Colts start new year strong

By Michael Buhler TSnews

The Campus Colts wrestlers got the new year off to a strong start last week, earning a dominant Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League Division I win over Maize South last Thursday, then having four boys place in the top five at the Derby Panther Invitational last weekend and having three girls do the same at the Wichita North Girls Invitational.

Last Thursday, Campus rolled past Maize South 57-21 as six Colts recorded pins – Terence Wallace (106 pounds), Julio Sanchez (126), Johnny Harris (132), Aidan Williams (182), Barrett Roads (220) and Evan Mann (285).

At Derby, the Colts finished ninth as a team with 61 1/2 points. Dylan Sheler (126 pounds) finished second, suffering his first loss of the season in the finals as Dillon Cooper of Mill Valley won a 5-3 decision. Williams (182 pounds) finished third, while Hunter Poort (145) finished fourth and Roads (220) placed fifth.

Sanchez (126 pounds) finished seventh, while four Colts finished eighth – Wallace (106), Harris (132), Dillon Cruce (152) and Preston Upchurch (195). Mann (285 pounds) and Trinity Willis (113) both finished ninth.

At Wichita North, Campus finished 10th with 43 points as all three girls finished in the top five.

Erin Jackson (120 pounds) and Victoria Bush (125) both finished second, while Alexia Wright (155) finished fourth.

The Colts are at Salina South Thursday, while the boys head to Kapaun-Mt. Carmel Saturday and the girls are at Wichita West Saturday.

Two Tigers win at Salina South

By Michael Buhler TSnews

The Eisenhower Tigers had a pair of wrestlers win titles last weekend at the Salina South Invitational last weekend and also split a triangular last Thursday as they kicked off the new year.

At Salina South, the Tigers took seventh with 59 points.

On the boys’ side, Mason Levin (170 pounds) finished first, while Carter Dickman (182) took second and Ashton Smith (160) finished fourth.

Vinny Al-bieakdor (138 pounds) finished fifth, while Gabe Rosenstiel (120) finished seventh.

On the girls’ side, Lainie Burkhart (109 pounds) won a title, while Kamyrn Wells (143) finished

The Cheney Cardinals girls basketball team is 2-0 in the new year, with a 63-36 Central Plains League win over the Kingman Eagles at home on Friday.

The Cardinals packed a tough 1-2 punch in the paint, as Campbell Hague scored a game-high 18 points and Leah Durr had 14. Brynn McCormick added 14 points from the perimeter.

It was the second straight game that the trio has paced the Cardinals to a win.

“Those three are really coming into their own and coming full force,” said Cheney head coach Sarah McCormick.

Brynn McCormick shot well early, which then opened up the inside-out game and helped Hague and Durr play well.

Cheney’s offense was explosive in the first quarter as the Cardinals put up 29 points, including a 12-0 run to start the game. They went into halftime ahead 43-20.

Cheney: Campbell Hague 18, Leah Durr 14, Brynn McCormick 14, Brooklyn Wewe 7, Korri Lies 4, Elina Bartlett 2, Olivia Albers 2, Lacey Luehrs 1.

A smothering defense and an explosive offense boosted the Cheney Lady Cardinals to a 69-20 victory at the Independent Panthers on Jan. 4.

Cheney’s defense gave up only 4 points in the first quarter as the Cardinals soared to a 37-7 halftime lead in their first game in 2022.

Campbell Hague and Leah Durr both performed as well as they have all season. Hague scored a game-high 21 points, and Durr’s 16 was more than any of the Panthers. Brynn McCormick scored 11 to give Cheney three double-digit scorers. The Cardinals used big advantages in size and depth to control the game in the paint.

McCormick said the Cardinals spent the holiday break focusing on situations that had hurt them during two December losses. That included dealing with box-and-one defenses.

“It really opened things up for Campbell and Leah,” McCormick said.

Cheney was 5-for-7 at the free-throw line, and made a half-dozen 3-point baskets. The Cardinals are playing on the road twice this week. They faced off against the Garden Plain Owls on Tuesday in a matchup between ranked teams. On Friday, they will play at Chaparral. The girls are off next week while the boys team plays in a tournament in Halstead.

Cheney won’t have a home game until February. McCormick said the Cardinals need to be ready for all foes.

“We don’t want to take any game for granted,” she said. “It can be daunting when you live on the bus.” Cheney: Campbell Hague 21, Leah Durr 16, Brynn McCormick 11, Elina Bartlett 8, Brooklyn Wewe 4, Lacy Luehrs 4, Korri Lies 3, Payton McCormick 2.