Damon Dennis, owner of Louisburg Chiropractic, shows off his new mini bass guitar with a Wildcat logo on it. The guitar was given to him as a gift from several Louisburg High School seniors and their families for his years of service to the LHS athletic programs.

Damon Dennis is a busy man.

If owning and running your own business isn’t taxing enough, Dennis has spent the last 24 years running back and forth to Louisburg High School serving as the school’s athletic trainer – something he does at no charge.

“I do it because I enjoy being around the kids,” Dennis said. “I just want to help in any way that I can.”

Lauren Dunn, and some of the other seniors at LHS, thought he deserved a little bit more.

Dunn, who has paid numerous visits to Dennis’ Louisburg Chiropractic office and has had several ankles taped by the good doctor, wanted to get him something special.

So with the help of her parents Janie and Donnie, and twin brother Alex, Lauren started collecting donations since the beginning of the year and they found the perfect gift – a mini bass guitar.

It wasn’t just any guitar as the group had it custom made to have the Wildcat logo put on it.

“This community is blessed with some of the best people and Doc D is a selfless person and always puts the kids before him, even if some of them might get on his nerves,” Lauren said. “But he means the world to me and I am going to be sad next year without Doc D by my side while I am playing volleyball at Pittsburg State.”

So, what would a chiropractor and team doctor need with a bass guitar? Well, music is also a big part of Dennis’ life.

In his down time, he is a member of the local band 68 Overpass and they play several gigs throughout the year.

To complete the surprise, the group of LHS seniors paid a visit to his gig at Timbercreek earlier this month. It was there that several seniors got up to speak and thank him for his service.

Louisburg senior Lauren Dunn presents Dr. Damon Dennis with a plaque earlier this month at Timbercreek. A group of LHS seniors surprised Dennis and thanked him for his years of service.

Lauren, Alex, Anders Vance and Jarod Woodward all made little speeches before they, and seniors Sierra Reinhart, Tristan Shrock and Cassidy Hink presented him with the guitar.

“I didn’t know or think anything about it because a lot of the people that were there usually come to the shows anyway,” Dennis said. “Then Donnie (Dunn) got up and said something and then I knew something was going on.”

Lauren also presented Dennis with a commemorative plaque along with some gift cards for all his help over the years.

The present took a little work to get to put together. The Dunn family corresponded with Damon’s wife, Karla, to keep it a secret.

Other senior families quickly became involved in different ways, whether it was with donations or helping pick out the perfect gift.

“We started collecting money during football season and wanted to present it to him at graduation but Doc wasn’t going to be in town,” Janie Dunn said. “Donnie mentioned to do it when 68 overpass was playing at Timbercreek and so that worked. I’m surprised we kept it quiet this long. We had a lot of donors and I tried to spread the word to all sports and keep it a secret. I think he was surprised.”

Needless to say he was a little shocked.

“Apparently it was the quite the undertaking,” Dennis said. “For them to do it and for me to not hear about it is pretty significant because I usually hear about everything that is going on. But for them to go to that much trouble for me…it is just really nice. I just love the kids and being around them.”

The effort to put the surprise together was well worth it to everyone involved as it was their way to say “Thank you” to the man who was always there for them when they needed it.

“Doc is a huge part of this community and he takes the time every day after school to come tape us or help us with injuries, for free,” Alex said. “He has a big impact on the athletic programs here.

“For me personally, it was a heartfelt moment because Doc and I have a great friendship and he deserved this.”

Louisburg senior Jarod Woodward rears back for an attempt in the shot put during a meet earlier this season. The Wildcat track teams traveled to De Soto last Thursday and left with several league medals.

DE SOTO – In a meet that was filled with state champions and medalists, the Louisburg High School track and field teams had their work cut out Thursday during the Frontier League meet at De Soto High School.

The Wildcats hung in there as they medaled in several events, despite not having a league champion.

The Louisburg girls finished fourth in the team standings with 57.5 points. Paola and Baldwin took a chunk of the team points as Paola won the league crown with 205 points and Baldwin was second at 194.

Still, the Wildcats found several positives to build on and it started with junior Liz Hildreth in the 800-meter run. Hildreth finished second overall with a time of 2 minutes and 34 seconds and was the Wildcats’ top finisher on the day.

“I was really proud of the girls,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “They showed me some toughness competing on the track. Liz finally got out of her comfort zone and did a great job finishing second. She has a really good chance to compete this week and head to state if she can keep improving.”

The league meet was just the precursor to what is an even bigger meet Friday when Louisburg travels to Chanute for regionals. The top four in each event will qualify for state.

Louisburg’s relay teams all finished in top four at league. The 4×100-meter relay of Jordon Leach, Megan Lemke, Hanna Becker and Kaitlyn Gaza was fourth in 53.06 seconds

Lemke, Gaza, Mikayla Quinn and Reilly Alexander ran a 4:23 in the 4×400 relay to come in third. Isabelle Holtzen, Lauren Becker, Shaylor Whitham and Hildreth took fourth in the 4×800 in 10:45.

“The relay teams did a nice job,” Darrington said. “The 4×100 improved as well as the other two, which is nice to see. They all stand a chance to head to state, but they must run their best races of the year.”

Also on the track, Quinn ran a season-best time of 1:04 in the 400-meter dash to come in fifth. Gaza took sixth in the 200-meter dash in 28.5 seconds and Leach was seventh in the 100 dash in 13.96.

Junior Chloe Renner scored points in three different field events for Louisburg. Renner came in fourth in the long jump with a mark of 15 feet and 7.75 inches.

Renner was also fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 32 feet and fifth in the high jump after she cleared 4-7.

Kaitlyn Urban led Louisburg in the triple jump with a mark of 32-2 to take third and Lemke came in seventh in the long jump at 14-5.5.

Sophomore Sophie McMullen recorded a couple good throws in the discus, including one that went 103-2.5, which was good enough to take third. Teammate Lexie Reece also scored points in the event with a throw of 95-0.

“It was nice to see Sophie break 100 feet, but she needs to work hard this week at practice if she wants to move on to state,” Darrington said.

Holtzen competed in a tough pole vault field, but came in fourth overall after she cleared 9-2 to round out the Lady Cat point-getters.

The Louisburg boys also went up against some tough competition as the Wildcats were sixth in the team standings with 44.5 points. Paola won the boys league title with 156 points and Baldwin was second at 136.

Freshman Jonathan Ventre continues to make strides in both hurdle events and cut down on time. On Thursday, Ventre was third in the 300-meter hurdles in 42.58 seconds and came in fifth in the 110-meter high hurdles in 16.98 seconds.

“Jonathan has had a really good season,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “He has improved with pretty much every meet. He is a hard worker and it is paying off.”

The Wildcats also set personal records in all three relay events.

Brandon Cooper, Chris Williams, Ben Minster and Quinn Rigney ran a time of 45.1 seconds to take fourth. Wyatt Reece, Tanner Belcher, Ben Hupp and Michael Minster helped the 4×800 to a time of 8:49 for fifth and set a personal best by nine seconds.

Ventre, Ben Minster, Michael Minster and Williams ran a 3:33 in the 4×400 to come in sixth, but shaved three seconds off their previous top time.

“They all performed pretty well, but all of them are going to have to run well if they want to qualify for state,” Griffin said.

Also on the track, Cooper ran a time of 11.68 seconds to finish fourth in the 100-meter dash. Williams came in fifth in the 400 dash in 51.77 seconds and Rigney was seventh in the 200 dash with a time of 23.99.

In the field events, senior Jarod Woodward showed he was among the best in the league in the shot put. Woodward came in third with a throw of 49-7.5.

Cooper set a personal best mark in the triple jump with a leap of 39-8.25 to come in fourth. Junior T.J. Dover was fourth in the discus with a toss of 138-3.

Freshman Ian Combs cleared 10-1 in the pole vault to come in fifth and Kristopher Light was sixth in the high jump with at 5-8.

Louisburg returns to action for the regional meet at 2 p.m. at Chanute High School.

“We did about as well as I expected there,” Griffin said. “There were a lot of state champions and state medalists at the meet and we held our own. But we are going to have to take a step up this week if we want to qualify for state. It is an exciting time and we will see who steps up.”

Other Wildcat results are:

Varsity Girls

100 dash: Hanna Becker, 14^th, 14.70

200 dash: Jordon Leach, 11^th, 29.41

400 dash: Kaitlyn Gaza, 8^th, 1:05.75; Reilly Alexander, 10^th, 1:07.54

800 dash: Lauren Becker, 10^th, 2:50.42;

1,600 run: Shaylor Whitham, 10^th, 6:15

3,200 run: Whitham, 11^th, 14:42

100 hurdles: Klara Riester, 8^th, 18:14

300 hurdles: Riester, 8^th, 53.25

Long jump: Kaitlyn Urban, 13^th, 13-1.5

Shot put: Morgan Strumillo, 10^th, 30-3.5; Ellie Katzer, 13^th, 29-1

Discus: Katzer, 9^th, 90-0

Javelin: Zoie Gilliland, 9^th, 88-6; Paige Buffington, 10^th, 87-1

JV Girls

100 dash: Grayson Anderson, 4^th, 14.99

200 dash: Julianne Finley, 3^rd, 30.06; Anderson, 5^th, 30.69

400 dash: Finley, 1^st, 1:06.28

800 run: Alex Miller, 1^st, 2:43

3,200 run: Miller, 1^st, 14:00

100 hurdles: Kristen Bell, 6^th, 21.05

300 hurdles: Bell, 5^th, 59.90

4×100 relay: 5th, 58.49

4×400 relay: 1st, 5:06

High jump: Eileen Benne, 1^st, 4-8; Makenna Allen, 4^th, 4-2

Long jump: Benne, 3^rd, 13-5.25; Allen, 8^th, 12-3.5

Triple jump: Benne, 2^nd, 29-3; Allen, 3^rd, 28-2

Discus: Melia Rice, 5^th, 57-3.5

Javelin: Rice, 5^th, 62-0

Varsity Boys

100 dash: Ben Minster, 10^th, 11.88; Quinn Rigney, 11^th, 12.01

200 dash: Minster, 9^th, 24.52; Brandon Cooper, 13^th, 24.92

800 run: Tanner Belcher, 10^th, 2:10.34; Michael Minster, 11^th, 2:10.87

1,600 run: Wyatt Reece, 9^th, 4:56; Tim Smith, 12^th, 5:02; Devyn Small, 17^th, 5:15

3,200 run: Smith, 9^th, 10:50; Reece, 11^th, 11:14; Small, 15^th, 11:40

300 hurdles: Ben Hupp, 11^th, 46.96

Triple jump: Kris Light, 9^th, 36-6.5

Shot put: T.J. Dover, 8^th, 45-8; Bradley Trageser, 14^th, 40-2

Discus: Mason Koechner, 12^th, 110-7

Javelin: Dustyn Rizzo, 11^th, 120-5; Jacob Jensen, 15^th, 112-11

JV Boys

100 dash: Jackson Ewalt, 3^rd, 12.29; Will Ridley, 10^th, 12.76; Austin Moore, 11^th, 12.76

200 dash: Moore, 6^th, 25.26; Ridley, 8^th, 25.54; Ewalt, 9^th, 25.54

400 dash: Blue Caplinger, 1^st, 54.83; Scott Murphy, 4^th, 56.51; Owen Staver, 8^th, 58.63

800 run: Eddie Murphy, 3^rd, 2:19

1,600 run: Jacob Benne, 8^th, 5:30; Dylan Knipp, 16^th, 6:05

3,200 run: Eddie Murphy, 6^th, 12:10; Benne, 9^th, 12:30; Knipp, 12^th, 13:36

4×100 relay: 2^nd, 47.56

4×400 relay: 1^st, 3:49

High jump: Marshall Rooney, 6^th, 5-4; Dalton Knipp, 7^th, 5-2

Pole vault: Caplinger, 1^st, 10-1

Long jump: Rooney, 4^th, 17-4.25; Kyle Allen, 6^th, 16-10.5; Jacob Arnett, 9^th, 15-3

Triple jump: Dalton Knipp, 1^st, 37-4; Allen, 2^nd, 36-5.25; Rooney, 3^rd, 36-0

Shot put: Matt Holloway, 3^rd, 36-1.5; Nathan Allen, 5^th, 34-1.5; Kiefer Tucker, 7^th, 33-5

Discus: Dalton Ribordy, 3^rd, 109-6; Tucker, 5^th, 106-1; Holloway, 9^th, 88-0

Javelin: Holloway, 4^th, 112-7; Ribordy, 5^th, 110-5.5; N. Allen, 8^th, 104-1

Louisburg seniors (from left) Maddie McDaniel, Lilly Scott, Rylee Bergh and manager Leslie Damian were honored during senior night ceremony following the the Wildcats’ game with Spring Hill on Thursday in Louisburg. 

Maddie McDaniel, Lilly Scott and Rylee Bergh were 20 minutes away from having a senior night to remember.

The Louisburg girls soccer team held a one goal lead over Spring Hill on Thursday in the Wildcats’ regular season finale – one of just two teams to beat the Wildcats all season. With a win would come a spot as the regional’s No. 1 seed and an outside shot at a Frontier League title.

Louisburg had its chance for redemption, but the No. 4-ranked Wildcats couldn’t quite hang on. Spring Hill scored two goals in the final 20 minutes to end Louisburg’s hope for revenge and the Wildcats fell 3-2 in Louisburg.

“I thought we played well enough to win,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said. “We struggled at the start of the game and the start of the second half. We got pushed back and struggled to get our formation set. I felt overall the girls played a decent game, but we really struggled to find feet. It was almost like we tried to play too quick.

“I think we played well enough to win, but just couldn’t quite make the most of our chances. We gave them shots, but they were from distance. That was part of the game plan to limit their quality scoring chances and I felt we did an excellent job at that.”

Senior Lilly Scott (right) clears the ball out of the back during Thursday’s game in Louisburg.

It was a disappointing loss for the three Wildcat seniors as they were honored, along with manager Leslie Damian, during senior night ceremonies following the game. The four were the first senior class to come through the LHS girls soccer program and Thursday’s loss left some mixed emotions.

“It is really an honor because you will be known as the first senior class to have left the girls soccer team and it’s also kind of sad because we only got to play for one year,” McDaniel said. “The game was a good fight between both teams and we gave them a run for their money and had the lead. I think we got too cocky and let them go and that’s when they took it from us, but other than that we had a great game overall. Everyone played great and I was so very proud of everyone and it was sure an emotional game for me.”

The Wildcats found themselves down early as Spring Hill’s Mikayla Smith found the back of the net in the 11^th minute to give the Broncos a 1-0 lead. Smith was the focus of the Wildcat defense and made for a difficult matchup.

“Smith is a stud,” Conley said. “She is as good as you will see at this level. We preached how essential it is to contain them and stand them up. Unfortunately we couldn’t quite get that done, but it was a great match up that will help us from regionals.”

The deficit didn’t seem to bother Louisburg much.

Nine minutes later, it was a pair of sophomores that helped the Wildcats get back in the game on senior night. Izzie Ford crossed the ball to Bailey Belcher in the box and Belcher put the shot away to tie the match and it stayed that way until early in the second half.

Belcher continued her torrid scoring pace as she gave Louisburg the lead with 26 minutes left in the match. She lined up for a free kick from 30 yards out and her high-arching shot sailed over the outstretched arms of the Spring Hill goalie and found the back of the net.

“Bailey has been playing really well lately,” Conley said. “She has been able to get a lot of good chances and finish them. That was a nice free kick. It gave us a shot in the arm and we picked our pace up.”

Five minutes later, Spring Hill evened things up with a goal from Shelby Dawson. Smith then put Spring Hill ahead for good on a goal with 15 minutes left in the match.

Even with the loss, Conley realizes this is a special senior class in many aspects and one he is going to miss once the season is complete.

“This group is going to be tough to replace,” he said. “They are a great group that leads and challenges their teammates each and every day. They played their heart out and did so much to set the bar so high from the start of this program. I could not have asked for a better group of seniors. They are going to be greatly missed and hard to replace. I could not be more proud of them.”

Louisburg sophomore Georgia Wilde wins a 50-50 ball Thursday against Spring Hill.

The season has been special for everyone involved as the Wildcats accumulated a 12-3-1 record on the year and held the No. 4 ranking in Class 4-1A. Those results exceeded expectations many in the program had for themselves.

Two months ago, Louisburg was getting ready to compete in its first game. Now, the Wildcats are the No. 2 seed in the Northeast regional with hopes of state tournament aspirations.

“Being a newly created team, the expectations were to win a few games and just get better throughout the season, but being 12-3-1 is better than I could have ever imagined we would be,” Scott said. “A lot of hard work had been put in to get us where we are now. I’m really excited to start the postseason. We get the chance to continue playing as a team for a few more games and to face opponents we have played before, but might not have played well against earlier. I feel like we have a shot at a regional title and hopefully we do well at districts and eventually be on our way to state to battle for a title.”

The Wildcats host Ottawa (2-14) at 4 p.m. today in the first round of the regional tournament. Should Louisburg win, it will play No. 7 Basehor-Linwood for the regional title at 4:30 p.m. in Louisburg.

Louisburg’s junior varsity ended its season on a strong note as it defeated Spring Hill 4-0 to end its season with a 10-2-1 record.

The Wildcats got a unassisted goals from Camdyn Clark and Savannah Reinhart. Leia Shaffer scored on an assist from Hallie Hutsell and Quincy Rice scored on an assist from Reinhart.

Louisburg seniors (from left) Cale Schneider, Alex Dunn, Matt Risenhoover, Cole Kramer, Austin Henderson and Colton Smith were honored in-between games for senior night during Thursday’s doubleheader with Spring Hill at Lewis-Young Park. 

Six Louisburg seniors walked onto the Lewis-Young Park field Thursday for the final time and one last chance at a win.

It was senior night and the Wildcats had already lost the doubleheader opener, 6-3, to Spring Hill and were staring at a six-game losing streak. They were not about to let it become seven.

Instead, Louisburg jumped on Spring Hill with three runs in the second and three more in the fifth to pull away for a 7-1 victory in the nightcap. The six seniors – Alex Dunn, Matt Risenhoover, Austin Henderson, Cole Kramer, Cale Schneider and Colton Smith – were able to leave their home field on a positive note.

“I feel we came out strong in the first game and we wanted to come out and compete but we had a lot on our minds,” Risenhoover said. “In the second game we just came out more free and loose and a bunch of the seniors just wanted to come out and have fun.”

Henderson got the fun started in the first inning when he hit a solo home run to put the Wildcats up 1-0 and from there Louisburg was able to relax offensively and followed it up with a pair of big innings.

Spring Hill tied the game in the top of the second, but the Wildcats (8-11) responded right back in the bottom of the inning. Risenhoover walked, Blake Ruder was hit by a pitch, and with two outs, the Wildcats executed a double steal to put both runners in scoring position.

It turned out to be a big play as Schneider came through with an opposite field single that scored both runs. Kramer then followed it up with an RBI double to put Louisburg up 4-1.

Louisburg senior second baseman Cale Schneider flips the ball to shortstop Matt Risenhoover as the Wildcats try for a double play Thursday against Spring Hill.

“I could feel like we were going to have a big inning,” Schneider said. “He threw me a two strike curve and I just took it to right field. It felt good to be able to come through there and help the team out.”

The Wildcats tacked on three more runs in the fifth on a pair of RBI singles from Schneider and Ruder and Henderson scored after Dalton Stone reached on an error.

Louisburg would need those runs as the Wildcats got a strong performance from Kylan Harper. Harper, who has been pitching at the junior varsity level all season, got the start thanks to injuries to Smith and Grant Harding.

Harper filled in nicely as he pitched five innings and allowed just one run on five hits.

“Kylan did a great job,” said Dunn, the team’s catcher. “For him to play junior varsity all year and then come up to varsity, it was good to see him throw strikes and only allow one run.”

Kramer then got one final opportunity to throw off the mound at Lewis-Young and he recorded two scoreless innings to go along with two strikeouts.

“It was very nice to throw those last couple innings,” Kramer said. “I have enjoyed all my time here with this program and playing out here at Lewis-Young. It will stink not being able to come back out here and play next year with these guys, but I enjoyed my last game and it was good to go out with a win and that is all I can ask for.”

Spring Hill jumped on the Wildcats in the opener with two runs in the first, but Louisburg answered right back with a run in the bottom of the inning.

Louisburg’s Kylan Harper got the win for the Wildcats in the second game as he pitched five innings and gave up just one run.

Kramer walked to open the inning, stole second and then scored on a Henderson double to cut the Bronco lead to 2-1. Spring Hill added a run in the top of the second and then scored three runs in the sixth to break open a one-run game.

Henderson, Risenhoover and Schneider led the Wildcats with two hits each and Henderson had a pair of RBIs.

“It felt good to be able to get some big hits, especially that home run,” Henderson said. “We didn’t play as well in that first game, but that second game Kylan pitched really well for us and we were able to get the bats going a little bit.”

The Wildcats will take part in the regional tournament today in Paola. Louisburg, which is the No. 4 seed, will play No. 1 Paola (15-5) at 4 p.m., at the new Paola Baseball Complex.

If the Wildcats advance, they will play the winner of Fort Scott (12-6) and Spring Hill (10-8) at 6 p.m.

“It is sad that we have played our last home game, but at the same time we are ready for regionals,” Dunn said. “We are going to do everything we can to get a win.”

The Louisburg Middle School eighth-grade 4×200-meter relay team of (from left) Mackenzie Scholtz, Kody Lowry, Allie Boles and Ashlyn McManigal took first place Saturday at the Frontier League meet in 2:02.55. Louisburg’s eighth grade finished fourth in team standings and the seventh grade came in fifth.

GARDNER – The Louisburg Middle School eighth-grade girls track and field team showed its balance as it racked up points in several events and the Wildcats were able to walk away with a league title in one event.

The 4×200-meter relay of Allie Boles, Kody Lowry, Ashlyn McManigal and Mackenzie Scholtz edged Ottawa to win in 2 minutes and 2.55 seconds to win the league crown in the event.

In the team standings, Louisburg finished with 73 points to finish fourth overall. Eudora won the team title with 114.5 points and Paola was second with 93.

Scholtz scored some big points for the Wildcats in the sprints and she had a pair of runner-up finishes. Scholtz ran a time of 13.81 seconds to take second in the 100-meter dash and took the silver in the 200-meter dash in 28.12.

The other Louisburg relays also experienced a lot of success. The 4×100-meter relay of Boles, Elyvia Johnson, Scholtz and Gabby Tappan finished fourth in 56.99 seconds.

Kaylee Pfeiffer, Liz Kratochvil, Trinity Moore and Emily Williams took fifth in the 4×400 relay in 4:58 and the 800 sprint medley team of Tappan, Lowry, Alexa King and Natalie George came in seventh in 2:17.

Sydni Keagle had a strong performance in the 100-meter hurdles and took third in 18.67 seconds.

In the distance races, Moore ran a 6:08 in the 1,600-meter run to come in third overall and later ran a 2:54 in the 800 run to take fifth. Williams scored points in the 3,200 run and finished sixth in 15:31.

Pfeiffer ran a 1:10 in the 400-meter dash to come in seventh and round out the point-getters on the track.

Haley Cain led the Wildcats in the field events as she came in runner-up in the high jump after she cleared 4 feet, 8 inches. Teammate Jessa Howison was seventh in the event at 4-4.

Avery Graham cleared 7-6 in the pole vault to get third overall. In the discus, Lauren Vincent had a toss of 80-3 to take fourth and Reilly Ratlliff was sixth at 76-3.

In the seventh-grade girls meet, the Wildcats recorded 48 points and finished fifth in the 9-team meet. Baldwin won the league title with 105 points and edged runner-up Spring Hill by one point.

Louisburg scored several points in the field events and held two of the top three places in the discus. Megan Foote recorded a toss of 76-1 to take second and teammate Aiyana Penca was third at 75-11.

The Wildcats also held three of the top five places in the pole vault. Madilyn Melton cleared 7-0 to take third, while Alyse Moore and Shelby Grandon each cleared 6-6 to take fourth and fifth, respectively.

Grandon and Melton also earned points in the high jump. They each cleared 4-4 and came in fourth and sixth, respectively.

On the track, Louisburg also got several points from its relays. The 4×200 team of Andrea Gaza, Sydney Keaton, Gabbie Nichelson and Carleigh Pritchard took third in 2:07.

Jaydn Amren, Foote, Moore and Nichelson took fifth in the 4×100 relay in 57.77 seconds and the 4×400 relay of Olivia Barber, Brooklyn Diederich, Madison Quinn and Nora Van Asten also came in fifth in 5:14.

Sam Olson earned points in the 100-meter hurdles as she ran a 20.03 to take fifth overall.

Other results are:

7^th grade

100 dash: Brooklyn Diederich, 12^th, 14.89; Megan Foote, 13^th, 14.90; Alyse Moore, 17^th, 15.16

200 dash: Jadyn Amren, 12^th, 30.79; Moore, 13^th, 30.83; Sydney Keaton, 17^th, 32.25

400 dash: Diederich, 8^th, 1:12; Sam Olson, 15^th, 1:15; Callie O’Brien, 19^th, 1:20

800 run: Diederich, 13^th, 2:56; Madison Quinn, 16^th, 3:03; Olivia Barber, 18^th, 3:06

1,600 run: Quinn, 13^th, 6:31; Barber, 14^th, 6:31; Nora Van Asten, 17^th, 6:48

100 hurdles: Alexis French, 14^th, 21.73; O’Brien, 17^th, 22.05

800 sprint medley: eighth, 2:20

Long jump: Amren, 11^th, 12-10; Carleigh Pritchard, 15^th, 12-1.5; Shelby Grandon, 18^th, 11-10.5

Shot put: Aiyana Penca, 11^th, 27-0.5; Foote, 16^th, 25-9; Kerri Baker, 18^th, 24-6.5

Discus: Baker, 14^th, 54-1

8^th grade

100 dash: Sydni Keagle, 9^th, 14.79; Allie Boles, 11^th, 14.87

200 dash: Boles, 11^th, 31.16; Haley Cain, 19^th, 32.25

400 dash: Liz Kratochvil, 10^th, 1:14; Keagle, 17^th, 1:21

800 run: Emily Williams, 13^th, 3:11

3,200 run: Kratochvil, 8^th, 15:55

100 hurdles: Cain, 9^th, 19.98; Teylor Hendrix, 11^th, 20.14

Pole vault: Jessa Howison, 8^th, 6-6; Sinell Ellifrits, 11^th, 6-0

Long jump: Keagle, 14^th, 12-11; Ashley Moore, 19^th, 12-0; Kratochvil, 23^rd, 11-5

Shot put: Gabby Tappan, 8^th, 32-5.5; Lauren Vincent, 10^th, 30-5; Kody Lowry, 18^th, 27-5.5

Discus: Lowry, 14^th, 66-3

Louisburg Middle School eighth-grader Thomas Arnett sprints to the finish line in the 100-meter dash Saturday during the Frontier League meet at Gardner-Edgerton High School. Arnett scored points in three events for the Wildcats. 

GARDNER – Jack Mick and Charlie Koontz were among several members of the Louisburg Middle School eighth-grade boys track and field team to medal during Saturday’s Frontier League meet at Gardner-Edgerton High School.

However, Mick and Koontz were the lone athletes to win league titles.

The Wildcats dominated the pole vault competition as Mick cleared 9 feet to win the league crown. Teammate Trent Martin also cleared 9-0 and came in second, while Koontz medaled third at 8-6.

Koontz also came up big in the long jump for the Wildcats as he captured the league title with a leap of 18-9.

Louisburg got several points in those two events and the Wildcats finished seventh overall in the 9-team meet with 57 points. Pioneer Ridge won the league crown with 86 points and edged out runner-up Paola by one point.

Brayden White was just inches away from winning a league crown in the shot put. White finished runner-up with a throw of 42-1 and teammate Hunter Millbern was fifth at 37-4.5.

Louisburg’s Michael Waldron earned the third place medal in the high jump after he cleared 5-2, which was a personal record, and teammate Drake Varns was seventh at 5-0. Waldron also earned points in the discus as he finished seventh with a throw of 116-5.

On the track, the Wildcats got points from their relay teams. The 4×100 team of Thomas Arnett, Will Frank, Varns and Waldron finished sixth in 52.15 seconds.

The 800 sprint medley team of Arnett, Frank, Varns and Deven Wieland came in seventh with a time of 2:03, while Arnett also scored points in the 100-meter dash and finished fifth in 12.91 seconds.

Louisburg’s seventh-grade boys team recorded 42 points to finish seventh as well. Spring Hill won the seventh-grade title with 109.5 points and Trail Ridge was second with 100.5.

The Wildcats had four runner-up finishes on the day, including two in the field events and two relays.

Cole Evans scored big points in two events for Louisburg. Evans was second in the shot put with a toss of 34 feet and later finished third in the discus with a throw of 95-3.

Jay Scollin finished in a 3-way tie for second in the high jump after he cleared 4-8. Justin Colllins scored points in the pole vault after he cleared 7-6 to take seventh.

On the track, the 4×100- and 4×400-meter relays each had second place finishes. Collins, Scollin, Connor Koesser and Ben Wiedenmann ran 51.83 in the 4×100 to take second. The same four runners competed in the 4×400 and ran a 4:18.68.

Wyatt Axmann, Carson Houchen, Andy Hupp and Charlie Hutson ran the 800 sprint medley and took fifth in 2:16. The 4×200 relay team of Houchen, Hupp, Trevin Lohse and Matt Madison took seventh in 2:00.

Other results are:

7^th Grade

100 dash: Carson Houchen, 16^th, 14.53

200 dash: Houchen, 14^th, 29.49; Andy Hupp, 16^th, 29.71; Weston Frank, 17^th, 30.08

400 dash: Connor Koesser, 8^th, 1:03; Charlie Hutson, 16^th, 1:12; Wyatt Axmann, 20^th, 1:16

800 run: Ethan White, 10^th, 2:44; Ethan Showalter, 12^th, 2:49; Koesser, 15^th, 2:52

1,600 run: White, 9^th, 5:46; Dacey Wieland, 11^th, 5:50

100 hurdles: Hayden Yeager, 9^th, 20.0; Showalter, 13^th, 20.61

High jump: Luke Dudzik, 9^th, 4-4

Pole vault: Ben Wiedenmann, 9^th, 7-6; Cade Holtzen, 10^th, 7-0

Long jump: Jay Scollin, 11^th, 13-10.5; Trevin Lohse, 14^th, 13-7.25

8^th Grade

100 dash: Charlie Koontz, 11^th, 13.17

200 dash: Michael Waldron, 8^th, 27.20; Drake Varns, 17^th, 30.17; Deven Wieland, 20^th, 32.27

400 dash: Hunter Millbern, 14^th, 1:07; Harrison Laney, 17^th, 1:16

800 run: Garrett Rolofson, 17^th, 2:58

1,600 run: Anthony Davis, 9^th, 5:44; Wieland, 12^th, 5:51; Evan Murphy, 17^th, 6:39

3,200 run: Keith Estle, 11^th, 14:21; Millbern, 12^th, 14:39

100 hurdles: Murphy, 8^th, 19.11

4×400 relay: Davis, Millbern, Rolofson, Murphy, 8^th, 4:55

Long jump: Thomas Arnett, 17^th, 16-0.25; Josh Estle, 22^nd, 14-10.75

Shot put: Carter Anglin, 13^th, 34-2

Discus: Brayden White, 8^th, 110-10; Anglin, 18^th, 92-9

Louisburg freshman Hayli Detherage dribbles past at Baldwin opponent during Tuesday’s match in Louisburg. The Wildcats shutout Baldwin 4-0 to get their seventh consecutive win and are now 12-2-1 on the season.

All it took was one minute to put the Louisburg girls soccer team in prime position for its seventh victory in a row.

The Wildcats never let up after that.

Louisburg scored two goals in the opening minute and eventually pulled away for a 4-0 victory over Baldwin on Tuesday in Louisburg. It marked the second win in as many days as it defeated Ottawa on Monday.

The two wins catapulted the Wildcats to a 12-2-1 record on the season and they have locked up one of the top two seeds in the regional tournament next week.

“We played well for the most part, especially playing the day before and that is always something that is unknown,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said. “With our limited numbers it makes it really hard to do so because it is so easy to get run down. Fatigue-wise we have 24 kids trying to play two games and we had a couple injuries hit again because of the physicality of the game, which is fine. It is the time of the year where you just have to suck it up and be tough.”

The Wildcats have certainly played tough in recent weeks as they have won seven consecutive games and haven’t lost since April 14. That loss, ironically, comes against the Lady Cats’ next foe, Spring Hill.

Louisburg hosts the Broncos on Thursday for senior night after falling to them 3-2 last month. The Wildcats have been on quite a tear since. They have jumped to the No. 4 team in Class 4-1A in the Kansas Soccer Coaches Association rankings and No. 3 in the latest KPI rankings.

Junior Lily Cook (left) and sophomore Savannah Reinhart celebrate following a goal from Cook during Tuesday’s game in Louisburg.

“The girls are focused and they know what is going on,” Conley said. “They are just playing well. We are pretty fired up. With social media and the parents getting a little more excited, people started to pay attention a little bit more, which is kinda cool. We have just been preaching the whole time that you have to stay level-headed no matter how bad or good it gets. You can’t get too high or too low, otherwise it will fall apart one way or another.

“Credit to them, they have done a heck of a job staying level-headed and they enjoy it. They are ready to work and they want more and they know more is there to be had. It is awesome and a lot of fun right now.”

Focus wasn’t a problem for Louisburg against Baldwin as it opened the game with a goal 30 seconds into the contest. Sophomore Bailey Belcher took the open space, beat two Baldwin defenders and took a shot from the top of the box that sailed over the Baldwin goalie’s head for the 1-0 lead.

Thirty seconds later, the Wildcats struck again.

Junior Lily Cook, off an assist from Belcher, found the back of the net to put the Wildcats up 2-0 and they were well on their way to another win.

Toward the end of the first half, Belcher struck again. Junior Madisen Simpson placed the ball over the Baldwin defense and caught Belcher in stride, as she beat the goalie on a 1-on-1 opportunity.

With 22 minutes left in the second half, the Wildcats sealed the win with their final goal. Sophomore Savannah Reinhart made her way toward the goal and took a shot, which rebounded off the Baldwin goalie and Cook was there to put it away.

“It was a good start for us,” Conley said. “Unfortunately for Baldwin that is the way it has been for them lately. They have had a tough go of it with their starts so we knew we could get on them early. They are a much better team than what their record shows and they are really well coached and play the right way.

“It was big for us and I think we got a little comfortable, maybe too comfortable, because they started coming at us and we stopped playing so hard. We both played (Monday) knowing that fatigue was going to set in for somebody, especially with the heat. It was definitely a nice win.”

Junior Madisen Simpson heads the ball away Tuesday against Baldwin.

Louisburg’s defense held Baldwin to just four shots on goal and sophomore goalie Shay Whiting picked up her seventh shutout of the season.

Rylee Bergh, Georgia Wilde, Camdyn Clark, Lilly Scott, Simpson, Bryn O’Meara and Kaitlyn Lewer provided the Wildcats with strong back line.

“In our first game against Baldwin we only gave up three shots and one was because of a foul and the other was a penalty kick,” Conley said. “We knew our defense was sound and that we were going to hold up well. We just needed to make sure we were covered up tight because they play a very direct style.”

The junior varsity picked up another win with a pair of second half goals. Wilde broke a scoreless tie in the second half and then Cook followed up with a goal on an assist from Peyton Shaffer.

Sophomore goalie Sarah Wilson recorded the shutout.

Wildcats breeze past Ottawa

OTTAWA – The question wasn’t whether the Lousiburg girls soccer team would beat Ottawa, but a matter of how long it would take.

Louisburg took it to the Cyclones early and never looked back in the 10-0 victory Monday in Ottawa. The Wildcats scored eight goals in the first half and added two more in the second before the game was called early in the second half due to the mercy rule.

“The girls did a good job handling a different playing style than we are used to seeing and poor field conditions,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said. “The girls played a direct game and were focused. I think it allowed us to work on some things that helped us against Baldwin. They girls played a nice game, but we focused on improving our communication on the field. I think that carried over against Baldwin very nicely.”

Sophomore Bailey Belcher recorded a hat trick in the first half for Louisburg and finished the game with a season-high four goals. Senior Maddie McDaniel and sophomore Savannah Reinhart each had a pair of goals and McDaniel also had an assist.

Freshman Camdyn Clark and sophomore Isabella Ford each added a goal, while freshman Hayli Detherage and senior Lilly Scott each recorded an assist.

It was Ford who got the scoring started early in the first half in her first game back after sitting out with an injury for five weeks. Ford was among the team leaders in goals scored before her injury.

“It was nice to get some kids back that were sidelined with some lingering injuries and to have Izzie back,” Conley said. “She was a little rusty, but you could see that her thought process was in the right place. She knew what she wanted to do with the ball as she received it, so that is always a good sign.”

Louisburg junior Chloe Renner lands in the sand pit during an attempt in the long jump Friday at the Redbud Relays in Wellsville. In the 14-team team meet, both Wildcat track teams finished seventh overall.

WELLSVILLE – It may not have shown in the team standings, but the Louisburg High School track and field teams made strides in different areas during the Redbud Relays on Friday in Wellsville.

Both the boys and girls teams finished seventh in the 14-team meet with 34 and 25 points, respectively, but the Wildcats had several athletes who earned medals.

The Louisburg boys saw a pair of freshmen sprinters run toward the top of the pack with a couple strong showings. Freshman Brandon Cooper was the top finisher on the track as he was second in the 100-meter dash in 11.44 seconds.

Fellow freshman Chris Williams turned in his best time of the season in the 400-meter dash. Williams came in third in 51.14 and was just edged out for second by Baldwin’s Dakota Helm by .02 seconds.

Freshman hurdler Jonathan Ventre also hung in with some good competition. Ventre ran a 42.74 in the 300-meter hurdles to finish fourth and a 17.11 in the 110-meter high hurdles to come in seventh.

“I thought we competed a lot better this week as it was a tough meet,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “Chris ran a great race and I think he still has better races ahead of him this year. Brandon ran a good 100 meters and competed really well. I am looking for him to put together a better 200 this week.

“Jonathan is running well right now. I think he is gaining confidence and that will only help him in the next couple of weeks.”

The 4×400-meter relay of Quinn Rigney, Chris Williams, Blue Caplinger and Michael Minster ran a time of 3 minutes and 38 seconds to finish fourth and lead the three relay teams.

Cooper, Williams, Ben Minster and Rigney ran a 45.37 to come in sixth in the 4×100 relay, while Wyatt Reece, Michael Minster, Ben Hupp and Tanner Belcher ran a time of 9:06 to come in eighth in the 4×800 relay.

Ben Minster (24.47) and Michael Minster (2:10) came in seventh in the 200-meter dash and 800-meter run, respectively.

In the field events, senior Jarod Woodward continues to thrive in the shot put as he threw over 50 feet once again. Woodward’s best toss of 51 feet, 1 inch was good for third overall.

Freshman Chris Williams (left) races down the track in the final stretch of the 400-meter dash Friday at the Redbud Relays in Wellsville.

Junior T.J. Dover also had one of his better days of the season in discus as he took fifth with a toss of 141-7 and teammate Garrett Lowry was eighth at 125-9.

“Woody got off a nice shot put and T.J. is starting to put it together in the discus, which is really good to see,” Griffin said.

Cooper, who ran well on the track, also recorded a season best mark in the triple jump. Cooper had a leap of 39-2 to take fifth overall.

Sophomore Kristopher Light was sixth in the high jump after he cleared 5-6. Freshmen Ian Combs (10-6) and Caplinger (10-0) were seventh and eighth, respectively, in the pole vault.

On the girls’ side, sophomore Isabelle Holtzen had the Lady Cats’ highest finish of the day as she continues to score well in the pole vault. Holtzen cleared 9-6 to come in second overall.

“I thought the girls did a great job competing with the other girls,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “It was our first meet with prelims and finals so this will help us in the next couple of weeks.

“Isabelle is still competing well and should be making improvement as she keeps working on her new pole.”

Junior Chloe Renner came in fourth in the high jump after she cleared 4-8 and freshman teammate Eileen Benne was fifth at 4-8 as well. Renner also came in seventh in the long jump (14-6.75) and triple jump (31-2).

Sophomore Kaitlyn Urban (30-9.75) and senior Morgan Strumillo (31-10) finished eighth in the triple jump and shot put, respectively.

The Lady Cats’ 4×400-meter relay of Mikayla Quinn, Megan Lemke, Kaitlyn Gaza and Reilly Alexander had their best day of the season as they shaved nearly eight seconds off their previous best time to take fourth in 4:24.

Gaza, Lemke, Hanna Becker and Jordon Leach helped the 4×100 team to a time of 54.45 to take fifth, while Shaylor Whitham, Lauren Becker, Liz Hildreth and Holtzen ran a 9:06 to take eighth.

“I thought all our relay teams did well,” Darrington said. “The 4×100 will do better with more practice on their hand offs. The 4×400 and 4×800 relays are getting better each week. All the girls are finally getting out of their comfort zones and should get better.”

Junior Klara Riester had a good day as she took fifth in the 100-meter hurdles in 17.76 seconds and seventh in the 300 hurdles in 51.95 seconds.

Hildreth also earned points for the Lady Cats in the 800-meter run in 2:38 and Quinn was sixth in the 400-meter run in 1:05. Leach made the finals in the 100-meter dash and finished eighth in 13.69.

Louisburg returns to the track Thursday when it travels to De Soto for the Frontier League meet. Field events are set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

“I’m excited to see how we will compete at league this week,” Darrington said. “That will tell me who is ready for our regional meet.”

Other Wildcat results are:

GIRLS

100 dash: Hanna Becker, 17^th, 14.15

200 dash: Kaitlyn Gaza, 12^th, 29.11; Jordon Leach, 13^th, 29.23

400 dash: Gaza, 10^th, 1:06; Reilly Alexander, 11^th, 1:07

800 run: Lauren Becker, 14^th, 2:54

1,600 run: Shaylor Whitham, 18^th, 6:25; Madelynn Yalowitz, 20^th, 6:33

3,200 run: Whitham, 10^th, 14:17; Yalowitz, 13^th, 14:42

Long jump: Megan Lemke, 13^th, 13-11; Kaitlyn Urban, 21^st, 12-10.25

Discus: Lexie Reece, 11^th, 90-10; Ellie Katzer, 13^th, 90-5

Javelin: Paige Buffington, 12^th, 84-6; Zoie Gilliland, 14^th, 80-10

BOYS

100 dash: Ben Minster, 10^th, 11.80

200 dash: Brandon Cooper, ninth, 23.94

400 dash: Blue Caplinger, 16^th, 56.48; Scott Murphy, 18^th, 56.88

800 run: Tanner Belcher, 11^th, 2:12

1,600 run: Wyatt Reece, 15^th, 5:04; Tim Smith, 18^th, 5:06; Eddie Murphy, 32^nd, 5:24

3,200 run: Devyn Small, 18^th, 11:49; Reece, 23^rd, 12:15

Shot put: T.J. Dover, 10^th, 45-7; Bradley Trageser, 26^th, 36-10

Discus: Mason Koechner, 13^th, 121-0

Javelin: Dustyn Rizzo, 13^th, 128-3; Jacob Jensen, 16^th, 126-9

Louisburg junior Emalee Overbay watches as she gets a base hit during a game earlier this season. Overbay and the Lady Cats got the sweep against De Soto on Friday as the offenses came through with 26 runs in the two games.

LENEXA – The Louisburg High School softball team has been on a tear with its bats as of late and that trend continued Friday against De Soto.

The Lady Cats’ offense pounded De Soto for 26 runs over two games and left with 14-5 and 12-0 victories at the 3&2 Baseball and Softball Complex. Louisburg has now tallied 86 runs in their last eight games and have won five of those.

“The girls were able to put together two of our most complete games of the year against De Soto,” Louisburg coach John Ozier said. “Our offense and defense really set the tone early. Getting out to an early lead helped our defenders play loose. We were really aggressive and attacked the ball.”

Louisburg made a statement in the first inning as it struck quickly for five runs to take the early lead. Freshman Molly Rison had a big 2-run double in the frame to get the Lady Cats going.

For the game, the Lady Cats had 14 hits, with only two of those going for extra bases, and were able to string several hits together. Rison had a big day for the Lady Cats as she had three hits to go along with four RBIs.

Senior Miranda White got Louisburg started offensively on several occasions as the Lady Cats leadoff hitter had four hits, including a double, and scored all four times.

Juniors Emalee Overbay and Allyssa Griggs each had a pair of hits and two RBIs each. Freshman Karson Griggs had two hits and an RBI and senior Paige Shaffer also added a run batted in.

Freshman Bailey Sarna got her first win of the season Friday as she pitched a one-hitter in a 12-0 win over De Soto.

De Soto cut the Louisburg (5-13) lead to 5-4 in the bottom of the fourth inning, but the Lady Cat offense answered with two runs in the fifth, three in the sixth and fourth in the seventh.

Allyssa Griggs also provided the Lady Cats with a strong performance on the mound. Allyssa gave up just one earned run to go along with four strikeouts over seven innings.

All the Lady Cats needed in the nightcap was two big innings and a shutdown performance from their starter. Freshman pitcher Bailey Sarna silenced the De Soto bats as she allowed no runs, one hit and had one strikeout over five innings.

Louisburg’s offense backed up Sarna as it came through with five runs in the first and seven more in the third to get the run-rule victory.

“More than anything else we have accomplished this year, I saw the girls picking each other up and thoroughly enjoying themselves on and off the field,” Ozier said.

Allyssa Griggs had a big day at the plate as she had three hits, which included a triple, a home run and three RBIs. Her 3-run home run in the third inning basically sealed the win for the Lady Cats.

Overbay also had three hits, including a triple and an RBI. Junior Hailey Crowder had two hits and three RBIs and Katie Baker had a pair of hits and two RBIs, including a double.

Freshman Kennia Hankinson finished with an RBI triple and Rison had a pair of hits and an RBI. White also added two hits.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it hosts Spring Hill on senior night. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.

Louisburg senior Matt Risenhoover turns a double play during a game earlier this season. The Wildcats lost a pair of games to De Soto on Friday at 3&2 Baseball and Softball Complex in what was a makeup from earlier in the season.

LENEXA – It hurts enough to lose in walk-off fashion once, but for it to happen twice makes it all the more frustrating.

That happened to the Louisburg High School baseball team Friday against De Soto in a makeup doubleheader at 3&2 Baseball and Softball Complex. The Wildcats held the lead in the opener and were tied in the nightcap, but on both occasions De Soto won the game in the bottom of the seventh.

De Soto hit a 2-run home run in the opener to down Louisburg 6-5 and then used a sacrifice fly to break a tie game and defeat Louisburg again, 4-3.

The first meeting was back and forth as the two teams traded a pair of 2-run innings. Louisburg opened the first inning with a pair of runs, but De Soto scored two in the bottom of the second to tie the game.

Louisburg (7-10) answered in the fourth when senior Matt Risenhoover doubled to score pinch-runner Kylan Harper and Colton Smith. De Soto answered back with to tie the game again off starter Dalton Stone, who pitched five innings for the Wildcats.

The Wildcats took the lead right back in the top of the sixth as Grant Harding and Risenhoover singled to open the inning and Harding came around to score on an error.

Senior Cole Kramer came on in relief for Stone and pitched a scoreless sixth, but ran into trouble in the seventh. De Soto led off with a double and followed with a home run to steal the win from the Wildcats.

Risenhoover led the Louisburg offense with a pair of hits and two RBIs, while Austin Henderson had an RBI. Alex Dunn also added a double.

In the second game, the Wildcats took an early lead on De Soto again with a run in the first and third innings. De Soto grabbed the lead back with a 3-run third inning, before the Wildcats tied it with a run in the fourth when Dunn walked with bases loaded to score Kramer.

Harding started the game for the Wildcats and pitched nearly four innings and gave up three earned runs and had three strikeouts. Risenhoover came in and pitched two scoreless innings before De Soto opened with a pair of singles in the seventh and eventually came around to win the game on a sacrifice fly.

Smith and Risenhoover led the Louisburg offense as each had a pair of hits, including a double. Smith and Dunn also had RBI hits for the Wildcats.

Louisburg was scheduled to return to action tonight, but weather postponed its home senior night doubleheader against Spring Hill. The games have now been moved to Thursday. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.