The Halstead High School Dragons celebrated their 48-45 win over Silver Lake in the Kansas Class 3A girls state basketball championship game Saturday at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. (Photo courtesy of Halstead High School).
By John Mesh
The Halstead Dragons rallied from a 13-point deficit to defeat Silver Lake 48-45 in the Kansas Class 3A girls state championship game Saturday at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
Halstead’s Kaci Young scored the game-deciding basketball on an assist by Addisen Wills.
Halstead finished the season with a 25-1 record and added its first-ever state basketball title to the Class 3A state volleyball championship won in November.
The Dragons showed how resilient they are, playing the state tournament without sophomore Piper Schroeder, their leading scorer. Schroeder suffered a season-ending knee injury a few weeks ago.
Silver Lake, which won the state title in 2024 with a 26-0 record and has won seven championships, posted a 23-3 record in 2025.
Silver Lake led Halstead 12-9 after the first quarter, 31-23 at halftime and 39-33 after three frames. The Eagles led by 13 points in the third quarter but the Dragons battled back with a 15-6 run in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore Jordy Schroeder led the victorious Dragons with 16 points, including 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Wills scored 9 points, Young 8, Dalaina Schutte 6, Bailey Bernal 5 and Onnyka Nedich 4.
Wills added 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals. Schutte had 4 steals.
Kailyn Hanni led the Silver Lake girls with 19 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Karys Deiter had 13 points and 6 rebounds.
The Hesston High School boys basketball team defeated Goodland 51-46 to win the Kansas Class 3A boys state tournament championship Saturday at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
Hesston improved to 24-2. Goodland finished the season with a 22-4 record.
The Hesston Swather boys trailed Goodland 13-12 at the end of the first quarter and 24-22 at halftime. The Swathers led 35-31 at the end of the third quarter and outscored Goodland 16-15 in the final quarter.
Reed Friesen led Hesston with 21 points and Tyler Unruh added 16.
Goodland’s top scorer was Brady Brumbaugh with 23 points and 7 rebounds. Brayton Mull and Linkon Cure (Kansas State University football signee) scored 8 points apiece.
In the 3A girls third-place game, the Hesston Swather girls defeated Colby 56-50 to finish the season with a 25-1 record. Colby finished the season with a 22-4 record.
Hesston led the Eagles 19-13 at the end of the first quarter and 30-23 at halftime. Colby outscored the Swathers 20-12 in the third quarter to take a 43-42 lead.
The Swathers outscored the Eagles 14-8 in the fourth quarter to claim third place.
Kendal Brueggen, Hesston’s senior All-State guard, led the Swathers with 21 points and 9 rebounds.
Brueggen signed a letter of intent to play basketball at Missouri State University (formerly Southwest Missouri State) in Springfield, Mo. — the same school where Claflin native Jackie Stiles was a star.
Kaycee Mason added 14 points for Hesston and Abby Proctor scored 11.
Logan Nolan and Shaylee Holzmeister led the Colby Eagles with 11 points apiece. Alisabeth Barton added 10 points and Brenn Stanley 9.
In the boys third-place game, Silver Lake defeated Galena 63-51.
Silver Lake won its 20th game of the seasoning has just six losses. Galena (23-2), the No. 1 seed in the tournament, finished with two straight losses after bringing a 23-0 record to state.
Silver Lake’s Dayne Johnson posted a double-double with 16 points and 14 assists. Deondre Razzano scored 13 points and Jared Johnson added 11.
Jackson Perry led Galena with 15 points and Kinked Kimberling scored 14. Quenten Cox contributed 9.
Sterling boys deny Moundridge boys three-peat hopes; Moundridge Wildcat girls win 8th state title
The Sterling Black Bears denied the three-peat hopes for Moundridge by knocking off the Wildcats 56-42 in the Kansas Class 2A boys state tournament championship game Saturday.
The 2A state tournament is being played at Kansas State University’s Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan.
Sterling (23-3) won its second state championship and the first since 2012. Moundridge, winners of seven state titles, lost for the first time in 26 games this season.
Sterling, which lost to Moundridge 58-47 earlier this season in a Heart of America League clash, led 14-12 after one quarter, 22-19 at halftime and 39-27 after three quarters.
Blake Smith and Boston Ekart led the Sterling Black Bears with 15 points apiece. Jacob Lewis scored 10 points, Zachary Dashiell 7, Zane Farney 5 and Wyatt Newberry 4.
The Black Bears made 25-of-30 free throws: Smith was 9-of-11, Ekart 7-of-7, Farney 5-of-6 and Lewis 4-of-6. Ekart grabbed 7 rebounds and Farney 6.
Bear Moddlemog led the Wildcats with 14 points. Heath Churchill scored 9 points, Kaizer Kanitz 8, Jesse Lutz 6, Henry Hecox 3 and Zachery Dixon 2. Churchill had 8 rebounds and Hecox 6.
Moundridge will get to celebrate an eighth Class 2A girls state championship as the Wildcats defeated Highland-Doniphan West 62-51. The Wildcats’ roster has no seniors.
Moundridge improved to 24-2. Highland-Doniphan West finished the season with an 18-7 record.
Hattie Hecox led the Moundridge girls with 19 points and Cammi Unruh scored 13. Mackenzie Conkling and Macy Kaminkow each scored 9 points, Halle Hecox 7 and Addysen Patrick 5. Kaminkow grabbed 8 rebounds.
Courtney Johnson led Doniphan West with 21 points. Katie Johnson scored 11, Brennah Edie 9, Belle Smith 6 and Andi Foster 4. Foster also had 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
The Inman Teuton girls basketball team captured third place at the Kansas Class 2A girls state tournament with a 60-57 victory over Pittsburg-St. Mary’s Colgan Saturday afternoon.
Inman trailed Pittsburg-St. Mary’s Colgan 17-10 at the end of the first quarter and 23-22 at halftime. The Teutons led 41-39 at the end of the third quarter and outscored Colgan 19-18 in the final frame.
The Inman girls improved to 21-4. Pittsburg-St. Mary’s Colgan finished the season with a 22-4 record.
Inman was led by 5-foot-11 junior Suttyn Harris with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Morgan Froese scored 14 points, Taylor Froese 8 and Ellie Themmesch 8. Raynee Eddy and Katelyn Nichols each scored 2 points.
Colgan’s Jakayla Davis, who battled through a knee injury suffered during the second half of a semifinal loss to Doniphan West Friday, scored 25 to lead all scorers. She made 13-of-14 free throw attempts.
Lauren O’Brien added 17 points for Colgan.
The Ell-Saline boys placed third in the Kansas 2A boys state tournament with a record-setting 109-74 victory over Valley Falls.
The 109 points scored by Ell-Saline is a new state tournament record for all classes. The 183 combined points is second all-time all class and most in Class 2A.
Ell-Saline scored 33 points in the first quarter, 32 in the second quarter, 32 in the third quarter and 12 in the fourth quarter. The Cardinals led 65-38 at halftime.
Five players scored in double figures for Ell-Saline: Brogan Rowley 34 points, Harrison Zerger 19, Reese Krone 15, Kas Kramer 13 and Trey Williams 12.
Rowley, who has cleared 7 feet in the high jump and is headed to the University of Nebraska on a track scholarship, grabbed 5 rebounds, handed out 4 assists, added 5 steals and blocked 1 shot.
Krone pulled down 7 rebounds, Zerger 6, Williams 6 and Kramer 5.
Four players scored double figures for Valley Falls: Hayden Kearney 16, Damian Cervantez 14, Collin Kearney 12 and Trenten Vanhoutan 10. Kearney had 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Ell-Saline posted a 22-4 record this season and Valley Falls finished with a 21-5 record.
Buhler girls 4th at 4A state tournament; McPherson boys, Wellington girls capture state titles
The Buhler High School girls basketball placed fourth at the Kansas Class 4A girls state basketball tournament with a 57-23 loss to Topeka Hayden in the third-place game Saturday at the Tony’s Pizza Events Center in Salina.
The Buhler girls, coached by John Darrow, finished the season with a 19-6 record. Topeka Hayden finished the season with a 22-3 record.
Topeka Hayden led Buhler 19-4 at the end of the first quarter, 30-12 at halftime and 48-21 after thee quarters. Hayden outscored the Crusaders 9-2 in the fourth quarter.
Natalya Krafels and Charley Baxter each scored 6 points for Buhler. Ryan Gotti scored 4, Sammie Brooks 3, Gracie Oard 2 and Ella Voss 2.
Millie Ramsey led the Topeka Hayden Wildcats with 20 points. Norma Greco added 11, Hailey Schmidtlein 9, Brylee Meier 8, Blakely Walter 6 and Ella Foster 3.
McPherson won the Kansas Class 4A state boys championship with a 53-44 victory over Rock Creek.
McPherson finished the season with a 21-4 record. Rock Creek finished the season 22-3.
The Bullpups were led by Jett Pyle and Gabe Pyle with 13 points each. Gavin Rosa scored 10.
Elijah Bell led Rock Creek with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Coley Burguess added 11 points and Gavin Rosa 10.
McPherson head boys basketball coach Kurt Kinnamon now has eight state titles and 600+ wins in 30 years. He has been the Bullpups’ head coach since 1996.
His brother Clint Kinnamon is the McPherson girls basketball coach. The Kinnamon brothers are alums of St. John High School and Hutchinson Community College.
The Wellington High School girls basketball team fought off Shawnee Mission Bishop Miege 53-48 to capture the Class 4A girls state championship Saturday in Salina.
Wellington improved to 23-1 and Shawnee Mission Bishop Miege finished the season with a 19-5 record.
The Wellington Crusaders took down the five-time reigning champions from Miege, who had lost just one state tournament game in the past 11 years.
Valerie Norwood led the Wellington Crusader girls with 20 points and Brittan Zeka added 15. Kylan Gregory scored 7.
Ottawa won the third-place boys 4A state game over Andale 61-36. Ottawa finished the season with a 24-1 record and Andale went 20-5.
Jayce Mourning led Ottawa with 24 points, Aidan McCullough added 15 and Cole McGrath scored 12.
Austin Baalman led Andale with 13 points.
The fire alarm went off midway through the third quarter during the Ottawa-Andale boys game.
Play was stopped and Tony’s Pizza Event Center briefly was evacuated. Firefighters were called in to investigate, the players and fans were let back in the area and play resumed.
According to Sports in Kansas, when play resumed, the Ottawa High School band played Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”
Centralia girls, Olpe boys win Class 1A Division I state championships
In a matchup featuring two unbeaten teams, the Centralia girls stayed that way.
The Centralia Panthers knocked off Little River to win the Kansas Class 1A Division I state girls championship game 50-43 Saturday at the Dodge City’s United Wireless Arena.
Little River led Centralia 25-24 at halftime.
Centralia finished the season with a 26-0 record. Little River finished 23-1.
The Panthers were paced by Oen Deters with 29 points and 7 rebounds. She made 5-of-9 3-pointers and 10-of-14 free throws.
Tava Gibbs added 10 points and 7 rebounds for the Panthers.
Arika Feldman led the Little River girls with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Evie Look scored 9 points and Avery Lafferty 7. Havana Olander grabbed 7 rebounds.
The Olpe Eagles won the Class 1A Division I state tournament championship with a 47-34 victory over the South Central Timberwolves Saturday in Dodge City.
Olpe finished the season with a 24-2 record. South Central finished 23-3.
Dexton Hoelting led the Eagles in scoring with 24 points, including 12-of-12 free throw attempts. He also grabbed 6 rebounds. Brecken McGuire added 13 points.
Jack Herd scored 16 of the Timberwolves’ 34 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Jase Rutherford added 6 points and 6 rebounds.
The Troy High School girls defeated Quinter 50-36 to win the third-place girls game at the Class 1A girls DI state tournament.
Troy finished the season with a 23-2 record and Quinter finished 21-5.
Troy’s Harper Whetstone scored a game-high 25 points, including 11-of-4 free throws. Alyson Grable scored 11 points. Allison Franken had 8 points and 11 rebounds. Gracie Grabel scored 6 points.
Bryn Gillespie led the Quinter Bulldogs with 18 points.
In the third-place boys game, Montezuma-South Gray defeated Claflin-Central Plains 66-56 in overtime.
South Gray finished the season 21-5 and Central Plains finished with a 19-6 record.
Gavin Wahl led South Gray with 17 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. Sam Moore scored 14 points and dished off 7 assists.
Dyson Winfrey and Asa Briscoe each scored 10 points, Cameron Wahl 8 and Zachary Hendrickson 6. Briscoe grabbed 8 rebounds.
Brodie Crites led the Oilers with 22 points and 6 assists. Aidan Hekele added 15 and Camden Stiles 14. Rylan Siemsen had 5 points and 7 rebounds.
Axtell boys, Hanover girls take Class 1A Division II crowns
The Axtell boys and the Hanover girls are the Kansas Division II state champions for 2025.
The Class 1A DII state tournament was played at the Colby Event Center.
In the boys championship game, Axtell (25-1) dethroned the defending champions from Cunningham 57-39. Cunningham’s season ended with a 24-1 record.
Brandon Schmelzle had 15 points and 11 rebounds for Axtell. Logan Sandmann had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Colin Shaughnessy and Eli Broxterman each scored 12 points.
Will Wegerer led the Cunningham Wildcats with 20 points.
In the girls championship game, Hanover (23-2) defeated Linn (18-7) 46-35.
Anna Jueneman led Hanover with 24 points. Drew Bruna scored 7 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Baleigh Peters led Linn with 19 points.
In the third-place girls game, Siara Crouch scored a game-high 26 points to power the Lebo Wolves (22-3) to a 61-47 win over Attica (21-5). Saige Hadley scored 17 points for Lebo.
Zie Redgate scored 20 points for the Attica Bulldogs. Kady Hemphill scored 13 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Liberty Swingle had 10 points. Baylee Ricke had 4 points and 10 rebounds.
In the third-place boys game, McPherson-Elyria Christian defeated Dighton 59-57.
Elyria Christian finished the season with a 21-5 record. Dighton posted a 21-5 record.
Ty Romero led Elyria Christian with 26 points, including five 3-pointers. Gavin Robertson scored 15 points.
Daniel Cramer led Dighton with 18 points, followed by Payton Redburn with 13 points and Boston Shimer with 12.
Kapaun boys, Aquinas girls are 5A state champions
The Kapaun-Mount Carmel boys and the Overland Park-St. Thomas Aquinas girls basketball teams are the Kansas Class 5A state champions.
The 5A state tournament was played at Emporia’s White Auditorium.
In the Class 5A state boys championship game, Kapaun-Mount Carmel, coached by the legendary Steve Eck, won its second straight state championship with a 58-55 win over Topeka Highland Park.
Eck now has won eight Kansas high school state titles.
Kapaun finished the season with a 22-3 and handed Topeka Highland Park its first loss in 25 games.
Four Kapaun Crusaders scored in double figures, led by Corbin Johnson and Rocco Keller with 16 points apiece. Corey Daniels and Blaise Dalian scored 11 points each.
Dalian and Johnson both grabbed 10 rebounds and Keller 9 as the Crusaders outrebounded the Scots 37-32.
Ja’Corey Robinson led the Scots with 26 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists. Michael Williams Jr. had 11 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals.
In the 5A girls state championship game, St. Thomas Aquinas defeated Topeka Seaman 68-61. Aquinas improved to 18-7 and handed Seaman its first loss in 25 games.
Alexandra Crouse led the Aquinas Saints with 26 points, including 10-of-11 free throws. Sofia Colavich added 18 points and Laila Boylan 10.
Anna Becker led Seaman with 28 points and 5 assists. Madeline Gregg scored 18 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Becker and Gregg each made four 3-pointers. Kinley Wilhelm had 7 points and 8 rebounds.
The Andover girls basketball team placed third at the Class 5A state tournament with a 74-55 victory over Spring Hill Saturday afternoon at Emporia’s White Auditorium.
Andover finished the season with a 21-4 record. Spring Hill ended the year with a 20-5 record.
Andover was led in scoring by Bella Bouddhara with 22 points. Aliyah Green had 12 points and 15 rebounds. Asia’H Sullivan scored 9 points, Grier Hand 8, Samantha Siegrist 8 and Katie Evans 7.
Isla Herman and Sydney Buscher each scored 19 points for Spring Hill and Kallie Rodden added 9. Buscher grabbed 13 rebounds.
The Andover boys placed fourth at the 5A state tournament, losing to Kansas City Piper 69-57 in the boys third-place game.
The Andover boys finished the season with a 20-5 record. Kansas City Piper posted a 21-4 record.
Joshua Kim led the Andover boys with 26 points. Walker McLellan had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Owen Allman contributed 8 points.
Four Piper players scored in double figures: Phillip Moore 17 points, Alamar Brooks 13, Derrick Jackson 12 and Lantz Walton 11.
Shawnee Mission Northwest boys, Blue Valley girls top Class 6A
Shawnee Mission Northwest won the Kansas Class 6A boys state championship with a 63-56 victory over Olathe North Saturday at Wichita State University’s Koch Arena.
The Blue Valley North girls defeated Derby 65-30 in the Class 6A girls championship.
Ethan Taylor led SM Northwest with 19 points, 15 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot.
Keaton Wagler added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Van Collins scored 10 points, Taylor Salmon 9 and Alvin Riley 8.
Cameron Love scored 16 points to lead Olathe North, followed by Derrick Cooper with 14, Jaalan Watson 10 and Samuel Simmons 9.
By winning the 6A girls state championship, Blue Valley North improved to 21-4. Derby also ended the season 21-4.
Jaliya Davis led Blue Valley North with 22 points and Aubrey Shaw scored 17. Derby’s top scorer was Macayla Askew with 14 points.
The Maize Eagle boys placed third in the Kansas Class 6A boys state tournament with a 57-52 win over Wichita Heights.
Maize finished the season with an 18-7 record. Wichita Heights posted a 21-4 record in coach Joe Auer’s final season.
Auer is retiring after 30 seasons the boys basketball coach. He posted a record of 491-198 at Heights and won six state titles.
Justin Hanna led the Maize Eagles with 24 points. Charles Sharpe scored13, Brayden Myoleva 9 and Alec Grill 8.
Chase Robinson led the Wichita Heights Falcons with 12 points and K’Mari Holt tallied 10. Jaiihn Timmons, Amalachi Wilkins and Aven Mboule each scored 9. Wilkins grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Wichita Heights girls placed third in the Class 6A girls state tournament with a 50-47 win over Olathe North.
Wichita Heights finished the season with a 21-4 record. Olathe North posted a 19-7 record.
Samiyah Ellis led Wichita Heights with 18 points. Zarianna Walker added 11, Kennadi Jackson 10 and Kamyra Barber 7.
All-State candidate Asia Lee scored 29 of Olathe North’s 47 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, had 2 steals and 1 blocked shot.