Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week six of the winter sports season, sponsored by Landmark National Bank.
ASHLYN KUHLMAN, SENIOR, BASKETBALL
Louisburg senior Ashlyn Kuhlman helped lead the Wildcat girls to their first wins of the season last week and it started on Jan. 20 against Harrisonville. Kuhlman scored a game-high 21 points to help the Wildcats to a victory over Harrisonville, which was their first of the season. She was also 9-for-10 from the free-throw line in that game.
Kuhlman also played well in the Ralph Miller Classic as she scored a team-high 12 points against Goddard-Eisenhower in a loss Friday in the consolation semifinals. She also helped the Wildcats to a win over Wichita West in the seventh place game. On the season, she leads the Wildcats in scoring at just over 10 points a game and also has a team-high 29 blocks on the year. She is second in rebounding with 53.
The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the winter season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.
Wildcat girls salvage Chanute tourney with win over Wichita West
Louisburg junior McKenna Lohse goes up for two of her team-high 10 points Saturday in the Wildcats’ win against Wichita West in the seventh-place game of the Ralph Miller Classic in Chanute.
CHANUTE — For the second time in six days, the Louisburg girls basketball team came away with a victory — with the latest coming in tournament action.
The Wildcats faced off with Wichita West in the seventh-place game of the Ralph Miller Classic at Chanute High School. Louisburg dominated from start to finish as the Wildcats cruised to a 50-18 victory and earned their second win of the season.
“Getting a win on Saturday was a great way to end the week,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “The girls had a hard week, and winning two games was great for the team morale.”
The victory was the fourth game in six days for the Wildcats, three of which came in the Ralph Miller Classic. After losses to Sunrise Christian and Goddard-Eisenhower in the first two games, the Wildcats ended on a strong note.
Louisburg dominated the inside as juniors McKenna Lohse and Morgan Latham each almost had a double-double. Lohse scored a team-high 10 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while Latham had nine points and a team-best 11 boards.
The Wildcats out rebounded the Pioneers, 50-26, and scored 26 points in the paint.
Senior Sabra Brueggen finished with eight points, while seniors Ashlyn Kuhlman and Ally Brown added six. Brown also pulled down six rebounds.
Louisburg senior Sami Lane drives to the basket Saturday against Wichita West in Chanute.
Sami Lane led the team with four assists and Jillian Asher had three. Shylar Whiting had four steals to pace the Wildcat defense.
Louisburg held Wichita West to 11 points in the first half and put the game away in the third quarter as the Wildcats outscored the Pioneers, 17-3.
“I thought we played some good offense in the tournament and we did a great job playing together,” coach Lane said. “It was good to see all the girls contribute.”
Louisburg returns to action on today when it travels to Eudora. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
Wildcats fall to Sunrise Christian, Eisenhower to open tourney
It was a tough start to the Ralph Miller Classic for the Louisburg girls as they squared off with Sunrise Christian in the first round.
Sunrise, a private academy located just outside of Wichita, provided a big test for the Wildcats. The Buffaloes got out to a quick start and never looked back as they handed Louisburg a 72-53 loss on Thursday.
The Wildcats were able to put up points on the Buffalos, but couldn’t get the stops it needed to cut what was a 23-12 deficit after the first quarter.
“I thought the girls played well at Chanute in all three tournament games,” Lane said. “I was very proud of the girls and how they battled against Sunrise Christian. We scored well against them and our offense was consistent each quarter.”
Louisburg senior Jillian Asher drives past an Eisenhower defender Friday in Chanute.
Ally Brown led the Wildcats with nine points to go along with a team-high three assists. Morgan Latham had eight points and four rebounds.
Sami Lane and Shylar Whiting each scored seven, while Whiting also had three assists. Ashlyn Kuhlman and McKenna Lohse led Louisburg with five rebounds each.
On Friday, the Wildcats squared off with Eisenhower and fell to the Class 5A program, 61-42. Louisburg trailed 28-17 at halftime, but the Tigers scored 18 points in the third quarter to pull away.
Kuhlman led the Wildcats in scoring with 14 points, including four 3-pointers. Sabra Brueggen and Jillian Asher each finished with eight points, while Brueggen also had six rebounds and a team-high three assists.
Brown added six points and a team-best seven rebounds. Lane also tied Brueggen with a team-high three assists.
Schultz scores 30 as Wildcats snap losing skid in win over Wyandotte
Louisburg senior Luke Schultz scored a game-high 30 points as the Wildcats downed Wyandotte in the seventh place game of the Viking Classic on Saturday at Shawnee Mission West.
SHAWNEE MISSION — Going into the seventh-place game of the Viking Classic on Saturday, the Louisburg boys basketball team was in desperate need of a win.
Injuries and a tough schedule have hampered the Wildcats, but Saturday provided some relief. Louisburg snapped a seven-game losing skid as the Wildcats downed Wyandotte, 67-38, and ended with win in what was a talented tournament field at Shawnee Mission West.
“We knew it was going to be a tough tournament for us and it was,” Louisburg coach Ben Doll said. “We knew we were going to be the smallest school in the tournament, but I am hoping the competition makes us better with our 4A schedule down the road.”
Senior Luke Schultz provided the Wildcats with a much-needed boost at the right time. Schultz finished with a double-double, which included a game-high 30 points to go along with 11 rebounds.
The Wildcats, who had a 27-19 lead at halftime, exploded for 24 points in the third quarter, with a lot of those coming from Schultz.
“We played much better against Wyandotte on Saturday,” Doll said. “First, our pressure caused them to cough it up in the open floor for some easy layups and we ran more zone than usual, which was effective since they are not a good shooting team.
“Luke stepped up a lot in that game as well. He was more aggressive getting to the basket and hit three 3s to go with that. Luke has been a steady guy for us all year and it was nice to see him have a breakout game.”
Louisburg’s defense came up big as the Wildcats forced 28 Wyandotte turnovers and turned those into 30 points. The Wildcats also had 17 offensive rebounds, which led to 13 second chance points.
Senior Myles Vohs also finished in double figures for the Wildcats as he had 10 points to go along with a team-high five assists. Sophomore Lance Callahan had seven points and a team-high three steals, tied with Schultz and junior Owen Marsh.
The Wildcats will try and build on this momentum as they travel to Eudora on Tuesday as they get back into league play. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
Wildcats open tournament with losses to Ozark, Shawnee Mission West
Louisburg opened the Viking Classic with its first of three games in three days Thursday when the No. 6 seed Wildcats squared off with No. 3 Ozark (Mo.)
The bigger Ozark program got out to a big lead early and never looked back as it handed Louisburg a 63-32 loss.
“Ozark had a ton of size, which gave us issues with their 1-3-1 zone and our guards seeing over all that size,” Doll said. “They are a solid team that played very hard against us.”
Derek Frederick led the Wildcats in scoring with 10 points, while Herschel Strumberger had a team-high five rebounds and Myles Vohs led Louisburg with three assists. Owen Marsh also had a team-high three steals.
The Wildcats had much of the same trouble in the consolation semifinals on Friday against Shawnee Mission West. The Vikings held Louisburg to 11 first half points and handed the Wildcats a 56-29 setback.
Louisburg junior Derek Frederick pulls up for a runner Thursday against Ozark in the first round of the Viking Classic.
“The Shawnee Mission West game was a rough one for us as well,” Doll said. “Their pressure and scrappy play caused us to turn it over too much and we don’t usually score enough to overcome losing the turnover battle so badly.”
Marsh led Louisburg in scoring with seven points and Strumberger added six in the loss. Luke Schultz had five points and a team-high seven rebounds.
LOU 7 7 12 6 — 32
OZA 21 18 13 11 — 63
LOUISBURG: Derek Frederick 3-11 1-2 10; Owen Marsh 4-11 0–0 8; Myles Vohs 2-11 2-3 6; Billy Vohs 1-4 0-0 3; Luke Schultz 1-7 0-0 2; Lance Callahan 1-3 0-0 2; Herschel Strumberger 0-4 1-2 1. Totals: 12-51 4-7 32. 3-point field goals: 4, (Frederick 3, B. Vohs)
LOU 7 4 10 8 — 29
SMW 17 12 10 17 — 56
LOUISBURG: Owen Marsh 3-11 1-2 7; Herschel Strumberger 2-2 2-3 6; Billy Vohs 1-4 3-4 5; Myles Vohs 2-10 0-0 5; Luke Schultz 1-7 2-4 5; Derek Frederick 0-4 1-2 1. Totals: 11-46 9-15 29. 3-point field goals: 2, (M. Vohs, Schultz)
Wildcats can’t overcome big second half from Harrisonville
In what was the first of four games in six days for Louisburg, the Wildcats traveled to Harrisonvile on Jan. 20 in hopes sneaking out with a road win.
The Wildcats had the lead after one quarter of play, but Harrisonville held Louisburg to just 25 points in the final three quarters and downed the Wildcats, 60-38.
Louisburg was without a pair of post players in Gavin Lohse — the team’s leading scorer and rebounder — along with Herschel Strumberger.
Louisburg junior Owen Marsh pulls up for a shot in the lane on Jan. 20 at Harrisonville.
Senior Luke Schultz did his best to keep the team in it with a double-double. Schultz pulled down a season-high 18 rebounds to go along with 10 points. Senior Myles Vohs also scored in double figures with 10 and sophomore Lance Callahan added eight.
Harrisonville shot 46 percent for the game, with much of that damage coming in the second half. Louisburg shot just 19 percent and struggled to get going offensively.
“We started out well, but we shot so bad that when they got hot in the third quarter, we couldn’t keep up,” Doll said. “Luke was a warrior though with his 18 rebounds. He didn’t have much help with Gavin and Herschel both out.”
Louisburg girls medal three at Wellsville tournament
Louisburg freshman Brianna Caraway finished third overall at 130 pounds last Friday at the Aaron Patton Memorial Tournament in Wellsville.
WELLSVILLE — It was just its second true tournament of the season, but the Louisburg girls wrestling team left the Aaron Patton Memorial Tournament with its fair share of hardware.
Three Wildcats earned medals as Brooklyn DeWeese, Brianna Caraway and Leola Eslinger all finished in the top four Friday at the tournament at Wellsville High School.
In the team standings, Louisburg finished ninth with 65 points in the 22-team tournament.
“I was really proud of all the girls overall with how hard they battled,” Louisburg coach Heather Eslinger said. “One of our obstacles this season is we have a team of only 11 girls, which isn’t even a full team. So we take our girls to any girl wrestling events that we can. Some of those are labeled JV, and some are varsity, and so we might have a JV wrestler wrestling in a varsity event, which was what Wellsville was. There was a hard battle for a lot of these girls, who were wrestling way above their skill level.”
Freshmen Brooklyn DeWeese (115 pounds) and Brianna Caraway (130) each finished third overall, and DeWeese earned her second varsity medal of the season.
DeWeese battled back from a first round loss to Jayhawk-Linn’s Rowan Day. She rattled off four straight pins, including one in a rematch with Day in the third place match.
As for Caraway, she had a busy day with six matches, but she finished 5-1 in the competition and all five of her wins came by pin.
Caraway lost her quarterfinal match to Baldwin’s Keziah Moses, but reeled off four straight wins, including a second period pin over Wellsville’s Ava Yanez in the third place match.
“I was especially proud of Brooklyn and Brianna,” Eslinger said. “Even though both of these girls are freshmen, they are at a varsity skill level, but they still had some tough battles. I was really proud of how Brooklyn didn’t let that first loss in the morning get to her head and she overcame and won that match for third place.
“Brianna had even a little bit more of a tough day. She ended up having six matches, which even for a seasoned wrestler, is a lot of matches. She had some really tough situations that she had to battle back from. At one point she was on her back and coach Bovaird and I both thought that she was done for and she was going to get pinned. In a split second she had moved position and she came out on top with the win for third place.”
Freshman Evelyn Rue tries to put an opponent on her back Friday in Wellsville.
Sophomore Leola Eslinger took fourth place at 145 pounds as she recorded a 2-2 day. After losing in the semifinals, Esllinger battled back to get a pin over Wellsville’s Addy Gardner to reach the third place match.
In that match, Eslinger lost by pin to Jayhawk-Linn’s Gracee Willard to end up in fourth.
Coach Eslinger saw a lot from her team as the young Wildcat group gained some much-needed experience.
“Some of the other girls that I was really proud of wrestling Friday at Wellsville was Nora Smith, who even though she went 0-2, she scored her first points, which is a great thing,” coach Eslinger said. “It’s always great to see progress even if it doesn’t come out as a win. I was also really proud of Evelyn Rue. She was a brand new wrestler this year, came in November not knowing anything. On Friday she ended up having her first two wins, which were both pins.
“I was just so proud that I could see those skills starting to click with Nora and Evelyn and they’re starting to understand what wrestling is and where they need to be on the mat to score. It’s only going to go up from here.”
Wildcats capture Wellsville title to win second straight tourney
Louisburg senior Canaan Clayton gets a takedown during his 120-pound match last Friday at Wellsville. Clayton and the Wildcats won the Wellsville Tournament.
WELLSVILLE — The Louisburg wrestling team has done nothing but win in 2025 and that continued Friday at the Aaron Patton Memorial Tournament at Wellsville High School.
The Wildcats won their second straight competition to start the new year as they cruised to the team title with 210.5 points and beat runner-up Santa Fe Trail by more than 80 points in the 24-team tournament.
On top of that, the Wildcats also had three individual champions and eight finish in the top four of their respective weight classes. It was the second straight time Louisburg has won the Wellsville tournament.
“This year was a big improvement from last year,” Louisburg coach Bobby Bovaird said. “In 2024, there were a lot of smaller teams, smaller brackets, and mismatches in the finals. This year, the semifinals, finals, and consolation finals were much more exciting. Winning it last year was pretty neat, but this year it felt a whole lot better.
“The most significant element was that we went undefeated in the first round of the tournament, and in the second round we lost maybe three matches. That meant we went into the semifinals with quite a few wrestlers. You don’t get to that point unless you step up to perform.”
Seniors Canaan Clayton (120 pounds), Brayden Yoder (190) and Ashton Moore (215) all earned individual titles as all three dominated their weight class.
Clayton won all three of his matches by pin and did so in a minute or less. In the championship, Clayton pinned Santa Fe Trail’s Bryce Combes in 59 seconds to improve to 17-6 on the season. It was also his first career tournament championship on the varsity level.
As for Yoder (19-6), he won two of his first three matches by pin and then squared off with Gardner-Edgerton’s Dawson Cassida in the first place match. Yoder battled Cassidy to a 10-5 decision to win the 190-pound bracket.
Moore (19-2) controlled the 215-pound weight class as all four of his wins came by pin, including a second period pin of West Elk’s Joshua Patteson in the championship match.
“All three of them are really stepping up and performing well,” Bovaird said. “Canaan got his first varsity championship of his career in style, winning all three matches by a first-period pin. Brayden wrestled so many solid matches, just being smart and staying in solid position. He really gave a lot of great examples of his wrestling IQ with those matches. He didn’t force anything, he was smart by holding off some solid attacks, and with his positioning he made sure to capitalize on his opponents’ mistakes.
“Ashton was an animal in his bracket. He took the time to work some new techniques and try some unfamiliar techniques. He’s such a smart athlete, and he gets it. He’s not afraid of making mistakes, and he’s willing to use these live matches as a chance to work things to help him win those close matches in February when we get to the postseason.”
Louisburg senior Jay McCaskill lifts an opponent Friday at Wellsville. McCaskill finished third at 165 pounds.
Sophomore Levi Cotter (106) and senior Jay McCaskill (165) each finished third in their weight class, while freshman Parker Showalter (113), senior Mika McKitrick and junior Vance Hahn (175) took fourth.
Cotter (20-5) went 3-1 on the day, with his lone loss coming by pin in the semifinals to Onaga’s Jesse Miller. He battled back and won his third place match by pin over Jayhawk-Linn’s Aedin McGregor.
McCaskill (17-3) was 4-1, with his only setback coming in the semifinals in a 10-4 loss to Shawnee Mission East’s Noah Jewell. He bounced back and earned a pin over Burlington’s Kyzer Lehmann in the third place match.
Showalter (10-15) went 2-2 on the day with a pair of pins. Both McKitrick and Hahn were 3-2, while McKitrick had three pins and Hahn had two.
Bryce Thompson (157) and Greysen Dixon (138) each took sixth overall. It was a good ending to a tournament that lasted nine hour before all was said and done.
Louisburg sophomore Bryce Thompson works for a pin Friday at Wellsville.
“Without a doubt, it was a long day,” Bovaird said. “We’re not used to wrestling that late at night, but that’s a good thing. It’s all about the physical conditioning and the psychological conditioning. I was really impressed with a lot of our wrestlers’ performances. Parker placed at his first varsity tournament. Mika bounced back from a controversial semi-finals loss to make it to the third place match. In the semis, the official called a defensive pin while Mika was leading by quite a bit, and the thing that impressed me the most was how he kept his composure throughout the whole thing. I told him, ‘You handled that loss much better than I did.’
“In the third place match, he was in control of his opponent on the scoreboard going into the second period. We chose down, and the kid hit him with an illegal suplex. Mika was cleared by the trainer to continue, but after another flurry of action, I saw that he wasn’t right, and I chose to default the match rather than risk any further injury.”
Louisburg is back in action Friday and Saturday as the Wildcat take part in the 2-day Blue Valley Northwest Invitational.
Wildcat girls rally past Harrisonville for first win of season
Louisburg senior Ashlyn Kuhlman scored a game-high 21 points to help lead the Wildcats to a 48-38 win over Harrisonville on Monday.
HARRISONVILLE, Mo. — Losing is never easy and the Louisburg girls basketball team has had a tough start to its season as the Wildcats lost their first seven games of the year.
The Wildcats took that streak into Harrisonville on Monday in hopes picking up that first win. Louisburg had the lead for most of the game, only to see Harrisonville go on a run and take a 6-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Instead of backing down, the Wildcats battled back. Louisburg got big shots from Ashlyn Kuhlman, Jillian Asher and Morgan Latham down the stretch as they pulled away for a 48-38 victory to snap their losing skid.
“Getting our first win of the season was so exciting and almost a relief,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “This team has been working so hard, they deserved that win.”
Down six points with under five minutes left, the Wildcats put together one of their better stretches of the season. Louisburg ended the game on a 16-0 run that included 3-pointers from Kuhlman and Asher, along with a couple baskets from Latham.
Kuhlman and Asher also hit free throws down the stretch to preserve the win as the Wildcats converted 16 of 19 opportunities from the free-throw line for the game.
“I was very impressed with the girls and their ability to stay calm, especially when we got down six in the fourth quarter,” Lane said. “They wanted that game, and they showed that the way they battled back. Ashlyn, Jillian and Morgan all hit some big shots to seal that win.”
Kuhlman and Asher provided a big spark for the Wildcats offensively as the two players combined to score 37 of the team’s 48 points.
Kuhlman scored a game-high 21 points to go along with four rebounds and two blocks. She was also 9-for-10 from the free-throw line. As for Asher, she finished with 16 points and also had a team-high three steals.
Louisburg senior Ally Brown gets on the floor for a loose ball Monday at Harrisonville.
Latham chipped in seven points as she had a couple big baskets in the Wildcat fourth quarter run.
Senior Ally Brown led the team in a pair of categories as she tallied a team-high six rebounds and also had a team-high five assists. She also had two steals in the final two minutes that helped preserve the win.
Louisburg (1-7) shot 42 percent from the field and held Harrisonville to just 25 percent.
Louisburg took a 13-6 lead after the first quarter, but Harrisonville slowly chipped away, before going up 38-32 midway through the fourth.
“Overall, I thought we had some good moments and some rough moments,” Lane said. “Harrisonville pressing the entire game was a battle for our team. Our defense was solid, and I thought we did run some great offense.”
The Wildcats will continue a busy week Thursday when they travel to Chanute Invitational to compete in the 3-day tournament. Louisburg opens play against Sunrise Christian at 3 p.m., and will play at 3 again on Friday.
“I am super excited for the tournament,” Lane said. “I think we will play some good teams that will make us better as we continue to grow as a team this season.”
Going on the road against a ranked team is never easy, but Louisburg couldn’t have asked for a better start last Friday at No. 8 Baldwin.
The Wildcats jumped out to an 8-point lead in the first quarter, but they hit a rough patch. Louisburg would score just four points in the second and third quarters combined, as the Wildcats fell just short road, 37-31.
Despite going scoreless in the second quarter, the Wildcats still only trailed by three at halftime. Louisburg did score 13 points in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t quite enough to get the upset win.
Louisburg senior Shylar Whiting drives to the basket last Friday at Baldwin.
“The Baldwin game was a tough loss, but I think it showed the girls how we want to play as a team,” Lane said. “The first quarter and the fourth quarter we did a great job on both sides of the ball and I think that helped the team’s confidence.”
Ashlyn Kuhlman led Louisburg in scoring with seven points and also had five rebounds. Junior Morgan Latham had six points and five rebounds, while senior Sabra Brueggen pulled down a team-high six rebounds. Senior Shylar Whiting had five points and four rebounds.
Brown, Jamison earn state times to lead Wildcat swim at Olathe Northwest
Louisburg junior Colin Brown swims the freestyle during a meet earlier this season.
OLATHE — The Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill boys swim didn’t waste much time getting started in 2025.
The Miami County team recorded four new state qualification times last week, and another state consideration time, as it finished second at the Olathe Northwest quad with 305 points
Olathe Northwest won the meet with 547 points, while Olathe West (257) and Blue Valley Southwest (149) took third and fourth, respectively.
Louisburg earned three new state qualification times and two came from Andrew Jamison. The Wildcat junior won the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes and 9 seconds to earn his first state time of the day.
Jamison also went on to take second in the 100 freestyle in 51.45 seconds to record another state qualifying time.
Junior Colin Brown posted another state time for the Wildcats as he won the 100 butterfly in 54.87 seconds. Brown also won the 200 freestyle in 1:54.
Sophomore Noah Sharp added a state consideration time in the 100 freestyle to his resume as he was fourth in 55.05 seconds. Sharp went on to take third in the 100 backstroke in 1:06.
Sharp, Jamison, Paola’s Landen Terflinger and Spring Hill’s Tag Solberg won the 200 freestyle relay in 1:38, while Sharp, Jamison, Brown and Colton Prettyman were second in the 200 medley relay.
Prettyman, Terflinger, Brock Delmez and Brown concluded the meet with a third place finish in the 400 free relay in 3:41. Prettyman, a Louisburg senior, also went on to take third in the 100 butterfly and fourth in the 100 backstroke.
Delmez, a Louisburg sophomore, finished fifth in the 500 freestyle and sixth in the 200 freestyle.
Paola’s Landen Terflinger earned the team’s fourth state qualification time of the day as he was second in the 50 freestyle in 23.42 seconds.
The Miami County team is back in action today as it hosts its home meet. Events begin at 4 p.m. at the OZone in Osawatomie.
Week 5 Athlete of the Week: Andrew Jamison
Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week five of the winter sports season, sponsored by Edward Jones-Craig Holtzen.
ANDREW JAMISON, JUNIOR, SWIMMING
Louisburg junior Andrew Jamison began 2025 with a bang as the Wildcat swimmer had a strong performance in last week’s meet at Olathe Northwest. Jamison recorded two state qualification times as he helped the Wildcat team to a second place finish. He earned a state time in the 200-yard individual medley as he took first overall and earned another state time in the 100 freestyle as he finished second.
Jamison was also a member of the 200 freestyle relay as he, Noah Sharp, Landen Terflinger and Tag Solberg took first in 1:38. Jamison also joined Sharp, Colin Brown and Colton Prettyman in the 200 medley relay as they took second in 1:45.
The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the winter season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.
Wildcat boys, girls fall at home to Spring Hill in first game of 2025
Louisburg senior Luke Schultz recorded a double-double Monday in the Wildcats’ loss to Spring Hill.
The Louisburg boys basketball team faced an uphill battle before Monday’s game with Spring Hill even started.
The Wildcats were without their leading scorer and rebounder in senior Gavin Lohse, who was out with an injury, and had their return from break pushed back a week due to winter weather.
It wasn’t exactly the start to 2025 that Louisburg was hoping for and Spring Hill continued that tough trend for the Wildcats.
The Broncos shot better than 50 percent from the field, and put the Wildcats in a hole they couldn’t dig out of as they handed Louisburg a 70-37 loss.
“Spring Hill shot so well against us in the first half,” Louisburg coach Ben Doll said. “I thought we played hard and didn’t do bad defensively in the first half, but they hit big shot after big shot.
“Then in the second half we just ran out of gas and couldn’t guard very well. They started getting to where they wanted to go easily and we can’t do that and expect to win or be in games. Not having Gavin right now really hurts but we still have to be way better defensively to give us a chance.”
Spring Hill shot 56 percent from the floor as it jumped out to a 22-8 lead after the first quarter. Louisburg struggled to get things going in the second half as it scored 12 points in the two quarters.
Senior Luke Schultz led the way with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, while junior Owen Marsh finished with a team-high 12 points. Another senior, Ethan Kush, also had six rebounds on the night.
Jackson Bruce had a big night for the Broncos as he scored a game-high 22 points on a perfect 9-for-9 from the floor. His teammate, Jordan Miller, had a game-high 10 assists and five steals.
The schedule doesn’t ease up for the Wildcats as they travel to No. 1 Baldwin on Friday for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.
Rough start for Louisburg girls ends in loss to Spring Hill
It wasn’t the start to 2025 that the Louisburg girls envisioned for themselves Monday in a home game against Spring Hill.
The Wildcats couldn’t overcome a big Spring Hill run in the first quarter that ended in a 64-33 loss to the Broncos.
Spring Hill opened the game on a 21-3 run and the Wildcats were unable to recover as it is their sixth-straight loss to start the season. Louisburg was outscored by just four points in the next two quarters, which led to some positives.
“Spring Hill is a great basketball team,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “They have a lot of great players who can handle the ball and take the ball to the basket. After our slow start the girls played with them the rest of the game.
“I thought the girls did a great job playing 1-3-1 defense, and in the second half they did a great job running offense. We ran a lot of offensive sets and the girls did a great job executing.”
Louisburg junior McKenna Lohse pulls down a rebound Monday against Spring Hill.
Senior Ashlyn Kuhlman led Louisburg in a few different categories. She scored a team-high 13 points, including 11 in the third quarter, to go along with a team-best five rebounds and three blocks.
Another senior, Sabra Brueggen, finished with eight points, including going 6-for-8 from the free-throw line. Senior Ally Brown was next with five points.
Brueggen, junior McKenna Lohse and senior Addy Stohs each had four rebounds, while junior Morgan Latham had a team-high three assists.
Spring Hill’s Isla Herman led all scorers with 18 points and also had 11 rebounds, while Sydney Buscher had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Broncos.
Louisburg will hit the road Friday as the Wildcats travel to No. 8 Baldwin.
Moore, Yoder lead Wildcats to home tournament title
Louisburg senior Ashton Moore works up a pin during the Louisburg Invitational on Saturday at Louisburg High School.
The Louisburg wrestling team didn’t have much preparation for its home tournament Saturday as students missed several practices due to snow days following Christmas break.
It wasn’t the best way to start 2025, but the Wildcats managed just fine as they won the Louisburg Invitational for the second time in three years and did so in convincing fashion.
Louisburg won the team title with 216 points and Blue Valley West was second with 153 points in the 14-team tournament. The Wildcats also medaled 10 on the day and had two individual champions.
“We had some adversity hit us last week — mostly with the weather and being unable to get in as many practices as I would have liked,” Louisburg coach Bobby Bovaird said. “At the start of the tournament, you could tell that our fitness was definitely working against us. I gave the team a pep talk after the second round and told them that if they wanted to get in the team race, they needed to get it set in their minds that everyone was battling fitness, not just us. It can’t be an excuse for losing matches or making mistakes. They really turned things around after that.”
Two Wildcats found their way atop the medal stand as seniors Brayden Yoder and Ashton Moore each won their respective weight classes and did so in different ways.
Yoder (15-6), who wrestled in the 190-pound bracket, opened with three straight pins that put him in the semifinals. Competition got a lot tougher as he squared off against Blue Valley Northwest’s Blake Berry, a returning state qualifier in the semis.
Louisburg senior Brayden Yoder works for one of his three pins Saturday at the Louisburg Invitational. Yoder won the 190-pound bracket.
Berry and Yoder were deadlocked for most of the match, but the Louisburg senior recorded a 4-3 decision in overtime to advance to the finals. It was there where Yoder outlasted De Soto’s Dylan Roy in a 3-0 decision for the championship.
“He won a great match against the Northwest kid, who was a state qualifier in 6A last year,” Bovaird said. “Just a gutsy performance, getting that win in the tie-breaker. Brayden is in an awesome groove right now, and it’s pretty exciting to see it. He’s strong and confident, and he’s got such a great wrestling IQ. This was his third time winning the Louisburg Invitational, which is a great feat.”
Moore (15-2) earned the title at 215 pounds and created a little history for himself along the way. Moore recorded his 100th career win with a pin of Piper’s Wyatt Koenig in the quarterfinals.
He then recorded a 16-1 technical fall of Leavenworth’s Montrez Cameron in the semifinals, which set up a match of state-ranked wrestlers in the championship.
Members of the Louisburg wrestling team celebrate Ashton Moore’s 100th win Saturday at their home tournament.
Moore, who is ranked No. 3 in Class 4A, squared off with No. 5 Parker Schwarz of Prairie View for the title. Moore, who edged Schwarz at the Tonganoxie tournament before the break, earned a pin in the tiebreaker this time around to win the title.
“Last month when Ashton wrestled Schwarz, he weighed in at 190 after being pretty sick,” Bovaird said. “This time, he weighed in at 211 — that 20 pounds makes a difference. Ashton was aggressive and smart on his feet, and I loved seeing him turn things up to a different level when he got on top of that kid in the tie-breaker. He’s been working so hard and he’s such a great kid. I was really proud to see him get win No. 100 on Saturday.”
Along with Yoder and Moore, the Wildcats had four other wrestlers reach the championship match. Levi Cotter (106 pounds), Canaan Clayton (120), Mika McKitrick (132) and Vance Hahn (175) all finished one win shy of a title and took second.
Louisburg sophomore Levi Cotter finished second Saturday in the 106-pound bracket.
Cotter (17-4) recorded three pins on his way to the championship match, including a first period pin of De Soto’s John Legatt in the semifinals. Cotter fell in the third period to Blue Valley West’s Zack Olsen in the championship, who has just one loss on the year.
As for Clayton (14-6), he opened the tournament with a win by technical fall, and then reeled off three straight pins, before falling by pin to Blue Valley Northwest’s Parker Burk in the championship.
McKitrick (16-5) battled a shoulder injury to earn a spot in the title match at 132 pounds. The Louisburg senior recorded four straight pins to advance to the first place match, but was pinned by Blue Valley West’s Scott Fohlmeister.
Hahn (13-8), a junior, had his best tournament as a Wildcat as he recorded his first varsity medal. Hahn rattled off four straight wins to start the tourney, including one by pin and one by major decision. He squared off with Royal Valley’s Avery Hunter in the championship, but lost by pin.
Louisburg’s Keegan Rogers (126), Logan Henry (138), Jay McCaskill (165) and Miles Meek (285) also earned a medal as each finished fourth.
“They wrestled with courage and strength, which was a key part of our pre-match talk,” Bovarid said. “They also showed they were able to overcome adversity as well. Mika McKitrick made the finals, despite having a bum shoulder. Vance Hahn not only earned his first varsity medal, but also made the finals at 175. Despite being an unattached wrestler and not scoring any team points, Keegan Rogers also earned his first varsity medal by taking fourth at 126.”
The Wildcats will hit the mats again Friday as they compete at the Wellsville Invitational. Matches begin at 1 p.m.
