best hitting teams to find a hole.  Saint Thomas Aquinas has out-scored their opponents 128-39 and they have 9 players hitting above .300 for the season.

The Saints hosted the Emporia Spartans at Lone Elm Park on Friday, and won the double header 8-1 and 6-0.

Junior Kellie White started for the Saints.  Saint Thomas Aquinas scored a run in the bottom of the second inning on a fielder’s choice by White (Katy Pascuzzi ran for White) and an RBI double by Halie Horn.

The Saints scored another two runs in the third inning on a triple by Andrea Piezuch, a bunt by Jenna Boutte.  Piezuch scored when Boutte drew a throw to second on her attempted steal.  Swinney doubled and was batted home on a Jacquinot double.

The fourth inning brought in another three runs on a walk by Horn, a bunt single by Ellen Drummond and a sequence of errors by the Spartans.  Piezuch singled, stole second and scored on a Jacquinot RBI single.

The Saints added two more runs in the fifth inning after Dobbie reached on an error, White sacrifice bunted her to second, Paige Mason walked, Dobbie stole home and Piezuch singled to score Mason.

Thimmesch came in to pitch for the Saints to start the sixth inning.  Emporia scored one run on a double by Hileman and an RBI single by Bohrer.

Horn was one for one, while Piezuch was three for four, Swinney and Jacquinot were two for four.

White gave up two hits and two walks while striking out six in five innings.

Junior Katelyn Nill took the circle for the Saints in game two.  The Saints scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning on a single by Swinney, an RBI single by Dobbie, a single by Jacquinot and an Emporia error.

Saint Thomas Aquinas scored two more runs in the second inning on a single by Piezuch, a Spartan error that allowed Dobbie to reach base, and an RBI single by Jacquinot.

The Saints scored another two runs in the sixth inning on a single by Mason, a walk by Boutte, an RBI single by Piezuch and an RBI single by Dobbie.

Swinney, Jacquinot, Dobbie and Piezuch were all two for four in game two.

Nill gave up four hits and two walks while fanning five for her shutout win in six innings.

The Saints are scheduled to take on league rival Blue Valley West on Monday for, what may well determine, the East Kansas League championship.  BV West squeezed by the Saints in their last match 6-5.

The Saints opened it up in the top of the first inning scoring 5 runs on walks by Andrea Piezuch and Jenna Boutte, an RBI single by Janessa Swinney, and RBI single by Ashley Dobbie, a single by Lauren Thimmesch, a single by Kellie White, and two Miege errors.

Aquinas scored again in the top of the third inning on a triple down the right field line by Thimmesch and an RBI sacrifice fly by White.

The Saints put up the 10 spot in the top of the sixth inning, scoring another 4 runs on a walk by Paige Mason, a sacrifice bunt by Dani Pfeifer, an RBI single by Ellen Drummond, a single by Piezuch, and RBI single by Boutte, and an RBI single by Dobbie.

Thimmesch came in to close out the bottom of the sixth inning for the Saints.

Thimmesch and Piezuch were 2 for 3, while White, Boutte, Swinney and Dobbie all hit .500 in this game.

White allowed just 3 hits and no walks while striking out 5 in her 5 innings, and Thimmesch allowed no hits and 1 walk in their combined shutout of the Stags.

The second game played out a little different, but the results were the same. The Saints scored 2 runs in the top of the fourth inning on a single by Swinney, an RBI single by Cayce Jacquinot and an RBI single by Thimmesch.

Miege answered in the bottom of the inning with a run on a single by C. Gemmill and an RBI double by B Gemmill.

Aquinas put up 2 more runs in the top of the fifth inning on a 2-out single by Swinney and a 2-run home run by Jacquinot.

Swinney led the Saints going 3 for 4 at the plate, while Jacquinot was 2 for 3 with a home run.

Katelyn Nill allowed 4 hits and no walks, while striking out 9 (including 5 of the final 6 batters faced)

The races seemed to go well. Only two people wiped out over the hurdles and there seemed to be no other events like that.  We stayed mostly on the track side, while two other reporters covered the field events.

Between some of the races, Rachel and I would walk around and talk to the athletes or just talk.  We walked by a couple girls who must have been exhausted and that is where the title came about.  We turned our heads in a "confused beagle look" as anyone who owns a beagle would understand and decided to write the quote down and use it many times in the future. 

The performance that stood out to me was Saint Thomas Aquinas senior Kyle Hanson.  The kid is just talented.  I used to run cross country so I have seen his performances before, but yesterday was special.  He was the last leg of the 4x800 and when he was handed the baton he was around 5th place.  By the end however, he was several seconds ahead of even the second place winner as he literally ran away with the race.  His next outstanding performance was in the 2 mile.  this is not surprising as I said he is a regular cross country runner and this race is actually a little short for him.  He paced himself from the beginning, but led the pack almost the entire time. In the last lap he took off and beat the only close contender to win both events he had participated in for the day.  He won in 9:50.21 which calculates to around a 4:75 mile.  Wow.

Kyle is going to K-State next year to run cross country along with teammate P.J. Greer who I have written about before.  I wish them the best of luck at the next level.

By the end, the crowd had waned significantly, but the dedicated reporters battled on.  The last thing I wrote in my reporter's notebook was the team scores.  For the girls, Olathe South and Blue Valley North tied for the title.  On the boys side Shawnee Mission West won and Aquinas placed 5th.

The Saints won the opener 1-0 in a pitching and defensive dual between the Saints junior Kellie White and MU bound Blue Valley pitcher Lindsey Muller. 

The games only score came in the top of the third inning when Saints junior Ellen Drummond singled to short right field.  Junior Andrea Piezuch sacrificed Drummond to second base, and senior Janessa Swinney singled to score Drummond. 

White scattered 6 hits and one walk, while fanning 6, and the Saints defense took care of the rest to earn the shutout. 

Muller allowed just 5 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 5. 

Saints 1^st baseman Lauren Thimmesch went 2 for 3 to lead both teams at the plate.

The Saints won the nightcap 4-2 in what proved to be another tight game between these two teams with their sights set on the state tournament.  Saints junior pitcher Katelyn Nill took the circle for Aquinas, while Heather Gruber got the nod for Blue Valley. 

The Saints drew first blood, scoring a run in the first inning on a single by Piezuch and an RBI ground out by Swinney. 

Aquinas scored another run in the top of the fifth inning on a single by Nill (Katy Pascuzzi ran for Nill), a single by Halie Horn, a sacrifice bunt by Drummond and an RBI ground out by Piezuch. 

The Tigers tied it up in the bottom of the fifth on an STA error, a single by Goodwin, an RBI single by Muller, and an RBI single by Scarlett.

Aquinas came back to take the lead in the top of the seventh inning on a walk by Horn and an RBI triple by Drummond.

The Saints defense took care of the top of the lady Tigers lineup to finish out the game.

Nill gave up 7 hits and 1 walk while striking out 4 for the win.

Gruber allowed just 5 hits and 2 walks, with 5 strike outs and took the loss.

Tigers Muller, Goodwin, Scarlett were all hitting .500 in the game, along with Saints Drummond and Horn.

The Saints are now 12-2 for the season and lead the East Kansas League standings (6-0 league).

Game 1

Saints 9  -  Blue Valley North 3

Saints pitcher Katelyn Nill only gave up 3 hits and 1 walk while striking out 7 in her 7 innings.  Jenna Boutte led the offense going 2 for 3, while Lauren Thimmesch, Janessa Swinney and Cayce Jacquinot were each 2 for 4.

Game 2

Saints 7  - Blue Valley North 6 (8 innings)

Saints pitcher Lauren Thimmesch gave up 5 hits and 1 walk while striking out 5 in her 8 innings.  Thimmesch and Katelyn Nill were 3 for 4 and Jenna Boutte was 2 for 3.

The Saints are now 10-2 for the season.  They are scheduled to face Blue Valley on Friday.

Go Saints!

Saints Softball

Scores summary:

Aquinas lost to Marysville 12-7  

BV West lost to BV Northwest 4-0  

Aquinas defeated BV Northwest 3-1

Aquinas defeated Holton 3-1

Marysville lost to Holton 10-9   

BV West defeated Holton 12-2

BV Northwest defeated Marysville 13-7

BV West shut out Marysville 10-0

Aquinas lost to BV West 6-5

BV Northwest shut out Holton 12-0

1st Place BV Northwest

2nd Place BV West

3rd Place STA

All Tournament Team Selections:

Katelyn Frerking  and Shaylynn Roady - Marysville

Nicole Bell and Jackie Lybarger - Blue Valley West

Brooke Thomason and Nicole Peterson - Blue Valley Northwest

Brooke Haverkamp and Carlene McMaugal - Holton

Ashley Dobbie and Lauren Thimmesch - Saint Thomas Aquinas 

Saints Offensive Highlights:

Senior DP, Cayce Jacquinot led the Saints offense hitting 6 of 10 including a home run.  Senior 3B, Ashley Dobbie (All-Tournament Selection) went 3 for 9 with 5 walks and 3 RBI’s.  Sophomore 1B,  Lauren Thimmesch (All-Tournament Selection) was 5 for 12 with 5 RBI’s.  The team batting average was .314 for the 4 games.  Along with Jacquinot, Dobbie and Thimmesch, Seniors Dani Pfeifer and Colleen Beasley, and juniors Katelyn Nill and Ellen Drummond all batted above the team average.

Saints Defensive Highlights:

Junior pitcher Katelyn Nill led the pitching squad with a 0.70 ERA and 1 win, allowing 9 hits and 4 walks, while striking out 10 in her 10 innings of work.  Junior pitcher Kellie White gave up 13 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 20 in her 16 innings for 1 win and 1 loss.  The team ERA was 2.75 for the day. 

Seniors Janessa Swinney, Dani Pfeifer and Ashley Dobbie, along with junior Katelyn Nill and sophomore Lauren Thimmesch, were error free in the field for the day.

The Saints are now 8-2 for the season.

The game will be hosted by the NJCAA National Champion JCCC Cavaliers.  So it will be at JCCC at 6:30 on Saturday.  Be there!

Aquinas will be most likely be represented by the Bourquin brothers, Zach and Beau.  There is some question as to whether or not they will be available for the game.

Some of the other guys that I have seen and can recommend watching are Magdziarz, VanGerpen, French, Payne, Washington, Arel and Chmielewski. 

Below, I took the rosters for each team from the JCCC website.

Gold Team
Ryan Magdziarz – Blue Valley
Tyler VanGerpen – Blue Valley
Jacob French – Blue Valley West
Bruce Reed – Olathe East
Xavier Carter – Olathe Northwest
Travis Ryan – Olathe Northwest
Jordan Bichelmeyer – St. James Academy
Beau Bourquin – St. Thomas Aquinas
Zach Bourguin – St. Thomas Aquinas
Winn Clark – Shawnee Mission East
Marcus Webb – Shawnee Mission East
 
White Team
Hal Payne – Bishop Miege
Aaron Washington – Blue Valley Northwest
Jamel Townsend – DeSoto
Tanner Rainbolt – Mill Valley
Lance Chandler – Olathe North
Gary Watts – Olathe North
Rustin Dowd – Olathe South
Ross Ellrich – Olathe South
Joe McBride – Olathe South
Ryan Arel – Shawnee Mission Northwest
Connor Chmielewski – Shawnee Mission Northwest

The Huskies stranded two runners in the first inning on two hits by Koziol and Brooke Thomason.  The Saints countered by stranding two runners of their own on two walks by Ellen Drummond and Ashley Dobbie in the bottom of the inning. 

The second and third innings were 3 and out for both teams.  Saints pitcher Kellie White struck out two and got a pop up out to end the top of the fourth inning.  The Saints stranded another two runners in the bottom of the fourth on walks by Dobbie and Hailie Horn. 

The Huskies stranded Kaylee Jones after a single in the top of the fifth inning.  The Saints matched that, stranding Dobbie (HBP) in the bottom of the sixth inning. 

The Huskies threatened in the top of the seventh inning when Kelsey Horton hit a triple down the right field line.  Once again, they failed to plate a runner, as the Saints defense fielded two infield groundouts, holding Horton at third, and White fanned the final batter of the inning.  The Saints had another scoring opportunity after Lauren Thimmesch walked (Colleen Beasley-substitution) and moved to scoring position on a single by Jenna Boutte.  The Huskies defense ended the inning on an infield ground out.

Now in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Saints took advantage of a Husky error as Drummond reach first base.  Janessa Swinney sacrifice bunted Drummond to second.  Dobbie grounded out, advancing Drummond to third base.  Horn walked and advanced to second on defensive indifference.  Nicole Peterson fanned the final batter to preserve the 0-0 score.

Northwest’s Thomason started the ninth inning with a double down the left field line.  White stuck out the next batter and the Saints defense took care of the final two outs, stranding Thomason at third base.

Joes singled for the Huskies to start the tenth inning, but was forced out at second on a fielder’s choice.  White got out number two with another strike out, and the Saints defense got a ground out to close out the side.  The Saints’ Andrea Piezuch singled to start of the bottom of the inning.  She stole second base, and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Drummond.  Swinney hit a shot to the short stop and was thrown out at first, but that was enough for speedster Piezuch as she scored on the throw, to claim the shutout win for the Saints.

Saint Thomas Aquinas Saints

White / Horn - 6 H, 9 SO, 0 BB, 0 ER, 10 IP  White-W

Dobbie .750 OBP, Swinney 1 RBI

Blue Valley Northwest Huskies

Peterson / Rudolph – 2 H, 5 SO, 6 BB, 1 ER, 9.67 IP  Peterson – L

Jones and Thomason 2 for 4

Game 2

The Huskies stranded two runners in the top of the first inning on singles by Koziol and Thomason.  The Saints scored in the bottom of the inning on a walk by Drummond and an RBI double by Swinney.

The Saints stranded two runners in the bottom of the second inning on walks by White and Jacquinot.

Aquinas scored another run in the bottom of the fourth inning on a walk by Horn, a Sacrifice bunt by White, a passed ball, and a defensive error.

The Saints scored another two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning on a single by Boutte, walks by Piezuch and Drummond, a wild pitch and an RBI ground out by Dobbie.

Northwest scored two runs in the top of the sixth inning when Thomason reach on an error and K Horton tripled into left-center for the RBI.  Horton scored on a misplayed pop up from Rudolph.

The Saints’ Katelyn Nill struck out the first batter in the top of the seventh inning, and the Saints defense took care of the remaining two outs as the Saints completed the sweep.

Saint Thomas Aquinas Saints

Nill / Horn - 4 H, 4 SO, 1 BB, 0 ER, 7 IP  Nill-W

Boutte and Swinney 1 for 2, Drummond .667 OBP

Blue Valley Northwest Huskies

Koziol / Rudolph – 2 H, 0 SO, 7 BB, 3 ER, 4.00 IP  Koziol – L

Peterson / Rudolph - 0 H, 3 SO, 0 BB, 0 ER, 2.00 IP 

The Saints move to 6-0 for the season.  Saint Thomas Aquinas will host thier annual Saints Classic softball tournament on Friday, April 24th at Mid America West.

Junior pitcher Kellie White struck out 13 and walked 1 in her 7 innings of work in the first game.  Senior Janessa Swinney and White went 2 for 3 at the plate.  Sophomore Jenna Boutte was 1 for 2.

Junior pitcher Katelyn Nill struck out 4 and allowed only 1 hit in her 3 inning start in game 2.  Sophomore pitcher Lauren Thimmesch struck out 2 in her 2 innings of relief to close out the game.  Nill went 2 for 2 at the plate, while senior Janessa Swinney and junior Andrea Piezuch went 2 for 3.  Senior Ashley Dobbie had 3 RBI’s.  Senior Dani Pfeifer was 1 for 1 with an RBI double.

"How did you know that already," he asked."I just decided this morning."

In the world of rivals.com and scout.com and tons of recruiting services, the recruiting world has become one of the most instantaneous things around.

Truth be told, Baltic, who played at Park Hill South, hadn't even talked to the Ohio coaches on Monday.

During our phone call he was just finishing up a workout and hadn't had the time to make the call, but his high school coach Anthony Perry had already passed along the good news to the Bobcat coaching staff.

It seems it would be easy in this type of up to the second world to have a repeat of this, where an athlete basically makes up the whole recruiting process.

With the 6-8 Baltic that wasn't the case. His 23 points and 15 rebounds per game legitamized him.

Aquinas won game one 13-0 in 5 innings by rune rule.  Saints junior pitcher Kellie White pitched a 1-hit shutout, striking out 8 and walking 2 in 5 innings.  Senior outfielder Janessa Swinney and Freshman catcher Halie Horn both had home runs in the game. 

White W – Leffert L

Aquinas won game two 9-0 in 7 innings.  Saints junior pitcher Katelyn Nill pitched a no-hit shutout, striking out 15 and walking 4 in 7 innings. 

Nill W – Plank L

The Saints batted .357 as a team in the double-header.  Seniors Ashley Dobbie, Janessa Swinney and Cayce Jacquinot, junior Andrea Piezuch, and freshman Halie Horn all batted above the team average.

So you'll read in tomorrow's paper (March 28) that Brad Oyler is leaving the Liberty Blue Jays girls' basketball program after 11 years as head coach. Oyler, simply put, is the reason why Liberty girls' basketball is significant. Today, he reflected on what he wanted to do when he took over and he said he wanted to build Liberty into one of the elite girls programs in the metro - Bishop Miege, St. Thomas Aquinas, Blue Springs, Hickman Mills. I would say, mission accomplished.

Under Oyler, Liberty got the invite to the HyVee Shootout several times and the Blue Jays have an impressive winning record in those games. In 2007, Liberty had its most successful year ever, winning 27 games and the Missouri Class 5 state championship. Basketballheads will always remember Liberty's semifinal game against Columbia Hickman when the Blue Jays came back from 20 points in the THIRD QUARTER to win 50-49. Yes, it was completely awesome and one of those high school games that should be replayed for-ev-er.

Just two years after winning the title, Liberty struggled with consistency this season but even so, Oyler led those inexperienced girls to the state quarterfinals.

Talking to him this afternoon, it definitely sounds like he's ready for a break (key word there: "break"). You can hear it in his voice. The man's tired. But I would not doubt if you see Oyler with another team soon. Maybe not the 2009-10 season but after that. He's only 48 years old and he's a proven program builder. You just don't stop being who you are, and he's a coach. I strongly believe he'll pop up somewhere.

But whatever happened to the 6-8 forward from Raytown South.

If you've watched any Louisville highlights over the last few weeks you've likely seen him in the background

He's No. 22 for the Cardinals, the No. 1 seeded team. If KU can pull off a victory and Louisivllle does the same, there may be a chance for Goode to not only face off against the local school but a few old opponents in Conner Teahan and Travis Releford.

Anyway, George isn't starting for Rick Pitino, but he has seen action in 25 of 35 games and is averaging 6.3 minutes per contest and averaging about 1.6 points per game.

Here's the stat that's probably going to shock both Goode's fans and detractors... he hasn't put up a three-point shot all season.

Regardless of what people think of individuals, seeing a local player go on and play for a successful Division I team is good for the athlete and Kansas City basketball as a whole.

 I've covered high school sports for about seven years now but on those rare occassions that I get to work a college or pro event, I know that sometimes before the game an announcement will be made: "...No cheering from the press box."

Sports reporter's Rule No. 1: Be a professional, not a fanboy (girl). And this is actually pretty easy to do. Because, in truth, all sports reporters care about is writing a great story and beating deadline. And especially in my case, I'm not from Kansas City so I don't have emotional ties to the Chiefs, Royals or Wizards. But in my seven years, I've never had to hold fast to that rule no more than I did at the Missouri Class 5 boys' state championship game.

On Saturday night, I had a problem and his name was Prentice Ivy. He's a senior backup guard for Chaminade and 18 years ago, I was there at the hospital when he was born. He's my mother's sister's only child. My first cousin.

Back when he was born, I thought he had an alien head and I was jealous that he was now the baby of the family and would steal my shine.  I helped babysit him, ate at the kids' table with him every holiday and watched him grow into a truly great young man that he is today. And there he was Saturday night, throwing me a fist pound when he saw me seated at press row. I was extremely proud to see him on the biggest stage possible for high school hoops - but I had to smile, shake my head no and say "I can't."

No cheering on press row, remember? Even if you did change that dude's diapers once. I guess it was bound to happen. My colleague Cole Young, the pride of Adrian, Mo., had to put on the stoic face last week when he covered his alma mater's sectionals game against Southeast. I thought he did a fantastic job staying neutral ... except for that one line where he wrote: "ADRIAN BASKETBALL ROCKS! WOOOHOOOO!"

Kidding. Cole is such a professional stud, he even watched the game alongside the AD from Midway, Adrian's rival. So on Saturday, it was my turn to act nonchalant and do my best Larry Fitzgerld, Sr. impression. As you can read in my column from the championships, I still focused on the home teams. I couldn't care less about Chaminade, really. When I was growing up in St. Louis, I went to public school so my cousin is the only reason why I know that place even exists. So when Saturday came, my rooting interest was for the game to end fast enough so we could get the story in the state edition of the paper. And, of course, for my cousin not to trip over his laces and break his face. 

Thankfully, he did not.

Prentice only played about six minutes in the game. He missed his only free throw attempt (must've got his shooting skills from his cousin) and checked Grandview stud Alec Burks twice on one-and-one. Alec hit a coldblooded J in his eye the first time (definitely got his defensive skills from his cousin) and the second time, Prentice stayed with him and forced a miss at the end of the half. I'll be honest here, I'm human. So everytime he checked into the game, I nudged Cole sitting next to me and felt my feet tap dancing under press row. But I never broke out the pom poms and started the P-R-E...N-T-I-C-E chants.  

Prentice may not be the last of the Ivy/Jones/Buckner clan to come around the big stages. My little cousin Larry, Jr. wants to play ball at CBC next season. Trust me, I won't cheer if he does but that doesn't mean I won't be the proudest journalist on press row.

image from stltoday.com

Prentice Ivy (2), pictured left, has better defensive skills than his cousin Candace Buckner and celebrated winning the Missouri Class 5 boys' state championship with his Chaminade teammates on Saturday night.

Nixa 56 Blue Springs 39 FINAL

PLATTE COUNTY 81, WEBB CITY75 Final

Morgan Johnson scored 24 points, 26 rebounds and 14 blocks to seal the deal for the Pirates.

Kelsey Knox added 26 points.

Kearney controlled the half, but Webb City burried a half court shot to close the gap.

Morgan Johnson already has a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebound

BORGIA 59,  KEARNEY 41

Kearney lost to St. Francis Borgia 59-41. The Bulldogs started off sluggishly, trailing by as many as 19 in the first quarter before slowly clawing back and trailing just 13.

The Bulldogs go-to inside player, Dillon Starzl picked up two early fouls and sat much of  the half, but still scored 8h points to lead Kearney.

Platte County, Blue Springs and Grandview are also in action later today.

We'll keep you updated throughout the day.

BISHOP MIEGE GIRLS 49, BISHOP CARROLL 44

Why Miege won: The Stags did a terrific job holding the Eagles’ star players in check. Senior sharpshooter Abby Fawcett only scored 14 points, while Boise State-bound guard Julia Marshall only had 10 for Bishop Carroll, which only shot 32 percent from the field. The Stags’ defense helped them overcome a first half in which they only went 7-of-26 from the field.

You also can’t overlook the clutch free-throw shooting of junior guard Rosie Youngstrom and sophomore post Shandelyn Stewart, who combined to make nine-of-10 free throws during the Stags’ 10-2 run to end the game.

Player of the game: Youngstrom scored a game-high 18 points and proved herself to be a big-time player for the Stags. Stewart (nine points, six rebounds) played well in the second half, while junior post Adri Maurer (13 points, 11 rebounds) was terrific as well. Also, props to senior guard Ashley Thayer, who only scored three points but doled out six assists.

Three quick thoughts:

1. This was one of the best big games I’ve seen in a while. I’ve got some support for that assessment, too – but Bishop Miege coach Terry English agrees with me. I know, I know. In a coach’s mind, winning tends to make everything right with the world. But English would know what makes a good game – the man has won 15 state titles.

"I thought it was one of the best semifinals games I’ve been in a long time,” English said. "When we got ahead, they answered, and when they got ahead, we answered. It was good basketball."

2. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – Bishop Miege is one of the most balanced girls basketball teams in Kansas City. How often do you see a team as good as Miege not have one player averaging over 10 points a game? The truth is, the Stags have several players who can score in bunches on a given night.

3. You know what’s truly scary about Bishop Miege? The Stags only have four seniors, and several key players (Youngstrom, Stewart, Maurer) will be back next season. Is there a chance Bishop Miege could be even better next year?

3 p.m. girls semifinal: Olathe South (20-3) vs. Wichita Heights (22-1)

Two programs that consistently find their way to the final weekend of the season clash in the first game of the day. The Falcons are playing in the state semifinals for the third straight season and fourth time in the last five years. Last year, they defeated Wichita Heights, 89-46, in the third-place game. Two seasons ago, Wichita Heights defeated Olathe South in the state championship game. That’s pretty good history between the teams, and today’s meeting should be intriguing.

4:45 p.m. boys semifinal: Shawnee Mission Northwest (19-4) vs. Wichita Heights (22-1)

This should be a great game for a number of reasons. First, Wichita Heights boasts freshman phenom Perry Ellis, who has put up huge numbers all season and is already waist-deep in the college recruiting process. He alone is worth watching. Wichita Heights has a strong team around him and has been a force all season. But SM Northwest might just be the right team to give them a challenge. The Cougars are capable of playing great defense, and they have enough scoring options to not have to rely on any one player offensively.

6:30 p.m. girls semifinal: Shawnee Mission West (19-4) vs. Washburn Rural (22-1)

The Vikings are in the semifinals for the second time in three seasons. Their matchup is daunting, but SM West coach Mark Rabbitt says he’s had a chance to watch Washburn Rural on a couple occasions this season – including the team’s 44-42 win over SM East in late January. The Vikings defeated SM East on Thursday to advance to the semifinals, and they play a similar style to the Lancers, so expect Rabbitt to have a good idea how to attack a strong Washburn Rural team.

8:15 p.m. boys semifinal: Shawnee Mission East (17-6) vs. Wichita Southeast (19-4)

The Lancers have been one of the Kansas City area’s top teams down the stretch this season, surging at the right time. They’ve won eight straight, including a victory over SM Northwest (fellow 6A state semifinalist) and two over Olathe East (6A state tournament team). Next up, the defending 6A state champs? We’ll find out soon enough. Wichita Southeast was dominant last year in its run to the 6A state title. The team is not quite as a strong this year, but it is strong enough. Expect Shawn Hair to have his Lancers ready, though.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

Here's a few thoughts from Morgan Johnson's younger sister Taylor on her sister's big night.

" <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> I don’t mind it at all." she said about her sister stealing the spotlight. "I like watching her do well and I get a ton of assists as well."

Plus Taylor knows what is coming next season.

"I have the next two years to shine," she said laughing.

Taylor Johnson is probably going to be one of the top players in the city next season. When she's on target, she's as good as any shooter in the city with the three-point shot.

By the way, Morgan Johnson had a chance to set the record of 43 points last night, but dished out an assist to Lyndsie Sellars with 52 seconds left.

Not sure what happened at the top of my last blog with all the coding stuff, but I'm trying a new way this time to hopefully alleviate those problems.

The Grandview boys and Blue Springs girls kick off the games today.

Grandview plays first but doesn't hit the floor until 5 p.m.

That means time to check out Shakespeares with legendary photographer Mike Ransdell.

I'll be back later today with some thoughts on Morgan Johnson's impressive semifinal performance from last night.

Until then, here's a few links on things that went down in Day 1 of the state basketball tournament.

Columbia Tribune's Rus Baer weighs in on all things Rus

The other side of the Kearney victory

And the Platte County win

The score was tied at eight after the first quarter, but the Scots broke out their 3-point shooters scoring 20 points in the second quarter to the Saints' six.  Through the second half the lead fluctuated between 16 and nine before Highland Park pulled it out to 13 and won.

Over-all it was a good game for the Saints, The worked hard and had a lot of great plays.  The high-light reel would feature one play in particular.  Zach Bourquin blocks shot on the defensive end, baseball pass down the court to his twin brother Beau, the pass goes long and Beau flies after it.  While air born he passes behind-the-back to Kevin Sweeney for two points.

Sweeney led the team with 14.  The Saints graduate eight seniors this year in Zach Bourquin, Alex Keith, Beau Bourquin, Adam Coatney, Mike Etzkorn, Jake Darnell, Mike Rzeszut and Kevin Sweeney.  They will start next year similarly to this year with one returning starter: Tommy Harrison.

Great year Saints! I loved watching you play!

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

The girls played last night and also lost their quarterfinal match-up.  They played Bishop Carroll who was led by senior Julia Marshall who finished with an astonishing 33 points. 

The Saints were led by Abby Willis who finished with 13 and DaShawn Harden who finished with 11.  A major advantage for the Saints is that they are young. They are graduating no seniors this year and their sophomores and juniors have already established a pretty strong team. 

Great job girls!  See you next year.

Here’s a few casual observations from the first day of the “2009 MSHSAA Basketball Championships or “2009 MSHSAA Show-Me Showdown” or as I prefer, the Missouri Class 4 and 5 state semifinals.

Not as much flair, but more meat and potatoes, like any tournament with teams like Dexter and Webb City should have.

Anyway enough of my rambling, here’s a few little tidbits of what I’ve seen so far:

No one may have had a better seat for Kearney’s 58-40 victory than Tommy Saunders. The former Kearney standout stood at the entrance from the tunnel and cheered on his Bulldogs.

Then as the game ended he bolted to meet them heading to their locker room.

A pretty cool sight, considering he was on the last Kearney team that played in the state championships.

Saunders clearly had a better seat than the print media at the game. After years of sitting courtside, the newspaper folks were relegated to a corner of Mizzou Arena so the two radio stations broadcasting the game could have the entire row courtside. /end rant

The Dexter girls team hit two buzzer beating shots from near halfcourt on Thursday.

It wasn’t enough though. The previously undefeated Bearcats lost to Webb City.

So after going 6-4 to end the regular season, how does it feel now for Kearney coach Gary Belcher as his team approaches the state finals on Saturday?

Here’s what he had to say:

“Just don’t hit the pause button. This thing is going like a blur and has been on fast forward all the way through. Our season is going to end one way or another on Saturday and I’ll probably crash after that as long it’s with these guys. We’re just hoping we crash in a positive way. We are flying on adrenaline and positive feelings right now.”

This will be a busy weekend for me as I will travel to that booming and colorful metropolis known as Emporia for a Friday column and the next day, possibly cross back over the border all the way to sunny Columbia, Mo. for state championship coverage. That brings us to our topic of the day: The Grandview Bulldogs.

The team makes its first-ever appearance at the Show-Me Showdown this weekend. Grandview takes on Oakville on Friday for the rights to play in the state title game. First-timers on the cusp of a championship! Ooooooo, the drama. Who wants to miss witnessing that? Apparently, not even Bulldog fans.

Once an ambivalent bunch that showed as much interest in Grandview basketball as it would for studying for a Biology test, the Bulldog Nation is now loud and proud. Thanks, of course, to team success. But also by the efforts of senior players JaVon McGee and Arsenio Valentin (doesn't he have the coolest name in the metro?).

So McGee, student council president, and Valentin, the vice, started their senior years by saying 'ENOUGH!' They were sick and tired of seeing a lack of school enthusiasm for the athletic teams.

 "When you got the visiting team having more fans than us, it was (becoming) disrespectful to us," McGee said.

McGee, as well as senior teammate Pierre' Poplion, remember one particular game last season when Grandview hosted Raytown, and the Bluejays' fan section dwarfed the home team's.

 "(That) hurt us bad," Poplion said.

So McGee, Valentin and another student-athlete decided to change the culture at Grandview and formed the GHS Spirit Club. Together, they worked the administration, dressed up real business like and presented their plans for the potential club. The school approved their ideas so the boys got busy recruiting fans to attend and cheer together at home football games. During the winter, the GHS Spirit Club gained steam when the basketball Bulldogs hosted and swept districts. By the time I saw Grandview defeat Lee's Summit West in sectionals, the crowd had swelled to such a point that it took up an entire block of bleachers at Staley. The kids were organized, energized and looked like a model "student section."

Okay, so yeah, you can call them bandwagon fans. But this is exactly the happy ending McGee and the crew envisioned when they formed the Spirit Club. On Monday, he was pleased to report that three spirit buses were already filled up with fans heading to Columbia. Bandwagon or not, who cares? This shows you that anyone can make a big change if they only try. Instead of just complaining about the fans, McGee and his friends did something about it and they certainly deserve all the fans' love coming their way.

"I hope it will continue to be as good as it is now," McGee said. "And we'll have a sense of pride about our school and community."

Here's a glance at the matchups with a little bit about each local team still alive listed below. 

Missouri sectionals

Wednesday’s games

CLASS 3 BOYS

At State Fair CC in Sedalia

LS Community Christian vs. Skyline, 6 p.m.

CLASS 3 GIRLS

At St. Joseph Civic Arena

Lawson vs. Maryville, 7:45 p.m.

CLASS 2 BOYS

At Harrisonville High School

Adrian vs. Southeast, 5:30 p.m.

Lawson- The Cardinals are in the playoffs for the second straight season. Jasmine Kassanavoid, post player and shot put extraordinaire, leads the Cardinals with about 16 points and 10 rebounds a game.

Lee's Summit Community Christian- Matt Webb leads the way for the Eagles. He's committed to UMKC and had a big game against Hogan Prep in the district finals.

Southeast- Andre Taylor and Dominique Outley outscored their opponent North Platte in the district finals. The duo combined for 29 points while locking up a decisive 65-26 win.

The winners from these games head to the quarterfinals on Saturday.

In Class 2, Southeast would play at Missouri State in Springfield.

In Class 3, the games will be held at Staley High School. Initially the games were scheduled to be played in Warrensburg, but the University of Central Missouri is hosting the NCAA Regional basketball tournament.

The game was hard fought with long scoring runs by each team.  Wyandotte led most of the first half by five points or so leading by only one at the half.  The Bulldog attack was led by 11 3-pointers in the game.  My dad always says, "It's hard to beat a three with a two." That was a problem for Saints during the first half, but they got the Bulldogs under control holding them for only five points in the third.  That allowed the Saints to take the lead which they kept for most of the second half.

In the fourth quarter the Saints' lead vacillated from nine points to two.  The last minutes of the game were the most interesting as it came down to free-throws which the Bourquins took a hold of hitting seven between the two of them.

Under a minute, Zach Bourquin got past defenders for an easy lay-up and followed that play with a couple of free-throws after a quick foul which put the Saints up four.

Beau led scorers with 15. Zach and Kevin Sweeney followed with 13.

The Saints were presented with the trophy and rejoiced.  The Saints play next at the state tournament in Topeka at 3:45 on Thursday.

Good Luck Saints!

Both teams struggled at the free throw line and at half the score was 11-8 in favor of the Saints.  3rd quarter started and we all hoped that the girls would settle down and start hitting their free throws or that their shots would fall.  However, the game continued to be real close until the girls started their run with Melanie Siscos making a contested lay up as the 3rd quarter expired and also getting fouled.  She converted the and one and the girls were up by 7 starting the 4th quarter.  The lead extended to 9 at the begining of the 4th quarter and then Gardner-Edgerton started their run closing the gap to 2 points.  This is as close as they got.  Aquinas made one more free throw and after that the game was over.

  The girls played great defense all night and every one who played tonight played real hard.  This team tonight competed and played with a purpose.  Their shots were not falling as they would have liked, but their defense was somethng else.  All the Aquinas fans were proud tonight of these girls. 

Tonight it didn't matter if one girl scored 0 points or was the high scorer on the team. Tonight we saw this team come together and overcome the challenge that the Gardner girls gave them.  Tonight the girls would not be denied.  Tonight Beth Demars, Lauren Marquess, Maggie Harrison, and Katie Brown did a super job playing valuable minutes.  These girls, together with the starters Abby Willis, Nicole Speckin, Deshawn Harden, Neli Weledji, and Melanie Siscos, shot down the Gardner-Edgerton girls and held one of the Blazers best players in Ciarra Washington to 4 points, with 2 of them coming from the free throw line.

Now, all of them tired, can rest tomorrow and get ready for practice as they ARE GOING TO STATE!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

The Saint Thomas Aquinas Saints girls basketball team continued their fantastic season with a 27-24 victory over Gardner Edgerton at Edgerton, giving Aquinas the substate championship for the 15th year in a row.

That is kind of impressive.

Aquinas fans did a great job tonight, giving the girls their biggest crowd at an away game all year. They cheered loudly, and at times bent rule 52, but not in an extremely mean way. It was, in fact, a very clever cheer.

Although the game was close throughout, the Saints controlled the game throughout. The play of the game was at the end of the third quarter. Aquinas missed a 3 pointer with the clock approaching zeroes. But junior forward Melanie Siscos was there for the rebound and got a layup as time expired. And one. A three point play at the end of the quarter gave Aquinas breathing room at 20-13.

Edgerton made a run, but the Saints stayed calm and composed, even though they only had two healthy juniors, Siscos and forward Beth DeMars, along with another junior, guard Abby Willis, who got hit in the eye early in the game. But she soldiered on. +1 for her. Also, props to Doctor Kwapiszeski, for his work on Abby's eye, and his work on Siscos' eye earlier this year. And thanks to whoever gave Willis a spare contact.

Sophomore guard DaShawn Harden led the Saints in scoring, with 11, and Siscos added 7, including many clutch free throws.

Edgerton struggled with their free throws throughout the game, and the Saints defense prevented them from ever getting a rhythm on offense. Time after time, Siscos and sophomore forward Katie Brown came up with a big rebound after a Gardner shot, preventing any second or third chance opportunities, despite being surrounded by a swarm of Gardner players.

Congratulations to the girls team on an exciting victory and another substate championship. Good luck at state.

Also, good luck to the boys team tomorrow as they play tomorrow at 5 at Gardner Edgerton.

After the Trailblazers hit the first shot, the Saints tied it up and took the lead.  They were ahead at least one posession for the remainder of the game.  The Saints had their highest lead at nine before the Trailblazers cut the lead down to two.

Sophomore DaShawn Harden it clutch shots all game despite the fans continuing to scream "airball" for the rest of the game after one bad shot in the 1st quarter.  After being fouled, she finished the game with a freethrow to extend the lead to three before Aquinas won.

 The Saints rushed to the locker room before returning to pose with their new substate champion trophy.

Great Job Girls!

Boys play tomorrow at Garner-Edgerton at 5.

The championship game will be played on Saturday at 7:30 PM at Silver Lake. Agaist Rossville. This game should be harder because both team have a good defense & fast offense. Results of that game & photos will be posted on Saturday Night after the game. 

The Bourquins were kind enough to invite me into the team parent caravan as the team photographer and reporter.  Five other students showed up.  This was the first round of Sub-state which the boys have passed setting them up against Wyandotte on Saturday at Gardner-Edgerton.

The most interesting and controversial play of the game came in the first quarter when senior Zach Bourquin took the ball on a fast break and finished with a powerful two-handed dunk.  The play was re-called and Zach received a technical because he hung on the hoop after the play.  He said the "T" was worth it though.  That marks two games in a row in which he has dunked. 

Alex Keith had a great night shooting with several points on good plays. Keith led scorers with an impressive 12 points.  Beau Bourquin also had pretty good plays and strong finishes sending him to the charity stripe.  He finished with 9.

There were a lot of early traveling calls, but not many timeouts and very few fouls leading to a game which was finished in just over an hour.  The Saints made shots and every player who suited up got to play. 

Good Luck Saints on Saturday!

Girls play tomorrow night at 7:45 in Gardner-Edgerton against the home team.  The Kansas City Star chose this game in their list of Kansas Sub state Basketball: Five Things to Watch.

For the boys team it was Senior Night.  The line-up features eight seniors in Zach Bourquin, Alex Keith, Beau Bourquin, Adam Coatney, Mike Etzkorn, Jake Darnell, Mike Rzeszut and Kevin Sweeney. 

The boys started on a 7-2 run and led for the whole first quarter.  They fell behind in the second before trading leads in the second half.  The game had many incredible event such as an awesome dunk from Zach, an inbounds play thrown off the defender's back into play by Beau who led the team with 19 points, a coast-to-coast run by Trevor Releford and most of all, the ending was fascinating. 

The game was a perfect rivalry when it came down to last possession shots.  The Saints were up three after free-throws from Zach Bourquin with four seconds left.  The crowd went crazy and so did the team.  On the other end Rodney Givens made a surprising 4-point-play when he hit a three and was fouled.  Needless to say, he hit the free-throw and Miege won the game by one point.  It was frustrating for the Saints, but honestly this was probably the best high-school basketball game that I have ever seen.  It was a great game, and both teams should be proud.

 The girls also had a very hard fought game.  They fell 39-43 to the Stags.  Scoring was led by sophomore Nelly Weledji who finished with 15.  Another obscure event occurred in their game when the tip-off had to be done three times because every time it ended in with no one in possession.  Miege was on fire with their three-pointers in the fourth quarter. Another cool feature of the game was the National Anthem sung by senior Kyle Brown.

For JV, the boys finished on top 45-44.  It was a fast-paced game with a lot of steals and it stayed close the whole game.  With 35 seconds left the game was tied at 44 before Miege turned over the ball and fouled.  Dagen Reed hit the winning free throw. The ending was debated because Miege shot a buzzer shot which was not counted.  Richard Davila led scorers with 17.

The girls started the game on an amazing 17-0 run to start the game which they then won handily 47-19.  They looked powerful causing turnovers and making shots.  The team was led by Blakely Swanson who finished with 12 and Sarah Kwapiszeski with 10.

Over-all, this was a strong end to the regular season for the boys and girls varsity and junior varsity teams.  For varsity, next comes sub-state competition.

I can't say that the start was surprising when the Huskies' sophomore star Brett Comer hit a shot on the first possession.  It was not shocking either that the entire team was on fire behind the arch.  But the Saints were able to overcome the talented huskies with a couple forced turnover which resulted in easy baskets.

Once again, the Saints were led by their seniors: Zach and Beau Bourquin, Kevin Sweeney and Alex Keith.  The Saints played together well and piled up the assists making the extra pass when it was beneficial for a basket.  The Saints also played one of the best transition games that I have seen; from steals and lay-ups to getting set for their press after a made basket. 

The dance team looked lovely in their second-to-last performance together as they prepare for their Annual Winter Finale.  The seniors were introduced at the half and got to walk across the gym with their parents. 

Next up, the Saints will travel to BVN on Friday night and then host rival Bishop Miege on senior night (check out the pics from last game) before heading to sub-state.

Happy Birthday to Coach Reilly! Great win Saints!

What happened to growing up in the neighborhood and going to the high school you're supposed to attend? It seems that some prep basketball players move around more than free agents. NBA All-Star Amar'e Stoudemire attended FIVE high schools in four years and I doubt we have any cases like that but we do have our own High School merry-go-round.

Last Friday, I almost did a double take inside Center's gymnasium when I saw senior forward Eric Austin wearing blue and gold. Wasn't he wearing Hogan Prep black just a year ago?

My eyes weren't fooling me. Austin did indeed transfer from Hogan Prep to Center... and the crazy thing is, he was a Hogan Prep Ram when this 2008-2009 basketball season started. How is that even allowed you may ask? Well, I was curious too. I asked both coach Benny Moore and Center athletic director Brad Sweeten.  Mr. Sweeten told me that earlier this year, Austin's home burned down so the family moved within the Center district. During that time, he was still attending Hogan Prep but the traveling to and fro became too much for his mother and so she enrolled him in Center at the end of first semester. Sweeten says Austin was eligible to play for Center because of the family move.

 Okay, now let's review. As a junior, Austin played at Milestone Christian Academy, then transferred to Hogan. Senior year, he starts at Hogan only to transfer to Center. And to be honest, I don't know where he attended as a freshman and sophomore, but that's at least three transfers in four years of high school. Center teammates Cortez Barrett (Center to Milestone back to Center) and Christian Williams have also transferred in and out of schools at least two times. And that's just a small sample. Don't get it twisted, I'm not picking on Center - the Yellowjackets are a swell team and I can't wait to see them play in districts. However, I just find it interesting that they have so many move-ins. I understand the unfortunate extemporaneous situation that forced Austin to transfer but you just hope that these kids are getting a true high school experience. It's hard to do that when you're constantly on the move.

Now, moving on to other random stuff I've been thinking about:

•  Kids and tats. I watched the Sumner Academy and Atchison boys game last night (2/13) and couldn't help but notice the ink. And not just any ink, mind you, but the kind that would make their Sunday School teachers proud. Atchison senior guard Daris Calhoon had one visible tattoo, an image of praying hands on his left bicep. Calhoon's senior teammate Dylan Watts sported a green cross with what appeared to be the word "Jesus" written over the top. (I've never seen that before.) And then I noticed Sumner junior Reese Holliday with something I could only describe as a medieval, squiggly-thing cross on his bicep. Tattoos are the fad but it's always funny to me to see young people all tatted up. Because what's cool when you're 16, probably won't be so hot when you're 36. But hey, call me old fashioned. I guess the best way to convince mom to allow you to get a tattoo is to find common ground with a religious symbol. But seriously, kids. Do you have to prove your love for Jesus by getting Him inked on your body?

• Lee's Summit West senior guard Michael Dixon had a busy week. He surpassed 500 assists and 1,700 points for his career but before that he was the Tigers' No. 1 fan at the big MU-KU thriller. Dixon sat directly behind the bench in a yellow t-shirt and rushed the court along with all the other fans. Check out this link (http://www.kansascity.com/934/gallery/1026310.html) and go to the last photo in the gallery, can you spot Dixon? If you have the game DVR'd go to the moment when J.T. Tiller forced the critical jump ball. Check out Dixon's excitement! (...just don't read his lips too closely). Gotta love his passion for the game and his future school.

• Truman senior Tyler Sevy, a former All-Conference player, is no longer with the team. This happened last week and I confirmed it with coach Billy Guinnee. Sevy was a key contributor to the Patriots' state run last season so as the team embarks on districts, it will be interesting to see who steps up in his place.

Well, till later. Enjoy the week ahead. I'll catch up with Missouri hoops for next Saturday's column and hope to see you there. (...Of course, I have no clue where I'm going yet so I may not see you "there," but hey, thanks for reading.)

The Saints were locked in battle with the BVW Jags.  It was their senior night and the gym was pretty packed.  Their star 6-9 Senior Brandon Ubel led all scorers with 12 points in the contest as Aquinas fell 31-29.

The most fascinating thing about the game was the pace.  BVW was able to slow the game down leading at the half 15-11.  While the pace was slowed down the game went by quickly.  With all the senior night traditions the first half only took a half hour.  After a cheerleader debacle at half-time where the wrong music was repeatedly played leaving the four senior cheerleaders baffled at mid court, the teams came back for the second half. 

The largest lead of the game came from BVW at 10 points, but that lead dwindles on a 10-2 run from the Saints in the fourth to tie the game with about 2:30 left.  Out of the tie, BVW hit a couple critical free-throws leaving the Saints with half a minute to tie or take the lead. The Saints could not hit a shot after several attempts and strong rebounds.  The ball flew out of bounds off the Jags.  With 2.4 seconds the Saints had a last chance and the ball was in Zach Bourquin's hands, but he missed a three.  I am not disappointed; I would want the ball in his hands.  Zach led Aquinas scorers with 8.

The Saints have their senior night coming up with Miege at home.  It will be a battle, but that is what makes the private school rivalry awesome.  Before that however, the Saints have chances for revenge against BVNW and BVN.

Read this info below from the Southeast Missourian:

A boys basketball game between Scott County Central and Sikeston,
scheduled for Feb. 11, sold out 6,844 tickets for the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau.
After nearly a month of discussions and negotiations, the game was announced
Jan. 21, sold more than 3,700 tickets (1,500 in the first hour) on Jan. 23,
and sold out the building earlier this week. 
The schools, about nine miles apart, have not played since Jan. 5, 1971.
Both are state ranked and by far the best two teams in this corner of the
state. Michael Porter, a three-time all-stater, leads Sikeston, while his
cousin, 6-7 sophomore Otto Portern, is one of the leading players for Scott
County, which finished third in the state in Class 1 last year.
The night also includes an Oran-Saxony Lutheran game at 6 p.m., as the four
schools agreed to alter the Feb. 10 schedule in order to make way for
SCC-Sikeston. (The doubleheader asterisk will prevent it from setting the
state record for single-game attendance.)

You can check out more about this game (which may include a webcast) at the SE Missourian's blog, semoball.com

Aquinas came out to play with Zach Bourquin scoring two field goals, followed by a 3-pointer from Alex Keith and another three from Tommy Harrison.   Aquinas led for most of the game before the fourth quarter. 

Where the Mustangs tied up the game and took the lead with a three-pointer from Ehlers, one of his 7.  He played well and the Mustangs over-all kept their composure and did what it took to win.  Though their record is 6-6, they put up quite a fight.

In the last few possessions, the play was sloppy and there were a lot of fouls.  After Ehlers made his basket which gave the Mustangs their first lead, the Saints tried to foul to get the ball back.  With that the lead spread to five with around nine seconds left and the game was over. 

The teams were well matched with most of the players listed around or under 6-4.  BVN was able to make perimeter shots, knocking down 11 3-pointers.   The Saints played well in the lane, but came up short when the game was on the line.

One sweet STA moment though: a monster block from Beau Bourquin in the first quarter which drew deserving “oohs and ahhs” from the crowd.

It was an excellent match-up in a strong Eastern Kansas League conference.  The teams meet again on February 20 at BVN.  The next game for Aquinas however is the big rivalry game at Miege on Tuesday, where the undefeated Stags are being led by Trevor Releford and Rodney Givens who broke out with a 35 point performance against BVNW last night.   

Sumner Academy, 3-0 in league, 11-1 overall

Washington, 2-0, 5-6

Harmon, 1-1, 9-3

F.L. Schlagle, 0-2, 4-6

Wyandotte, 0-3, 3-9

Look for more content next week – including a list of league stat leaders. But for now, here’s a quick look at three of the league’s teams.

Sumner Academy looks to be a legitimate Kansas 4A postseason contender. The Sabres are led by point guard Neil Watson, who averages a team-best 21 points and seven assists per game. … Reese Holiday is also one of the top players in the league, averaging 15 points and 11 rebounds. … Davonte Chaney is averaging 12 points and five rebounds.

Harmon, a Kansas 5A team, has been strong this season, as well. Deontae Hooks leads the team, averaging 15.7 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game. … Jauan Wilson (12.8 points per game), Jermery Moore (12.7 points per game) and Exavier Bass Brooks (10.8 points per game) have been steady scoring options, as well.

Jevon Williams and Oye Hassan have been the top players for Schlagle this season. Williams is averaging 13.3 points, while Hassan is averaging 11.5 points and a team-high 8.5 rebounds.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

So without further ado...here are five things I think I think.

1. I think Aquinas senior Jacob Nowak has the perfect mindset to take home a top finish at state. The kid trailed Olathe East senior Jake Woten (who is no slouch) in the third period of their championship match at the Husky, but he never lost his cool. Instead, he kept working diligently and tied the match before winning in overtime. Afterward, all Nowak - who is currently undefeated - talked about was needingto get better for state. We'll see, but Jacob's chances are looking good.

2. I think BV Northwest proved the importance of having good senior wrestlers. Despite having two starters out, the Huskies won their home tournament by a relatively comfortable margin, mainly because a large group of seniors wrestled well for them. If they keep this up, they have a chance to make some noise at state.

3. I think Gardner Edgerton senior Greg Curtis probably turned in the most dominating performance of the tournament. Curtis, a 171-pounder, pinned all of his opponents in the first period of each match. No matter who it comes against, that's pretty impressive.

4. I think I'm looking forward to seeing Blue Valley junior Parker Madl and BV Northwest senior Linwood Peoples wrestle again. Madl has beaten Peoples twice this season, and they would have wrestled again in the finals of the 140-pound bracket on Saturday, but BV Northwest coach Tim Serbousek made Peoples forfeit for a disciplinary reason. The good news is that they'll probably face each other at least a couple more times this season.

5. I think that it's going to be difficult for any local team to win a state title this year. Unlike past seasons, where St. Thomas nAquinas and Gardner Edgerton were basically steamrolling the competition, there aren't any Johnson County teams that have the depth to compete with teams like Goddard and Emporia.

Until next week folks...

            Bishop Miege continued their undefeated season with the tournament title with a 78-57 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest.  Washburn-Rural took third place with a 56-41 win over Saint Thomas Aquinas.  Mill Valley finished fifth winning 63-51 over Shawnee Mission South.  Bishop Carroll beat Northeast-KCMO 83-47.

1st Bishop-Miege 78                2^nd Shawnee Mission Northwest 57

The Stags were led early by Junior Rodney Givens who scored 14 of the team’s 21 points in the first quarter on four 3-pointers, he finished with 18.  Givens was named to the tournament all-star team.  After that however, Junior Trevor Releford who was named tournament MVP went on fire and scored 31 points in the rest of the game.  They kept a solid lead and were in sync as a team with assists and well executed fast breaks.

The Cougars moved quickly, but fell behind early trailing 21-17 in the first and 43-26 by the half.  Ryan Arel who had led the team in each of the first two teams was held to a tournament low, but teammates Steve Carver and AJ Spencer stepped up finishing with 18 and 15 points respectively.  Ryan Arel was named to the all tournament team.  Senior Connor Chmielewski was given the Mr. Hustle award for the tournament.

3^rd Washburn-Rural 56 4^th Saint Thomas Aquinas 41   

The Junior Blues had succeeded with a solid defensive front playing man-to-man and triple teaming the Saints down low.  After being tied at 24 at the half, Washburn-Rural took the lead.  Their attack was led by Senior Bobby Chipman’s 20 points.  He was also placed on the All-Tournament team.  Senior Brett Ash also contributed 18 points.

The Saints came out with a 9-3 run to start the game.  They were led by Junior Tommy Harrison.  The team played hard, but the shots would not fall in the 4^th quarter and they were held to only five points.  The guys are having some trouble so far, but still have a 2-1 record in the EKL.   

5^th Mill Valley 63                      6^th Shawnee Mission South 51

Both teams had a slow start, but Mill Valley popped out to an early lead, the team was led by 14 points from Sophomore Jonathan Anackwe.  He had a great game with blocks and fast-break lay-ups. 

The Raiders were once again led by Junior Will Spradling who finished with 17 points.  He finished in 1^st place in the 3-point contest for the second year in a row.  He was also named to the All-Tournament team. 

7^th Bishop Carroll 83                8^th Northeast-KCMO 47

The Golden Eagles were led by football star Blake Bell who capped off his 20 point effort with a monster dunk towards the end of the game.  They were able to stop Northeast in the lane with their considerably taller line-up.  They were impressive on fast breaks and their 3-2 defense was restrictive. 

 Northeast had a hard time in the tournament, but have one of the most talented guards that I have seen.  I know that I have praised him in the other days, but today he scored 34 of his team’s 47.  He found ways to tear through the lane, and then score easily.  He was rightfully named to the All-Tournament team as well.

Overall, it was a great tournament and it was fun to watch.  The hospitality room was not too shabby either.  I hope everyone who went enjoyed it, and good luck to each team in the remainder of their season.   

The Saints grabbed the momentum at the very start, reducing the Raiders to sacrificial lambs. At the end of the 1st quarter Aquinas led 18-2. And that was the ball game. Pem Hill actually scored 15 points to Aquinas' 13 in the second quarter, but they were still down by 14, and still had no momentum. Aquinas proceeded to outscore the Raiders 20-6 in the third quarter.

The Saints had a balanced attack in all areas of the game. Sophomore Nelly Weledji paced the Saints with a game high 17 points. Also, to all media outlets, it is spelled W-E-L-E-D-J-I. And it is pronounced Well-Ed-Gee. While we are on the subject, it is Sarah K-W-A-P-I-S-Z-E-S-K-I. Pronounced Kwap-is-zess-key. Pay attention, because there will be a quiz.

But i digress.

Sophomore DaShawn Harden was her usual outstanding self in multiple areas. She contributed 13 points, a rebound and an assist here and there, and like 7 steals. Junior Abby Willis had 9 points, and played a great game throughout.

The Saints did not have to just rely on their guard play, though. Junior forward Melanie Siscos basically set up camp at the free-throw line. She was 4-4 from the charity stripe, although it seemed like she was there much more than that. Maybe my old age is causing my memory to start to fade. Siscos finished with 6 points, and had a nice steal as well. She is also one of those bigs with range, and can make the 3. That, my friends, is valuable stuff.

Fellow junior forward Beth DeMars added 6 points as well. Sophomore Katie Brown scored 2 points, but her big contributions were on defense and doing the stuff that does not show up in the box score. Also, twice in the past two games i have seen her take the ball just about coast to coast for a layup. She can handle that ball, which, my friends, is valuable stuff.

Aquinas did an outstanding job of getting to the free throw line. They went 19-24, good for 79%, and this was one of their most important and impressive statistics from the game. Ask the Memphis Tigers how important free throw shooting is. Weledji again was the star in this area, going 10-10 from the line, good for 100%. And I didn't even need a calculator to figure that out. Siscos had her 4-4 as well, for another 100%, so they combined for 200% from the free throw line. And don't even try to question my math. It's for sure 200% :) .

The starters were able to spend the majority of the second half relaxing on the bench, getting to watch their bench play, and play well. Everyone that suited up got in the game, and 10 different players scored, including 4 from sophomore Betsy Donahue, who twice found herself open for easy layups. Two textbook cases of players setting their picks and getting their teammate open for an easy two.

Alas, the girls lost on Friday, 47-41, to SM West. However, Aquinas did a good job of not folding when they could have. Twice, West had second half leads of 10-15 points, and twice the Saints cut it to about 5 points. The Saints' shots just would not fall, while the exact same shots would fall for West. I swear to God, we had at least 3 3-pointers that were halfway down and then came back out. I think someone needs to check on the baskets, please.

Obviously, I am biased (if you haven't guessed, I am an STA student), but the Saints are one of the great surprises of the year so far. Most were cautiously optimistic going into the season, but Aquinas is at 8-2, 3-0 in EKL. I would not be at all surprised if this team makes a deep run at state. They have no seniors, but they have excellent team chemistry, and their two freshmen, Maggie Harrison and Nicole Speckin (both attended Holy Spirit, by the way) do not play like freshmen, and that's a good thing. 

Mill Valley 65               Northeast – KCMO 59

The Mill Valley Jaguars were impressive on the fast break. The team is relatively small and is quick.  Last night they were led by Sterling Roaf, but tonight Senior Max Carroll stepped up to lead the team with 15.  He also hit 18 3-pointers in the free-throw contest.  

The Northeast Vikings, were once again led by Junior Daylen Robinson who scored 23.  He had a couple reverse lay-ups, but bottom line, he is a playmaker.  He is the leader of the team and he is quick to score in the lane.

Shawnee Mission South 50                   Bishop Carroll 38

The crowd played a major part in this game.  The parents from both sides were very vocal and mostly angry.  The play was generally sloppy with an emphasis on fast breaks. It was also odd that both the teams wear green and gold.

SMS was led again by Junior Will Spradling with 25 points.  He is rumored to have orally-committed to KSU to play in 2010.  He is a good ball handler and a great shot.

Bishop Carroll was led tonight by senior Mark Powell who finished with 17. Last night’s star Blake Bell was held to only four points in the game.  

Bishop Miege 65                      Washburn-Rural 44

The first play of the game was a Trevor Releford spin-move for a lay-up.  Miege started with a 15-0 run in the beginning of the game.  That set a tone for double-figure leads in each quarter. The Stags’ were led by Releford who finished with 18 and transfer Rodney Givens with 17.   This team is dangerous on the run, but fun to watch.  The Stag fans awkwardly started a “This is our House cheer,” which is odd since this is not their house.  The Stags are still undefeated on the season and are the defending champions of the tournament.

Washburn-Rural has the most unruly fans.  They were actually almost kicked out. My guess is that it had something to do with the “you let your team down” cheer which was chanted after a bad turnover by the other team.  The team was led by senior Bobby Chipman who scored 20 points.  He has a nice stroke and listed at 6’8” he is a force in the lane.

Shawnee Mission Northwest 56                        Saint Thomas Aquinas 49

The game had a curious start with each team making only 3-pointers for a 9-6 Saints led beginning.

The SMNW Cougars are impressive.  They play as a complete unit and are strong in transition.  Their usual leader, senior Ryan Arel was held to 10 points, but senior Connor Chmielewski stepped up with 19. Arel took hold and made big shots as the Cougars took the lead and slid away.

The Saints played well, but looked tired. They were led by Beau Bourquin with 12, Alex Keith with 10 and Zach Bourquin with eight.  There were a couple debatable charge calls toward the end of the game which added to the emotional atmosphere.

Tomorrow

7^th Place - Northeast vs. Bishop Carroll @ 12 Noon

5^th Place – Mill Valley vs. SMS @ 1:45

3^rd Place – STA vs. Washburn-Rural

1^st Place – Miege vs. SMNW

SMNW 67       Mill Valley 40

The SMNW Cougars were led by Ryan Arel.  This kid is impressive.  He has a smooth shot and knows how to move with the ball he finished with 23 points.  The team as a whole moves together and is dangerous with crisp passes and quick transition game.  It is no surprise why these guys are so highly regarded.  AJ Spencer also impressed me.  He moves well in the lane and cuts for lay-ups easily.  He did however leave the game with an apparent ankle injury which was wrapped with ice.

The Mill Valley Jaguars were over-all out played.  They were led by senior Sterling Roaf who finished with 7 points.  They seemed to be thrown off by the match-zone and had trouble when they were contained to the half-court game.

Washburn-Rural 61      Shawnee Mission South 37

The Washburn Rural Junior Blues showed up with only four “super-fans”, but brought the intensity it took to win the game.   They were led by Bobby Chipman who finished with 17. 

The SMS Raiders were led by junior Will Spradling who finished the game with 18 after starting the game 3-4 from three-point-range to score his teams only nine points in the first quarter.

The game seemed to go well, and I apologize that my coverage is a little weak.  I snuck home for pot roast during the game.

Saint Thomas Aquinas 61         Northeast-KCMO 50

Aquinas students were let out of school over a half-hour early from school, so that generated excitement for the game.  The Saints started with an interesting line-up because normal starter Beau Bourquin sat out the first half.  In his place Mike Rzeszut started.  Zach Bourquin led scorers with 21 points while Kevin Sweeney and Beau each contributed 10.  The Saints looked pretty good coming off a tough loss to Blue Valley Northwest in league play.

Northeast was impressively led by Daylen Robinson who with 25 points scored half of their total.  He was versatile hitting three-pointers, jumpshots and a couple free-throws. He was fast and powerful with the ball. Overall, he was an impressive player and the Aquinas players agreed that he was one of the fastest players that they have guarded.

Bishop Miege 60          Bishop Carroll 43

Miege was led by their traditional trifecta of Rodney Givens, Trevor Relefor and Justin McCay.  They all scored in double-figures while Releford led the team with 17 points.  His older brother, current KU player, Travis Releford looked on.  One of the most fascinating plays of the night was a monster-dunk by Curtis Okafor which sent the whole gym into shock.  It was powerful and perfect.  From the way the team played, it is not hard to realize their unbeaten status and they will be a force as tournament play continues.  They are also the defending champions.

The Bishop Carroll Golden Eagles were led by stand-out junior Blake Bell.  He finished the game with 21 points.  Bell is also recognized for his football skills.  Listed at 6-6 200, he is a powerful and versatile quarterback and power-forward.  Scoring almost half of his team’s 43 points is was obvious that he was the star of his team.  For a while it even appeared that he would never miss.

After an exciting first day, the brackets are updated and the next round begins.  Tomorrow look for:

Northeast-KCMO vs. Mill Valley @ 3:00

SMS vs. Bishop Carroll @ 4:45

Washburn Rural vs. Bishop Miege @ 6:30

STA vs. SMNW @ 8:00

Such as right now as I write this, the Travel Channel is doing a best of list, in search of the U.S.'s best barbecue.

Anyway that got me thinking of ways that I could get some reader input.

So here's a list I've created asking you to tell me the best of the following categories, enjoy.

Best:

Player you've seen this year:

Concession stand in the metro:

Pregame introductions:

Overall basketball experience:

Dunk or play you've seen this year:

Parking situation (lets be honest, there are some bad ones)

OK, we'll stop there. Nice and random.

Lets hear what you think now.

So on this glorious day, I've been watching wall-to-wall NBA action, listening to reflections about the great man Dr. King and now, catching up on the prep scene. On Friday, I saw the undefeated Bishop Miege Stags take down Blue Valley. The Stags started red hot, making 14 of 18 shots in the first quarter and scoring 29 points! Those are amazing numbers for a high school team but it also helps when most of your field goals are scored two inches away from the hoop. I counted 10 lay ups in that quarter - rarely did Miege have to run a halfcourt set but who cares? The Stags converted steals into fastbreaks and even when Blue Valley missed, they were off running and getting good looks under the hoop. There was one point in the second half, when Blue Valley converted a free throw and four seconds (!) later, Miege had scored a lay up. How do you get a transition bucket after a made free throw? Now that's quick.

To Blue Valley's credit, Miege couldn't blow open the doors until the fourth quarter. The Tigers have some good shooters and the leading EKL scorer in Ryan Magdziarz. (Ten bucks if you can pronounce his last name correctly on the first try). He can score 'em a lot of ways but when you're going up against an athletic team like the Stags, it's easy for your 24 points to get overshadowed. Also, if you're an old school fan like myself, you'll appreciate senior Tyler Van Gerpen's eye wear. Nobody wears goggles these days but Van Gerpen was rocking a set, which if I'm not mistaken he wears for football, too. When you think of bespectacled players, you think of the dudes who grab offensive rebounds, take charges and set screens

 but kudos to Van Gerpen for being the first high school goggle-wearer I've seen. And the kid actually has a nice game.

On Saturday night, I saw a couple of 8-6 teams in Rockhurst and Raytown South. The Cardinals have a couple of good wins (and bad losses) so they're still a mystery to me. Another mystery was where were all the student fans? I know it was a Saturday game but Ray South has had one of the livest student sections around and on that night, a couple of guys were loud and proud but there was really no buzz in the gym.

Which brings me to my final item: Student cheering sections are awesome until a couple knuckleheads mess it up for everyone. Check out this story from Orange County, Calif., where fans from Servite High, an all-boys Catholic school, heckled African-American players with racist taunts. The insane thing about this is, there are people of color in the Servite student section and also on their own team!

http://www.ocvarsity.com/video/index.php?bcpid=1126062229&bclid=1134010117&bctid=8278512001

http://www.ocvarsity.com/ocvarsity/sports/basketball/gotw/b/article_2284054.php

Let's make sure nothing like this ever happens around here.

Well, till later kids. I highly, HIGHLY, recommend you find and listen to Dr. King's final speech, "I've Been To The Mountaintop." It is brillant and prophetic and beautiful and tragic all at once. It's worth the 27-minute listen. 

After their 38-32 victory against BVNW on Thursday, the Saints are at 3-0 in EKL. Two of those games have been hard fought, close games, giving the girls valuable tight game experience that should help this young team late in the season and at state. Against Blue Valley Jan. 8, Aquinas trailed 24-17 in the third quarter. But, led by the play of stellar sophomore DaShawn Harden, the Saints stormed back, and a basket by junior Melanie Siscos tied the game at 35 with under a minute left. BV had a chance to win it with the last shot, but Harden blocked their layup attempt, grabbed the ball, and then was fouled at half-court, giving her two free throws. She missed the first, made the second, and boom, the Saints collected the W.

Against BVNW, the Saints led for the whole game, but could never pull away. No worries, STA got the victory while getting to play a close game throughout. Again, that experience will be crucial in the state tournament.

Aquinas next gets to play in the SMS Tournament against Pembroke Hill on Thursday.

The game started in favor of the Huskies with sophomore Brett Comer making two threes to hit the Saints early.  He finished the game with 13. 

The Huskies were up 11 at the half and kept the lead as it climbed to 18 points at the end of the third. 

The game was quite emotional with several agressive loose balls and a technical.  Parents and athletes were fighting each other. 

For the Saints, Alex Keith and Zach Bourquin led with 8 a piece, Mike Rzeszut had 5.

The Saints fall to 4-4 for the season, 2-1 in EKL.  They will host the Saints Classic next Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

(STA journalism just got a new camera, and I used it for the first time tonight, so there will be some pictures up Monday.)

Fresh back from break, I talked to the Bourquins while walking into school and asked them if they were ready to come back.  Zach said, "It has been way too many practices without a game." Beau agreed.

The Saints came out to play after trading off baskets until they were tied at nine, the Saints took off to lead the 1st quarter 20-9.  By half-time they increased the lead to 36-23 before letting the Tigers back in in the 3rd which ended 53-47. 

In my earlier EKL scouting report I had identified Magdziarz and senior Tyler VanGerpen as the threats and that stood true as VanGerpen ende with 9.  Magdziarz, who finished with a game-high 28 points had a unique way of compiling his score with five 3-pointers, two dunks, seven fieldgoals and one free-throw.  He had control and when allowed an open court successfully drove coast-to-coast and scored.

For the Saints there was a pretty even attack from four players.  Zach led scorers with 19, folloed by Beau with 17, Kevin Sweeney with 15 and Alex Keith with 14.  The Aquinas effort was highlighted by a floater in the lane from Zach and an impressive block.  Micke Rzeszut also contributed three points and looked strong a couple games out of injured reserve.

There was some controversy that caused a double-technical and seperate foul shots.  I am not sure exactly what happened, but obviously it was a little odd.

Towards the end of the game the Blue Valley fans could be heard chanting "Let's Play Football."  They did beat us this year in football, but I ahve always thought it is an odd cheer to break out, I mean, I think it says "Fine, we aren't good at this lets reminisce about when we were good at other things."

Overall, it is a strong start to league play for both teams.

Both teams were sloppy, but to some degree it is understandable in their first game off of a long winter break.  A rough first quarter left the score tied at 9. A low second qarter led to a 17-15 Saints lead at the half.  The Saints fell behind in the 3rd, ending 22-25 before the 4th.

The Lady Saints are in an interesting situation this year with no senior players on the team and very few returning performers.  The team is no doubt highlighted by Sophomore Dashawn Harden.  Though she does not always make a massive scoring impact, she has a presence on the court.  She handles the ball well and is extremely dangerous on a drive in the lane. 

She and Junior Melanie Siscos were the two heros tonight for various reasons.  It was Siscos who scored the and-one after being fouled on a layup to tie up the score at 33 with around 2:20 left in the 4th.  It was Siscos again with a basket to tie the score at 55 with around 30 seconds left in the game.  From there Harden had an impressive block on the defensive end to turn around and get fouled to make the game winning free throw with 2 seconds left.

The girls worked hard and they came away with a win.  It is a good start for the conference season and I wish them luck through the season.

They have come back from big deficits, put up gawdy offensive numbers and gained notoriety for their style of play.

But there is one team it just doesn't seem to work against -- Oak Park.

The Northmen have won four of the last five games against William Chrisman, including a 81-38 game at the beginning of the 2007-08 season.

So when the two teams met in Independence on Tuesday night, the Bears didn't come out in their full court pressure offense. Instead they dropped into a zone defense and tried to grind their way to a victory.

The plan worked for three quarters and the game was tied heading into the fourth. Ultimately though, Oak Park pulled away to win 45-34.

Hey you can't blame William Chrisman coach John Vickers. The one victory they did get against Oak Park came at the end of last season when they did the same thing.

BISHOP MIEGE (3-0)
Transfer student, Givens is already making a strong statement.  He
scored 30 in his Miege debut and followed that performance with 23 and
20 points in the next two games.  He leads the team in scoring and is at
least temporarily filling the gap left by graduate Travis Releford who
is playing for the University of Kansas.  Releford’s younger brother
Trevor scored 15 in the first game and 24 in the next game.  In the
third game however he was held to only two points because of an ankle
injury from the former game.

BLUE VALLEY (2-1)

            Blue Valley has been led early by Maedziarz who scored 22, 29 and 33 in their first three games.  He is followed by Van Gerpen who scored 12, 16 and 10.  The team will be participating in tomorrow’s games at Avila along with other Kansas and Missouri schools.

BLUE VALLEY NORTH (2-2)
    The Mustangs are led by Ehlers who scored 16, 13, 15 and 17 in the
first four games of the season.  He is followed by McLerran who scored
13, 16, 15 and 6.  Next is Wagner who scored 3, 14, 10 and 12.  BVN
participated in the Jim Draper Classic hosted by Blue Valley Northwest.
They took home the 5th place trophy.  They looked impressive from what I saw at the tournament.

BLUE VALLEY NORTHWEST (2-2)
            The Huskies are led by sophomore Brett Comer.  He has led his team in scoring in every game with 19, 15, 16 and 23.  When BVNW played STA he had an impressive floater in the lane and many impressive drives to the basket.  He is a kid to watch for.  He is assisted by Davis who scored 12, 10, 9 and 11, and Washington who scored 8, 11, 3 and 12.  Though STA pulled away with the first of the three season match-ups all will be battles.

BLUE VALLEY WEST (1-2)
    The Jaguar line-up features a senior, Brandon Ubel a power
forward, who is committed to the University of Nebraska to play
basketball next year.  He is leading scorers with 22, 24 and 16 in the
first three games.  Last year, BVW lost another Division 1 athlete,
Robert Lewandowski who went to Texas Tech University.

SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS (2-2)

            Now, to my boys.  I have been at all four of their games from Southeast to Blue Valley Northwest.  The team is led by a 3-man front of Beau Bourquin, Zach Bourquin and Kevin Sweeney.  In the second game, Beau had a career high of 24 points.  In the other games he scored 16, 16 and 12.   Zach, the only returning starter from last year’s team had 12, 14, 9 and 16 points.  Sweeney had 15, 15, and 14 points before being held to only four in the loss to Belvue West.  The Saints also are headed to the games at Avila tomorrow.

Have a great season athletes and fans!

Some of the top wrestling and basketball action of the season takes place on Saturday.

First in wrestling there is the Johnson County Classic at Blue Valley, which has 20 teams.

If that wrestling isn't doing it for you though, check out the Toshiba KC Midwest Nationals. Thirty two teams from nine different states are wrestling at the KCI Expo Center up by conveniently enough KCI.

I would make a case that this tournament has a tougher field than the state championship. Especially considering there were state champions last year that didn't make the finals.

Additionally there is some major baskebtall being played Saturday.

It is the final day of the Hy-Vee Shootout and has wall to wall boys basketball out at Avila.

Also though there is the High School Rivalry Showdown at Municipal. A host of district rivals will face off including, Oak Park v. Winnetonka, Truman v. William Chrisman, Raytown v. Raytown South and Blue Springs vs. Blue Springs South.

So yeah, head out and catch one of these games or matches.

The girls defeated Sumner and Junction City before falling to Bellevue West in the final. Even though they did not capture the championship, they can still come away from the tournament with confidence.

The Saints are an extremely young team. There are no seniors on the team, and so far only four juniors are suiting up. But two of those juniors, Melanie Siscos and Abby Willis, who both start, played on varsity last year. The other two juniors are Beth DeMars (another starter) and Sarah Kwapiszeski. The other two starters are sophomores Nelly Weledji and Dashawn Harden, who both started last year. Sophomore forward Katie Brown also gets significant playing time.

Against Sumner, the Saints came our strong and the game was never in doubt. Sumner was supposed to present a challenge to the Saints, but that did not happen. Harden and Willis led the scoring with 10 points apiece, and it was the first varsity appearance for freshmen Maggie Harrison and Nicole Speckin. Neither were fazed by playing varsity as freshmen, and both had outstanding tournaments. The final of the Sumner game was 49-17.

In the semis, Aquinas defeated Junction City 53-45, but the game was not that close. Melanie Siscos, a forward started the game with a 3, and that set the tone for the the game. Harden again led with 12 points, and Weledji chipped in 10.

The Saints struggled mightily in the final, falling to Bellevue West 60-44. Harden once again led the Saints in scoring, hanging 20 on West and keeping the Saints in the game. The Saints transition defense struggled, giving up waaaaaaay too many fast break points. Outside of Weledji, the Saints struggled shooting 3s, leading to lots of rebounds and points for West. The main reason for the Saints struggles on transition defense was that they ran a full court trap, but West broke it time after time. On the bright side, the Saints could have folded, but didn't cutting the lead to 6 late in the third quarter. Sarah Kwap also had a great game defensively, tenaciously guarding her man and coming up with two steals.

This indoor meet is for High Boys and Girls grades 9-12.

This is an excellent opportunity for High School Athletes to test their fitness and start the indoor track & field season.  We welcome relay teams to enjoy  running as a team in the early season. We are offering the following events.

 Events:

q       DMR (4 x 4000)

q       60M-60HH

q       4 x 200 meter Relay

q       1600 meter Run 

q       4 x 800 meter Relay

q       400 meter Dash

q       60LH

q       800 meter Run

q       200 meter Dash 

q       3200 meter Run

q       4 x 400 meter Relay

q       HJ, LJ, TJ, PV, & SP

So I covered the Olathe South/Gardner Edgerton tournament championship on Friday night, just thinking I would write about two city rivals ranked among the state's best (OSouth #8, ONorth #9 in Class 6A). But I came out so impressed with Olathe North senior Gary Watts' game, I had to shine a light on him. (Get it? Watts...light?!! I tell ya, these puns are super awesome!)

The game itself was also good, Olathe North holding off South 54-53. It's funny, the OSouth student section came dressed in rain gear, shower caps, bath robes and one clever dude with an umbrella hat, to drive home the point that jumpers would be raining down. But that forecast didn't come true until the third quarter (South scored only FOUR points in the second and trailed by 14)...that's when the Falcons splashed three after three after three to claw back in. With 7:06 remaining in the fourth, South finally tied the game on two made free throws before Gary Watts came back down the floord and nailed a three. Watts may score a lot but he's also a point guard and for the next few possessions, he dropped dimes to his cousin/teammate Lance Chandler. It helped that South missed its final six three-pointers down the stretch (the last being a despertion fling at the buzzer) and North survived the comeback.

But back to Watts, who's trying to become the best KC player you've never heard of. Last week, he scored 41 against Blue Valley West and he's really just a point guard...correction, a skinny point guard. He wears one of those Under Armour shirts under his jersey and although he says it's a size XL, I'm willing to bet that thing is much smaller. But What Watts lacks in size, his game makes up for it. He has an array of floaters and moves that create enough space between him and the defender so that he can take jump shots. Great arc shooter, too, and when he's on, that shoot looks very good. I didn't see him take the ball to the rim with much success but with two football players on the low block (Trey Walker and Doug Peete), Watts can just dump the pass off, which he did several times on Friday night.

 Here's a fun story Watts told me yesterday. I noticed the word 'DiRenna' written on his left wrist and he told me that that is his motivation for this season and former DiRenna award winner Marcus Denmon is his role model. Watts admires Denmon so much that he tracked him down on Facebook and requested to be his friend a while back.

"I've always looked up to him," Watts said.

 The two didn't really know each other but were brought together by a girl Watts knows. The story goes that one day Watts and the lady friend were out and about when she caught Denmon's eye. He thought she was Watts' sister so he asked him to hook them up. Watts jumped at the chance and so playing match maker brokered a friendship between he and Denmon. Now they talk and Denmon offers advice to Watts like: "Just stay level headed." So here's a lesson for you kids... if you aspire to meet your basketball idol, first track him down on social networking web sites then make sure when you do meet him, hang around pretty girls so that you get his attention. Works everytime.

So my story in Saturday's Star got trimmed for length (bummer), I want to post it here in its entirety to show a little more context about Watts' game and maturity. In there, I describe another moment when Watts' dead-eye shooting held back South.

By CANDACE BUCKNER

The Kansas City Star

OLATHE – There are a lot of things about Olathe North senior Gary Watts, when you first see him on the court, that could paint him as a normal high school super star player. Through a 32-minute game, he can make observers shake their heads in amazement and roll their eyes in dismissal.

 Watts has the swagger and confidence to believe he’ll make every shot. And when he doesn’t, that’s alright, because when at first he doesn’t succeed, he’ll shoot, shoot again He has a strong will and oftentimes when he feels that the referees missed a call, he’ll slap his hands toward their direction as he did during the Olathe North’s tournament championship win over Olathe South 54-53, on Friday night.

 He plays with the letters M-V-P scribbled on his right wrist and the word ‘DiRenna’ scrawled on his left. DiRenna, by the way, is the annual award given to the best player in the metro area.

 Yes, this is Gary Watts. The volume shooter who fancies himself as the best player on the floor. But that’s not all there is to him.

 So since you may not know him all that well, allow me this introduction.

 Kansas City, Gary. Gary, Kansas City. He’s been dying to meet you.

 “Basically I’ve flown under the radar my whole high school career,” Watts said. “No one know who I am, at least I think, and this (season) is my motivation.”

 If Watts keeps playing like he did on Friday night, shooting rain-making three-pointers, staying cool under pressure, setting up teammates and leading all scorers with 25 points (he’s actually shooting well over 50 percent for the season) and getting named the Olathe South-Gardner Edgerton Most Valuable Player, then that word written above his left shooting hand may be his by the time the season’s up.

 While Watts’ super-star act comes out on the floor, after the final buzzer, he turns into a young man you wouldn’t mind seeing your daughter take to the winter dance. Watts, the son of a preacher, smiles and says ‘yes ma’am’ when addressing women and also pushes for teammates’ names to get into the paper.

 “Lance (Chandler), my cousin, I feed off him,” Watts said of his teammate who with 1:28 remaining in a tight game stole the ball and nailed a crucial free throw to give the team a 54-51 advantage. “I’m more a laid back player and he’s more energetic. His defense leads to offense.”

 In his first full season at Olathe North, Watts has balanced team and individual success. As starting point guard, Watts has the team on a four-game winning streak, its best start in a while, while he has already broken two school records. Watts transferred in from Olathe Northwest last season but did not start immediately. And when he got into the game, coach Gabe Davis noticed some trends.

 “It was evident that he didn’t respond well to harsh criticism,” said Davis, who also noticed the same Watts’ reaction when adversity arose. “I figured out how to talk to him. He wanted to be talked to like a man. I said, as long as you act like a man, I’ll treat you like one.”

 Now he’s the man.  Just from that time to the first four games of the season, Watts has matured. When Olathe South slashed the 14-point Eagle halftime lead, senior Rustin Dowd nailing a three to bring the Falcons within the same margin, Watts coolly dribbled down court, asked for a clear out, threw an entry pass to senior T.J.Sheble, called for it back and made a three-pointer of his own.

 “It was contagious,” Davis said. “He came down and answered and you can tell by his swagger going back, by his body language, ‘Guys, we’re going to be alright.’”

 The Eagles survived a 25-point South third quarter and a desperation three at the buzzer couldn’t pull the Falcons back to the winner’s circle. A spot enjoyed immensely by the North fans who rushed the court at game’s end. Watts never got too crazy, he humbly accepted his MVP award and smiled his thanks to everyone who wanted to shake his hand afterwards – the proper introduction to a player everyone should get to know.

The Saints entered the game after a frustrating first game which resulted in a 2 point loss on a last second shot in overtime to the Southeast Knights.

Zach Bourquin made the first basket of the season for the Saints, Tommy Harrison hit the first three pointer and Kevin Sweeney pulled down the first rebound.  Beau Bourquin led the team with 16 points.

They came out to play with a slightly modified starting line-up that featured Seniors Kevin Sweeney, Zach Bourquin, Beau Bourquin, Alex Keith, and Junior Tommy Harrison.

Sweeney jumped for the ball and it flew out of bounds, the Saints had possession.  Beau made the first shot of the game and was fouled, traditional three point play.  This started the 7-1 run that the Saints had to start the game.

The game overall was sloppy.  There were a lot of fouls, a lot of travels and way too many missed lay-ups by both teams.  But, out of the mix there were moments of glory, namely Sweeny’s dunk.  His face was great, like he really did not expect for that to happen.  He got hi-fives all night.  Sweeney ended the game with around 15 points.  Zach had some great behind-the-back passes and ended the game with around 14 points. But the real star was Beau.  According to my count he ended the game with a domineering 24 points well distributed with free-throws, field-goals and three pointers.

This game also featured the super-fan cheering efforts of Derek Damas.  After the game, the best fans headed to Aquinas for a basketball double-header while the girls team faced the Sumner Sabres.  The guys helped with the three-point contest during half-time for the Lady Saints Classic.

It was fourth down and goal, even closer to the Aquinas endzone. Handoff. Tackle. Bring out the chains. Short by inches. Goal Line stand.

That stand by the Saints' defense was arguably the biggest set of plays in school history. Sure, the Saints were up 17-6, but they had not scored since going up 17-0 in the second quarter, and now the game was in the early stages of the fourth. A touchdown would have given Gardner all the momentum, with plenty of time left.

But the Saints stood strong and now find themselves in the state title game Nov. 29th in Emporia.

Quarterback Ricky Nachbar played his best game of the year, by far, in my opinion. He got the scoring started on a 1 yard keeper after an incredible third down halfback pass the previous play from Beau Bourquin to his twin brother Zach. Nachbar also connected with Zach for an 18 yard touchdown in the second quarter.

When Nachbar suffered a knee injury in the second quarter, Beau (a former quarterback who is now a starting LB) filled in admirably. Although he did not direct any scoring drives, he kept the offense moving with some superb passes, including a fantastic hookup with a diving Ryan Nelson for a first down late in the fourth quarter. 

Most people know by now that the Saints were 0-7 before last night in state semifinal games under head coach Kevin Kopecky, and the Aquinas community was overflowing with jubilation as the victory was wrapped up. Kopecky was given the celebratory water cooler shower, and the student section swarmed the field to celebrate and congratulate the players.

A few of the seniors have been on varsity since their freshman year, and they have seen their past three seasons end with a heartbreaking semifinal loss. They now are on the other side of that, getting to celebrate a semifinal victory.

The team scored first with a touchdown from a quarterback keep by Ricky Nachbar.  We followed that up with a field goal by David Baska.  The first half ended 17-7.  The Saints accomplished two interceptions and a blocked punt along with the scoring.

Early in the second half, Nachbar went down with an injury, (I was literally right where he lunged out of bounds and called for Lillis and Travis the trainer, it was ugly).  Head coach Kevin Kopecky went to former starting quarterback and current Linebacker, Beau Borquin.  Bourquin did a a great job stepping into the job with several passes to brother Zach Bourquin.     

After the win, the team celbrated for a couple minutes until coaches choraled them to recieve the trophy.  After that the team ran to the fans and the fans ran onto the field. The next maybe 20 minutes were full of hugs (coach-coach, coach-player, player-player, player-parent, etc.)  There was also a discreet thumbs-up from school president, Dr. Bill Ford.

In the last blog I mentioned my chat with Jan Morin, mother of OL star Jake Morin.  She and I found each other in the chaos and shared a hug and talked about how proud we were of the boys.  "I knew these boys were tough, they wouldn't go down without a fight," Jan said.

A good majority of the boys got interviewed and they are so happy.  There was even a dance party in the locker room.  I saw it driving back to school.

For 16-point underdogs, we weren't too bad.  Congratulations boys!

1st STATE FINAL - 1:00 p.m. Next Saturday @ Emporia State.  The Saints will play against the Hutchison Salthawks who won 42-21 over McPherson in their first year playing 5-A after moving down from 6-A.

It's Our Time! 

(Look for pictures soon!)

First of all it is important to point out that this is Blue Valley's first year in 6A football. Since the Saints have the most fanfare on this site I will use their god, God, to show the divine intervention/incredible luck that will send the Tigers to 6A state. God may be on the Saints side, but this year he is definately a Blue Valley Tiger fan(or as is commonly joked Steve Rampy is God). If you disagree just look at the East side of the 6A state playoff bracket.

Here's a synopsis of what has happened so far:

1st Round: Two huge upsets as the two undefeated favorites, Olathe East and SM West, both lose to a good 8-2 Olathe North team and a Cinderella 3-8 BVNW respectively. This means most likely at this point BV just has to beat two teams it had already beat earlier in the season instead of playing tougher undefeated teams.

2nd Round: BVNW showed that it didn't beat SM West for no reason and gave the Tigers a scare when the Tigers had a sub-standard performance. Basically what happened is BV was down by 3 with only a handful of seconds left facing fourth and really long(22). Luke Rampy(Steve Rampy's son) caught a pass at the 5 took a few steps and fumbled the ball after a hard hit. With cheers still ringing in the air a soph(PJ Debey) picks up the fumble in the endzone to win the game with 6 seconds left. A miracle happened in South Overland Park that day and the Tigers march on(Maybe the jokes about Coach Rampy's power have something to them, I mean it was his son if you catch my drift). Meanwhile in the other eastside quaterfinal, a scary Olathe North offense got shutdown by Lawrence Free State. On that subject, BV beat Olathe North during the regular season because of a missed extra point that gave the tigers a one-point win.(Something is happening, this isn't just luck)

To top it off the Tigers get homefield advantage against Free State this Friday Night.

So if you think God is only for the Saints then may He be with you this friday night, becaue the Tigers have the Force with them as well as thousands of loud fans. Tigers Truckin all the Way, Go BV. Next stop Topeka.

Tonight we had a school bonfire aptly named the "Go Saints, Beat Gardner" Bonfire.  Around 100 people showed up for the event.  The Saphire Dance Team performed, along with the cheerleaders and the Brigade band.  Head Coach Kevin Kopecky gave a couple words along with seniors Ryan Nelson, Zach Bourquin, David Baska and Kyle Brown.

The school is hyped up and is planning to show up in force with spirit buses.  The team is going for a histoic Aquinas record of getting past the state semi-finals.

The event ended with the team chant. "Who's time? Our time!" and a chorus of "When the Saint's Go Marching In"

The bonfire was so hot, most people had their backs turned in an awkward non facing circle.  There was also a t-shirt thrown in.  I heard tell that it was from an opposing athlete that was trying to crash the party. Hmm... Scandalous...

There was lots of cheering and general excitement.  A win would be nice in Gardner tomorrow.  On a scouting trip the team said they say signs all around town, so it will be a big game.  Jan Morin, mother of OL star Jake Morin, and I were running over the game details today and we decided that we can win this one. Our points? -we won last game 12-6 -we are playing a lot better than before this season -only one loss this season -these seniors really want it

It's Our Time.

But this time it can be different. The only loss the Saints have so far is an embarrassing 31-7 loss to Blue Valley. It was by far the Saints flattest performance of the year. However, the Saints have been strong in their other games this year. They had a very good EKL season, going 4-1.

Most importantly, though, Aquinas has already beat Gardner this year. In a cold, sloppy game Oct. 24th, STA was able to come away with a 12-6 victory. Although the game was close, as the score indicates, it was still a huge victory for the Saints. The field was in terrible shape due to the weather. Gardner prefers a running game compared to the Saints pass 1st, pass 2nd, consider running 3rd spread offense. A poor field should favor Gardner, but Aquinas still prevailed. With a good field on Friday, Aquinas' passing game should be even more potent than in the first meeting.

I think that if Aquinas can keep their emotions/excitement in check and play like they are capable of playing, they should be able to emerge victorious. The defense is led by ferocious senior linebackers Ryan Nelson and Beau Bourquin. They could run straight into a speeding semi and the semi would come out with the most damage. In fact, I have seen them do it. okay fine no i haven't. 

The key offensively will be the play of senior quarterback Ricky Nachbar. He has passed for an abundance of touchdowns this year, but also has thrown too many interceptions. If he is able to consistently make good, smart throws while stretching the defense, and avoid a huge turnover, the offense can have a huge night. He is joined be a great offensive line (Kyle Brown, James Slaven, etc.) and a cast of talented receivers and backs in seniors Zach Bourquin (Beau's equally beastly brother), Andy Grosdidier, Gabe Cunning, and sophomore Dagan Reed.

Both the Bourquin boys, Nelson, and Slaven went to Holy Spirit. Way to rep. 

Shawnee Heights put up a good fight and went into half tied 0-0, but they were only delaying the inevitable.  With the wind at their backs, the Saints scored four goals in the second half.  It was the Saints' sixth straight boys' soccer championship.

Five state titles is a huge deal for most schools to reach over an entire year.  Aquinas won five in its first six attempts (and volleyball was state runner-up) and the fall sports season isn't even over yet.  The Saints' football team, with its 41 seniors, is going to do everything possible to bring home the school's sixth title this year and first ever in football. 

The question is changing from "will we win?" to "how many will we win?"  State championships have become so common at STA they are pretty much expected.

So how many to expect this year?  

Well,we're already at five. If the football team plays the same way it has all year (except against Blue Valley) I think we will win state. 

For winter sports, swimming is one of the favorites now that 6A has split off from 1-5A.  Wrestling doesn't look like a favorite, but with the program's history anything is possible.  The basketball teams don't have the big name heavily recruited stars, but they have solid players. Let's be conservative and say one winter championship between those four. 

Spring: The boys' golf team returns enough golfers from last year's state team to be the favorite.  The girls' track team is also the defending state champs, so they have a good shot.  The boys' track team should at least take the distance events after the cross country team's success, so maybe they have enough to grab the team title as well.  Baseball suprised everyone two years ago and won state, and some of this year's seniors were on that team, so they at least have a chance.  Other than boys' soccer, the team with the most state titles is girls' soccer.  This is no suprise, seeing as the teams have the same coach.  Softball won last year and brings back a fair amount of last year's players, so they have a shot.  Girls' swimming- it's an Aquinas team, so they can't be counted out.  And, although they won't be counted in the official state championship total, the rugby team is defending champs and should be the favorites, and lacrosse has a chance because there are only a handful of teams to compete with.  So, not counting rugby and lax, we have a realistic shot at at least 3 titles in the spring.

So what is a realistic number?  We could win anywhere from eight to ten state titles this year.  How many schools can say that?  And, you never know what team will get hot.  Two years ago, the baseball team was one of the lowest seeds and still managed to win its first ever title.  Could very easily happen again.  And, although it seems to be a popular opinion of many of STA's opponents (especially the ones we beat), Aquinas does not recruit, so let's put that debate to rest.

I have to admit that I missed some of the game, when I left briefly to warm up.  Each team scored again and the final score was 49-20.  Zach Bourquin scored again on a 30-yard pass.

The Saints ended the game decisively on a fumble recovery with 27 seconds left in the game.  It was recovered at the Topeka 19 yard line.  There the teams ended the game and parted ways. 

The Saints had a team huddle after he game and were presented with the District Champion trophy.  The Saints next play Turner in another game at Aquinas on the 14th.

Aquinas is looking for their first state title in Football.  "This is Our Time"

The fans gradually gathered in and soon were huddling for warmth while cheering for the team and the managers alike.  It might be as cold as Russia in Rocky IV.  (Probably not, but the movie was on today and I love it.)

The game was started by an amazing kick-off return by senior Jordan Brandenburg that placed the Saints inside the 1.  Two plays later, Quarterback Ricky Nachbar ran it in, 1 yard, for a touchdown.  The Saints were on the board.  Soon after, Gabe Cunning ran in another touchdown after a 30 yard pass play giving the Saints a 14-0 lead.  David Baska's PATs have been perfect so far.  With 1:44 left in the first quarter, Topeka scored.

From there the Saints intercepted a pass and Brandenburg ran it 50 yards for a touchdown.  Gabe Cunning scored again, and Andy Grosdidier also scored.  Finally Zach Borquin scored.  The Saints have played well so far.

Also, props to the Soccer team who won 4-0 in their Semi-final game tonight.  They play for the state title tomorrow in Bonner Springs.  

More to come from the second half later!  Stay warm! 

The Saints play Liberal in the state semis on Friday at 5. If they win, they will play for the state title Saturday at 2. The games are at Bonner Springs.

In the Regional semifinals the Saints beat Washington 10-0. Then they beat Bonner Springs 9-0. And then Lansing 8-0. For those of you scoring at home, that is a 27-0 aggregate. 

Really, though, the Saints success cannot be considered surprising. This is the Saints seventh straight trip to the state semis, winning the previous five. Also, the Saints have a core group of experienced veterans, such as juniors Sean Latz, Colby Martin and Jordan Zarse (varsity since freshman year) and seniors Brendan Copeland and Josh Magness, who is committed to DePaul. With only five seniors, the Saints will be a force next year as well.

But back to the here and now. The Saints beat Blue Valley and Blue Valley West in the final two games of the regular season to clinch EKL outright, and they are 14-3 in their last 17 games, after starting 1-1, so they obviously are playing with cohesion and meshing with one another.

About 6:40 there was heavy rain with lightning.

Teams are in the locker rooms, fans are out of the bleachers.

We'll see what happens from there.

Regardless of whether you are for or against the new playoff system in Missouri, think of it this way: 

While Wednesday night's games may be a little boring blowout-esque bland, Monday night's quarterfinal round should be thrilling.

OK, back to work, just wanted to get that off my chest.

The boys faced strong competition from Bishop Carroll, but they prevailed with 71 points, compared to Carroll's 81. The Saints got strong races from Greer and fellow seniors Ben Grace (eighth) and Kyle Hanson (13th). Sophomore Craig Meixelsperger ran possibly the best race of his young career, finishing in 28th. Senior Danny Linder placed 39th to wrap up the Saints top 5 runners. Juniors David Glenski and Alex Hanson placed 44th and 81st, respectively, but only because they were coming back from injuries.

The girls won a dogfight with Kapaun Mt. Carmel, 74 points to 84 points. Junior Amanda Pigott ran a strong race, placing 17th. The Saints had the rest of their top 5 place in the top 30. Sophomore Betsy Donahue and senior Jenna Bellinder placed 24th and 25th. Junior Morgan Commodore, who battled an early season injury, returned to pre-injury form and placed 29th. Juniors Sarah Moore and Emily DeLong placed 46th and 61st. I still stand behind my statement in my previous blog that DeLong, Pigott and Bellinder have top 5 talent. Greer, Grace, Hanson, Washburn and Pigott earned all-state honors for their performances.

Possibly the funniest moment of the whole day was when the girls scores were finalized, and Saints coach Justin Wrigley came running down from the scoring table (or whatever they call it), going crazy and yelling "We won! We won!". It was classic Wrigley.

Also, despite the Saints having won 16 state titles during my tenure before Saturday, I had never been there to see it myself. Being there on Saturday to see two was fantastic. Although I was out on the course when Wrigley and the boys found out they won and subsequently missed their celebration, I was there when the girls found out they had won. It was incredible watching their celebration and display of emotion and joy. They, and us fans, were going crazy. If your school is ever playing in a state final, I highly recommend attending. The celebration (if you win) is not something you want to miss. Congratulations to both the boys and the girls, and congratulations to the Saints volleyball team, who placed second at state on Saturday.

A high point in the game was the inteception into a 89 yard interception turned touchdown run by Junior Jason Peete when the falcons were just to the point of scoring, keeping the falcons on their toes.

Last Friday night was senior night for Aquinas football.  The game was against Gardner Edgerton. 

With 42 seniors, there was a lot to celebrate, and we did.  The seniors in the band were also announced.  Yeah Brigade! They went on to win 12-6.  I know that doesn't even sound like a legitimate football score, but I will try to explain the entertainment value.

The game started with the traditional honoring of seniors.  Then a quiet first quarter left scoreless.  Finally a score right be fore half time.  It was a 12-yard-pass from Senior Ricky Nachbar to Senior Zach Bourquin.  The best part of it, his twin brother Beau swooping in for congratulations.  After that there was a missed PAT which back-up quarterback and current LB picked up and threw towards the end zone.  It fell a little short, but was reminiscent of Kerry Meier in his instinct.    That led to the fourth, where the Beau Bourquin appeared again to complete a 49-yard touch down pass to Senior Chris Storm.  After that the Saints tried a 2-point-conversion, which obviously did not score.  The Trailblazers scored in the third and went for two which was read and in turn foiled by the Saint's defense.  The game ended after a glorious interception by Senior Jordan Brandenburg, DB, to hand the undefeated Trailblazers their first loss.  Both teams now sit at 7-1.

The game theme was "Winter Wonderland-Puffy Coats" which I fully supported because it was freezing.  There was the epic sign fail due to the KCTV 5 flyover (too embarrassing for non-students, I of course was not an instigator..), the crazy guy that verbally jousted with our fans and the classic cheers. 

Overall, it was nice to have a great Senior Night game.  Seniors on the team played well, and seniors in the crowd lovingly cheered.  This class is pretty great.  Maybe I'm biased, but I think the reporters are pretty great too. :)  Really how many girls talk to the Bourquins about KU sports and Jake Morin about his Rivals.com profile (Look for a feature story about Jake in the Sun Magazine Oct. 29)?  And yes, the Bourquin boys did mention that they read my blog, the shout out is a partial shout of to them, guys, you know I am a fan!

Way to go Senior Rockstars! 

Football team: "It's Our Time"

The football team plays next in Pittsburg on Friday night.  Halloween. 

Dominance.

At the 5A Regional Championships last Saturday at Wyandotte County Park, the Saint Thomas Aquinas Saints sent a message to their upcoming state opponents, namely, it may take a perfect race to beat the Saints.

No, that is not really what anyone literally said and the state competition will feature mostly different teams than those at Regionals, but the Saints easily established themselves as a pre-race favorite.

On the girls side, Ashley Washburn ran a time of 15:37 - 50 seconds faster than the second place finisher. Senior Jenna Bellinder, junior Amanda Pigott and junior Emily DeLong finished third, fourth and fifth. They all broke 17 minutes. Sophomore Betsy Donahue came in as the Saints fifth runner - and sixth overall. She was followed by her remaining teammates, juniors Sarah Moore and Morgan Commodore. They scored 19 points, winning by over 30 points.

Washburn may very well be the favorite on Saturday at the 5A state meet at Rim Rock Farm in Lawrence. DeLong, Pigott and Bellinder all have the talent to place in the Top 5. Aquinas also benefits from having Commodore back after returning from an injury that hampered her for most of the year.

The boys team also had an extremely impressive showing. Senior P.J. Greer placed first with a time of 16:34, winning by 34 seconds over teammate Kyle Hanson. Senior Ben Grace placed third overall for the Saints. Sophomore Craig Meixelsperger placed eighth and senior Danny Linder placed 10th. Junior Alex Bolin just missed the Top 10, placing 11th. He is excited about the Saints' chances on state.

"Bishop Carroll is typically a powerhouse for both boys and girls, and they are the strongest competition. But Coach [Justin Wrigley] keeps telling us that our fitness is much better than everyone else's. If we run like we have all year, then we will win state."

On Tuesday morning, I walked into school and there were a couple of Fox 4 camera guys walking around with the tennis coach David Shriver.  It was because the Aquinas Girls Tennis team is their team of the week because they won state last weekend.  State is always a big accomplishment, but maybe more so for these girls, this year.  This is the first time that Aquinas tennis has ever won state.  Junior Nicole Jara won the singles title and Senior Elizabeth Close and Freshman Natalie Looney won the doubles title.  After the interesting split of the defending doubles champions Jara and Senior Lujan Brouwer de Koning, the team obviously still succeeded.  Congratulations girls on your first win!

The Girls Golf Team also took home a state title.  Junior Gianna Misenhelter won the individual title for the second year in a row and Senior Jill Stuckenshneider took third.  Along with Misenhelter and Stuckenschneider, Ali Kruse, Alexa Osbourn and Laura Tracy all placed in the top 11.  The Saints defended their title from last year.

The cross country team had an impressive showing at EKL last weekend.  C-Team boys and girls placed first along with JV boys and girls and the Varsity boys.  The Varsity girls placed second.  Seniors P.J. Greer, Kyle Hanson and Ben Grace took the top three spots in the Varsity boys race while Junior Ashley Washburn claimed her first EKL personal title.  That tournament ended the regular season and the varsity teams continue to the regional tournament this weekend.   

Tomorrow night will be senior night for Aquinas football.  We are set to play Gardner Edgerton who are 6-0 heading into the game. 

And if all that is not enough, then at least "Chinese Democracy" finally has a release date!

1. Olathe East (7-0 overall, 1-0 in district play)

Last week: defeated Blue Valley Northwest, 17-0

This week: at Blue Valley North

Among the impressive statistics the Hawks boast: have allowed a league-low 48 points (next best is SM West, which has allowed 81); have posted three shutouts and haven’t allowed more than 14 points in any game; senior Derahn Williams leads the league with seven interceptions, while senior teammate Shane Gordon ranks second with four; senior JaVon Williams has rushed for 823 yards and 16 touchdowns.

2. Shawnee Mission West (7-0, 1-0)

Last week: defeated Shawnee Mission Northwest, 17-10

This week: at Shawnee Mission North

The Vikings beat a very quality opponent last week to continue their season of rejuvenation. Senior Darron Harvey continues to the lead the league in rushing yardage. He is now up to 1,313 yards and 17 touchdowns while averaging a robust 9.8 yards per carry. SM West has the league’s top scoring offense (more than 38 points per game) and also leads the league in total offense (400 yards per game).

3. Olathe North (5-2, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Blue Valley, 42-41

This week: vs. Blue Valley West

Two one-point losses – to Olathe East and Blue Valley – are all that keep the Eagles from topping this list. But now Olathe North finds itself in a perilous position at 0-1 in district play. This week’s opponent, BV West, is the reigning 5A state champion and, while not playing quite to that level this year, is still a formidable foe. … Olathe North had not allowed more than 14 points in any game before yielding 42 to Blue Valley last week. … Junior James Franklin leads the Eagles with 1,227 rushing yards and a league-best 18 touchdowns.

4. Shawnee Mission Northwest (5-2, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Shawnee Mission West, 17-10

This week: vs. Shawnee Mission East

The Cougars had regained some momentum with four straight wins before losing last week. But even in defeat, they did play SM West as close as any team has all season. SM Northwest remains one of the league’s most capable teams, but already with a loss in district play, the Cougars have no margin for error now. … Senior Bryce Atagi ranks third in the league with 863 rushing yards, while scoring 12 touchdowns.

5. Lawrence Free State (4-3, 1-0)

Last week: defeated Leavenworth, 55-21

This week: at Lawrence

The Firebirds haven’t prevailed against the better teams on their schedule, but they are the favorites to win their district, which also includes Leavenworth, Lawrence and Olathe Northwest. So Free State should find itself back in the playoffs in a couple weeks, and the potential is always there for a late surge. Quarterback Camren Torneden is second in the league in total offense with 670 rushing yards and 620 passing yards (plus 10 receiving yards), and tailback Chucky Hunter (679 rushing yards, nine touchdowns) is always a big-play threat.

6. Olathe South (3-4, 1-0)

Last week: defeated Blue Valley West, 24-17

This week: at Blue Valley

Are the Falcons rounding into form just in time for another postseason run? Olathe South has won two games in a row, punctuated last week by an impressive upset over what was at the time a one-loss BV West team. Remaining games with Blue Valley (6-1) and Olathe North still pose quite an obstacle between the Falcons and another playoff berth.

7. Lawrence (3-4, 1-0)

Last week: defeated Olathe Northwest, 28-7

This week: vs. Lawrence Free State

After four straight losses, the Lions returned to the win column last week. In so doing, they are now in good position to contend for a playoff berth in a district that also includes Free State, Leavenworth and Olathe Northwest.

8. Shawnee Mission East (3-4, 1-0)

Last week: defeated Shawnee Mission North, 19-3

This week: at Shawnee Mission Northwest

The Lancers showed some fight, ending a string of three lopsided losses with a nice win last week. The offense bounced back after not scoring more than seven points in any of those three previous games. Senior Marcus Webb leads the league with 445 receiving yards on 25 catches.

9. Shawnee Mission North (3-4, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Shawnee Mission East, 19-3

This week: vs. Shawnee Mission West

The Indians had their two-game winning streak snapped last week, leaving them at a steep disadvantage in a competitive district (along with SM West, SM Northwest and SM East). Regardless, SM North has made significant strides from a one-win season in 2007.

10. Shawnee Mission South (1-6, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Blue Valley North, 17-14

This week: vs. Blue Valley Northwest

While the second playoff berth in its district was wide open (Olathe East is the clear favorite to win the district), SM South’s playoff odds decreased with its loss last week. The Raiders play a winless BV Northwest team this week and need to capitalize.

11. Leavenworth (1-6, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Lawrence Free State, 55-21

This week: at Olathe Northwest

Leavenworth hasn’t turned the corner this season like it hoped, but there’s still time to improve. Remaining regular season games against Olathe Northwest and Lawrence are winnable if the Pioneers can bounce back from their string of four straight lopsided losses.

12. Olathe Northwest (0-7, 0-1)

Last week: lost to Lawrence, 28-7

This week: vs. Leavenworth

The Ravens need more from their offense, which has scored more than seven points just once in the last four weeks. This week offers a winnable game.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

 CANDICE_______I HAVE BEEN PLAYING AND WATCHING HIGH SCHOOL
FOOTBALL FOR NIGH ON 50 YEARS  AND LAST NIGHT'S BLUE
VALLEY______OLATHE NORTH GAME WAS BY FAR THE BEST!!!!GAME I HAVE EVER SEEN!

I'll forgive Eugene for spelling my name wrong because clearly my friend here was still excited. I hate putting "best," "greatest" and other labels like that on things but I see Eugene's point.

THAT GAME WAS AMAZING!

Holy Touchdown, Batman, I was expecting a good game but nothing like this. My 550-word column did not do it justice. I mean, with all the big plays happening left and right. I had to leave out so many in the original story so here are some moments that Eugene was talking about: 

• First play of the second half, Olathe North senior James Franklin touches the ball and races 59 yards for the touchdown. On Olathe North's very next possession, the first play goes to Franklin again. He takes it from the BV 42 and runs into a crowd at the 40. He looks to be stopped cold then suddenly springs free and bounces toward the BV sideline...Houdini, meet James Franklin! Olathe North coaches were screaming 'UN-BE-LIEV-A-BLE!' in the press box as Franklin scores again. Ol' boy should just send college coaches tape of those two carries...that should get him a full scholarship and pizza money.

• Okay, so Olathe North's up at this point by two touchdowns but Blue Valley needs just five minutes to tie the game again. First, QB Anthony Abenoja splits two tacklers, who should've sacked him on 3rd-and-11, and hits Tyler VanGerpen in the end zone. Then, RB Treveor Cornley says "not so fast, James Franklin" and labors 52 yards for a touchdown. He actually got caught from behind and was pushed into the end zone. Eh. It's still six points no matter how you score it.

• Now here's where things got crazy. After Cornley's touchdown, Olathe North can't keep moving the ball and has to punt. BV's Ben Wilmes is standing deep in his territory but can't catch the punt cleanly and Olathe North recovers. However, the dudes in black and white stripes step in. The play is nullified and Olathe North has to re-kick. Till this day I'm not exactly sure what they called...somebody in the pressbox said an inadvertent whistle ruined the punt but I'm not 100 % positive. So now Olathe North coaches are screaming mad, as they should be, and their punting team goes back out. This time, Wilmes calls for a fair catch and he muffs it again. And Olathe North recovers it again! When was the last time you saw this happen? Talk about weird. Four plays later, Olathe North scores the go-ahead touchdown ... but misses the extra-point attempt. I wrote in my notes "ooooo could come back to haunt them." And, it did.

• Remember, all of this offensive action happened in the third quarter. In the final frame, the defenses settled in. Unbelievable, especially for this game, but each defense spent time forcing four consecutive three-and-outs to open the fourth. BV head coach Steve Rampy does all his duties from the press box (so he can better see his offense). He was a couple rooms down from us reporters so I got a little insider's view on what it's like to be Rampy's QB1. And now I'm frightened. When Abenoja got on the headset, The Voice of Rampy reverberated throughout the pressbox. Remember, I'm separated from the BV coaches' box by a good distance and I can hear Rampy yelling in that deep baritone of his for Abenoja to stop trying to throw the bomb. Abenoja listened (wouldn't you?) and next time out,  he led an 8-play, 55 yard scoring drive. Great pass and better catch to Luke Rampy, Steve's son, diving in the back corner of the end zone. Okay, so Steve Rampy may not be the kind of guy who likes to snuggle under a blanket, pour a cup of Passion Fruit tea and watch "The Notebook" but he sure can coach. Geno Waters, Zach Rampy, now Abenoja. The man makes quarterbacks. ...and scares 'em, too.

After Blue Valley goes up 42-41, Olathe North has 4:54 to win the game but a couple plays later, the Eagles face a 4th-and-6 at BV's 28. After a timeout, QB David Blazevic fakes a handoff to Franklin and rolls out of the pocket. He throws it downfield, the pass is tipped but Olathe North's Bryan Shepherd catches the ball while falling down at BV's 5. Now, THAT was the best play of the night. Everybody's going nutty on the Olathe North sideline but you know what happened next. The Eagles get to the 2-yard line and face a fourth downwith 12 seconds left. They go for a field goal. And...it's no good!

What a game. Both teams should make state and with Olathe East and Shawnee Mission West also rolling, I can't wait for the real 6A playoffs to begin. Alrighty, kids. That's enough for me. Till next week, leave a comment. I'm sure Eugene would appreciate it.

And what mekes today even better? What elses, another blog entry.

Here's a few thoughts as we head into one of the busiest weeks of high schools sports with the exception of those hellish final weeks of May.

1. There's no bigger game this week than Lee's Summit West vs. Raymore-Peculiar. Except maybe Liberty and Blue Springs. Regardless, the winner of the West/Ray-Pec game has bragging rights at least until the two likely meet in the playoffs.

I'm not necessarily a fan of both teams making the playoffs, but I do think it's a crime when teams who are dominant (LS West and Ray-Pec) get left out when some teams who dont' deserve to keep playing are getting smacked 55-0.

2.How about Staley. The Falcons improved to 6-2 with a 17-10 victory over Platte County on Friday night. Here's what I noticed about the Fighting Freds Falcons: they are young.

Duh, you say, they have no seniors, but that's not it. The majority of the skill position players are freshmen and sophomores. Listen, these guys likely won't make it past the sectional round of the playoffs but a year from now these guys may surprise some big dogs.

3. I must admit, I was big fan of this article. Mostly because I lived that for the first 18 years of my life.

4. Remember the name Kelsey Kessler. She's just a freshman at Blue Springs, but she along with an impressive veteran group have the Wildcat softball team two victories away from a Class 4 state title.

5. Is it possible that Herm Edwards can petition the NFL for Nathan Scheelhaase to start at quarterback for the Chiefs the rest of the season?

Five things I think I think (if you didn't know, I'm paying homage to Peter King of CNNSI.com)

1. I think Blue Valley proved it is the best team in the EKL. I know what you're thinking - big shock, right? But after a 29-7 season-opening loss to Manhattan (which is now 5-1), the Tigers have won their last five games in impressive fashion. They still have to beat BV West to clinch an outright league title, but things are looking good for the Tigers.

2. I think Blue Valley's defensive coordinator Rick McNerlin doesn't get enough credit. For the most part, Aquinas has dominated each team they have played this season. But this is the first time all year I've seen Saints' big-play offense really struggle to get anything going.

Much of that has to do with the Tigers' defense, which is perennially one of the league's best under McNerlin. They are fast and well-coached. You have to be if you completely shut down an offense with a huge offensive line and playmakers at quarterback and receiver.

McNerlin was the man in charge of Blue Valley's 2006 defense, which led the Tigers to a state title. I still say that unit was the best high school defense I've ever seen, with BV West's group last season a close second. And while this year's group isn't on that level, they are pretty darn good.

I'm looking forward to seeing how the Tigers do against Olathe North, which is 5-1. I admit I don't know much about the Eagles - my colleague Ryan Young covers the Sunflower League for us - but I hear they've got a stud running back named James Franklin who is one of the best in the area. Stopping him should be a terrific test for the Tigers' defense.

3. Speaking of running backs, I think Blue Valley's Treveor Cornley may be the most underrated player in the league. He's a little bigger in person than he appears from the stands. He's fast and he's pretty strong, too. No wonder he's run for 362 yards and 10 touchdowns on only 59 carries this season.

4. I think Blue Valley quarterback Anthony Abenoja is pretty tough kid, both mentally and physically. He runs the ball well, though his coach Steve Rampy wants him to stop dancing around so much. He also seems to respond every time Rampy - a former quarterback - challenges him, which is often. Kudos to Abenoja for keeping his cool and doing whatever it takes for the Tigers to win.

5. I think Aquinas will rebound quickly. Or at least they better.  The Saints shouldn't have much problem with Ottawa, their opponent this week, but Aquinas will face a loaded and undefeated Gardner Edgerton team in two weeks. Trailblazers coach Marvin Diener will have those boys ready to play, so if the Saints aren't up to the challenge, they will lose.

Well folks, that's all I've got. Feel free to e-mail me at tpaylor@kcstar.com if you have any thoughts or suggestions.

All four softball games scheduled for today have been postponed.

The game between Blue Springs and Belton will be played Thursday at 5 p.m. at Shalimar Park in Grandview. The rain, plus the forecast of decent weather tomorrow made the change an easy one.

Kearney and Oak Park will have their game pushed back as well to Thursday at 5 p.m. at Adair Park in Independence, Field 2.

Platte County and Chillicothe is also postponed. They'll play at 7 p.m. Thursday at Chillicothe.

Harrisonville will host Warsaw at 6 p.m. at Harrisonville on Thursday.

He ran the race in 16:06, which was a second faster than his old time.  The next runner finished at 16:20 and teammate Kyle Hanson followed a second later. 

Greer's record sits behind ex-coach Chris Ronan who finished in a 15:58, leaving 8 second to possibly cut off his time.  Ronan was a 1992 grad who came back to coach and left last year to pursue marathons.  He ran in the Boston marathon and finished in 2:38:56.  For more on him follow the link below.

http://www.stasaints.net/s/348/index.aspx?sid=348&gid=1&pgid=991 

After the race, head coach Justin Wrigley congratulated Greer and alerted him to his new record.

The team next heads to the EKL meet on Thursday at Blue Valley High School.  Varsity boys were #1 in the preseason 5A state rankings, #3 in MOKAN and #6 in DyeStat/NIKE NXN Heartland Ranking.

Congratulations P.J. and good luck to the team at state!

(Look for pictures early next week.)

I had been lucky most of the season when it came to watching close games. I was there when Rockhurst and Blue Springs went to overtime and at several other close games. 

This weekend wasn't the case though. I headed out to see two of the remaining four unbeaten teams on the Missouri side of the line, Orrick and Hogan Prep.

Orrick cruised to a 62-0 win and Hogan Prep won 65-8.

If you are keeping score at home that collectively is 127-8. The two teams were up by a combined 103-0 after the first halves.

While I sat there trying to keep the box score during these blowouts I got to thinking. At what point do you call off the dogs.

Basically, my opinion varies depending on the level of football.

In high school, I think you call it a day when you are up by 35-40 points. That's what Pat Richard and Phil Lascuola, two of the coaches I have nothing but respect for, did. It got to the point where both of their teams started taking knees on extra points. 

What that allowed Orrick and Hogan Prep (and their opponents St. Paul Lutheran and Van Horn) to do was get in some young guys to get some pretty valuable experience.

After a team put 90 on Maranatha Academy earlier this year it certainly cemented my opinion on this.

There's no reason for a team to impose their will in high school by trying to hit triple digits.

Now I know what you are saying. It’s not the offense’s job to stop scoring, it’s the opponents job to stop them. I agree – in college.

College is a whole different story. When a team only brings 55 or so players on the road for a game, it isn’t like you can go deeper than the second string. Plus, for all the money the defensive coordinators are making, yeah, it is your job to stop them.

Still, even at that level, most college coaches have the decency to get up by 40 or 50 points and have mercy. 

And the NFL… well, if the coaches can figure out a way to score 50 or 60 on the Chiefs, go for it.

On a happier note

I don’t keep an official list of the best players I see each year, but I’m confident I watched the best freshman in the city play at Hogan Prep on Saturday.

Phillip Collier, all 5’5 of him, is jaw-dropping fast. He doesn’t see the field much though, not with 3 other stud running backs ahead of him.

On Collier’s first run of the game, he went all the way across the field making cuts eventually scoring on an 80 yard run.

Just keep an eye on him. He’s legit.

Liz and her doubles partner, freshman Natalie Looney, won the doubles title which, in an odd turn of events, did not even include the defending state champion doubles team of Lujan and junior Nicole Jara.  In a surprising move Co-coaches Amy Person and David Shriver split these two in an experiment to see how they would do alone.  Something worked because Jara went on to win the singles title in a 6-0, 6-2 blowout.  Following close behind, Lujan took fourth place.  Porter and her partner, junior Katie Krim, took third.

I know that athletes sometimes get a bad rap when it comes to academics, but these girls are pretty great all around.  I have the privilege of knowing all three seniors mentioned above and having them in classes.  They are nice, pretty and in Honors classes.  They even have Porter, the Homecoming Queen.   Their coaches are pretty impressive too.  Knowing how Person challenged her Honors American History class, I can only imagine how good of a coach she would be.  And Shriver’s honors Economy class is a challenge too.

The point is these people are real.  This team goes beyond the football stud walking down the hall excitement.  I am really glad to see them in the hall each day.  I have known Lujan since grade school, and I met Liz and Bridget here.  I do not know if it is the student body’s unfortunate lack of interest in tennis, but I think that almost makes them stronger.  I do not think that there are many other groups of girls who so quickly could create doubles teams and break off from them and succeed like they do.  Porter and Krim had only played four matches together before this one and they were able to take third place.  

I admit, I do not go to their games, but I know these girls and I follow the team.   I wish them all the luck in their coming state play.

First things first.

I had been lucky most of the season when it came to watching close games. I was there when Rockhurst and Blue Springs went to overtime and at several other close games. 

This weekend wasn't the case though. I headed out to see two of the remaining four unbeaten teams on the Missouri side of the line, Orrick and Hogan Prep.

Orrick cruised to a 62-0 win and Hogan Prep won 65-8.

If you are keeping score at home that collectively is 127-8. The two teams were up by a combined 103-0 after the first halves.

While I sat there trying to keep the box score during these blowouts I got to thinking. At what point do you call off the dogs.

Basically, my opinion varies depending on the level of football.

In high school, I think you call it a day when you are up by 35-40 points. That's what Pat Richard and Phil Lascuola, two of the coaches I have nothing but respect for, did. It got to the point where both of their teams started taking knees on extra points. 

What that allowed Orrick and Hogan Prep (and their opponents St. Paul Lutheran and Van Horn) to do was get in some young guys to get some pretty valuable experience.

After a team put 90 on Maranatha Academy earlier this year it certainly cemented my opinion on this.

There's no reason for a team to impose their will in high school by trying to hit triple digits.

Now I know what you are saying. It’s not the offense’s job to stop scoring, it’s the opponents job to stop them. I agree – in college.

College is a whole different story. When a team only brings 55 or so players on the road for a game, it isn’t like you can go deeper than the second string. Plus, for all the money the defensive coordinators are making, yeah, it is your job to stop them.

Still, even at that level, most college coaches have the decency to get up by 40 or 50 points and have mercy. 

And the NFL… well, if the coaches can figure out a way to score 50 or 60 on the Chiefs, go for it.

On a happier note

I don’t keep an official list of the best players I see each year, but I’m confident I watched the best freshman in the city play at Hogan Prep on Saturday.

Phillip Collier, all 5’5 of him, is jaw-dropping fast. He doesn’t see the field much though, not with 3 other stud running backs ahead of him.

On Collier’s first run of the game, he went all the way across the field making cuts eventually scoring on an 80 yard run.

Just keep an eye on him. He’s legit.

The day started with the Freshman Girls race led by Mackenzie Lutz in 5th place.  sophomore Betsy Donahue led the sophomores in 8th place.  The junior girls though had the most dominant showing with five finishing in the top 15 and two in the top 5.  They were led by Ashley Washburn who finished with 15:34.  She was way ahead of any other runner. 

1- Ashley Washburn    3- Emily DeLong      6- Amanda Pigott      7- Morgan Commodore   10-Sarah Moore         11- Blakely Swanson      14- Meagan Wilderson

With Laura Roxberg of Blue Valley Nothwest graduated last year, Washburn has a pretty good chance at state this year.  If you have not seen her run it is just facinating.  I am a cross country alum, after a knee injury, but it was really interesting being with her in practice.  She is one of those people who is obviously talented and her finish today showed it.

After that race the senior girls were led by Jenna Belliner who finished 9th.  One of the most poignant things about the team is the unity.  After a race, they cheer for each other.  The team has around 115 runners and they stick around even hours after the race to cheer on friends.  In an individual sport it is cool to see them come together in celebration.

Head coach Justin Wrigley pushed the team hard with Varsity running about 9 miles-a-day.  For the non-varsity the season ends next Thurday at the EKL Championship.  The girls finished 3rd at state and are defending regional champions.  I wish the team the best of luck as they finish out the season!  Run tall!

(Look for pictures early next week) 

Happy Birthday Betsy!

Last night Aquinas traveled to Blue Valley to take on the Tigers.  The game was televised and broadcast on the radio.  Unfortunately things didn't really work out for us.  Not very many fans came and the game just went badly. 

After an good return on the first kick-off, the Saints went cold.  There would be a couple good plays, but it wasn't connecting for some reason, until the fourth quarter.  With 1:58 on the clock we scored.  The drive was beautiful, but too late.  The game ended 31-7.  Beyond the score, Senior Chris Maggio was injured during the game.  He went down for a while and then a couple plays later he was down for longer and ended up being assisted off the field and sat on the bench with ice around his knee for the rest of the night.  His older brother, 2007 alum Nick Maggio, who plays for Duke came and visited last night and was there to comfort him while he was out.  

It was not our best game, but for our second away game that happened to be against the #1 team in the EKL, it wasn't too dissapointing.  It's hard to admit but it is sad, not horrible.

Next week the team returns home to battle with Ottowa.  At 5-1 the team still looks good.  "This is our time." 

(Look for pictures early next week)

Ya know, nothing makes me happier than writing a blog wrap up from my week in HS football and watching 90s R&B video clips on YouTube.

And yes, this is just a cheap way to post a highly random yet genius Karyn White song. You can't listen to this without breaking out into the Running Man.

But as to not completely alienate my 17-and-under readership, let's move on to the week that was in preps football, shall we? On Thursday night, I went to the 'big' matchup of Rockhurst-Minnetonka (that's not a typo of Winnetonka, btw). Minnetonka is some team from Minnesota, eh. Which reminds me that Minnesota native Prince had some pretty decent 90s offerings but I can't post any YouTube links to his songs because he'll sue me.

So anyway, I understand that Minnetonka is a pretty good team. The Skippers (not the most intimidating nickname I've ever heard but let's play along) came to KC ranked fifth in the largest class of football by the Minnesota Associated Press. But they should really fire the dude who does their schedule. Last week, they played a team named Eden Prairie that was on a 33-game winning streak. Only to turn around on a short week and drive seven (!) hours to play the defending large class Missouri champs. That's just brutal. The only thing coming out of that is a ride on the L-train for two straight weeks.

So Minnetonka is honoring a two-year agreement with Rockhurst and got nothing out of the deal. Last year the Hawklets went up there and beat 'em, and on Thursday, the Skips got skunked in front of like 25 moms and dads. ... and on national TV. Fox Sports Network picked this game to broadcast, and let's be honest here and realize that all these networks are showing up this season for the Hawklets because of one Nathan Scheelhaase. Still... couldn't these guys pick a better game? Yeah, they're trying to showcase Scheelhaase but I'm certain FSN wanted something other than a running clock and a cameo appearance by sophmore backup QB Frank Arbanas. Plus, where's the drama and excitment in looking at empty stands and a match up between out-of-state teams? I don't have to use my bachelor's broadcast degree to say that ain't good TV.

But Rock's looking good going into districts. Coming off a 41-0 shutout at CoMo Hickman then this latest 38-7 victory. The running game was working so well, that one of my favorite WRs in the area, Keith Langtry, didn't really get a ball thrown his direction until the the second quarter. He ended up with 115 yards and 2 TDs. Langtry's fun to watch because of his athleticsm and awareness out there. The kid's got spiderman gloves for hands and he's always looking to make that extra move up field. I've yet to see him make the cardinal sin of taking his eyes off the pass while trying to make some spectacular cutback and dropping the ball because of it. ..which I witness a lot at this level.

On Friday night, I got to see another team looking mighty good heading into districts. Liberty. This game was held at the new District Activity Center at Staley High. Nice joint! Big, spacious press box, which is essentially all I care about, and good Oak Park people running it. They were too good, really. I was an annoying guest. They let me drink the last Coke in the fridge and I was sitting right next to the team's video coordinator and I'm certain that I messed up their shots by chatting up the camera guy. So if Keith Ross and his crew watches game tape and hears some girl saying 'WOW!' at least three times, they'll know it's me.

That's right, there were three plays when Liberty juniors Garrett White and Marcus Lucas made me audibly voice my surprise. Early in the game, White had three touches and two 80-yard touchdown runs. Seriously, how do you let a dude break off TWO runs like that before halftime? On virtually the same play? Then right before intermission, Lucas comes up with the best punt return I've seen all year. And he didn't even score. Lucas (6-5) can run fast for a big guy and so he's zipping along. Then he looked to be wrapped up near the OP 20 yard line, guys swarming around him and somehow he breaks free and drives with defenders hanging on him to the 6. Amazing.

But what's more amazing is Liberty's turnaround from a year ago. They started that season 0-4 then lost the ninth game of the season to Oak Park. But here they are, 6-1 and legit favorites to come out of districts for a playoff spot. I don't count them out. It's also stunning that this was the same defense that gave up 60 points to the Raymore-Peculiar PANTHERS but they were swarming the line of scrimmage and Oak Park's quick hitters. Disregard those 14 fourth-quarter points they gave up, the game wasn't that close.

Well, thanks for reading and enjoying Classic Karyn White with me. I also recommend "Romantic" and the next song I'm gonna kill at Karaoke night... "Super woman."

Till later, peeps.

CLASS 1
TEAM (Overall record) Last week's ranking
1.  Sacred Heart (18-5-3) 2
2.  Eminence (20-2) 4
3.  Lockwood (17-3-1) 5
4.  Lesterville (20-2) 6
5.  Santa Fe (12-3-3) 1
6.  Leopold (17-1-1) 7
7.  New Covenant (12-5) 3
8.  Gateway Academy (21-2) 9
9.  Hurley (14-3-1) NR
10.  Lutheran (Kansas City) (18-1-1) 10
DROPPED OUT:  Northwest (Hughesville)

CLASS 2
TEAM (Overall record) Last week's ranking
1.  Lafayette County (18-1-2) 1
2.  Stockton (14-3-1) 2
3.  Scott City (21-1-2) 4
4.  Brentwood (21-2) 6
5.  Hermann (13-5-1) 3
6.  Lee's Summit Christian (11-3) 7
7.  Bishop LeBlond (15-4) 10
8.  Ash Grove (15-2-2) NR
9.  Fair Grove (11-6-2) 8
10.  Orchard Farm (13-5) 5
DROPPED OUT:  Maryville

CLASS 3
TEAM (Overall record) Last week's ranking
1.  O'Hara (15-2-4) 1
2.  Logan-Rogersville (15-4-1) 5
3.  St. Francis Borgia (17-6-3) 6
4.  DeSoto (19-1-1) 4
5.  Platte County (18-2) 2
6.  Reeds Spring (12-4-2) 3
7.  Holden (15-4) 10
8.  Republic (10-5-1) 8
9.  Boonville (13-5-1) 7
10.  Fulton (11-3-2) 9
DROPPED OUT:  None

CLASS 4
TEAM (Overall record) Last week's ranking
1.  Lee's Summit West (22-1) 1
2.  Lafayette (Wildwood) (21-1) 3
3.  Blue Springs (18-2) 4
4.  Incarnate Word Academy (20-6) 5
5.  Helias (14-1-1) 6
6.  Parkway South (21-2) 2
7.  Glendale (16-2-1) 8
8.  Ozark (11-2-1) 9
9.  Park Hill South (15-2-2) NR
10.  Parkway West (16-5) NR
DROPPED OUT:  Cor Jesu Academy, St. Teresa's Academy

Friday marked Homecoming for Saint Thomas Aquinas.  Alumni and parents were welcomed to the tailgate and later to the game.  A week of themes and class videos was epitomized by the traditional Homecoming Pep-Rally and finally, the game.  In an odd turn of events the senior class lost the homecoming festivities when the float won, the banner and video got second, and the skit was disqualified.  That was general unhappiness for the "Senior Rockstars."

So, here are the game details you might not know without me.  The opponents hailed from Blue Valley Northwest High School, almost three miles away.  Aquinas entered the game undefeated while BVNW entered without a win.  Not surprisingly, each continued their streaks at 5-0 and 0-5 respectively; Aquinas won the game 45-21.  This was an especially exciting win because the last two years Aquinas has lost the homecoming game, and after all that hype, it is kind of a letdown.  Sorry BVW, we beat you this year on your Homecoming.  I guess that guy that I was talking to at the grocery store was wrong when he said that they were going to beat us like every year.

At half-time a football player, Ben Loughman, was crowned king and a tennis player, Bridget Porter, queen.  The Aquinas football team has adopted the slogan "It's our time," referring to state play.  This would be the first year in state play and as a senior and  I agree.  It is our time.

In fact, Raytown South received just one fourth-place vote heading into their game against Lee's Summit West.

Wonder who voted for them to be #4 :)

It wasn't this guy or this guy or even this guy.

Regardless, it's a big day for Raytown South.

Here's the rest of your rankings.

CLASS 6
Rank, Team              W-L    Pts    LW
1. Blue Springs (12)    5-0    60    1
2. Rockhurst              4-1    48    2
3. Fort Zumwalt West   4-1    32    3
4. Hazelwood West     5-0    19    -
5. Jefferson City         3-2    10    4
Others receiving votes: DeSmet (4-1) 8, Liberty (4-1) 3.

CLASS 5
1. Raytown South (6)    5-0    51    -
2. Raymore-Peculiar (3) 4-1    44    2
3. Timberland (3)          5-0    29    5
4. Hazelwood East          4-1    27    4
5. Lee's Summit West    3-2    19    1
Others receiving votes: Parkway West (5-0) 8, Waynesville (4-1) 2.

CLASS 4
1. Kearney (8)      5-0    117    1
2. Carthage (1)    5-0    101    2
3. Union (2)        5-0    97    4
4. Webb City (1)    5-0    93    3
5. MICDS    4-0    63    6
6. Harrisonville    4-1    61    7
7. Smith-Cotton    5-0    54    8
8. Normandy    5-0    33    9
9t. Bolivar    5-0    18    10
9t. Helias    4-1    18    5
Others receiving votes: Branson (5-0) 3, Hannibal (4-1) 2.

CLASS 3
1. Monett (10)    5-0    115    1
2. Chillicothe (1)    5-0    107    3
3. Moberly (1)    5-0    96    4
4. Oak Grove     5-0    82    5
5. KC-St. Pius X    4-1    72    6
6. Pleasant Hill    4-1    52    2
7. Sullivan    5-0    49    8
8. Holden    5-0    31    10
9. Fredericktown    5-0    25    9
10. Mountain Grove    4-1    12    -
Others receiving votes: Berkeley-McCluer South (4-1) 9, Savannah (5-0) 8, O'Hara (3-2) 2.

CLASS 2
1. Maplewood (9)    5-0    116    1
2. Maryville (2)    5-0    109    2
3. Clark County (1)    5-0    98    3
4. Centralia    5-0    76    4
5. Blair Oaks    4-1    75    5
6. Hogan Prep    5-0    59    6
7. Fair Grove    5-0    47    7
8. Carrollton    5-0    37    8
9. South Shelby    4-1    30    9
10. Lawson    4-1    10    10
Others receiving votes: Brookfield (4-1) 1, Mountain View-Liberty (4-1) 1, Plattsburg (4-1) 1.

CLASS 1
1. Orrick (12)    5-0    120    1
2. Tipton    5-0    108    2
3. Miller    5-0    90    3
4. Princeton    5-0    81    4
5. Hamilton-Penney    5-0    70    5
6. Thayer    4-1    67    6
7. Hayti    4-1    50    7
8. Valle Catholic    4-1    34    8
9. Fayette    4-1    22    9
10. North Platte    4-1    18    10
Others receiving votes: None.

Now on to teams that ya'll care about. First, a thousand apologies going out to the Raymore-Peculiar PANTHERS. In my Saturday morning column, I referred to Tom Kruse's boys as the 'Tigers.' Maybe I had Tigers on the brain because Ray-Pec's finest were back in town, Chase Coffman and Derrick Washington, enjoying their bye week and decked out in Mizzou Tiger gear. Or maybe I'm waging a one-woman campaign against the unethical treatment of the Panthera and am secretly trying to change the Ray-Pec mascot. Whatever the case, I'm sorry, Ray-Pec fans. I definitely know better. So from here on out, I will refer to your team as THE PANTHERS, only in bold type. There.

So THE PANTHERS came up short in knocking off The Star's No. 1 ranked Wildcats, losing 28-21. I like that Cameron Coffman-Gavin Lutman connection but you could tell they weren't clicking all night. The youngest Coffman has the tools - pocket presence and a good strong arm - but many times he and his receievers just weren't on the same page.

Too bad, because THE PANTHERS were holding on to that 7-0 lead for the longest and a couple more body blows could've hurt Blue Springs.

But as I wrote in the story, Blue Springs has this knack for starting slowly and making almost every game exciting with some sort of comeback or hold-on-for-dear-life defensive moment. The Wildcats are super talented, Keeston Terry and Darrian Miller impressed me again. Scary to think how good the 'Cats are now and they'll still have guys like Terry and Miller around next year. Blue Springs has played a killer schedule but you'd like to see them put together a complete game before it's too late.

As for THE PANTHERS... THE PANTHERS will do whatever THE PANTHERS want to do. Because they are THE PANTHERS. (overkill now). Wouldn't be shocked to see Ray-Pec make a nice run deep into the Class 5 playoffs.

Other thoughts:

• How 'bout them Raytown South Cardinals, eh? Are the Cardinals for real? They just answered that on Friday night by beating Lee's Summit West. They're now 5-0 and enjoying their best start in four years.
• Congratulations to East High for getting that first win. East High re-opened to take Van Horn's place in the KCMO district, so it's nice to see the boys winning a game after three tough losses.
• And is this the year that St. Thomas Aquinas will finally get past the Kansas Class 5A semifinals? Who knows but the Saints are looking good in this regular season.

Before I check out, I just want to salute my guy Bob Luder. He worked at The Star for about as long as I've been alive, making sure your kid got his or her name into the paper. But he did more than that, he was a valuable asset to the high school beat and also Bob split time covering professional tennis and soccer in KC. Now, Bob has moved on to better and brighter endeavors. I'll miss his off-color humor in our staff meetings and his Monday morning movie reviews. He really is a great guy. You're my boy, BLu.

Yeah, I'm talking about playoffs, as much as that may upset Jim Mora.

But no, I'm talking about the playoff system.

The change in the Missouri playoff system allows for two teams to make it from each district. That's fine and dandy in all but one situation, Class 5.

The good folks at MSHSAA have 11 districts in Class 5, which means 22 teams make the postseason.

My  buddy Ross Martin has a blog entry that helps break down exactly what is happening here.

I'll add this to his entry. Every district winner gets a first-round bye except one team in the St. Louis area.

On the KC side, these brackets are going to have the biggest effect on Districts 10 and 11 (see below). The winners of these districts will play each other in the first round (Kind of like they did back in the old days of 2007). The rest of the district winners get first round games against district-runner ups.

OCS is 1-2 in their 1st year of football, but Dante Lee, Jr. WR has caught 7 TD passes & one 2 pt. conv. reception.

Check out some fast paced, uptempo, Texas Tech style football if you can!

ALL CLASSES

1.     

Saint Thomas Aquinas

6-1-0

2.      

SM Northwest

6-1-0

3.      

Washburn Rural

5-1-0

4.      

Blue Valley Northwest

7-1-0

5.      

Olathe East

4-1-1

6.      

Olathe South

5-2-0

7.      

Wichita Southeast

6-0-0

8.      

Shawnee Heights

6-0-0

9.      

Olathe North

5-2-1

10.          

Blue Valley North

5-3-0

6A

1.     

SM Northwest

6-1-0

2.      

Washburn Rural

5-1-0

3.      

BV Northwest

7-1-0

4.      

Olathe East

4-1-1

5.      

Olathe South

5-2-0

5A

1.     

Saint Thomas Aquinas

6-1-0

2.      

Shawnee Heights

6-0-0

3.      

Salina Central

6-1-0

4.      

Liberal

4-1-0

5.      

Kapaun-Mt. Carmel

5-2-0

1A-4A

1.     

Rose Hill

5-0-0

2.      

Desoto

6-0-0

3.      

KC Christian

5-3-0

4.      

Hayden

4-3-0

5.      

Piper

4-1-0

1. Liberty wide receiver Marcus Lucas is making a case for All-Metro consideration already. The junior hauled in six passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns against Park Hill on Friday night. He's caught 22 balls for 459 yards this season. That's over 20 yards a catch. There's a reason Missouri and K-State are interested in him.

2. Don't run it up. Coach Corso and Kirk Herbstreit always get on my case when I run the score up on teams on my PS2. Well, the Sunshine Scooter would have been going crazy at the Sherwood-Maranatha game on Friday night. Sherwood, a school just southeast of Harrisonville, put 90 on Maranatha.

Sherwood was 0-3 going into the game and had scored just 33 points.

3. Can we stop with the putting four fingers up in the fourth quarter? Yeah, we know it's the fourth quarter. But at least put up three fingers for Dale Earnhardt too. Especially since this is NASCAR Week.

4. The Suburban Big 7 title could be decided this coming Friday night. Raymore-Peculiar hosts Blue Springs. Both teams are 4-0.

5. Dalton Krysa went over the 5,000 yard mark for his career on Friday night. He pounded out 230 yards on the ground in a 31-0 win for Fort Osage.

But the game was certainly closer than it appeared. Miege only trailed 24-21 with around six minutes left in the game. But the floodgates opened when the Stags were stuffed on a fourth and 1 in their own territory and the Saints ripped off three touchdowns to seal the win.

Despite the final score, I think we learned a lot about each team. Here are a few quick observations.

St. Thomas Aquinas

*First and foremost, one player I shouldn't have left out of my preseason players to watch blog is receiver Zach Bourquin. Bourquin, who caught three touchdown passes against the Stags, has terrific hands and knows how to get open. if Nachbar puts the ball in his vicinity -which he did often on Monday - there's a good chance Bourquin will catch it.

*Coach Kevin Kopecky knows his team has to stop with the turnovers and foolish penalties. The Saints got three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties during the game (by my count, anyway), including two on one play in the third quarter that swung the momentum toward Miege and led to a near-comeback. Yes, there was plenty of woofing between the teams, so the Saints weren't alone. But penalties are the mark of an undisciplined team, and guess what - undisciplined teams don't win state titles. Luckily for the Saints, they still have time to turn this around.

*My guess is the Saints may look to get the ball to RB/WR Dagan Reed more. He's just a sophomore, and he's not as big as his brother Kyler (who is currently a freshman at Nebraska) but he is really quick and could give defenses fits.

*QB Ricky Nachbar made a few terrible throws on Monday (hence the interceptions), but he eventually showed why we considered him to be one of the top quarterbacks in Johnson County. His 80 yard run in the second half and his three touchdown passes were instrumental in the Saints' win.

Bishop Miege

*Receiver Justin McCay is the real deal. The 6-foot-4 junior burnt the Saints' defense with a 71 yard touchdown in the first quarter in which he outjumped the defensive back on a deep pass and outran everyone else to the end zone.

*Since when did Bishop Miege's offensive line get so big? While I was sitting in the press box, I heard a few people comment about the size of their offensive tackles. Their right tackle, who was just a sophomore, was around 6-4, 300 pounds.

*I like the Stags' defense. They are opportunistic, tough and forced a bunch of turnovers on Monday. They eventually wore down later in the game. The offense simply put them in too many bad situations.

*Running back Andrew Cage is shifty and fast. Once playoff time comes, he could give other 4A teams fits.

*Quarterback Max Shortell is tall and has a nice arm, but he threw too many interceptions on Monday. If the Stags hope to beat 5A and 6A teams this season, they must take care of the ball better.

There are some big games this week, starting Thursday with the Olathe East-Olathe South rivalry matchup.

1. Olathe East (2-0)

Last week: defeated SM Northwest, 28-0

This week: Thursday at Olathe South

How’s this for defensive dominance? Through two games, the Hawks have allowed one offensive touchdown (and one special teams touchdown) and have held two top-flight opponents to an average of 54 rushing yards per game. … Opposing defenses are keying on Olathe East running back JaVon Williams, but that hasn’t entirely stopped him. Williams’ overall numbers (35 carries for 160 yards) may not be quite what they were last year, but he scored the decisive touchdown against Olathe North in the season opener and broke free for a 59-yard touchdown run against SM Northwest last week.

2. Olathe North (1-1)

Last week: defeated Leavenworth, 60-7

This week: Friday vs. Olathe Northwest

The Eagles had a good matchup against a struggling Leavenworth team last week, and they took advantage. After being stifled by Olathe East in their season opener, the Eagles’ offense showed plenty of power last week, but it will take a few more games to truly be able to evaluate their offensive potential. Still, Olathe North moves back up to the No. 2 position here, and as expected before the season, looks to be Olathe East’s top challenger. Though the teams have already played their regular season game and it’s a little early to speculate, a postseason rematch is certainly possible.

3. Shawnee Mission West (2-0)

Last week: defeated Olathe South, 21-14

This week: Friday at Lawrence

The Vikings are off to a very nice start after their struggles late last season. Coach Tim Callaghan was cautious not to read too much into the team’s impressive season-opening win over Lawrence Free State, but it’s hard to ignore that SM West is one of only three undefeated teams in the league while opening the season with two very quality opponents. The Vikings have the second-most rushing yards in the league through two weeks, averaging 251 per game. Senior Darron Harvey is the league’s individual leader with 366 rushing yards and five touchdowns.

4. Shawnee Mission Northwest (1-1)

Last week: lost to Olathe East, 28-0

This week: Friday vs. Lawrence Free State

The Cougars struggled to do anything offensively against Olathe East last week, but it’s too soon to count out the defending Sunflower League champs. There is too much potential in that offense with the talent it returns from last year. Free State is another quality opponent, and how SM Northwest plays this week could say a lot about its potential for the rest of the season.

5. Olathe South (1-1)

Last week: lost to SM West, 21-14

This week: Thursday vs. Olathe East

The Falcons have played two tight games so far, edging Olathe Northwest and falling to what looks to be a strong SM West team. With so much turnover from last season, it was bound to take the team a few games to find its identity. It will be interesting and telling to see how the Falcons fare against Olathe East.

6. Lawrence Free State (1-1)

Last week: defeated SM South, 28-7

This week: Friday at SM Northwest

The Firebirds bounced back with a win last week, but they face a tough test this week with another team that prides itself on its running game. SM West put up a prolific rushing effort in its season-opening win over Free State, and the Cougars will try to do the same. This game will give a good indication of how improved the Free State defense really is.

7. Lawrence (2-0)

Last week: defeated SM East, 24-7

This week: Friday vs. SM West

The Lions can match their 2007 win total with another victory this week. Of course, SM West should prove to be the toughest team they’ve played this season. Statistically speaking, Lawrence has shown good offensive balance with quarterback Clint Pinnick throwing for 231 yards and Clifton Sims rushing for 210 through two games.

8: Shawnee Mission North (1-1)

Last week: defeated Olathe Northwest, 14-0

This week: Friday at Leavenworth

SM North has shown plenty of encouraging signs so far and moves up in the power rankings. After winning only one game last year, the Indians played Lawrence down to the wire in their season opener and then broke through with a convincing victory over Olathe Northwest. The SM North defense has yielded 243.5 yards per game, but it has managed to allow only 10 points through two weeks.

9. Shawnee Mission East (1-1)

Last week: lost to Lawrence, 24-7

This week: Friday vs. SM South

The Lancers have had an up and down start, shutting out Leavenworth in their season opener before losing by 17 last week. They have thrown for the second most yards in the league so far with Curran Darling completing 21 of 49 passes for 308 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

10. Olathe Northwest (0-2)

Last week: lost to SM North, 14-0

This week:  Friday at Olathe North

The Ravens showed plenty of potential in their narrow season-opening loss to Olathe South, but last week’s shutout loss shows the team still has some work to do. The Ravens first need to limit their turnovers as they’ve thrown a league-high seven interceptions.

11. Shawnee Mission South (0-2)

Last week: lost to Lawrence Free State, 28-7

This week: Friday at SM East

The Raiders’ early season schedule hasn’t done them any favors with games against SM Northwest and Free State. But the offense needs to show more if the team’s results are going to meet its preseason optimism. The Raiders are scoring 10 points per game and averaging only 65 rushing yards per contest.

12: Leavenworth (0-2)

Last week: lost to Olathe North, 60-7

This week: Friday vs. SM North

Leavenworth needs its running game to show marked improvement. The Pioneers are averaging 87 total yards of offense per game with almost all of that coming through the air.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

CLASS 6
Rank, Team    W-L    Pts    LW
1. Blue Springs (12)    3-0    60    2
2. Rockhurst    2-1    48    1
3. Fort Zumwalt West    2-1    30    3
4. Jefferson City    2-1    21    4
5. DeSmet    2-1    17    —
Others receiving votes: Blue Springs South (1-2) 2, Hazelwood West (3-0) 2.

CLASS 5
1. Lee's Summit West (8)    2-1    54    1
2. Hazelwood East (3)    3-0    47    2
3. Raymore-Peculiar    3-0    30    5
4. Eureka (1)    3-0    29    3
5. Park Hill    2-1    18    4
Others receiving votes: Holt (3-0) 1, Timberland (3-0) 1.

CLASS 4
1. Kearney (9)    3-0    117    1
2. Carthage (1)    3-0    105    2
3. Webb City (1)    3-0    94    3
4. Union (1)    3-0    87    4
5. Helias    3-0    68    6
6. MICDS    3-0    59    5
7. Harrisonville    2-1    50    7
8. Smith-Cotton    3-0    44    8
9. Gateway Tech    2-1    14    —
10. Neosho    3-0    6    —
Others receiving votes: Normandy (3-0) 5, Festus (2-1) 3, Hannibal (2-1) 3, Bolivar (3-0), Branson (3-0) 2.

CLASS 3
1. Monett (11)    3-0    117    1
2. Pleasant Hill    3-0    104    2
3. Moberly    3-0    90    3
4. Chillicothe    3-0    77    5
5. Oak Grove (1)    3-0    72    6
6. Fulton    3-0    71    4
7. KC-St. Pius X    2-1    37    7
8. Berkeley-McCluer South    3-0    35    8
9. O’Hara    2-1    29    9
10. Fredericktown    3-0    10    10
Others receiving votes: Holden (3-0) 6, Mountain Grove (2-1) 4, Ste. Genevieve (2-1) 4, St. Francis Borgia (2-1) 2, Savannah (3-0) 1, Sullivan (3-0) 1.

CLASS 2
1. Maplewood (9)    3-0    116    1
2. Maryville (2)    3-0    109    2
3. Clark County (1)    3-0    98    3
4. Lawson    3-0    77    4
5. Centralia    3-0    69    5
6. Blair Oaks    2-1    65    6
7. Hogan Prep    3-0    50    7
8. Fair Grove    3-0    30    9
9. Carrollton    3-0    26    —
10. South Shelby    2-1    14    —
Others receiving votes: Brookfield (    2-1) 6.

CLASS 1
1. Orrick (12)    3-0    120    1
2. Thayer    3-0    107    2
3. Tipton    2-0    97    3
4. Miller    3-0    77    4
5. Princeton    3-0    68    5
6. Hamilton-Penney    3-0    28    9
7. North Platte    3-0    21    10
8. Hayti    2-1    58    6
9. Valle Catholic    2-1    20    —
10. Fayette    2-1    16    —
Others receiving votes: Rich Hill (3-0) 6, Concordia (2-1) 4, Marceline (2-1) 1.

Here's a quick glance at a few of the games this week that should be interesting on the Show-Me side of the line:

O'Hara at Sedalia Smith-Cotton 7 p.m. - Smith-Cotton handed St. Pius X their only loss and is ranked No. 8 in the Missouri Class 4 poll. A win for O'Hara can legitimize the Celtics to a lot of people.

Smith-Cotton can essentially wrap up the West Central Conference with this victory.

Park Hill at Liberty- Both teams are 2-1 and have a common opponent in Columbia Hickman.  The win would be big for either team and more importantly would give them a little breathing room above the .500 mark.

St. Pius X at Lawson- For two teams that have made playoff runs over the last decade in Class 2, these teams have only met once, in 1999.

The Warriors are in Class 3 now, so this is the only chance the two teams have to meet up. Lawson is the defending Class 2 champs, but hasn't had a big victory this season to really put them on the map.

But on to football, and any discussion has to begin with Blue Springs' 28-21 overtime win over Rockhurst Saturday morning at Dasta Stadium. Notice I didn't use words like "upset" or "stunner" in that last sentence. Considering the Wildcats were ranked second in Missouri Class 6 and in The Star's big-class top five, just behind the Hawklets, it probably shouldn't be considered that big an upset. It certainly wasn't by the Wildcats themselves. Coach Kelly Donohoe said he told his players all week that they not only could, but would, win the game. Bravado? Absolutely, but certainly not misplaced or flippant. Blue Springs won by basically running the ball down the Hawklets' throat. Especially effective was sophomore tailback Darrian Miller, who carried 31 times for 176 yards and three touchdowns. Donohoe said before the season he believed Miller could be just as good, even better, than Carlos Anderson, who graduated last season, and he was right. The Wildcats are now 3-0 and have already played two of the toughest opponents on their schedule -- Lee's Summit West and Rockhurst.

Speaking of Lee's Summit West, the Titans defeated Fort Osage 21-11, sending the Indians, who were Class 5 state semifinalists a year ago, to their second straight defeat and a 1-2 start. The game was moved to earlier in the day Friday and away from LS West to William Chrisman, closer to a home field for the Indians. Fort was close after three quarters, trailing 7-3, but the defending Class 4 state champ Titans pulled away late. It seems as though teams have been effective at stopping the Indians' senior tailback Dalton Krysa the past two weekends, and when you stop Krysa, you go a long way toward neutralizing the Indians.

Elsewhere, Grain Valley took it on the chin for the first time this season, taking a 48-16 hammering from Chillicothe. Oak Grove remained undefeated and Raytown remained winless in a 38-7 Panthers win over the Bluejays. Blue Springs South fell to 1-2 by losing a 20-19 squeaker against Raymore-Peculiar. And St. Mary's picked up a big 40-0 shutout win over Hughesville.

*Tonight's game between BV West and Goddard has been postponed. The teams will play Saturday at 6 p.m. in Goddard.

*The same goes for BV North's game against Maize. The game will now be played at 2 p.m. Saturday in Maize.

BV North athletic director Mickey Masterson the game was postponed due to flooding issues in Goddard.

"The kids' mindset was for playing today, but ultimately I dont think it should bother them too much," Masterson said.

The two teams were initially slated to play at Lee's Summit West, but due to rain, the decision was made to play the game on the turf at William Chrisman High School.

Check back later for more game updates.

Baseball is as American as ... tea and crumpets?

That may be case, according to a diary uncovered in southern England last year but only now being made public.

Julian Pooley, the manager of the Surrey History Centre, said Thursday he has authenticated a reference to baseball in a diary by English lawyer William Bray dating back to 1755 -- about 50 years before what was previously believed to have been the first known reference to what became the American pastime.

I am not knocking the British or anything but how can we tell that it still wasn't "invented" in the US (colonies) and taken back to Britain? I would have to guess that there were just a few ships going back and forth between the 2 hemispheres back then.

1. Olathe East (1-0)

Last week: defeated Olathe North, 14-13

This week: Friday vs. SM Northwest

The Hawks struggled offensively last week against a stout Olathe North defense, but there were enough positives to remain encouraged that Olathe East could be one of the top teams around. Its defense did well to hold James Franklin, one of the league’s better tailbacks, to 51 yards and come away with three interceptions (plus a fourth on a failed two-point conversion attempt).

2. Shawnee Mission Northwest (1-0)

Last week: defeated SM South, 27-13

This week: Friday at Olathe East

The Cougars posted the second best rushing total of any team in the league last week, totaling 271 yards in 40 carries with quarterback Mark Fancher and tailback Bryce Atagi each eclipsing the 100-yard mark. This week provides a tough test and good gauge of where the Cougars are at this point.

3. Olathe North (0-1)

Last week: lost to Olathe East, 14-13

This week: Friday vs. Leavenworth

The Eagles drop only slightly after playing Olathe East tight and exhibiting some dominating defense. The difference in the game last Friday was a bad snap on an extra point attempt. Otherwise, the Eagles matched Olathe East every step of the way. The Olathe North defense held the league’s reigning rushing leader, JaVon Williams, to 52 yards in 21 carries. And the offense showed potential.

4. Shawnee Mission West (1-0)

Last week: defeated Lawrence Free State, 40-19

This week: Friday vs. Olathe South

The Vikings made the biggest first-week impression by defeating a Free State squad with high expectations. Most telling, the SM West running game – slowed by offensive line woes last season – was dominant with a league-best 392 rushing yards. It’s still very early, but if week one was any indication, the Vikings could be the surprise of the league this year.

5. Olathe South (1-0)

Last week: defeated Olathe Northwest, 23-22

This week: Friday at SM West

With all the turnover of a coaching change and replacing most of the starting lineup from last season, one element didn’t change for the Falcons in their season opener – Olathe South led the league in passing yardage last week. New starting quarterback Tanner Dutton threw for 237 yards as the Falcons narrowly prevailed.

6. Lawrence Free State (0-1)

Last week: lost to SM West, 40-19

This week: Thursday vs. SM South

The Firebirds’ season-opening loss wasn’t as lopsided as the final score indicates. It was, in fact, competitive for much of the game. But it was still a setback for a team expecting and expected to be among the top teams in the league. Defense was Free State’s biggest question entering the season, and it remains so after the Firebirds yielded more than 400 yards of offense to SM West.

7. Shawnee Mission East (1-0)

Last week: defeated Leavenworth, 25-0

This week: Friday at Lawrence

Coming off a two-win 2007 season, the Lancers gave an encouraging first-week effort to reinforce their preseason optimism. Coach John Stonner suggested the team would benefit from its new-look spread offense this year, but the defense was just as impressive last Friday, holding Leavenworth to 83 total yards.

8. Lawrence (1-0)

Last week: defeated SM North, 10-3

This week: Friday vs. SM East

The Lions passed their first test thanks to 182 combined rushing yards. The passing game could stand to be more consistent. Lawrence will learn more about its team this week facing a seemingly much-improved SM East squad.

9. Olathe Northwest (0-1)

Last week: lost to Olathe South, 23-22

This week: Friday at SM North

A very encouraging opening game effort from the Ravens, who took the 2007 6A state runners-up down to the wire. Of course, they played a very different Olathe South team than that of last season, but perhaps this is a different Ravens team, as well. The offense showed balance and persevered despite losing its starting quarterback in the first quarter.

10. Shawnee Mission South (0-1)

Last week: lost to SM Northwest, 27-13

This week: Thursday at Lawrence Free State

Much of the Raiders’ preseason optimism hinged on the experience returning to the passing game. Senior quarterback Dustin King completed 10 of 29 passes with no touchdowns and an interception last week, and the team combined for only 57 rushing yards. That said, SM South had one of the tougher week one challenges.

11: Shawnee Mission North (0-1)

Last week: lost to Lawrence, 10-3

This week: Friday vs. Olathe Northwest

SM North kept the score close in its season-opener, but it finished with the second fewest offensive yards (186) of any team in the league. Quarterback Arthur Rucker had decent numbers, completing 15 of 25 passes for 113 yards and no interceptions.

12: Leavenworth (0-1)

Last week: lost to SM East, 25-0

This week: Friday at Olathe North

The Pioneers are depending on their running game to carry the offense this season, but that didn’t happen last week as the team finished with negative rushing yardage. Leavenworth will need to see improvement in that category to improve the outcome on the scoreboard in coming weeks.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

CLASS 5

Rank, Team                     W-L     Pts     LW
1. Lee's Summit West (8)  1-1     53      1
2. Hazelwood East (1)       2-0     44      5
3. Eureka (3)                   2-0     35      3
4. Park Hill                      1-1     24      2
5. Raymore-Peculiar         2-0     20      -
Others receiving votes: Jackson (1-1) 3, Timberland (2-0) 1.

CLASS 4

Rank, Team                     W-L     Pts     LW
1. Kearney (9)                 2-0     117     1
2. Carthage (1)               2-0     105     2
3. Webb City (1)              2-0     97      3
4. Union (1)                   2-0     86      4
5. MICDS                       2-0     63      5
6. Helias                        2-0     57      6
7. Harrisonville                1-1     56      7
8. Smith-Cotton              2-0     40      8
9. Grain Valley                2-0     21      10
10. Farmington               2-0     14      -
Others receiving votes: Gateway Tech (1-1) 2, St. Charles West (2-0) 2.

CLASS 3

Rank, Team                     W-L     Pts     LW
1. Monett (11)                  2-0     117     1
2. Pleasant Hill                 2-0     104     2
3. Moberly                        2-0     92      5
4. Fulton                          2-0     79      7
5. Chillicothe                    2-0     62      9
6. Oak Grove (1)              2-0     56      -
7. KC-St. Pius X                1-1     47      8
8. Berkeley-McCluer South 2-0     37      10
9. O'Hara                        1-1     19      6
10. Fredericktown             2-0     18      -
Others receiving votes: Mountain Grove (1-1) 15, Ste. Genevieve (1-1),
7, St. Francis Borgia (1-1) 4, Holden (2-0) 2, Cassville (1-1) 1.

CLASS 2

Rank, Team                     W-L     Pts     LW
1. Maplewood (9)              2-0     116     1
2. Maryville (2)                 2-0     110     2
3. Clark County (1)           2-0     97      3
4. Lawson                        2-0     80      4
5. Centralia                     2-0     68      5
6. Blair Oaks                    1-1     64      6
7. Hogan Prep                  2-0     48      7
8. Plattsburg                    2-0     39      8
9. Fair Grove                    2-0     26      10
10t. Brookfield                 1-1     4       9
10t. Montgomery County   2-0     4       -
Others receiving votes: South Shelby (1-1), 2, Carrollton (2-0) 2

CLASS 1

Rank, Team                     W-L     Pts     LW
1. Orrick (12)                   2-0     120     1
2. Thayer                         2-0     107     2
3. Tipton                          1-0     97      3
4. Miller                           2-0     77      4
5. Princeton                     2-0     68      5
6. Hayti                           2-0     58      6
7. Concordia                    2-0     42      9
8. Marceline                     2-0     37      -
9. Hamilton-Penney          2-0     28      -
10. North Platte                2-0     21      -
Others receiving votes: St. Vincent (1-1) 3, Fayette (1-1) 1, Valle
Catholic (1-1) 1.

Olathe East showed it can win without a huge game from senior running back JaVon Williams, edging Olathe North 14-13. The Hawks' defense was good in most every category, containing Olathe North tailback James Franklin (20 carries for 51 yards) and coming up with three big interceptions (plus another on a failed two-point version attempt). Senior Derahn Williams came away with two of those interceptions. ... JaVon Williams, meanwhile, will have his big games - and the Hawks will only be that much stronger.

The Olathe North Eagles couldn't pull off the statement victory, but their opening week effort said plenty about their potential. The Eagles' defensive front was positively stifling, holding reigning Sunflower League rushing leader JaVon Williams to 52 yards in 21 carries. Williams is a great back, but there was nowhere to run Friday. ... On the offensive side, senior receiver Bryan Shephard showed his playmaking abilities with a 92-yard kickoff return for touchdown and a team-high five receptions for 85 yards. Junior quarterback David Blazevic flashed a big arm in his debut as the Eagles' starter. He was inconsistent with three interceptions, but the talent is there. Especially impressive was a 37-yard strike to Doug Peete on fourth-and-three to key a first-quarter touchdown drive.

I'll write more about the other games around the league during the week as I check in with coaches. But at first glance of the scoreboard, I was especially impressed by Shawnee Mission West's 40-19 win over Lawrence Free State. Coming into the season, I thought the Vikings were an absolute mystery. They finished last season on a four-game losing streak and never looked quite right over the second half of the season. Yet, Tim Callaghan's program had been so strong until that slump that it stood to reason SM West would be able to right itself this year. And, sure enough, it looks like they have - at least, so far. Free State was picked to finish third in the league in a preseason coaches poll, so this was a strong early statement from the Vikings.

Also, Olathe Northwest gave Olathe South quite a fight before the Falcons prevailed 23-22. That's an encouraging effort from coach Todd Dain's Ravens. Meanwhile, Olathe South came into this season with a lot to prove after losing all but three starters from its 6A state runner-up team. A win in new coach Jeff Gourley's debut is a start.

I'll examine those games more and look ahead to next Friday's schedule throughout this week. Remember to check Varsity Zone daily for Sunflower League football coverage. On Monday, I'll post the new Sunflower League power rankings. On Tuesday, I'll take you around the league with news and notes. And on Wednesday, we'll break down the upcoming games.

| Ryan Young, ryoung@kcstar.com

   Just ask the Blue Springs South football team. The Jaguars were throttled pretty good by an excellent Rockhurst team in week 1, and for a long while Friday night, they appeared well on their way to an 0-2 start. Park Hill jumped to a 21-3 lead after just one quarter, and the Jags simply didn't appear to have an answer for the speed of the Trojans.

   But a funny thing happened to the Jaguars on the way to a second straight heartbreaker. They discovered the grit and perseverance that were characteristics of the past two South squads which had dropped just one game over the last two seasons. Quarterback Blaine Dalton threw a couple of touchdown passes, Brian Geraghty kicked a couple field goals, and the Jags rallied from 10 points behind with just two minutes left in regulation, forcing overtime. They then scored first in overtime on a Cameron Davis run, and when they stifled Park Hill's two-point conversion attempt, had a 35-34 win and the kind of victory that could catapult the team more wins as the season marches on.

   Other teams from the area continued their marches and improved to 2-0. Raytown South beat Platte County 28-2 behind three touchdowns from Isiah Turner. Blue Springs had no trouble with St. Joseph Central, winning 31-3. Oak Grove moved to 2-0 with a 28-21 victory over O'Hara, the winning touchdown coming on a 30-yard pass from Caleb Barnhill to Jacob Horn in the third quarter.

   Of course, teams also can shift from triumph to heartbreak in a heartbeat as well.

   Just a week ago, Fort Osage was basking in its come-from-behind win over Park HIll South, that was highlighted by Dalton Krysa's 96-yard kickoff return for the winning touchdown. No such good fortune Friday against Kearney, the No. 1-ranked team in The Star's small-class top five. After a scoreless first quarter, Kearney scored twice in the second and rode that lead all the way to a 17-7 win, handing the Indians their first loss. Fort's lone touchdown came on a 28-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Edward Pearl to Parker Jones.

   Raytown, meanwhile, had the dubious distinction of being the victim in new Staley HIgh School's first-ever varsity football victory, falling to the Falcons 42-20.

Anywho. Let's start in KC and the game that I attended, Rockhurst-Hutchinson. Great game. Be sure to catch the replay on Metro Sports, it's worth it. (And you tell me if that should've been a touchdown or a fumble for Josh Smith) When Rock scored in three little plays on their first offensive series I thought, "Wow, that was easy. Rock's gonna blow this one open." Then Hutch came right back with their rushing attack and scored. It wasn't so much that they scored, but how they marched down the field that impressed me then I finally realized, "Uh oh, Rock's in trouble."

It was the second straight series where they pretty much handled Rock's first line and did everything they wanted to do offensively. That Deveon Dinwiddie is something special, the kid had over 100 rushing yards before halftime. Whenever Hutch called a sweep, he was around the corner with a full head of steam and whenever they lined him up as a receiver, he was so far ahead of secondary defenders that it seemed like they forgot to cover him. So considering all this, and the fact that Hutch actually led this game at one point, you could feel the uneasiness throughout Dasta. That Hawklet student section (show me a better one in the city) had to break out their 'Rock Don't Quit!' chant earlier than usual. And guess what? Rock didn't quit. The Hawklets played the best game I've ever seen them play and Nate Scheelhaase was a boss, running with purpose and making the right passes... that third-quarter scoring drive should be watched, dissected and used in lecture rooms across the city on How to Lead Your Team. In the fourth quarter, the Hawklets contained Dinwiddie in the fourth quarter and of course made the defensive play of the night on that 4-and-14 stop. Overall, great game, kids.

Now, moving on. So I read through some box scores from other games and found some crazy stuff.

• What in the world are they feeding those Coffman boys up in Ray-Pec? Did ya'll see Cameron Coffman's stat line against Liberty: 18 for 21 for 534 yards and five touchdown passes.

Let's have that sink in for a minute.

• Kevin "Mr. Accuracy" McConnell from Oak Park was a perfect 16 for 16 in his passes. Are you feeling the same way that we've got a great class of quarterbacks in the area?    http://www.kansascity.com/187/story/784421.html

• Kansas finally joined the football foray this week ... Aquinas played "pretty good" in beating North Kansas 76-0 (that's just nasty), Olathe East and Olathe North played a stunner that came down to a failed PAT and the defending Class 5 champs from BV West keeps on rollin.

Alright, so I'm spent. Keep visiting our blogs and reading The Star (remember, literacy is fun). We'll keep this space updated. And coaches, don't forget to call in your box scores every Friday night so lil Johnny can get his name in the paper. The number is 816-234-4355, help us help you and just dial the number, alright?

Leave comments. People more important than me want you to.

For those schools that have artificial turf it's really no big deal, the rain should drain right away.

Where it could be a problem though is fields that are still natural grass. Granted there aren't that many of them anymore, but still, some au natural fields area a little muddy.

Since it is so ealry in the year the grass shouldn't be too chewed up. The muddier and wet a field is though the slower the players can run.

One coach I talked to though was worried that the combination of precipitation and grass could put his speed-dependant team at a disadvantage.

The sun was shining up here in the Northland earlier today (though metaphorically, when isn't the sun shining here?), however that only lasted about long enough for me to walk to my mailbox.

Those teams who like spread things out and go fast, are all hoping for some sunny weather and wind.

Meanwhile, it's fair to say I'm sure there are a few meatgrinder teams who wouldn't mind a mud bowl.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens tomorrow night.

The first week of the Kansas high school football season is here – and so are the first Sunflower League power rankings.

Every season can provide surprises. Just look at Shawnee Mission Northwest’s run to the league championship last year and Olathe North’s rejuvenation. With that mind, just because a team is ranked low now doesn’t mean it can’t rise quickly.

So, be sure to check back every week for the new Sunflower League power rankings, which will be posted on Mondays throughout the rest of the season. And if you strongly disagree with what you see here, feel free to let me know.