By John Mesh
The No. 1-ranked Hutchinson Community College women’s basketball team, boasting a 13-0 record and a 50-game winning streak, opens the 2025 portion of their schedule next Saturday (Jan. 4) against Cowley College at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
The Blue Dragon women play Cowley College at 2 p.m., followed by the HutchCC men (8-5) against the Cowley Tigers at 4 p.m.
The Hutchinson teams play road games against Butler Community College on Jan. 8 and Pratt Community College on Jan. 11.
Area high school basketball teams open second semester
The Hutchinson Salthawk boys and girls basketball teams open the second semester with road games at Maize South on Jan. 7 and Salina South on Jan. 10.
Hutchinson Trinity Catholic basketball teams open the second semester with a road game at Sterling on Jan. 7. The Celtics host Marion on Jan. 10.
The Hutchinson Central Christian basketball teams play at St. John next Friday (Jan. 3).
Buhler’s teams host Circle on Jan. 7 and Winfield on Jan. 10.
The Haven girls and boys basketball teams, both 6-0 and ranked third in the fifth, in Class 3A in the Dec. 17 Kansas Basketball Coaches Association polls, open the second semester with road games at Norton Friday (Jan. 3), Nickerson on Jan. 7, Pratt on Jan. 10 and Hillsboro on Jan. 14.
The Nickerson boys and girls host Cheney Next Friday (Jan. 3) and Kingman on Jan. 10.
The Inman boys and girls play at Ell-Saline on Jan. 7 and host Wichita Classical for Homecoming on Jan. 10.
The Halstead boys and girls play at Abilene Jan. 7 and play Wichita Trinity Academy on Jan. 10.
The Sterling boys and girls host Hutchinson Trinity Catholic on Jan. 7 and play at Moundridge on Jan. 10.
The Burrton boys and girls play at Argonia on Jan. 7.
The Pretty Prairie boys and girls play at Udall on Jan. 7 and host Caldwell on Jan. 10.
The Cunningham boys and girls host Canton-Galva next Friday (Jan. 3), play at Macksville on Jan. 7 and host Kinsley on Jan. 10.
The Fairfield boys and girls teams host Chase on Jan. 7 and play at South Haven on Jan. 10.
The Reno County Homeschool Sabres boys and girls compete in the Angels Christmas Classic Friday and Saturday (Jan. 3-4) and the Smoky Valley Homeschool Educators on Jan. 7.
The Little River boys and girls basketball teams play at Norwich Friday (Jan. 3) and host Herington on Jan. 7, Peabody-Burns on Jan. 10 and St. John on Jan. 11.
Area wrestling teams re-start seasons Jan. 10-11
The Hutchinson High School wrestling team will return to action after the Christmas break with the Dodge City Tournament Jan. 10-11 at the United Wireless Arena.
Other schools competing are Dodge City, Great Bend, Goddard, Liberal, Newton, Ulysses, Pratt, Blue Valley, Florence, Hoxie, La Junta (Colo.), Lawrence, Manhattan, Olathe East and Olathe Northwest.
The Haven wrestling team competes at the Ellsworth Tournament on Jan. 10-11.
The Nickerson boys and girls wrestling teams compete at the Augusta Invitational Jan. 11.
The Halstead girls wrestling team competes at the Herington Tournament on Jan. 10 and the boys compete at Herington on Jan. 11.
Hutchinson, Buhler boys swimming schedules start on Jan. 18
The Hutchinson and Buhler boys swimming schedules start on Jan. 14 with the Adover Invitational at the Andover Public School Aquatic Center.
The meet starts at 9 a.m.
In addition to Hutchinson and Buhler, other schools competing are Andover, Andover Central, Goddard Eisenhower, Maize, Maize South, Marion McPherson, Rose Hill, Valley Center, Wichita Collegiate, Wichita Independent. Wichita Bishop Carroll, Wichita Heights, Wichita North and Wichita Southeast.
Former Hutchinson Blue Dragon football coach Sam Pittman 3-0 in bowl games as Arkansas head coach
Arkansas defeated Texas Tech 39-26 Friday night to win the Liberty Bowl football game in Memphis.
The Raziorbacks, who finished the season with a 7-6 record, have not lost a bowl game in the Sam Pittman era (3-0).
Quarterback Taylen Green threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 81 yards in Arkansas’ victory over Texas Tech.
Green completed 11 of 21 passes and Arkansas (7-6) had 573 yards of total offense.
Green hooked up with wide receiver Dazmin James on a 94-yard touchdown pass — the longest pass play in Liberty Bowl history.
Pittman, who was the Hutchinson Community College offensive line coach in 1991 and head football coach in 1992 and 1993, is the first Arkansas head coach in program history to win each of his first three bowl games.
Pittman, a 1986 Pittsburg State University graduate, also coached the offensive lines at Kansas, Missouri, North Carolina and Georgia.
After spending one year as associate head coach at Georgia in 2019, Pittman was named head coach at Arkansas in 2020.
The current Arkansas roster includes two former HutchCC players Tyrell Reed Jr., a 5-foot-10, 211-pound sophomore running back from Lawrence; and Danny Saili, a 6-3, 375-pound junior defensive lineman from Topeka and BYU.
Reed played three games for the Razorbacks this season. He rushed for 36 yards on 6 carries with 1 touchdown. He caught 1 pass for a 47-yard TD.
Saili played in 7 games for the Razorbacks in 2024. He made 2 tackles in Arkansas’ win over Tennessee and 2 tackles vs. Texas A&M.
The 2025 Arkansas football recruiting class includes HutchCC All-American offensive lineman Bubba Craig, a 6-6, 326-pound junior-to-be from Fort Wayne, Ind.