Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week five of the fall sports season, sponsored by Edwards Jones-Craig Holtzen.

ASHTON MOORE, JUNIOR, FOOTBALL

Louisburg junior Ashton Moore was all over the field for the Wildcats last Friday in their victory over Eudora. Moore scored a pair of touchdowns in Louisburg’s 13-7 win over Eudora to move to 5-0 on the season as he tallied 134 total yards, including 97 yards on the ground.

On defense, Moore was in the middle of a lot of plays from the linebacker spot. He tied for a team-high 15 tackles on the night, including eight solo stops, after playing every snap on both sides of the ball. Through five games, he leads the Wildcats with 56 tackles. Moore also has 10 touchdowns so far this season as the team’s starting running back.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the fall season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous winners:

Week 1: Declan Battle

Week 2: Megan Quinn

Week 3: Maddy Rhamy

Week 4: Emmett White

Louisburg junior Jerynce Brings Plenty won the Perry-Lecompton Invitational on Thursday in Topeka. His time was the second fastest in school history.

TOPEKA — Jerynce Brings Plenty has continued to make his way up the Louisburg High School cross country leaderboard all season, but on Thursday in Topeka, he made a big jump.

Brings Plenty ran a personal best time of 16 minutes and 35 seconds to win the Perry-Lecompton Invitational at Hummer Park. In the process, his finish was the second fastest time in school history.

“Jerynce ran great on Thursday,” Reece said. “He was in control of the race from the start. He made a move to break the lead pack up and never looked back. Jerynce was able to separate himself a bit later and held the lead for the rest of the race.”

Brings Plenty was one of nine medalists on the day for the Wildcats. The Louisburg girls captured five medals on their way to a third place team finish with 74 points, just three points behind Paola.

The Wildcat boys had four medalists and took fourth as a team.

Seniors Lola Edwards and Maddy Rhamy led the Wildcat girls as they each finished in the top 10. Edwards took seventh in 22:42 and Rhamy was 10th at 23:03.

“Lola has been running great,” Reece said. “She is a warrior and continues to improve and lead the team. Maddy is right there as well and we look for her to make big gains.”

Louisburg also had a pair of freshmen run their first varsity races and both came away with a medal. Freshmen Talen McMurray was 20th in 24:19 and Ella Bockelman took 25th in 24:50.

Senior Erin Apple rounded out the Wildcat medalists in 26th at 24:53.

“Talen and Ella really stepped it up when asked to run in the varsity race,” Reece said. “We have seen glimmers of what they can do and hope that their success will lead to more. 

“Now that our Homecoming Queen (Apple) is done with a busy week, we look for her to make a big move and take the freshman girls with her to close the gap between them and our front runners. Rowan (Yows) looks to be getting better from injury and will add even more to our team.”

On the boys side, senior Noah Cotter also finished in the top 10 along with Brings Plenty. Cotter was eighth in 17:41.

Freshmen Levi Cotter and Truman Ellison also came home with medals. Cotter was 26th in 19:55, while Ellison was 29th with a time of 19:59.

Junior Ben Proctor (21:40) and freshman Spencer Mattison (22:12) rounded out the Wildcat roster in 44th and 49th, respectively.

“The boys team continues to improve but we have a ways to go yet,” Reece said. “Hopefully all will come together at regionals and we make a bid for state as a team.”

Louisburg has one final regular season meet left and that is this Thursday when the Wildcats host the Louisburg Invitational. Races are set to begin at 4 p.m. at Lewis-Young Park.

The Louisburg 2010 state championship football team and 2012 LHS graduate Garrett Griffin will be inducted into the LHS Athletic Hall of Fame on Oct. 13 at halftime of the Wildcats’ football game against Ottawa.

Louisburg High School and the USD 416 Endowment Association have announced the newest members of the Louisburg High School Athletic Hall of Fame and they are two that plenty of Wildcat fans will recognize.

Going into the hall this year is 2012 graduate Garrett Griffin and the 2010 Class 4A state championship football team. Both will be inducted on Oct. 13 at halftime of Louisburg’s final regular season home contest against Ottawa.

Garrett Griffin, 2012 Graduate

Griffin was a three-sport athlete for Louisburg High School and earned 12 varsity letters during his illustrious Wildcat career. Griffin holds several LHS football records, was a state champion in track and was a four-time letter winner in basketball. He was also a part of two state championship teams.

In football, Griffin was a 4-year letter winner and accumulated four team records during that span. He is the school’s all-time career rushing leader with 4,667 yards, all-time receiving leader at 1,006 yards, all-time receptions leader with 51 and first in all-time tackles with 273.

Griffin earned All-Frontier League honors all four years and awarded all-state honors as a linebacker his junior season after helping lead the Wildcat football team to their first state title in 2010. In 2011, he was named among the Top 11 players in the state as a senior and was a Kansas Shrine Bowl selection

In track and field, Griffin was a 4-time state qualifier in the javelin and 110-meter high hurdles. He was a two-time state champion in the javelin and a two-time state placer in the hurdles. He currently holds the school record in both events. As a junior, Griffin helped the Wildcats to their first state team title in 2011.

In basketball, Griffin was a 4-year letter winner and was an All-Frontier League selection his senior season.

Following high school, Griffin signed with the Air Force Academy football program where he was a four-time letter winner as a tight end for the Falcons. During his time, he was also a member of the Air Force track and field program for two years and was a two-time Mountain West Conference placer in the javelin.

After graduating from the Academy, Griffin was selected as an undrafted free agent by the New Orleans Saints. He spent six seasons with the Saints and one with the Detroit Lions. As a member of the Saints, Griffin played in a handful of contests, which included an appearance in the NFC Championship game in 2018 where he caught a touchdown from quarterback Drew Brees.

2010 FOOTBALL TEAM

The 2010 football team made school history as those Wildcats became the first to win a state championship in football. Louisburg defeated Holton, 24-16, in the Class 4A championship game in Salina to finish the season with a 14-0 record under head coach Gary Griffin.

Louisburg breezed through the regular season and district playoffs with wins over Eudora (33-6), Ottawa (35-0), St. James Academy (49-7), Silver Lake (21-3), De Soto (28-7), Baldwin (42-26), Spring Hill (35-6), Osawatomie (62-6) and Paola (21-3). Louisburg won every game by 18 points or more.

The Wildcats dominated their way through the Class 4A state playoffs with victories over Anderson County (42-20), Chanute (56-35) and De Soto (21-0). Louisburg squared off with rival Paola in the sub-state championship and the Wildcats downed the Panthers 28-7 to advance to the state game against Holton.

Louisburg found itself down 10-0 for the first time all season early in the state championship game, but the Wildcats scored 24 unanswered points to win the title.

It was a talented squad that earned 22 spots on the All-Frontier League team, including eight first team selections. The Wildcats also had several all-state selections and were headlined by quarterback Kody Cook, running back/linebacker Garrett Griffin and linemen Tyler Ewy and Ross Dvorak, who each earned first-team honors.

Ewy was named as one of the Top 11 players in the state of Kansas by three different organizations and was the recipient of the Bobby Bell Award, which goes to the best small class defensive lineman in the Kansas City area. He was a fixture on the Wildcat defensive line as he led the team with 139 tackles, including 25 for a loss and 10 sacks.

Cook guided the offense all season as the team’s quarterback as he tallied more than 1,700 yards of total offense to go along with 19 touchdowns.

His teammate in the backfield was Griffin as he ran over opponents all season. Griffin led Louisburg with 1,594 yards rushing and 412 yards receiving to go along with a combined 27 touchdowns.

Along with Ewy, Dvorak was one of the leaders on the offensive and defensive lines and he was also third on the team with 89 tackles, nine for a loss and four sacks. He was a first-team all-state selection by the Kansas Football Coaches Association (KFCA). Linebacker Chad Turney was a first team all-league selection and was second on the team with 126 stops.

Gary Griffin was named Coach of the Year by the KFCA.

Members of the state championship team are Nate Goodwin, Nate O’Brien, Chris Chase, David Embers, Bradey Drew, Kody Cook, Hayden Guetterman, Jacob Powell, Ben Powers, Derek Mathis, Dylan York, Wyatt Sander, Nate Daugherty, Jordan Powell, Christian Richards, Christian Huffman, Nick Chapman, Will Garza, Alex Gentges, AJ Hildreth, Brett Hebert, Ryan Tinder, D.J. Meyer, Daniel O’Connor, Garrett Griffin, Clark Gregory, Luke Hupp, Curtis Lemke, Greyson Honsinger, Dakota Stone, Colton Seely, Alex Bell, Konnor Cook, Jason Danciak, Matt Nolte, Taylor Caskey, Matt Jenkins, Kyle McLellan, Chad Turney, Tyler Ewy, Colin Bird, Drew Carder, T.J. McKiearnan, Cole Kessler, Alex Cook, Ross Dvorak, Wayne Carlson, Ben Adams, Jacob Berglund, Mason Whaley, Doug Weers, Colton Rommel, David Stuteville, Dain Glenn, Kurtis Morgan, Austin Caskey and Kade Larson.

The Wildcats were led by head coach Gary Griffin and assistant coaches Wayne Whiting, Larry Aylor, Jeff Lohse, Kyle Littrell, Billy Neff and Greg Darrington.

Team trainers were Ali Dover, Brook Frazier and Mike Cardwell. Head athletic trainer was Dr. Damon Dennis.

Louisburg senior Hailey Sword rises up for a kill last Tuesday during the Wildcats’ home match against Paola.

The Louisburg volleyball team ventured back into Frontier League action last week and finished with a split of Paola and Spring Hill.

The one victory was a big one as the Wildcats swept rival Paola, 25-17, 25-14 and 25-18, last Tuesday at home to get their 14th win on the season.

It was also the Wildcats’ Pink-Out Night as they raised money to support a local family battling cancer. Louisburg coach Leanna Willer couldn’t have asked for a better outcome for her team.

“Beating Paola is always a good feeling with the natural rivalry between our two schools,” Willer said. “I thought the girls came out with some fire and energy that carried us through the night. It was awesome to see how confident we played as girls were going up to swing with no fear and really terminating quite well throughout the match.”

The Wildcats were down two starters due to injury, but several players picked up the slack, including Hailey Sword. The Louisburg senior registered a team-high 13 kills was second on the team with 13 digs. She also added a pair of aces.

“Hailey had a great night,” Willer said. “Her court awareness keeps improving, and she’s a very smart hitter that can find the open spot on the other side. She’s also very skilled in knowing when to just get up and swing hard, which was evident in many of her kills on Tuesday. She’s an all-around player that can really energize this team when she gets going, so we are excited to see what we get from her down the stretch.”

Sophomore Delaney Nelson played all-six rotations for Louisburg and was especially strong on the defensive end with a team-high 17 digs. She also had a team-high four aces and eight kills.

Sophomores Caileigh Kilgore and McKenna Lohse had eight and seven kills, respectively. Senior Megan Quinn tallied a team-best 22 assists and freshman Adelyn Moore had 16.

Moore also finished with nine digs on the night and senior libero Ashlyn Berck added seven.

“One of the biggest positives of the night was just our overall team confidence and chemistry,” Willer said. “Everyone on the court and on the bench were locked into the game and cheering for each other’s successes, which is exactly what we need to succeed as a team. We stayed in a great headspace where everyone felt confident in playing their game.”

Wildcats drop league match to Spring Hill

Louisburg’s schedule got quite a bit tougher Thursday when they Wildcats went on the road to face off with Spring Hill.

The Broncos showed why they are one of the best teams in the Frontier League as they handed Louisburg a 25-16, 25-12 and 25-12 loss.

Sophomores Caileigh Kilgore and Delaney Nelsen led the Wildcats at the net with six kills each. Setter Megan Quinn had 10 assists.

Senior Hailey Sword finished with a team-best seven digs on defense, while senior Ashlyn Berck and freshman Adelyn Moore had six and five, respectively.

Louisburg junior Colton Blue settles a pass during a match earlier this season. The Wildcats earned a 3-0 win Tuesday at Chanute.

CHANUTE — The Louisburg boys soccer team snapped an eight-game losing skid last week, but on Tuesday at Chanute, the Wildcats got a chance to start a different kind of streak.

Louisburg earned — not only its second straight win — but back-to-back shutouts with a 3-0 victory on the road over Chanute.

After earning a big win over Spring Hill last week, Louisburg coach Bobby Bovaird was happy to see his team build off it against the Blue Comets.

“That was the sort of win we needed,” Bovaird said. “Getting two in a row is a huge confidence booster. They’d beaten Pittsburg, 2-1, a couple of weeks ago, so on paper, one might assume that they would be a superior team. The thing about our Pittsburg game is that we dominated the game, but they were able to score in the first minute of the game as well as the final minute. We had a ton of shots that we just couldn’t land that game. 

“This was our first road victory of the season, and it’s tough to get a win away from home. There might be hostile crowds, officials who call the game different from what we’re used to, and field conditions that aren’t favorable. Regardless, we stepped up and played with a ton of heart. Before the game, I told the guys that they need to step on the field with confidence, passion, and enthusiasm, and that’s what they did.”

Louisburg junior Emmett White got the scoring started for the Wildcats midway through the first half. White received a pass from Jacob Brown and took the shot from about 25 yards out that curved over the goalkeeper’s head for the opening goal.

The Wildcats (3-8) took a 2-0 lead late in the first half when freshman Brody Bovaird crossed the ball to Jose Cuevas in the box and the Louisburg junior put it away. It would be the first of two goals for Cuevas on the day.

Louisburg sealed the win early in the second half when White dribbled down the left side of the field and made the cross to Cuevas who found the back of the net.

“We were making great connections all night with our offense,” coach Bovaird said. “All summer we talked about playing possession soccer, and when the time is right, the shots will be there. Games like the Chanute one give the guys affirmation that we’re working toward things the right way.”

Wildcat goalie Evan Moreland earned his second straight clean sheet and got some help from his back line of Ethan Sharp, Will Showalter, Dan Minster and Cole Clover.

“Our defense played a very solid game and showed a lot of guts,” coach Bovaird said. “For the second straight game, Evan had a clean sheet, and he’s really connecting very well with our center backs Ethan Sharp and Will Showalter. We got to a point where I started putting in our reserves, and a lot of younger guys got to see some playing time. The whole time they were on the field, the group held their own and contained the Chanute attacks. I’m very proud of what we saw from everyone that game.”

Louisburg will try for three straight victories today when it travels to Ottawa. Varsity is slated to begin at 6 p.m.

The Louisburg High School 2023 fall homecoming candidates are (from left) Erin Apple, J’Lee Collins, Megan Quinn, Brock Vohs, Bronwynn Williams, Caden Caplinger, Brinley White and Declan Battle.

Homecoming week at Louisburg High School kicked off Monday and events are in full swing. With something going on every day this week, it will be a busy time for students. All of it is, of course, centered around the crowning of the 2023 fall king and queen. Eight students were selected as nominees and here are their names and profiles.

The crowning will take place on Friday before the Wildcats’ home football game with Eudora. Kickoff for that game is set for 7 p.m., with the introduction of the candidates and their parents at 6:30 p.m. Crowning will be at halftime. Good luck to all the participants and make sure to come out on Friday to support the Wildcat football team if you have the opportunity.

Erin Apple

Erin is the daughter and Nathan and Cindy Apple. Erin has participated in cross country, track, Interact Club, FBLA, band and scholar’s bowl for four years. She has been in FFA and select choir for three years, National Honor Society and International Club for two years and student council for one year. After graduation, Erin plans to attend college and major in International Business and International Relations.

J’Lee Collins

J’Lee is the son of Melissa Collins and Justin Collins. J’Lee has participated in track for four years, wrestling for three years and yearbook for two years. Following graduation, J’Lee would like to wrestle in college and major in Psychology.

Megan Quinn

Megan is the daughter of Danny and Mary Quinn. Megan has participated in volleyball, softball, band, student council, FBLA and Interact Club for four years. She has participated in select choir, musical and National Honor Society for two years and concert choir and basketball for one year. She is also a senior advisory member. Following graduation, Megan plans to attend Kansas State University to study biology or pre-dentistry with a minor in business.

Brock Vohs

Brock is the son of Rob and Julie Vohs. Brock has participated in football, basketball and student council for four years and National Honor Society for two years. Following graduation, Brock plans to attend college and pursue a career in the medical field.

Bronwynn Williams

Bronwynn is the daughter of T.J. and Aimee Williams. Bronwynn has participated in student council, FBLA and FFA for four years. She also has participated in volleyball and soccer for three years, along with Interact Club and National Honor Society for two years. She is also a senior advisory member. Following graduation, Bronwynn plans to attend the University of Nebraska and major in Electrical Engineering.

Caden Caplinger

Caden is the son of Lane and Tracie Caplinger. Caden has participated in football and track for four years, along with basketball and National Honor Society for two years. Following graduation, Caden plans to attend college and join a track and field team for pole vault.

Brinley White

Brinley is the daughter of Nick and Melissa White. Brinley has participated in student council for four years, FCCLA and National Honor Society for two years, along with volleyball, soccer, choir and FBLA for one year. She is also a senior advisory member. Following graduation, Brinley plans to attend the University of Kansas and major in nursing.

Declan Battle

Declan is the son of Aaron and Torrie Battle. Declan has participated in football and baseball for four years, along with basketball and National Honor Society for two years. Following graduation, Declan plans to attend college and play football. He is currently undecided.

Louisburg senior Brock Vohs sneaks into the endzone with the help of lineman Jaymes Melton on Friday at Bonner Springs.

BONNER SPRINGS — Louisburg has been off to a dominant start to its season as the Wildcats have racked up a total of 145 points through their first three games.

That trend continued Friday at Bonner Springs.

The Wildcats scored 45 unanswered points in the first half and rolled past Bonner Springs, 45-8, to improve to 4-0 on the season. During that stretch, the Wildcats have outscored their opponents 190-49.

“We preached that we wanted to come out and control the game right away,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “We didn’t want to let up and we wanted to have our foot on the gas from the start. We did a pretty good job of that and I thought the guys played pretty well.”

The defense held the Braves offense in check most of the night before they tacked on a safety and a touchdown in the fourth quarter to prevent the shutout.

On the first drive of the game, it was the defense that got things going as senior corner Brody McGreer recorded an interception to give the Wildcats good starting field position.

“We told the defense they should come out and dominate from the start and really assert themselves,” Harding said. “I think they did a really good job of that. We owned the line of scrimmage and they really played well all night.”

Louisburg wasn’t to be stopped, especially in the first half. 

The Wildcats opened the scoring when quarterback Declan Battle hit Hunter Heinrich in a 5-yard touchdown pass. It would be the first of three touchdown passes for Battle on the night.

On the next possession, Battle found tight end Brock Vohs for a 29-yard catch and run that set up a 1-yard shovel pass from Battle to Vohs to put the Wildcats up 12-0.

Louisburg added another score in the first quarter when junior Darby Van Eaton found the endzone on a 2-yard run. A Gage Feldkamp extra point made it 19-0.

The second quarter was owned by Wildcat running back Ashton Moore. The Louisburg junior rattled off touchdown runs of 15, 33 and 46 yards to put the Wildcats up 39-0.

Battle capped the first half scoring when he found senior Caden Caplinger on a 8-yard touchdown pass. Battle did a little bit of everything with 117 yards through the air, 29 rushing yards and also led Louisburg with 34 yards receiving.

Louisburg brought out the two-quarterback look at different times throughout the game with Battle and backup quarterback Alex Saad. Saad also had 66 yards passing on a perfect 4-for-4 day.

“They are two really good athletes and they both happen to play the same position,” Harding said. “We are just trying to come up with ways to get them both on the field. We are figuring out some different things to do with them and we think they can present a challenge for the defense with their skillsets.”

Louisburg’s schedule will begin to toughen this Friday as the Wildcats host Eudora for homecoming for the start of the second half of their season.

“We are excited for the challenges that are ahead,” Harding said. “Eudora is a really good team and they present a unique challenge with the offense that they run. We have to have a great week of preparation. I think the kids are going to be excited for this game and should have a good week of practice and should be a great atmosphere on Friday.”

LOU 19 26 0 0 — 45

BON 0 0 0 8 — 8

SCORING SUMMARY

First quarter

L: Hunter Heinrich 5 pass from Declan Battle (kick failed)

L: Brock Vohs 1 pass from Battle (kick failed)

L: Darby Van Eaton 2 run (Gage Feldkamp kick)

Second quarter

L: Ashton Moore 15 run (Alex Saad kick)

L: Moore 33 run (Feldkamp kick)

L: Moore 46 run (kick failed)

L: Caden Caplinger 8 pass from Battle (kick failed)

Fourth quarter

B: Safety

B: Trenton Marquez 45 pass from Kyle Blanz (run failed)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 9-165; Rickey Giles 8-60; Darby Van Eaton 9-32; Declan Battle 2-29; Alex Saad 1-11; Lane Cunningham 1-1

PASSING — Declan Battle 13-16-117; Alex Saad 4-4-66

RECEIVING — Declan Battle 1-34; Brock Vohs 2-30; Ashton Moore 2-29; Hunter Heinrich 2-23; Caden Caplinger 5-17; Josh Holtzen 1-16; Russell Wiseman 1-14; Blake Amren 1-10; Garrison Bloustine 1-8; Conlee Hovey 1-2

TACKLES — Brayden Yoder 7; Ashton Moore 5, Jack Anderson 4, Brock Vohs 4, Declan Battle 3, Russell Wiseman 3, Brody McGreer 3, Wyatt Holland 3, Caden Caplinger 3, Conlee Hovey 2, Brady Hickey 2, Josh Holtzen 1, Reid McCaskill 1, Lucas Swartz 1, Nate Capuro 1, Jimmy DeVary 1. 

FUMBLE RECOVERY — Russell Wiseman 1

INTERCEPTION — Brody McGreer 1

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week four of the fall sports season, sponsored by IronHorse Family and Cosmetic Dentistry.

EMMETT WHITE, JUNIOR, SOCCER

Louisburg junior Emmett White has been the go-to-scorer for the Wildcat boys soccer team this season and White came through in a big way last Thursday in Louisburg’s upset victory over Spring Hill. White converted a penalty kick in the second half to help the Wildcats to a 1-0 upset win over the Broncos at home.

On the season, the Louisburg forward has scored a team-high five goals to go along with 21 shots on the season. Earlier in the year, White scored two second half goals to give Louisburg a season-opening win over Leavenworth.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the fall season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous winners:

Week 1: Declan Battle

Week 2: Megan Quinn

Week 3: Maddy Rhamy

Louisburg senior Hailey Sword goes up for a kill Saturday during the Louisburg Invitational. The Wildcats finished second at their home tournament with a 3-2 record.

For the second straight season, the Louisburg volleyball team ended its home tournament with a souvenir of sorts — a team plaque.

After a day that featured five matches against bigger programs, Louisburg persevered through some injuries and lineup changes and it resulted in a runner-up finish Saturday in the Louisburg Invitational. 

Louisburg ended the day with a 3-2 record that included wins over Shawnee Mission South, Shawnee Mission West and Basehor-Linwood. The Wildcats also lost a tough three-set match to Olathe North and fell in two to Shawnee Mission East.

“Finishing second on the day was great, especially with the level of competition that we bring in for our home tournament,” Louisburg coach Leanna Willer said. “None of those games are ever a guaranteed win, and the girls have to battle all day long to maintain playing at a high level. 

“Overall, I feel that we played well and rose to the occasion. Every now and then we see glimpses of our inconsistency, but I thought we did a good job of remaining calm and collected throughout the day and playing as a team.”

The Wildcats came out strong to start the day as they opened with a 26-24, 25-20 victory over Shawnee Mission South. 

Senior Madie Williams led the attack at the net with 10 kills and senior Hailey Sword followed with seven. Setters Megan Quinn and Adelyn Moore each finished with double-digit assists with 11 and 10, respectively.

Defensively, sophomore Delaney Nelsen and Quinn each led the way with six digs. Junior Evyn Richardson tallied two blocks.

Against Shawnee Mission West, the Wildcats won going away with a 25-19 and 25-18 victory. Williams and sophomore Caileigh Kilgore were big at the net with six kills each.

Quinn finished with 11 assists to lead the Louisburg attack, while Sword was strong from behind the service line with four aces. Williams finished with a team-high six digs defensively, while senior Ashlyn Berck, Sword and Quinn each had four.

The Wildcats suffered their first setback of the day when they squared off with Olathe North in a 19-25, 25-20 and 25-17 loss to the Eagles.

Williams once again led the Louisburg offense with 10 kills and Sword finished with seven. Nelsen and Kilgore each added six in the loss.

Richardson led the Louisburg defense with four blocks, while sophomore McKenna Lohse — who is filling in for an injured Izzy Moreland — added three blocks along with Kilgore.

Moore led Louisburg with 16 assists in the match and Quinn tallied 12, while Berck and Williams led the Wildcat back row with nine digs each.

Louisburg got back on the right track in its next match as it downed Basehor-Linwood, 25-18 and 25-22.

Sword and Williams paced the Louisburg offense with eight kills each and Lohse finished with five from her middle blocker spot. Quinn and Moore ran the offense well with 14 and 10 assists, respectively. 

Defensively, Berck and Sword each led the way with six digs and senior Katie Elpers had a team-high two blocks.

Due to previous injuries, and ones sustained in the tournament, Willer had to rearrange her lineup at different times and was pleased to see her team still play well despite the different faces.

“Switching the lineup around is always an added challenge, but the girls have done a really great job of being willing to fill whatever role is needed to help the team,” Willer said. “We’ve moved some girls around to try to balance out our crew both offensively and defensively, and they’ve adjusted really nicely. Both Megan and Adelyn have worked hard to form connections with all of our hitters, so it’s great to be able to shift people into different positions and still get solid offensive results.”

In the final game of the round-robin tournament, the Wildcats squared off with Shawnee Mission East in what ended up being the championship match. Unfortunately, the Wildcats couldn’t keep up with the Lancers in the 25-15 and 26-24 loss.

“I was proud to see us battle in the second set,” Willer said. “East sort of let us have it in the first set, and after a long day of volleyball, I was glad to see us fight harder in the second set. Although we fell a little short in the end, we felt proud of leaving it all out there on the floor.”

Louisburg (13-8) will be back in action tonight as the Wildcats host rival Paola in a Frontier League matchup. Varsity is set to begin at 6:30 p.m.

Wildcats sweep home triangular

Coming off a league loss to Eudora earlier in the week, the Wildcats got back on the winning track Thursday in their home triangular.

Louisburg opened with a 2-1 win over Girard, before sweeping Fort Scott 2-0.

“I am proud that we were able to bounce back to get two wins,” Willer said. “After the Eudora match, everyone came into Wednesday’s practice on a mission, knowing that we had some aspects of our game that we definitely wanted to work on and make adjustments to. It was great to see them work implementing those things.”

The Wildcats faced a little adversity against Girard. After Louisburg won the first set 25-18, Girard responded to take the second 25-20. The Wildcats were able to respond with a 25-18 win in the third.

The injury bug also hit Louisburg during the match as the Wildcats lost middle Izzy Moreland with an ankle injury and they were already without senior outside hitter Madie Williams who was battling a knee injury.

Willer brought in sophomore McKenna Lohse to fill in and was pleased to see her play well in Moreland’s absence.

“Unfortunately we have been hit with an injury bug lately, and losing Izzy in the middle of the match was a huge bummer for the team as she’s been solid for us this year,” Willer said. “I think it took us a little bit to get out of the shock and panic of the moment, but then we were able to regroup and continue on. It was also great to have Kenna be able to step up into this role with no hesitation, especially when it happened so suddenly. She did a great job.”

Louisburg was solid from behind the service line in the two matches as it combined for 11 aces, including four each from Ashlyn Berck and Delaney Nelsen.

Sophomore Caileigh Kilgore led the Wildcats with 16 kills on the night and senior Hailey Sword added 14. Senior Katie Elpers and Nelsen finished with 13 and 12, respectively.

Adelyn Moore added a team-high 32 assists to lead the Wildcat offense and senior Megan Quinn tallied 29.

Nelsen and Lohse led the defense as the net with four and three blocks, respectively. In the back row, Berck finished with a team-high 23 digs and Nelsen had 22.

“We saw a lot of positives throughout both matches, but I would say that the other sophomores were standouts to me,” Willer said. “Caileigh had a big night finishing with 16 kills. She has established herself as someone we can rely on to put a ball down which is awesome. Delaney also stepped up in a big way as she filled Madie’s 6 rotation position. She did a great job of being consistent in all aspects of the game.”

The Louisburg boys cross country team won first place on Thursday at Prairie View. Members of the team (from left) are Spencer Mattison, Ben Proctor, Truman Ellison, Levi Cotter, Noah Cotter and Jerynce Brings Plenty.

LA CYGNE — Winning is always fun and the Louisburg cross country team had a lot of it Thursday at the Ramsey Invitational.

The Louisburg boys won the team title, while Jerynce Brings Plenty and Noah Cotter finished 1-2, respectively, to lead what was a very successful day for the Wildcats at Prairie View High School.

On the girls side, all four runners left with medals as the Wildcats continue to put together what is a successful season to date.

“Everyone had a good day,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “Even though it was a smaller meet, the runners were competitive and ran well.”

It all started with Brings Plenty as the Louisburg junior crossed the finish line first to win the varsity boys race. Brings Plenty won with a time of 17 minutes and 38 seconds.

Senior Noah Cotter was right behind him as he finished second in 17:58 as the Wildcats earned the 1-2 finish. 

Louisburg also had another pair of top 10 medalists. Freshman Levi Cotter was fourth at 19:17, while freshman Truman Ellison was 10th in 19:43.

“It was great to see Jerynce win the race and for Noah to be there in second place at the end of the race was fantastic,” Reece said. “Levi ran a good race as well and moved up throughout the race to be fourth.”

Also on the boys side, junior Ben Proctor earned a medal and was 16th in 20:45. Freshman Spencer Mattison was 23rd in 21:54. The Wildcats won the team title with 22 points and Anderson County as second with 33.

As for the girls, senior Lola Edwards recorded her best finish of the season as she took fourth in 23:35. Senior Maddy Rhamy also recorded a top-10 finish in 24:16.

Fellow senior Erin Apple medaled 13th in 26:16 and sophomore Lila Edwards garnered her first varsity medal of the year in 19th in 30:18.

“On the girls side, we are still waiting to field a full team in the varsity race because of some injuries,” Reece said. “The four that ran the race, Lola, Maddy, Erin, and Lila did a great job. We hope to field at least five varsity runners this week at Perry-Lecompton.”

Louisburg will compete at the Perry-Lecompton Invitational at 5 p.m. this Thursday. The races will be held at Hummer Park in Topeka.