Ready to Rumble: Fall Sports 2022

Mustangs take run at redemption

The Iola Mustangs football team is looking to flip the script and rebound from its 2-7 regular season finish last season.

The only two victories on the year came against Osawatomie in the season opener at Riverside Park, 38-0, and when the team hosted Anderson County on Oct. 1, 34-7. Iola lost by a total score of 215-78 for the 2021 season.

Those numbers, however, belie “a lot of close games and the lessons learned,” said Iola head coach David Daugharthy. Some

of those close games included Prairie View when the Mustangs fell, 23-20, as well as a 20-18 loss to Burlington.

“We’ve got to work to be able to get this. I feel like the kids are really buying into what we are trying to do, especially our varsity players, more so than we’ve had in a long time around here,” said Daugharthy. “They are hungry and ready to go.”

The Mustang roster is flush, including many veterans.

Jake Skahan, 7, is one of several key senior leaders for Iola High’s Mustangs in 2022.

IHS: Seeks improvement in 2022

Daugharthy believes quarterback Landon Weide is among those who holds great promise. Weide finished with 10 touchdowns and 1,047 passing yards for the 2021 season. Iola lost linebacker Adam Atwell last year to graduation. Atwell is now suited up for the University of St. Mary’s football team in Atchison.

Other returning starters expected to make an impact include

receiver and safety Carter Hutton who in 2021 hauled in 44 receiving yards and made 18 tackles with a lone interception on defense. Jake Skahan, a senior, was a second-team All Pioneer League selection as a defensive lineman. Skahan collected 32 tackles along with 7.5 tackles for loss and four sacks last year.

On a team of mainly juniors over seniors number wise this year, Iola junior running back Drayden Reiter will serve as the team’s lead tailback as well as linebacker. Reiter rushed for over 100 yards and made 20 tackles as a sophomore.

IOLA FOOTBALL David Daugharthy

Daugharthy looks to run his offense in a spread formation and defense as a 3-3 stack formation.

The toughest competition in the Pioneer League facing the Mustangs are Wellsville, Burlington and Santa Fe Trail, Daugharthy said.

“The goal from a win-loss perspective is to win league and win district. I think we actually can do that. Those are very attainable goals for us,” said Daugharthy. “Ultimately what I want as a coach is a sense of buy-in from top to bottom. My goal for my upperclassmen is to carry that vision down to the underclassmen.”

Daugharthy believes his team’s biggest difference from last year is its positive mentality and their expectation to come out on the field prepared and confident.

“I feel like we’ve got a great sense of camaraderie and communication on this team. The boys have the skills, but ultimately I think getting unification — working as a team — and getting everyone to buy into that vision is what’s going to make this team a winning team.”

Daugharthy said the biggest lesson the boys came away with from last year’s record was learning how to shake off defeat. That one loss doesn’t define a season.

“How to bounce back will determine our success.”

Junior quarterback Landon Weide returns as the starter for Iola High in 2022.

IHS volleyball builds fundamentals

Mustangs volleyball is back and ready to ramp up their play from last season’s abysmal 2-10 finish in the regular season.

Iola will be returning six players for the 2022 team, four of which were starters. Those returners include seniors Aysha Houk and Dallyn McGraw, juniors Rio Lohman and Jackie Fager and sophomores Reese Curry and Kaysin Crusinbery.

“I think the girls are looking forward to this season. Last year was a lot of growing pains so we’re looking to turn those pains into gains this year,” said head coach Amanda Holman.

“They’re excited. We went to a team camp this summer and they played some of the best ball I’ve ever seen them play and they knew it, too. So it’s going to come down to communication.”

Houk, McGraw and newly acquired senior Jadyn Kaufman will be the team’s biggest passers as well as the team’s libero and defensive specialists on a team that ranges from freshmen to

seniors.

Holman explained.

“Rio and Jackie have only improved since their sophomore season. They have put in the work in the off season, both playing club volleyball, and getting stronger and more confident.”

Lohman recorded 88 kills and Fager had 82 kills last year.

“A definite strength is the girls’ camaraderie. We don’t have any drama and everyone gets along.

“We’re also lucky this year in that we have some height,” said Holman. “We are the tallest team I’ve had across the board with a lot of sophomores and juniors being 5’8’’ or taller. To some schools that may seem small, but to us that’s big.”

Some newcomers expected to make a difference include sophomore Alana Mader.

“Alana is a very versatile player who is expected to make a huge impact on the team this year. She can set, pass, and hit

Aysha Houk, foreground, and Dallyn McGraw return to lead Iola High’s volleyball team in 2022.

IOLA VOLLEYBALL

Head coach — Amanda Holman

Aysha Houk McGraw Kaufman Maloney Fager Lohman

Elza Clift Crusinbery Curry

Karingten Hall Jelinek Mader

Maleigha Molina Stogsdill Westhoff

anywhere on the front row.”

Other newcomers expected to stand out include sophomores Elza Clift and Mariah Jelinek.

Clift has one of the best verticals on the team and is very quick, Holman said.

Jelinek, a strong middle option for the Mustangs this year, has demonstrated her determination to improve by playing in summer league.

“What we’re working on as a team is communication, confidence and consistency,” coach said.

“We can have some really great moments but if we’re not consistent it doesn’t help us. I’ve got some girls who are athletic and they know the game but they’ve yet to truly believe in themselves. When it’s game time, you’ve got to be confident you can win it.”

“Last year’s growing pains were rough,” Holman said.

“In 2020, we had a ton of seniors. But last year only one starter returned, so it was rough. But making it through that and seeing the gains the athletes have made should really pay off this year and next year.”

Reese Curry

Iola harriers take run at glory

The Iola High School cross country team begins the fall season with nine runners.

The new season offers a beam of hope for head coach Brittany Daugharthy and her assistant coach Gabi Brite. The coaches are excited to see what their athletes can accomplish both on their feet and relationship-wise.

Cross country practices began in mid-August. Daugharthy has the runners traversing all sorts of trails courtesy of the area rail trails. Day One saw the Iola cross country athletes hit the Lehigh Trails.

“We do a lot of the trails because the footing is just so much better. I hate putting them on pavement where shin splints and knee problems can occur,” said Daugharthy. “I like them happy and healthy, they’re a lot more pleasant to be around then. We

also do some speed workouts around the baseball fields and on the track. We try to take them a bit of everywhere so they aren’t bored.”

Jesse Taylor, Kaster Trabuc and Travis Wanker are the three returning seniors on this year’s cross country squad. Each has multiple years of varsity experience under their belts.

Taylor not only qualified for state last year but has also been a part of three Pioneer League championship teams.

“Jesse is a great two-miler in track so he actually should be on the podium this year. That would be super exciting,” Daugharthy said. “He should be in the top eight for state. He was in the top 10 his junior year and ran a 10:10. It was shocking he didn’t get on the podium then.”

Last season, the team won its league championship. Along

Iola High’s Jesse Taylor (130), Kaster Trabuc (134) and Cole Moyer (91) return to lead the Mustang cross country team.

with the three-headed monster of Taylor, Trabuc and Wanker, other returning varsity runners include sophomores Cole Moyer and Alejandro Escalante.

Iola finished fourth in the regional meet. Only the top three teams at regionals qualify as a team for the state meet.

“We had a tough regional. Going up north for us is tough,” said Daugharthy. “All the kids had huge PR’s so it was super exciting to see them beat their times, but they were disappointed to not make it as a team.”

Daugharthy expects the team to pick up right where they left off last season, setting personal records and pushing each other to be the best runners they can be. She also believes with the lower number of runners this season that the camaraderie and team chemistry will thrive.

“They have two expectations no matter when they come out: To try their best and to have fun. I think they can do it. All these kids work super hard.”

Many of the runners have been putting in work in the offseason to increase their endurance and stamina — the keys to success on the course.

“It takes a good solid four to six weeks to build endurance on top of the speed work. So everything we’re adding on now is just making them faster and stronger. They’ve put in the base work and now we just get to fine tune them.”

Iola tennis team shows net gains

The Iola High School girls tennis team aims to at least send someone to state this year after last year’s success by Keira Fawson.

This year’s team has a good mix of veterans and newcomers, said head coach Chris Belknap. The mix of grade levels should provide a good balance for Belknap to work with.

Last year’s squad finished with Fawson reaching state and her teammates coming to cheer her on. That was a special moment for Iola’s tennis team, bringing them closer together and building bonds that last beyond the season. Belknap believes Fawson’s positivity is rubbing off on her teammates.

“Last season ended pretty well, the girls did an excellent job all season. The team’s support of Keira was awesome. I think going forward we’ll do the best we can and I’m looking forward to a couple of more state runs. We’ve got a couple of players who are really strong and I think will be able to compete well.”

Fawson’s return to the court as well as other veterans is no small advantage in their ability to help along the younger tennis players.

“I’ve got a lot of new players so getting them into the groove of things, getting the drills down, and getting used to practices will take some time,” said Belknap. “Each player is allowed eight matches total whether they play JV or varsity.”

Nine girls have signed up for this year’s team, which adds some flexibility to the way Belknap runs things.

The veterans are a great help. “They’ll be able to say ‘don’t do that, that’s not what we do,’” he said. “They’ll be able to trouble-shoot any negativity.”

This is Belknap’s fourth year coaching tennis.

The coach makes it clear that his job is to see that the students have fun learning how to play tennis. He believes if the students are having fun, then learning comes easier. He also views tennis as a lifelong sport.

“I’m here to coach whether they just want to have fun or go to the state competition. Between the girls and boys, we’ve been to state every year. That obviously is my end goal, but I do it so they have the opportunity.”

“These girls have really good team chemistry, they all know what makes the team happy and what doesn’t. They know good practice habits. The ones that want to go to state will actually strive to do so and stay after practice,” Belknap said.

Genevive Ward, foreground, and Kennedy Maier compet ed in doubles action in 2021 for the Iola Mustang girls tennis team.

Cubs plan to build on success

HUMBOLDT — Even with the success of the Humboldt High School football program over the past decade, head coach Logan Wyrick believes they can do better.

Last season, the Cubs ended with a 6-4 record, losing in the second round of the post-season playoffs.

“We were a young team and we’ll be young again but with a lot more experience,” said Wyrick. “It’s just part of being a small school. You get what you get. But we’ll continue to try for success.”

The positive about this year’s Humboldt football squad is the return of 17 starters; with eight on the offensive side and nine on defense. The team also has seven underclassmen coming into the ranks.

Wyrick is expecting to see senior running back Trey Sommer step up and lead this year’s team. Sommer rushed for almost 2,000 yards each of the past two seasons along with rushing for

14 touchdowns last year.

“He’s (Sommer) a quality three-sport athlete, not just in football. I believe he’s already been a two-time All-State selection as a linebacker. He was a first team All-State last year,” said Wyrick.

Another skilled player on offense will be junior receiver Sam Hull who was an All-District outside threat last season.

The success of the Cubs offense lies directly on the big boys up front. Three out of these four starting linemen were All-District or All-State last season which helps set up a potent offensive attack.

“Maddox Johnson is definitely our vocal leader, he’s a fouryear starter for us. He’s somebody who’s going to anchor our o-line. He was first team All-State as well last year.”

“Our strength lies up front. We have a lot of experience on our o-line. Our success definitely starts with the running game,”

Maddox Johnson (50) and River Kaufman (77) anchor the line for Humboldt High on both offense and defense.

Wyrick said.

On defense, Wyrick is looking to have Sommer at linebacker and defensive linemen seniors Johnson and River Kaufman.

Both his offensive and defensive lines in the trenches will help this year’s team succeed the most, Wyrick said.

“It also comes down to experience,” he said. “A lot of experience is what will make the difference.”

The game-changers for this season will be the high number of returning starters as well as the high number of young players coming up from a JV team that went 6-0 last year.

Also critical is that the athletes buy into Wyrick’s philosophy.

“I think we can match up with just about anybody in the

state. Our weakness is depth. We’re going to have to find some guys that want to step up,” Wyrick said.

Sophomore Blake Ellis has asserted himself into the starting quarterback position, replacing the recently graduated Gavin Page.

Lady Cub VB brings lofty hopes

HUMBOLDT — The Humboldt High School volleyball team looks to continue its winning ways from last year when Terry Meadows’ squad finished at 30-9 overall for second in the TriValley League.

Humboldt will be returning four of their starters from last season. There is also a plethora of talent coming up from the junior varsity ranks that will help make a difference for the Lady Cubs.

The varsity returners include senior All-League middle hitter Karley Wools, sophomore middle hitter Shelby Shaughnessy, junior setter Kenisyn Hottenstein and junior libero Kinley Tucker. Meadows said the girls will serve as role models for those coming into their first year of varsity ball.

“Karley Wools is an allaround player,” Meadows said. “She set a record for digs last season so her presence at the net will be helpful, too.

“Shelby Shaughnessy is my other middle. I see great things coming from her. Kenisyn Hottenstein will be my setter. She was nominated for AllLeague last year, so she’s right up there, too.”

Meadows said Kenisyn Hottenstein is a natural mentor, “with a great work ethic and leadership skills.”

Hottenstein’s sister, Skylar Hottenstein, is a freshman this season and is expected to contribute to the team off the bench.

Meadows is in his seventh year coaching volleyball at Humboldt High after coaching nine years at the middle school.

Meadows is also the high school’s new athletics director on top of teaching band.

The coach has amassed an overall record of 143-79 and has reached the late rounds of the playoffs on multiple occasions.

“Last year, we got sub-state runner up, going 30-9 for the season, second place in our league,” said Meadows. “We went to state my first year as a head coach in 2016. I have yet to have a losing season.”

Meadows credits team-building exercises like a two-day summer camp at Kansas State University as yielding big rewards.

“It was a bonding experience,” he said. “Not only staying in a hotel together, but also playing against other teams from around the state. They did well there, we ended fifth out of 18 teams. I think overall the chemistry will be fine and they’ll grow into it together.”

Building on such experiences helps develop a team’s dynamics over the course of the season, Meadows added.

Shelby Shaughnessy delivers a hit. COURTESY OF MIKE MYER

Humboldt runners hit their stride

HUMBOLDT — Humboldt High will be looking to its strong cadre of female athletes to carry the cross country mantle this year.

Sophomore McKenna Jones was a state qualifier last year along with Drew Wilhite, who graduated last spring.

There were a total of eight letter-winners on the girls team last year, including All-League senior runner Carsyn Haviland, All-League sophomore and state individual qualifier Jones and All-League sophomore Anna Heisler.

For the boys, senior Peyton Wallace finished his season as an All-League runner selection while junior Landon Bauer and sophomore Brigg Shannon were letter winners.

Heading into this new season the Cubs will be returning a total of six letter winners from among the boys and girls teams.

“Our girls’ team is the most experienced team we have had since I have been coaching here,” said head coach Eric Carson, now in his 16th year. “The seniors qualified for state when they were freshmen, have multiple state individual qualifiers, and have been league runner-up twice.”

The girls have a roster of eight, four are seniors.

The boys have a roster of seven, two are seniors. None have state experience.

It’s a rebuilding year, Carlson said, noting the loss of Wilhite, a league champion for the last three seasons, hurts.

“We always have a goal to compete for the league title on both sides. If we can stay injury-free, we should have a good shot to compete for the league championship on the girls’ side. The boys’ team title should be up for grabs this year,” Carlson said.

HEAD COACH: Eric Carlson

Gavin Jaro

Peyton Wallace

Landon Bauer

Caden Vink

Brigg Shannon

Layne Ellison

Maxton Mueller

Carsyn Haviland

Lulu Melendez

Leah Mueller

Danica Modlin

Sophie Barlow

Anna Heisler

McKenna Jones

Tori Melendez

Brigg

MV builds on foundation

MORAN — The Marmaton Valley High School football team looks to continue its success from last season with head coach Max Mickunas at the helm.

Before Mickunas arrived at Marmaton Valley two years ago, the program had won only a single game in each of the two seasons prior. The team had won only a handful of games in four straight years before Mickunas

came onto the scene which goes to show how much of a difference a coach can make.

“The program hadn’t been winning so that’s what we wanted to get back to when I took the job. Last year we were 4-5 and we made the playoffs for the first time in a few years. In the playoffs, we lost to Madison and they went on to be in the state semi-final game,” said

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Dylan Drake is one of several seniors on Marmaton Valley High’s football team in 2022.

MV: Blend of experience, talent

Mickunas. “We set the state record for the highest scoring game in Kansas history in a win against Oswego, so that was pretty exciting for our kids.”

Mickunas will have nine letter recipients returning this season including some top notch players in the southeast Kansas area. Of those are receiver and defensive back Jaedon Granere and defensive back Dylan Drake.

Granere caught 10 touchdowns and went for 387 total offensive yards last season.

As a freshman last year, Granere totaled 21 touchdowns.

“Jaedon is primed for a huge season,” Mickunas said.

“He’s a really, really talented wide receiver and defensive back,” Mickunas said. “And he’s got speed, so he’s very fast and an explosive playmaker.”

Granere placed third in the 200-meter race at last spring’s state track meet.

Drake is a second team AllLeague athlete.

This year, Drake is moving into a new role on the team as he transitions to offense where he’ll play wide receiver and tight end. He’s been described as being a mismatch in the passing game as he stands at 6’4’’.

Starting behind center this season at quarterback will be former starting tight end Brayden Lawson. Like many of the players at Marmaton Valley, Lawson has been in the high school’s weight room all summer.

“Brayden is big and fast. He has worked hard in the weight room this summer and is rapidly improving as a passer. I expect him to have a big season,” said Mickunas. “I think he’s ready this year. He’s a gym rat. He works really hard and is improving every single time I see him on the field. He’s also a really good kid. He’s quiet, he minds his business.”

This may be as excited as Mickunas has ever been heading into a football season simply due to the level of talent this team has and its

potential for the upcoming season. Between the high number of returning players, incoming transfers from other schools and highly talented freshmen starting their high school career, it’s shaping up to be a good year for Marmaton.

“I’m just excited to work with this group. We have some serious talent right now so anytime you get this collection of talent you’re going to be excited as a coach. I hope that we continue to make strides and I think we are trending in the right direction but you’ve got to keep it going throughout the whole season. I’m looking forward to seeing that improvement and hard work out on the field.”

Like any good team, Mickunas has goals for his team and hopes that his players can buy into his philosophy for their ultimate goal of making a run at a district and league title. With practices beginning on Aug. 15, Marmaton Valley will see if they can work at getting over the hump and finish above a .500 record.

“We want to continue to get better every day. We want to compete and improve in our desire to win. If we improve our competitive nature and are determined to get better every day then the rest will take care of itself.

“If we continue to get better every single time we practice, then we should have reason to believe we could be in the running for a district and league title.”

Jaedon Granere returns for Marmaton Valley. COURTESY OF HALIE LUKEN/MVHS

Allee leads Wildcat cross country

MORAN — The Marmaton Valley cross country team begins the season shorthanded. Three high-schoolers have signed up to run.

According to head coach Steve Smith, crucial to this year’s team is senior Zach Allee who brings many years of experience and an understanding of what Coach Smith wants out of his runners. Also on the team are senior Kiowa Bloemer and Sophia Heim, a freshman.

“Zach has been with us since his junior high days. He’s now a senior and has a lot of

experience. He knows what I expect and can help provide it,” Smith said.

Smith always has his eye on the future. To that end, he has the high school and middle school athletes train together.

Smith’s runners must train longer distances than they are going to race in their meets. This allows the runners to build their endurance and stamina to a high enough point that by race day they are well prepared.

“We’ve been doing general conditioning, it’s typical of this time of the year, and most of them are buying in. I haven’t had anybody quit,” Smith said. “Building your cardiovascular base and endurance allows you to run faster, longer, which is what we want in a race.”

Smith and his Marmaton Valley cross country teams have had their fair share of success through the years.

“We took a girls team to state, that’s probably the best we’ve done. They finished 14th,” he said. “We’ve had some successful individual

runners, including Zach Louk and Shelby Yoho.”

With the lower numbers of student-athletes at schools like Marmaton Valley and Yates Center, it can sometimes be hard to find enough students that have the drive to reach the state level of competition.

Smith says he only requires a couple things from his kids and they usually go hand in hand: hard work and consistent improvement.

“If you show consistent improvement that means you’re working hard in practice every day. That’s my basic philosophy,” Smith said. “It varies. If I’m on a course that’s flat, we’re going to do a lot of speed, less hills. If I’m

on one that’s hilly and tough like that, then we’re going to do a lot more hill workouts in advance of the meets.”

BEST OF LUCK THIS SEASON ,

W IL D C A T S!

Zach Allee

Fritch takes helm at MV

MORAN — The Marmaton Valley volleyball team has two advantages this year. Its roster is flush and deep with seniority.

That’s music to Sharon Fritch, MV’s new head coach.

“I think we’re going to do very well,” said Fritch. “I have nine seniors this year. Not all nine are at the varsity level, but they’re going to be great for the team. So seeing these girls my first year as coach, leads me to believe we can go pretty far this year.”

Fritch’s previous experience includes refereeing high school volleyball games.

Senior leadership can be a valuable piece to any team to help show younger players how to both play and behave on the court.

Team goals versus personal goals can also make a difference, especially in volleyball. While some players want a certain number of kills and personal wins, others would like to serve better depending on their position.

“With their experience, I hope the veterans can help

the underclassmen achieve their personal goals as well as understand the importance of teamwork. I’m hoping they can all help each other as a team,” Fritch said. “Some of them want so many kills a game, some are getting their serving percentage up, different things like that.”

Two Wildcats expected to carry leadership responsibilities this season are senior Tayven Sutton and junior Janae Granere. “Everyone else is pretty evenkeeled but I’m going to depend on Tayven and Janae the most to be good role models,” Fritch

said. “While winning state is our goal, our ultimate goal is to build a team that will work together, win or lose.”

The senior leaders on the varsity team also include Kaitlyn Drake, Madi Lawson and Roslyn Houk. This trio will also be valuable along with both Sutton and Granere for both leadership and solid play against some tough competition this season.

“We have the talent, we have the potential if we can put it all together. There’s no reason why we can’t,” said Fritch. “Serves will make or break a team.”

Payton Scharff brings senior leadership to Marmaton Val ley volleyball this season. COURTESY OF HALIE LUKEN/MVHS

Crest cross country taking big steps

COLONY — Crest High School will field a complete cross country team this season after last year’s runner, Breakin Jones, single-handedly carried the responsibility.

Now a sophomore, Jones welcomes the addition of four girls, said Lancer head coach Kaitlyn Cummings.

This season will look a lot different. Cummings is prepared to have a full high school girls cross country team with four girls as well

as Jones competing on the boys side. Cummings hopes she can capitalize on a better year numbers wise on her girls cross country team.

“My top three girls are returners from middle school — Aubrey Allen, Peyton Schmidt and Josie Walter, in addition to Kyrie Puckett, a junior,” Cummings said. “My girls have a shot. As a 1A school, you only need four members to qualify and we have a solid team so I’m hoping we have a shot at making it to state as a team.”

“I think my girls were very nervous in the beginning and as freshmen they were nervous about running the 5k. All of this training is going to help them. It’s them gaining the mentality that they can do it and push through it that is important, because the training is there. It was really all in their heads before the race,” said Cummings.

With a full season ahead, the team has aspirations to qualify for state.

“I want to see

improvements in my kids each meet, obviously. Times differ because of the courses and so I’d like to see them make improvements there as well as physically and mentally in how they prepare for races,” said Cummings.

Cross country is a unique sport in high school athletics in that it brings a wide variety of people together for a common reason. Running

cross country takes grit and determination as well as cheering on teammates.

The camaraderie of cross country is what makes it special as teams must work together and push each other to be the best runners they can be as a collective unit.

It’s indeed not only an individual sport but a team sport in which runners must root each other on and push others to do just as well as themselves.

“My favorite thing is the atmosphere that it brings,” said Cummings. “It’s not just a sense of one person, we’re a family. That’s really cool because they all work together, they all yell for each other, they all warm up together. They want to do better for everyone. We treat each other like brother and sister. We’re a family,” said Cummings.

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Breakin Jones

Experience buoys Lady Lancer VB

COLONY — The Crest volleyball team dives into another season with a strong core of returning players to lead their Lady Lancers.

Crest finished last season right around the .500-mark.

“We ended up third in the Three Rivers League, we were 9-2 overall in league, and then 18-17 overall,” said head coach Abigail Hermreck. “It was a pretty good season. Obviously, we would like to have more wins or win league.”

The bright spot about this year’s team is that most of her students honed their

volleyball skills throughout the summer by participating in camps, lifting weights and practicing with each other.

Three senior leaders will make an impact for the Lady Lancers.

“Kamryn Luedke is a real positive person and she’ll be a good leader,” Hermreck said. “Allyssa Adams does some back row work for us and she played with the Allen County Aces in the offseason and that was good. And I look to play McKenna Hammond in all six rotations. Last year she led in digs.”

After 11 years at the helm of the Crest volleyball program, Hermreck still aspires to reach some goals.

First, increase the number of wins, which so far sits at 18.

“We would like to move up in the rankings and league, maybe finish better than third place and get more than 18 wins.

“Overall, I want all the girls to just enjoy the game and end up being glad they are a part of volleyball.”

The camps and work her girls have put in over the offseason is something that Hermreck can’t stress enough. The coach took her team to the Jayhawk Volleyball Team Camp and saw the mix of experienced and inexperienced players gel together on the court. That will certainly be one of the key components for the team this season of veteran and younger players coming together.

“I think a strength is the varsity team’s overall experience. They’ve played a lot of volleyball in the offseason and have gone to camps and that’s going to be big for us,” said Hermreck. “This summer was a huge test for us at the Jayhawk tournament.”

In order for her athletes to reach higher goals, Hermreck believes they will need to shake off the negatives and focus on one play at a time. A good mentality is what is

going to make Crest successful in the long run. Hermreck is excited to see her team’s positive headspace translate to success on the court.

“The mental toughness to not get down, that’s been something that’s been a weakness. I think with the experience and leadership of the varsity girls, we’re going to surprise ourselves,” Hermreck said. “I saw the switch this summer, the mental toughness, go in a positive direction.”

Junior Kayla Hermreck has become a stalwart for Crest High’s volleyball team.

Hopes sky high for Crest football

COLONY — The Crest football team is looking to build on their 5-4 finish last year with a very familiar looking team after not losing any players to graduation this past season.

Crest is led by head coach Nick McAnulty who is in his fourth season leading the team.

McAnulty’s biggest reason for optimism? His veterans can run the ball.

McAnulty singled out running back Holden Barker, who carried the ball for over 2,000 yards on the ground last season.

“Holden was an All-State running back last year and had 30-some touchdowns. He had a huge year offensively.

Also noteworthy is Ethan Godderz as quarterback. Godderz notched over 900 yards rushing, “as well as just working his tail off,” McAnulty said. “Those guys were also second and third on the team in tackles, so they’re instrumental on both sides of the ball.”

One of the most unique things about McAnulty’s team will be the fact he is returning his entire varsity football squad as he had no seniors on the team last season.

“We are bringing everybody back. We even had a couple of guys who couldn’t play last year due to injuries that we have coming back, so we don’t have to put too much into finding new guys. We have everybody so we know where we’re at.”

Crest senior Holden Barker rushed for more than 2,000 yards as a junior in 2021.

The strength of Crest’s team this season will most certainly be running the football out of the backfield and being aggressive in the trenches to gain extra yardage. McAnulty hopes his offensive and defensive lines can be quick enough to both protest and take down the run game on both sides of the ball.

“Our strength is running the football. We run a lot of jet sweeps and a lot of misdirection. We’re kind of a spread and misdirection team but we can come down and we’ll run the single wing. Offensively, we can get the edge or take it right up the middle,” said McAnulty. “He (Godderz) can throw the ball but he is very confident running it, he averaged over 100 yards rushing per game.”

The best part about having

a seemingly identical team from years prior is that the players know the playbook, their assignments and most importantly, have experience playing with each other.

At Crest, their key to success will be if they take advantage of that history of playing together, a rarity in high school football.

“One of the best parts is these guys know the offense so I feel like we won’t have to do as much of the basic talk,” McAnulty said. “We’re hoping to get up to speed and get guys moving around quickly. It should be more of a review because nobody has to learn new positions.”

Among McAnulty’s goals will be to improve from last year’s winning mark and go a few rounds deeper into the playoffs. McAnulty has

expressed how mentally beat his kids were following a season with an earlier playoff round exit than they were expecting.

“Winning district would be huge. A lot of the boys just want to be better than last year and go two or three rounds deep in the playoffs. The want to challenge the groups before them that have had a lot of success. Having 11 seniors on the team for an eight-man team is going to be huge.”

CREST FOOTBALL

COACH Nick McAnulty

Holden Barker

Avery

Ty

Trevor

Ethan

Karter

Jack

Ryan

Logan

Jerry

Teagen

Gunner Ellington

Kade

Elijah

Jensen

Dalton

Drake Weir

Henry

Veterans lead way for Lady Titans

LE ROY — The Southern Coffey County High School volleyball team can count on strong veteran leadership to make its mark this year.

Jeff True is in his 33rd year overall of coaching volleyball at SCC.

Southern Coffey County returns six letter recipients from last season’s team.

“We will have excellent senior leadership this season. They have a lot of varsity experience. It should be a fun season,” True said.

Of those six returning seniors, four have starting experience on the floor.

Senior Josie Weers led the team the last two years in kills. Last year Weers had 375 kills, 51 blocks.

“Josie has 872 career kills right now, so if she stays healthy she should go over 1,000,” True said. Weers was named to the KVA 2nd Team All-State team in the 1A Division last season for the second time in a row.

Madeline Spencer is also a senior setter that will also be a hitter on the front row. Setter was second-team All-League. Ross Snovelle, a senior, is the other setter.

Spencer was named 2nd Team All-League last year

Senior Jalea True is one of several returning upperclassmen for South ern Coffey County volleyball.

along with Snovelle who was named an honorable mention

All-League player.

The final senior with starting experience is outside hitter Jalea True who will fill big shoes in a leadership role.

“We want to keep working hard and be competitive every night,” Coach True said. “Our goal is to improve each practice. If we can do that, we’ll have a chance at the end of the year. If I can keep the girls healthy I think we could have a good postseason.”

6-man football beckons for SCC

LE ROY — Southern Coffey County High School is ushering in a new style of football this season: 6-man football.

In addition to a new format, the Titans have a new head coach in Brian Rand.

Rand will take over a team that struggled to compete in eight-man football last season often because only eight players were eligible to compete.

This year’s roster will still be slim, with only 12 Titans taking the field.

“We’re young, and don’t have a lot of experience,” said Rand. “We have several returning who played quite a bit, including two seniors, Mitchyl Walters and Tegan Jacobs. And Reeston Cox, a junior, and Seth Gleue, a sophomore.”

“We want to learn every game. We want to get better every game. That’s going to be our goal. I’ve done a lot of research in the few weeks I’ve been coach and we’re all learning,” Rand said.

The Titans will be returning

some key starters from last year’s team which Rand looks to help lead this season.

Rand hopes his team can adjust on the fly and create their own style of play in the new 6-man format. The 6-man format creates a much more wide open field which can create more play options.

“One thing we want is

consistency. Do your job correctly, be a good teammate, be a good representation of our school, that’s what I’m after. We don’t need any silly penalties or anything like that, we want to compete against other teams and look like we’re supposed to be there,” Rand said.

Southern Coffey’s small

SCC FOOTBALL

HEAD COACH: Brian Rand

ROSTER:

Mitchyl Walters — 12

Tegan Jacobs — 12

Reeston Cox — 11

Andrew Modlin — 11

Thomas Nickel — 11

Traden Noll — 11

Seth Gleue — 10

Isaac Higdon — 10

Jagger Jacobs — 10

Kaiden Boling — 9

John Rolf — 9

Trey Winn — 9

numbers can be an advantage, Rand said. “We like each other. We’ve got each other’s backs, it’s amazing when you get a group like this.”

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Southern Coffey County’s Kaiden Boling, right, hauls in a pass during a practice while defended by Trey Winn.

Yates Center banks on toughness

YATES CENTER — The Yates Center football team will be limited in numbers this season but not in heart.

Eight seniors are on the

14-man roster, giving Wildcat head coach Ryan Panko confidence they’ll go far.

“It’s probably one of the more solid senior groups we’ve had here in a long time,” he said. “I just don’t have very many underclassmen. I feel pretty good if we can stay healthy and figure out some personnel issues, I think it should be an alright year for us.”

The rushing game will be the backbone of the Yates Center program.

“On offense, our two running backs seniors Shane Weber and Emmit George should have a pretty good breakout year,” said Panko.

“I’ve got Cash Cummings at receiver. I believe he should be the best receiver in the league.

“On defense, I have Jason Rice at linebacker. I’d say he’s one of the better linebackers in the state; first team AllState material at linebacker.”

Panko has a few main goals, including building on top of last season. To win the league, Panko believes he will have to use the depth he has to his

advantage.

“We want to stay healthy. We want to get better every week. We’d like to win the league again and we don’t want to backtrack to last season, but keep the momentum going, keep our program going,” said Panko. “Our strength is our senior class, our weakness is our lack of depth.”

The head coach also believes that since the odds are stacked against his team, it could push

them to practice and play harder for their school. Many times in sports when teams are favored over others it spurs the underdog teams to work harder and have more of a purpose.

“They’re a tough-minded group,” Panko said. “They like to get after it, they like to play football. They know that the odds are stacked against them in terms of numbers and depth but they’re a pretty tough group.”

Cash Cummings is one of eight seniors on Yates Center High’s football team this fall.

YATES CENTER — The Yates Center cross country team is back on course with new coach Kari King.

AJ Belcher, a junior, and Courtney Spoon, a senior, are the returning runners.

Both have been valuable pieces to the Yates Center harriers.

Belcher qualified to run in the state cross country meet when she was a freshman.

Her work ethic will be a good example for middleschool runners.

Spoon’s return to the course is also testimony to the program’s allure, said King, adding that both veterans bring leadership qualities to every practice and meet.

Experience key for ‘Cats

YATES CENTER — Yates Center Volleyball is returning a strong bench of experience to help gird it through a competitive season.

Returning are letter-winner seniors middle blocker Grace Westerman, setter Molly Proper, outside hitter Callyn Miller as well as junior middle blocker Kamdyn Trahan.

“They’ve got leadership and they’ve got experience,” first-year head coach Carrie Cummings

said.

Cummings describes Proper as the most all around player. Trahan led the team in blocks last season.

There are another two junior outside hitters expected to contribute big time in Peyton Petit and Rylie Smith.

“We’ve got 15 girls that really want to work hard; 15 girls that are really cohesive, that work really well together on the floor,” said Cummings.

Callyn Miller Center High’s AJ Belcher returns as a junior in