Scott Paske
Wichita
Non-better half, daddy-o, writer guy for KSHSAA.
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Articles by Scott Paske
KSHSAA cheer, dance camps give teams chance to bond, hone safety techniques
As a senior cheer captain who attended KSHSAA Summer Spirit Camps since eighth grade, Satanta’s Mia Burrows had witnessed the emotional tidal wave that sweeps over those participating for the final time. Still, the special recognition for high school seniors at the conclusion of the July 6-9 session at El Dorado’s Butler Community College hit differently. “It was definitely super sad,” said Burrows, who will cheer alongside seven girls and one boy this coming school year at Satanta.
Sterling quality: Dutton’s devotion helped school build performing arts powerhouse
Betsy Dutton was working on her college degree as an aspiring teacher when opportunity knocked. Dutton, then Betsy Halloran, studied theater and English at Sterling College in the early-1980s. Her theater advisor, Diane DeFranco-Kling, served on the Sterling USD 376 Board of Education and had children approaching high school age. “She wanted a theater teacher for her kids,” Dutton said.
Closing Speed: Andale’s Meyer sets, resets records in final run at state | South Central Kansas Girls Track and Field Champions
Andale’s Rylee Meyer believes a large part of her track and field success comes from program culture. Hard to argue, given the Indians’ success across the board with their girls and boys teams. “It’s a really great atmosphere, having a bunch of coaches who really care about what you do, and a bunch of teammates that will push you, and just the community in general,” Meyer said. Combine that with Meyer’s talent, and you had the recipe for a banner senior season.
Ave Maria! Blue Valley's Portela caps special season with dominant 6A sprint sweep | Kansas City Area Girls Track and Field Champions
Portela, who matched the fastest 100 time in state history in mid-May at the Eastern Kansas League meet, set 6A meet records in the 100 and 200, and ran a personal-best time in the 400 to sweep those titles in the two-day event at Crossland Stadium. Portela collected a fourth state medal as part of the Tigers’ second-place, 400-meter relay team. Portela’s final race, the 200, which was run after the first of two weather delays, marked the end of a season-long tour de force.
Syracuse's Lewis smashes 2A pole vault record, claims double gold | Western Kansas Girls Track and Field Champions
Syracuse junior Bronwyn Lewis had every reason to feel confident entering the Class 2A pole vault competition. After all, Lewis was the defending state champion in the event and was undefeated on the season. As for her prospects in high jump? “Not quite THAT confident,” Lewis said. A first-time state qualifier in the high jump, Lewis peaked at the perfect time, coming up clutch with a personal-best clearance of 5-3 to win the title.
Golden in a Flash: Buhler's Gleason fast tracks to elite status in 4A sprints with double golds, records | South Central Kansas Boys Track and Field Champions
Garrett Gleason had never considered himself much of a sprinter. And by that, he means not even remotely. High jump, long jump. Those were the events he considered his forte. And he wasn’t about to deviate from them. So despite repeated attempts from Buhler track coach Willie Adkins to convince him to try his hand at sprinting, Gleason responded in the same way. “My coach just saw something I didn’t see and he was trying to force me to do the 200 meet after meet,” Gleason said.
Two for two: Frontenac's Franklin captures second straight 3A high jump title | Southeast Kansas Girls Track and Field Champions
There were no newcomer nerves this time for Frontenac’s Reece Franklin. No long gaps between state titles to try to close. And until Franklin had her second Class 3A high jump title secured, there were no missed attempts either. Competing against many of the same finalists she did last year in her State Track and Field Championships debut, Franklin produced the same outcome, clearing the bar on her first five attempts and winning her second career championship with a jump of 5 feet, 6 inches.
Four-gold conclusion: Hesston’s Lehman finishes career with 12 state track titles in record-setting finale | Girls State Track Standouts
As she sat under a canopy in the holding area for state track and field medalists one last time, Hesston’s Ashley Lehman tried to single out the biggest highlight of her final high school meet. For once, the Swather senior tackled a challenge she couldn’t conquer. “I’ve actually got to go with two,” Lehman said. “With that pole vault, I finally beat my aunt’s school record. And in that 200, I just left it all out there. It was my last race as a Swather.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – The proverbial cupboard wasn’t bare as St. James Academy set out to defend its Class 5A boys golf championship this spring. Not with returning state medalists Josh Fratzel and Darren Powell, and a top-25 state finisher in Joey Governal. But for Thunder first-year head coach Justin Snell, who moved over from his assistant’s role in a position swap with Tom Radke, the restocking wasn’t totally conventional.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Hours after emphatically cementing his name in Kansas hurdling history, Shinji Pollard was still at a loss of words. “I still can’t believe it,” Pollard said. “I was just trying to prove a point. I was showing everybody the bib, like, ‘This this is me. This is what I do.’” Who is Shinji Pollard? Well, after his performance at this year’s State Track and Field Championships, the Piper senior very well could be considered one of the very best hurdlers in Kansas history.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Wellington junior Dru Zeka is an old pro at managing the demands of her busy track and field schedule, particularly under the glare of the State Outdoors spotlight. Zeka navigated through a hectic afternoon schedule on the opening day of the 2025 state extravaganza to set a Class 4A meet record in the long jump while also advancing through preliminaries in the 400 meters and 400-meter relay. She completed that day’s work with her second consecutive 4A high jump title.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Cohen Museousky has long appreciated golf as a microcosm of life, a sport where unforeseen challenges surface at any moment. Museousky, a Goddard sophomore, found himself in two such situations during the final round of the Class 5A boys state golf tournament at Tallgrass Golf Club.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Eisenhower girls soccer coach Roger Downing went out on a bit of a limb at the start of the season, replacing his graduation-ravaged defensive corps with players who, in his own words, “weren’t defenders by trade.” And in their opener, the Tigers saw a two-goal lead vanish in the final 14 minutes of a 3-2 loss to Maize South.
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WINFIELD – A second year of high school golf has made Connor Newman a little less of a risk taker. It’s helped him accept the occasional ill fate the sport dishes out indiscriminately. And it’s also, as of Wednesday at Quail Ridge Golf Course, made him a state champion. Newman, a Humboldt sophomore, turned the tide on a rare rough patch midway through the second round of the Class 2A boys state golf tournament.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
ARGONIA – It’s graduation season, and Abigail Paxson joined her 11 Argonia High School senior classmates in receiving diplomas on Saturday. Those types of ceremonies are chock full of wisdom for outgoing students, encouraging them to take a bold approach to life, make a difference and not be afraid to try new things. In other words, to chart a course Paxson already favors. “I’m kind of an adrenaline junkie,” said Paxson, the Capitol Federal® True Blue® Student of the Week.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
PRAIRIE VILLAGE – They went to bed with a team title mathematically in hand Friday night, then secured a place in Kansas tennis history Saturday morning after a smooth Class 3-1A state tournament semifinal session.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Around the time many teenagers started heading home to meet weekend curfew on Friday, Kapaun Mt. Carmel sophomore Ava Claassen proceeded to the starting line for the Shawnee Mission North Relays 3,200-meter run. Just over 10 minutes later, Claassen was the life of a record-setting party.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Even with a state-ranked opponent doing the damage, what unfolded Monday afternoon for Mulvane senior Hagen Warkins had potential to be a bit unsettling. Warkins, last year’s Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail I Pitcher of the Year at Campus, lost command of his off-speed pitches in the second inning of a doubleheader opener at Wichita Collegiate. The Spartans, down three runs at the time, quickly picked up on it. Collegiate’s Gavin Klausmeyer and Devin Ritchie led off the inning with solo home runs.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Senior Evan Goates successfully defended his Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail I singles title and led Maize South to the league team championship on Monday. Goates, the reigning Class 5A champion, defeated teammate Landon Cook 6-1, 6-1 in the final to help the host Mavericks finish with 49 points, six ahead of runner-up Valley Center.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
As in past seasons, swimmer Angela Ewert has spent the spring collecting state-qualifying times, high finishes and an occasional school record. The main difference this year is she’s done it competing exclusively for Hesston High School, where she’ll graduate from later this month.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
HUTCHINSON – As Shawnee Mission East junior Stuart Boulware saw his breath in the morning chill on the Carey Park Golf Course putting green Friday, he wasn’t exactly locked in on the possibility of a scorching hot round. But the weather soon warmed, and so did Boulware. Firing a bogey-free, tournament record-tying 66 that included a birdie on his final hole, Boulware earned medalist honors by one shot and led the Lancers to the team title in the Rusty Hilst Invitational.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Humboldt golfer Connor Newman has done his best to nix the concept of a sophomore slump. Coming off a stellar freshman season for the Cubs that culminated in a runner-up finish at the Class 3A state tournament, Newman won his fifth tournament in as many starts this spring when he fired a 3-over 75 on Monday to earn medalist honors in the Buck Quincy Invitational at Allen County Country Club outside of Iola.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Allyson Orth’s singular approach to giving her best effort occasionally brings her multiple interests together. Like the time Mother Nature gave the Bishop Carroll softball player a chance to catch up on a classroom assignment. “I definitely classify myself as a nerd,” said Orth, a senior in her final days as a Golden Eagle. “There was one time we had a rain delay, so I was in here with my math book out, working on my homework,” she added, pointing to a dugout at Wichita’s Two Rivers Youth Club.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
2026 BOYS GOLF PREVIEW Shawnee Mission East CLASS 6A 2025 State champion: Shawnee Mission East 2025 State Runner-up: Blue Valley North 2025 Individual State Champion: Brady Rapp, Blue Valley North 2025 Review: If you like golf drama, Shawnee Mission East seems to be able to provide it. Two years after winning the Class 6A title on a fifth-man tiebreaker, the Lancers fended off Blue Valley North by a mere two shots over two days at Winfield’s Quail Ridge to win their 20th title in program history.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
2026 GIRLS SWIMMING AND DIVING PREVIEW Class 6A champion Blue Valley North CLASS 6A 2025 State champion: Blue Valley North 2025 State runner-up: Shawnee Mission East 2025 Review: After winning its first state championship in 18 years in 2024, Blue Valley North renewed its lease as the reigning title holder, earning victories in seven of the 12 events at the state meet to roll up 375 points – 10 more than the Mustangs scored at state two seasons ago.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
In the two most spectrum-spanning moments of Sebastian Hines-Turner’s high school basketball career, one thing connected them. Success. Moment No. 1 came on Dec. 17, 2024, in Wichita Collegiate’s league opener at home against Wellington. Looking to create in the waning seconds of a tie game, the 6-foot-5 Hines-Turner spotted wide-open teammate Jack Grace underneath the basket and lobbed it to him for the winning score as time expired in a 76-74 victory. Only Hines-Turner never saw it.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
The first piece of evidence that Bluestem’s Ryder Whiteside wasn’t going to take a challenging situation lying down was a hand shifter. That was Whiteside’s solution for changing gears on his dirt bike just days after he was injured in a late-afternoon automobile collision on U.S. 400 approximately a mile west of Bluestem High School in Leon.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Hours before the Class 5A girls state championship game, the topic of conversation among some St. James Academy players turned to Jenna Schmeidler, the standout sophomore guard for Hays. The Thunder were well aware of the career-high 33 points Schmeidler scored in the Indians’ state semifinal victory over Shawnee Heights, and they knew junior Emme Albright would draw the primary defensive assignment on her later that afternoon.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Olathe North’s boys were state runners-up a year ago and won 24 games this season. So it’s not like the Eagles suddenly stumbled into good fortune during the Class 6A state tournament. But the way they captured the first state title in program history was simply breathtaking. After opening the tournament in Kansas City with a 27-point victory over a Derby team that had won 14 of 15 games, Olathe North took its show on the road to Koch Arena. And what a show it was.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Jason Jones Jr. did what he was supposed to Saturday, crashing the boards from his spot along the baseline. But the Bonner Springs senior had a hunch of what was going to happen as teammate Kelan Gruver sent a shot skyward from well beyond the 3-point line in the Class 5A boys state championship game at Koch Arena. “I had confidence he was going to hit that shot,” Jones Jr. said. “He’s done it all year. I had no doubt he was going to hit it. It was exciting.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Shawnee Mission South girls coach Mark Western likes to draw from past experiences. His Raider basketball team plays a pressuring defense he learned as an assistant coach in Colorado over 20 years ago. That defense’s vulnerabilities were exposed in a non-league matchup with Blue Valley Northwest in mid-January. But it worked Saturday in part to a senior who reminded Western of the veterans who led South to a state title in the same building two years ago.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – This was more what Drake DeBaun and Shawnee Mission South had in mind. A year and a day after the Raiders came to Koch Arena as the No. 1 seed and lost by one point in the Class 6A boys state quarterfinals to eighth-seeded Maize, they returned and blistered Wichita Heights 79-54 on Friday in the state semifinals with smiles and high-fives in endless supply.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – Teegan Vietti took the court for the Class 5A girls state tournament quarterfinals with some extra motivation Friday at Koch Arena. And top-seeded Andover paid the price for it. “I did not play super good the other day,” Vietti, a St. James Academy junior, said after she went scoreless in the Thunder’s first-round victory over Maize South. I think I was in my own head.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – The first shot was expected, anticipated and almost predictable. The second shot was an improvised, resourceful act of desperation. Kapaun Mt. Carmel dodged them both. And the Crusaders’ reward is the opportunity to play for their third consecutive Class 5A boys basketball title. On the verge of being down for the count late in the third quarter, the Seaman Vikings clawed and scratched their way back into their 5A state semifinal against Kapaun on Thursday at Koch Arena.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – At 5-foot-3, Molly Numrich might perfectly personify what Blue Valley Northwest girls basketball has become in March. The eye doesn’t usually track to the diminutive senior guard when she’s on the court – until it’s too late. And as far as Numrich and her teammates are concerned, if you didn’t consider them as a potential Class 6A state tournament title contender heading into the week, well, it’s getting late.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
ROCK CREEK 80, EUDORA 67 – After needing a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Gavin Rosa to keep its undefeated season going in the sub-state finals with Bishop Miege, Rock Creek dropped the hammer on Eudora early in its Class 4A quarterfinal. The Mustangs exploded for 25 first-quarter points to lead 26-15 at the end of the period. After only managing 25 points over the next two quarters, they finished with a bang as well, putting up 29 in the final period to hold off Eudora’s upset bid.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
WICHITA – As good and consistent as Berean Academy is on defense, there has to be some elixir at work, right? “It’s just team defense, you know,” Berean junior Wyatt Friesen said after the Warriors defeated Rossville 55-38 in the Class 2A boys state tournament quarterfinals Wednesday at Friends University’s Garvey Center. “Jumping the ball, getting in the lane.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
Bonner Springs' Jason Jones hits a 3-pointer in front of the Braves' student section Tuesday during the 5A state quarterfinals at Kansas City Kansas Community College. BONNER SPRINGS 68, KC WASHINGTON 49 — Bonner Springs fed off a packed, playoff-like atmosphere Tuesday night and delivered when it mattered most.
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WICHITA – Three seasons of basketball at St. James Academy and a fourth at Blue Valley Northwest have repeatedly put Regan Becker to the test. So much so that the scenario that unfolded Tuesday afternoon at Koch Arena didn’t seem too daunting. “I think we’ve been put through a lot of adversity,” Becker said of her and her Blue Valley Northwest teammates, who qualified for the Class 6A girls state tournament with an 11-13 record.
All the Right Moves: Buhler’s Geesling dances to Class 4-1A bowling victory
WICHITA – You might catch one of Buhler senior Cheyann Geesling’s dance moves when she’s in the middle of a bowling competition. Especially when pins are falling. On the other hand, you probably won’t see her doing much analyzing of the scoring monitors above her lane. “Not at all,” Geesling said.
Lion King: Wichita Central Christian’s Burchfiel rolls 773 series to win 4-1A title
WICHITA – The confidence that Wichita Central Christian’s Andrew Burchfiel brought to Bowlero Northrock for the Class 4-1A boys state bowling tournament got tested early Friday morning. Burchfiel, the Andale regional champion, encountered a few moments of doubt while piecing together an opening-game 205 in the three-game tenpin series. “At the start of the second game, my coach was just telling me stay with the shot,” Burchfiel said. “It’s going to start acting as it should, and it did.
Andover Central’s Crumley rides strike streak to Class 5A girls bowling title
WICHITA – Smiling on the outside but nervous on the inside, Andover Central freshman Addison Crumley took Class 5A girls bowling state tournament spectators on a thrill ride Thursday. Crumley, competing as the Jaguars’ lone individual qualifier, found her groove early with a 248 in the opener of her three-game tenpin series at Bowlero Northrock. Then the real fun began for the Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail II champion.
Golden touch: Carroll freshman Pfeifer wins 5A boys bowling title, anchors Baker 300
WICHITA – Ryan Pfeifer didn’t have many missteps Thursday in his first state high school bowling tournament. OK, there was the awards ceremony, where the Bishop Carroll freshman briefly lined up in the wrong spot after he was announced as the Class 5A individual champion. But everything Pfeifer did with a bowling ball in his hands at Bowlero Northrock equated to success.
Campus girls mark end of an era with third consecutive Class 6A bowling championship
WICHITA – Angie Moser had barely stepped off the approach area Wednesday afternoon at Bowlero Northrock when tears began to flow. The Campus junior rolled her last ball in the Baker portion of the Class 6A state tournament, and the finality of her time competing with her Colts bowling teammates hit hard. “She’s the crier that’s going to get us all crying,” Campus senior Caitlynn Clough said.
Wichita Northwest boys complete dream season with record-setting state victory
WICHITA – As much as any other sport, bowling has a tendency to lean toward unpredictability. What’s great one day may not be the next. Unless there’s a team like Wichita Northwest, which started the 2026 boys high school season standing on the accelerator and never let up.
Keeping the faith: Basehor-Linwood boys work through highs, lows to win first title in Class 5A wrestling
PARK CITY – Cael Puderbaugh’s investment into Basehor-Linwood’s first boys state wrestling team championship began in third grade. That’s when the Bobcat junior’s family moved to Basehor and he met kids like Trevor Christenson and Eric Vielhauer – guys he would compete with on the Bobcat Wrestling Club. Puderbaugh’s dad, Jason, also started pouring into the high school program that year as Basehor-Linwood’s new coach.
Shalabi settles a couple scores, helps Basehor-Linwood take team lead | Class 5A girls wrestling recap
PARK CITY – Basehor-Linwood sophomore Falasteen Shalabi didn’t show up to Heartland Credit Union Arena on Friday looking for revenge. Sometimes a wrestling bracket just unfolds that way.
Early successes position Basehor-Linwood to win first team title | Class 5A Boys Wrestling Recap
PARK CITY – One by one, Basehor-Linwood’s state qualifiers entered the wrestling circles Friday afternoon at Heartland Credit Union Arena, did their work and left after officials raised their arm in victory. Granted, it was only the quarterfinals of the Class 5A state tournament. But it made a powerful statement. “Overall, we wrestled tough, gritty,” Basehor-Linwood coach Jason Puderbaugh said. “I feel like our guys’ conditioning looked good.
Good to the End: Maize’s Rife repeats as double-gold champ, earns meet’s top honor | Class 6A individual swimming and diving champions
LENEXA – Maize coach Tedd Gibson’s affinity for his senior standout swimmer Zach Rife includes the swim cap story. Toward the end of the regular season, one of Gibson’s coaching counterparts from fellow Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail I member Derby approached him to share the tale of Rife’s good deed. “The kids adore him,” Gibson said. “They think he’s just like a god. One of their kids came up to him with a raggedy cap and wants to trade his cap for a Rife cap.
Record-breaking relay, five golds power Louisburg to state podium with best-ever finish | Class 5-1A individual swimming and diving champions
LENEXA — They didn’t have the biggest roster and when the final event was called Saturday afternoon, they didn’t even have a lane in the pool. What Louisburg had was four swimmers, a stack of gold medals and a place in school history.
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