Broadmoor Elementary School student Kendall Crossley poses with all her medals following her all-around state gymnastics championship last March in Columbia, Mo.

Kendall Crossley was waiting with
bated breath – hoping what happened a year ago wasn’t going to repeat itself.

In March of 2018, Kendall was ahead
in the standings during the Missouri State Gymnastics Championships with only
one competitor remaining. She was forced to wait for the final scores to roll
in.

The wait was hard, but the result
was even more difficult for Kendall as she lost the all-around state
championship by one-tenth of a point. It was a tough setback for Kendall,
despite earning the state championship in the uneven bars and a runner-up
finish in the all-around Level 3 competition.

Kendall, who is a student at
Broadmoor Elementary, got back to work instead of sulking about her close loss.
She used that as motivation.

Not only did Kendall have to get past a difficult loss, she also had to move to a level where she would be competing against older, more experienced competitors. She rose to the challenge and found herself in the exact same spot last month – waiting for the final competitor to finish her routine.

This time, Kendall was all smiles.
On March 22, she became the Missouri Level 4 10D state champion at Columbia
College in Columbia, Mo., with a score of 36.85, which turned out to be her
highest scoring meet of the season as she led from start to finish.

“When I finally realized I had won the state championship,
it made me feel happy and proud of myself,” she said. “I also felt relieved
because I didn’t have to worry about being disappointed. I was very nervous
waiting for the scores because I didn’t want to lose out on first place again
by a tiny amount.”

Kendall performed well in all her events during the state
competition as she was a state champion on vault and floor exercise. She was
also third on uneven bars and fourth on balance beam.

 “I could not be
prouder of her,” her father Shawn said. “It is well-deserved, and saying she
worked for it doesn’t begin to do it justice.”

The journey to a state championship has been a long time
coming for Kendall, who has given up a lot to focus on her gymnastics. She
currently competes at Eagles Gymnastics in Martin City, MO., and has been there
since she was 3-years-old.

“Since June she has spent
11-plus hours every week in the gym,” Shawn said. “Not only does she do Level 4
gymnastics at Eagles, she also takes Elite Ballet and Jazz/Lyrical dance. She
misses out on playing other sports, she misses family outings, she misses
birthday parties, she misses father/daughter dances, she misses being at home.
It’s a life of go, go, go.

“It’s straight to the gym after school
and she isn’t home until after 9 by the time we get food somewhere. She is
dedicated to this sport, and it’s a level that is hard to explain unless you
see it on a daily basis.”

It is a commitment that has always been
there from Kendall, but it was no more tested than last season when she was
forced to make a difficult decision.

Kendall had high hopes for herself in her
second season as a Level 3 gymnast, but her body was fighting back. She was
diagnosed with a pars stress fracture in her back and a spine specialist
recommended she end her season prematurely.

After some discussion, and with the blessing of the doctors, she was allowed to continue her season with limitations in practice. Even with the obstacles, Kendall was atop the leaderboard in the state championships in 2018 at Union Station in Kansas City.

She led from the start, but when the
final scores came in, that one-tenth of point was the difference between a runner-up
and a state championship.

“Last year was very difficult for many reasons,” Kendall
said. “I had to lead my level 3 team with a hurt back. I felt like I needed to
be a good example. I couldn’t do the best that I could do. I had to sit out
some parts of practice. I felt like I was wasting time and wasn’t improving.”

Kendall took some time to recover from her injury after
the season and then got right back to work. Not only did she have to move up a
level, she also had to learn brand new routines for all four of her events.

“A great number of the girls she would
compete against this year would have a leg up because they would have had a
full year of practicing and performing these routines,” Shawn said. “It was
supposed to be a down year for Kendall, one with a bit of a learning curve.
That was the expectation at least. However, Kendall is very self-motivated and
incredibly driven. She set out with the mindset that this would be her year.”

The 11-year-old Louisburg resident got her season off to a good start with a pair of all-around runner-up finishes and then took first in the all-around in three of her next four meets that led up to the Missouri State Championships and her state title.

All the success she achieved also saw a
jump in competition. Kendall will now be competing in Level 6 gymnastics with
the Eagles, which means more of a time commitment for a girl that has school
and after-school activities.

“I am still hungry for more,” Kendall
said. “The more I win, the more other people want to beat me. There may always
be someone working harder than me and I don’t want that.”

Louisburg senior Kiefer Tucker stands atop the podium after winning the Class 4A state powerlifting title at 200 pounds. Tucker also broke a 24-year-old state bench press record.

BASEHOR – Two Louisburg High
School weightlifters made their way to the top of the podium Saturday during
the Class 4A State Powerlifting Meet at Basehor-Linwood High School.

Louisburg senior Kiefer Tucker and
junior Reilly Ratliff-Becher both earned state championships in their
respective weight class. Senior Jonathan DePriest finished third overall and
several other Wildcats also earned individual medals.

Not only did Tucker win a state
title in the 220-pound division, he also broke a 24-year state bench press
record as he recorded a bench of 375 pounds to surpass the old mark of 365. He
also won the squat competition at 505 pounds and had a total of 1,165 pounds to
run away with the crown.

Tucker’s total was the highest
three-lift mark at the entire state meet in all weight classes.

“We had a very successful day,” Louisburg
weightlifting coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “I was proud of how our kids competed
and represented Louisburg. I am excited for Reilly and Kiefer. Nobody
works harder than those two in the weight room. Their consistent effort day in
and day out is why they are state champions. For Kiefer to break a 24-year-old
state record is an amazing feat.”

As happy as he was with the state
title, the state record will stick with Tucker for a long time.

“I had messed around with 375 and
385 before on bench, so I was confident that I could lift it if I had the
chance,” Tucker said. “I was more worried about my first lifts on bench at 345
and 365 because if I messed up on those attempts then I would not have had the
change to even attempt 375. It was definitely a sigh of relief when I finally
locked it out.

“It was a great feeling to beat
the state record. To put Louisburg up on the record chart definitely brought a
smile to my face.”

Ratliff-Becher had a big day in
the women’s division as she won a state crown in the 180-pound weight class.
She finished with a three-lift total of 575 pounds.

The Louisburg junior took first in
bench press with 155 pounds, first in clean at 150 pounds and second in squat
with a 270-pound lift.

“Winning the state title meant a lot to me,” Ratliff-Becher said. “I have put in a lot of time and effort in weights class, so it’s nice to see it has paid off. But, also because I feel as if I put out a message to girls that it’s cool to be strong physically. I know that being sometimes the only girls in a class with a lot of strong guys is intimidating. Weightlifting is all about your own personal growth and seeing how far you can push yourself.

“I was honestly surprised I won
because there are lots of very strong girls there and it’s good competition. It’s
also fun to meet new people that have the same interests and motivation as you.”

DePriest also had a strong day for
the Wildcat lifters as he had a three-lift total of 915 pounds in the 242-pound
weight class to take third. The Louisburg senior was second in clean at 265
pounds and third in bench at 245 pounds.

Three other Wildcats also earned
state medals for their efforts.

In the 148-pound weight class,
Dylan Knipp was first in the bench press with a 235-pound mark on the men’s
side.

In the women’s division, Camdyn
Clark was second in bench in the 132-pound division with a lift of 135 pounds.
In the 140-pound weight class, Melia Rice was third in bench press at 130
pounds.

Louisburg saw a big jump in participants at the state meet this season. The Wildcats took 28 athletes this year compared to just nine last year and Pfannenstiel is excited to see interest in weightlifting grow.

“Last year was our first year of
powerlifting so it’s still pretty new to Louisburg,” he said. “We took a van
and nine athletes last year. This year we took a bus with 28 athletes. It’s
exciting to see how it’s grown in popularity in just one year. Next year we
hope to take even more kids. 

“Our kids at Louisburg work hard in the
weight room. I’m glad there is a sport like powerlifting that allows them to
compete and show off their hard work. I was proud of every one of them.”

Ratliff-Becher, like many of the
other competitors, is appreciative of what Pfannenstiel has done to help create
a powerlifting culture in Louisburg.

“I’m very thankful to have a
weights coach like Mr. Pfannenstiel,” she said. “I feel like he doesn’t get enough
credit sometimes, but he is a big part of why we did so well at the meet. He
spends a lot of time giving us workouts every day to become stronger. He always
knows what to say to get me believing in myself.”

As for the meet itself, it was a great experience for the Wildcat lifters to participate in and is different than most state competitions. It is also a good way to help prepare athletes for different athletic avenues.

“The whole meet was a great
experience overall,” Tucker said. “Just to be able to see and go up against
other great lifters was a fun time. Everyone there had a great attitude and
wanted to see you succeed even if it meant beating them. To be able to win my
weight class and lift the highest total out of any weight class was a great
feeling.

“It wouldn’t be right for me not
to give credit where credit is due, so I owe all of this to the football team.
The program, the coaches, and my teammates taught me how to not only be
physically strong, but more importantly how to be mentally tough. I owe it all
to them and I’m just glad I was able to represent this town in a good manner.”

The gauntlet has been thrown down on the hardwoods of Louisburg.

The LHS Selects, a team that represents the LHS Select Choir, will face off in a basketball game for the ages against Louisburg’s own Granny Basketball team, The Tonics.

The showdown is set for 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24 at the Louisburg High School gym. The free-will admission charity fund-raiser will help the Select Choir raise the last bit of money it needs to travel to New York in April to perform at the Lincoln Center, the prestigious performing arts center in Manhattan.

The basketball game will feature members of the Tonics going up against the Selects playing by the Granny Basketball League rules.

Granny Basketball is similar to the 1920s style of play where the court is divided in three sections and there is no running, no jumping and only two dribbles per possession. Two guards or defenders are in one section, two centers or passers are in the middle section and the two forward or offensive players are in the third section of the court. Granny basketball players wear uniforms from that period.

 “I hope that the Louisburg community knows how
much our choir has appreciated their support. We are so proud to have the
opportunity to represent our town,” Alison Moore, choir director, said.

“The Tonics are really excited for the opportunity to help out the Select
Choir. One of the foundations of the Granny Basketball League is to assist with
charity opportunities and we are excited to get on the court and show the
Selects how to play basketball,” Jean Carder, captain of the Tonics, said.
“Oh, and for those players that are males or younger than 50, there will
be a surprise handicap but my lips are sealed until game time. We hope the
community comes out for a fun and novel event that supports the Select
Choir.” 

Local celebrities, school staff and students will make up the Selects team with
choir members and current LHS basketball players Brayden Gage, Maddon
Rutherford, Dylan Deshazer, Andy Hupp, Carson Buffington and Alyse Moore serving
as Selects captains. Team members include Moore, Dr. Damon Dennis; Robert
Ebenstein, LHS head football coach; Drew Harding; LHS football and basketball
coach; and students Austin Moore, Blue Caplinger, Kody Lowry, Lauren Vincent
and others.

The Tonics include Carder, Janet York, Ellen Morland, Diana Moore, Becky Berg,
LaVonne Mize, Ruth Fladung, Helen McClain, Jayne Schommer, Cathy Hadley,
Kathleen Caverty all from Louisburg; Wanda Harlow, Bucyrus; Susan McKeever,
Drexel; Julie McKinley, Linn Valley; Jan Berg, Edgerton; Lisa Berg, Olathe; and
Tonics coach Kate Berg Camp, Gardner.

The 2019 LHS Winter Homecoming candidates are (front row, from left) Leia Shaffer, Camdyn Clark, Riley Vohs, Bailey Kern; (back row) Jakob Krause, Kiefer Tucker, Beckett Rasmussen and James Foote.

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 2019 winter king and
queen. Eight students were selected as nominees and here are their names and
profiles.

The crowning will take place on Friday during halftime of the
Wildcat boys’ basketball game with Ottawa. Tipoff for that game is set for
approximately 7:30 p.m. Good luck to all the participants and make sure to come
out on Friday to support both the Wildcat girls and boys basketball teams

Leia Shaffer

Leia is the daughter of Ryan
and Dana Shaffer. Leia has participated in cheerleading and girls soccer for
four years, debate for one year and Spanish Club. Following graduation, Leia
plans to attend Pittsburg State University and get a degree in nursing.

Jakob Krause

Jakob is the son of Kraig and Trisha Krause. Jakob has participated in baseball for four years, basketball, football, FCA, Choir and National Honor Society for two years. Following graduation, Jakob plans to attend the University of Nebraska and study civil engineering.

Camdyn Clark

Camdyn is the daughter of
Kelly and Jennifer Clark. Camdyn has participated in band, girls soccer and the
musical for four years, select choir, debate and boys soccer manager for two
years and mixed choir and forensics for one year. Following graduation, Camdyn
plans to attend Johnson County Community College and then transfer to a
university to major in physical therapy.

Kiefer Tucker

Kiefer is the son of David Tucker and Debbie Hardy. Kiefer has participated in football and track and field for four years, Model UN for three years, National Honor Society for two years and wrestling, musical and boys basketball manager for one year. Following graduation, Kiefer plans to play football in college and is undecided on his destination.

Riley Vohs

Riley is the daughter of
Jason and Shava Vohs. Riley has participated in FFA for four years, volleyball
for three years and softball for two years. Following graduation, Riley plans
to attend Missouri State University to major in nursing.

Beckett Rasmussen

Beckett is the son of Mike
and Mercedes Rasmussen. Beckett has participated in baseball, football, student
council, musical, choir and forensics for four years, National Honor Society
and broadcasting club for two years and debate for one year. Following
graduation, Beckett plans to attend Rockhurst University to play baseball and
major in communications.

Bailey Kern

Bailey is the daughter of
Matthew and Veronica Kern. Bailey has participated in softball for four years,
volleyball manager and choir for three years, basketball and FFA for two years
and National Honor Society for one year. Bailey is currently undecided on her
post-graduation plans.

James Foote

James in the son of Jim and Dana Foote. James has participate in football and FFA for four years, basketball for one year and choir for one year. Following graduation, James plans to attend Kansas State University to major in agribusiness and minor in finance.

The Louisburg High School cheer team gets ready to take the floor during the Heartland Cheer Showcase on Nov. 3, that was hosted by LHS. The Wildcat cheerleaders used that competition to get ready for the state event this Saturday in Topeka.

With one of the biggest competitions of the season just a few days away, the Louisburg High School cheer squad got a little practice in at its home gym.

The Wildcat cheerleaders were joined by about 13 other teams in an effort to tune up their routine before the Spirit Game Day showcase this Saturday in Topeka.

Louisburg hosted the Heartland Cheer Showcase on Nov. 3 at Louisburg High School and it is the first ever cheer competition hosted by the Wildcats. It was an effort that was nearly a year in the making as parents, along with the cheerleaders themselves, banded together to put on the event.

“The competition is a huge honor and time commitment,” Louisburg coach Dana Shaffer said. “We had several parents behind the scenes that worked over the last year to get this up and going. We had to have KSHSAA approval and then administration approval. Of course there are some kinks to work out, but that was to be expected.

“We hosted 13 teams and a total of 350 girls. This event could not have taken place without the help of the Cheer Cat Backers. It was a great experience for the girls to see what time and effort that goes into a big competition. It was also nice to have them see how other cheer squads prepare for competition.”

The LHS cheer team opened the competition with an exhibition performance in front of its home fans, before turning it over to the other squads.

Shawnee Mission East earned a Superior rating during the Louisburg showcase in the Gameday Routine, while Shawnee Mission North, Blue Valley West, Basehor-Linwood, Shawnee Mission East and Blue Valley Northwest had outstanding ratings in the cheer and dance competition.

Louisburg senior Shaylor Whitham (front) and junior Gabby Tappan perform during the Wildcats’ exhibition routine on Nov. 3 when the Wildcats hosted the Heartland Cheer Showcase.

Blue Valley Northwest won the choreography award, Blue Valley West won stunt sequence, Shawnee Mission East won the top tumbling honor and Basehor-Linwood was tops in jumps. Baldwin High School won the Purple Heart Award.

Since Louisburg was busy hosting the event, they couldn’t compete for awards themselves, but the Wildcats found a lot of positives from it.

One of those is the fact they get to tune up their routine prior to this weekend’s Spirit Game Day competition, which is put on by the Kansas State High School Activities Association. It gives Louisburg, and other schools around the state, a chance to earn a state championship.

Fellow Miami County school, Osawatomie, won the Class 4A title in the event’s first year.

“Having the Heartland Showcase the beginning of November gets squads ready for state,” Shaffer said. “You can get judges feedback and work out any problems before state in Topeka. Even though we didn’t compete, we showed off our skills to the judges just to get feedback. The whole team was involved along with many family members and staff.”

Now Louisburg will prepare for the state event that will be held Saturday at the Topeka Expocentre. It is that competition that the Wildcats hope to make their mark after falling short of their goal last season.

Cecilia Bindi rises up in the air with the help of teammates Addie Katzer, Lauren Vincent and Kaitlyn Lewer.

“State is just a huge honor to be able to attend,” Shaffer said. “We will compete against other 4A Kansas schools to take home the state title. Last year, the team didn’t get the result we were hoping for so we have something to prove this year. We will perform three separate times throughout the day then around 1 we find out if we are one of the top 10 teams that get to advance to the finals. If we do then we will perform one 3-minute routine.”

The Wildcats will perform a band chant at 9:32 a.m., followed by the school fight song at 11:12 and a crowd leading performance at 12:54 p.m.

Tickets to the event are $15 and parking is $5.

Members of the Wildcat team that competed are Leia Shaffer, Shaylor Whitham, Addie Katzer, Billie Casebeer, Kaitlyn Lewer, Hallie Hutsell, Lexi Pena, Brooklyn Mitchell, Lauren Vincent, Gabby Tappan, Ashlyn McManigal, Cecilia Bindi, Sammy McDaniel, Anna Morrison, Jadyn Amren, Lacie Kallevig, Andrea Gaza, Brielle White, Jayden Trester and Eleanor Willming.

The 2018 Louisburg High School fall homecoming candidates are (front row, from left) Anna Dixon, Billie Casebeer, Carson Buffington, Shaylor Whitham; (back row) Noah Hill, Blue Caplinger, Brayden Gage and Austin Moore.

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 2018 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 Atchison. Kickoff for that game is set for 7 p.m., with the crowning to take place at 6:30. Good luck to all the participants and make sure to come out on Friday to support the Wildcat football team.

Anna Dixon and Noah Hill

Anna Dixon

Anna is the daughter of Beth and Jerry Dixon. Anna has participated in volleyball for four year and FFA for three years. She plans to graduate in December and will attend Kansas State University to play volleyball and major in Kinesiology and Nutrition.

Noah Hill

Noah is the son of Megan and Andy Hill. Noah has been involved in student council for four years, basketball for three years, football and golf for two years and Leo’s, Debate and Choir for one year. Noah plans to attend Kansas State University and dual major in Marketing and Management.

Billie Casebeer and Blue Caplinger

Billie Casebeer

Billie is the daughter of Chris Casebeer and Linda Shipp. Billie has been involved with debate, cheerleading and band for for years. She has also participated in forensics, FCCLA, Model United Nations and Leos Club for two years and Spanish CLub, TedX and Scholars Bowl for one.

Billie is undecided on what college to attend, but would like to major in political science with an emphasis on international affairs, a minor in Spanish and then would like to further her education by completing law school.

Blue Caplinger

Blue is the son of Sirena and Wade Caplinger. Blue has participated in football, wrestling and track and field for four years and is currently undecided on plans for after high school.

Austin Moore and Shaylor Whitham

Shaylor Whitham

Shaylor is the daughter of Karen and Rusty Whitham. Shaylor has participated in cheerleading, band, FFA and track and field for four years, and has also participated in cross country and musicals for three years. She plans to attend Pittsburg State University and major in nursing.

Austin Moore

Austin is the son of Alison and Tom Moore. Austin has participated in football for four years, wrestling, track and field and choir for three years and student council and National Honors Society for two years. Austin would like to play football after high school, but is unsure of his destination.

Brayden Gage and Carson Buffington

Carson Buffington

Carson is the daughter of Amy and Dave Buffington. Carson has participated in choir, basketball and volleyball for four years, and soccer and musical for three years. She has also participated in FFA for two years. Carson plans to attend the University of Kansas to major in behavioral science.

Brayden Gage

Brayden is the son of Melissa and Jason Gage. Brayden has participated in football, basketball, choir and Spanish Club for four years and baseball and National Honors Society for two years. Brayden plans to attend college after high school, but is undecided on his destination and major.

The Kansas High School Activities Association released the classifications for the 2018-19 season Wednesday for all activities other than football, and there were some major changes that involved Frontier League programs.

Both Spring Hill and Bonner Springs made the jump from Class 4A to 5A in the latest numbers as Spring Hill featured an enrollment of 779 and Bonner Springs is the second smallest school in 5A with an enrollment of 750.

The rest of the Frontier League schools, including Louisburg, will all remain in Class 4A. Louisburg recorded an enrollment number of 530, which put them close to the middle.

Frontier League school Ottawa and Bishop Miege are both the largest 4A schools with an enrollment of 679. The lowest 5A school is Andover Central at 748.

KSHSAA voted to make changes to the classification system last year.

For football, the two 4A divisions and Class 2-1A have been eliminated. They have been replaced with 32 team classifications in 4A, 5A and 6A, while 3A and 2A will have 48-team classifications. The remaining schools will play in 1A.

The second proposal was for all other sports. Other than football, classes 4A, 5A and 6A will have 36 teams in each division. Classes 3A and 2A will have 64 schools each, while the remaining schools will be in 1A.

The football proposal passed with a vote of 215-73 and the all-sports proposal passed with a 207-145 majority. All of the classes, except 6A and 1A, were in favor.

With those new proposals comes a different playoff system for many of the sports.

Postseasons for wrestling, track, soccer, cross country and golf will remain the same. However, the classifications will not be the same for wrestling. There will be 36 teams in Class 6 and 5A and then 40 percent of the next biggest programs will be classified in Class 4A, which is approximately 60 schools.

Louisburg will see postseason changes in five sports programs – football, basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball.

In football, Louisburg will no longer have district play as the playoffs will begin in week nine. Class 4A will play an eight-game regular season and then each side of the state will be seeded in a bracket from 1 through 16, based on their record.

Given the fact the Frontier League currently has nine teams after recently adding three schools in Tonganoxie, Bonner Springs and Piper, the Wildcats will no longer have to play a non-league opponent. De Soto recently chose to leave the Frontier League following the 2017-18 season to join a new league made up of 5A schools.

Another change will be in basketball. For the postseason, there will no longer be substates, instead the 18 teams on each side of the state will be bracketed out by record beginning with two play-in games.

From there, the bracket will be sized down to four-team pods, with the higher seed hosting the game. Teams will have to win two games to reach the state tournaments. Pods will be 1-16-8-9 seeds, 4-13-5-12, 2-15-7-10 and 3-14-6-11. The eight pod winners will advance to the state tournament.

Baseball and softball will be similar as there will no longer be regionals. Like basketball, there will be two play-in games with the same pod structure. The top four overall seeds will each host all games in their pod on the same day.

In volleyball, there will be four substates across the state, broken into eight brackets. There will also be nine teams in each substate, which will require a play-in game. Teams will need to win two games to qualify for state.

For the 21st consecutive year, Louisburg High School faculty, students, their families and community members invaded the LHS gymnasium in order to get the school year started off on the right foot.

Sponsored by First National Bank, the annual fall sports pep rally brought everyone together as LHS organizations and sports teams were introduced to a crowd of on-lookers after being fed hamburgers and hot dogs thanks to Chris Cakes.

The Wildcat sports programs will kick things off next week as the LHS boys soccer team opens their season Tuesday when they travel to Fort Scott. The Louisburg volleyball team, fresh off a runner-up finish at state last season, will begin their year at home Tuesday against Paola.

Louisburg cross country opens its season Thursday in Garnett, while the Wildcat football hosts Spring Hill in their opener on August 31.

Three of the teams will have scrimmages or open practices Friday. The volleyball team will hold a scrimmage at 4 p.m. and soccer is at 5. Football was scheduled to have a scrimmage at 6 p.m., but that has been cancelled due to wet weather. The Wildcats will hold an open practice at the same time at the practice field.

Here are some photos from tonight’s festivities. Best of luck to all the Wildcat programs this season.

Louisburg High School sophomore Konnor Vohs had a successful performance at the Junior World Skeet Nationals earlier this month in San Antonio as he finished in the top five in two individual events and took fifth in the overall competition. 

When Konnor Vohs stood side by side with some of the best young marksmen in the nation, one would think he might be a little nervous.

Vohs, a sophomore at Louisburg High School, made the journey to the Junior World Skeet Nationals in San Antonio on August 3 and was a little curious on how he stacked up against his competition.

He did more than hold his own.

Vohs finished in fourth place in his age division in the 28 gauge event and also finished fifth in 410 shotgun. After it was all complete, Vohs also found out he took fifth overall in his class on the combined scores for all the events he shot that weekend. More than 150 took part in the national competition that range from ages 10 through college.

“I was hoping to improve my average scores, and of course try to place too, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to do because of all the talent that was there,” Vohs said. “I was very pleased with the results. There was a lot of great competition and I also improved all of my averages in all of the events.

“I wasn’t nervous, as I have been practicing and shooting almost year-round and I have done competitions all summer and some registered shoots. When it is time for competition, you have to embrace the process and shoot like you do in practice.”

At junior nationals, Vohs competed in the Champs of Champs, which consists of shots from a 28 gauge, 20 gauge, 12 gauge and then 410, and scored a 95 out of 100.

In separate individual events, Vohs scored a 94/100 in 28 gauge, 92/100 in 12 gauge, 91/100 in 20 gauge and 89/100 in 410. He also took part in a doubles event, which is shooting targets at each station when it comes out of the houses at the same time and you have to hit both targets.

Konnor Vohs aims at a skeet during the Junior World Skeet National competition earlier this month in San Antonio.

“Of course you want to shoot a perfect score of 100, but to score in the mid to high 90s is my goal,” Vohs said. “I was very happy and thankful for what I achieved, and the opportunity to shoot in the Junior World Skeet Nationals.”

Vohs spends many evenings or weekends honing his craft and is currently a member of the Kansas City Crushers competition team, in which he travels to events around Kansas. He recently went to an event in Sparta, Illinois, where he came home with trophies and medals.

His family has been a big reason for his involvement in the sport. He started shooting at age 7, where he would hunt deer and turkeys with his grandfather. Three years ago, Vohs started competitive shooting when aunt and uncle, Deb and Ken Selzer, who asked him to be on their team for the Shoot for the Cure for Cystic Fibrosis – an event the Selzer’s have co-chaired for several years.

He recently competed in the Shoot for the Cure event at the Power Creek Shooting Club in Lenexa on Aug. 11 and achieved a personal best in sporting clays as he shot 98 out of 100 clays and will compete in another registered shoot next month in Lincoln, Neb.

“The best thing about this sport is that anyone can do it,” Vohs said. “It doesn’t matter on your gender or athletic ability, all you have to have is gun safety knowledge. This sport is constantly growing and participation in kids has increased 35 percent in the last year.

“I just want to thank my parents, grandparents and coaches for giving me this amazing opportunity and believing in me,” Vohs said. “I just want to thank my Papa Joe for all the time he takes to help me become a better shooter. I am so blessed to have such supportive people in my life and always cheering me on.”

And if Vohs has anything to say about, there will be plenty to cheer about it in the future as well.

Walking into Scott Hinkle’s office, it doesn’t appear he started a new job two weeks ago.

The moving boxes are mostly gone. His desk is organized with everything in its place, along with a calendar crammed full of upcoming events.

Hinkle is not shy to tell people about his love for the Boston Red Sox. Sitting on one wall are two older chairs from Fenway Park, along other memorabilia.

The one thing that Hinkle hasn’t caught up on is his efforts to get some purple gear. An avid Kansas Jayhawk fan, he hasn’t had need to purchase any purple flair in the past. Seems like that will change shortly as he was hired as the new activities director and assistant principal at Louisburg High School earlier this summer.

“I have been a Jayhawk fan all my life,” Hinkle said. “It will be a little weird to wear purple that is for sure, but I am sure I will get used to it. Before I left my old job, people found out where I was going so they started giving me little gifts with purple on it, like markers and stuff like that. They definitely got a kick out of that.”

Hinkle takes over for Jeremy Holloway, who was promoted to principal at LHS and becomes the third activities director in as many years to take over that spot.

“My wife has family in Kansas City and I have family in Wichita and so we were looking to come this way,” Hinkle said. “I had a couple friends that told me that the Louisburg position had opened up. I had heard of Louisburg a long time ago. I actually coached at Ottawa University in the early 90s and was familiar with the area. I came up, interviewed and here I am. It has obviously worked out well.

“Everyone has been so helpful and friendly and it is a good time to be coming to Louisburg. I am excited to be here.”

Before taking the job in Louisburg, Hinkle had spent the last 22 years in the Liberal school district in a variety of roles. He served as the boys high school basketball coach, along with nine years as an activities director, a year as the head girls basketball coach at the local community college and last year he served as assistant principal at the high school.

Hinkle graduated from Valley Center High School, and went on from there to earn his bachelor’s degree from Friends University, where he played basketball, and his master’s from the University of Kansas.

Basketball has always been a passion for Hinkle, but during his time as activities director at Liberal, he had a chance to learn the life of other sports as well.

“Liberal changed a lot from when I first got there in the mid 90s when they were a football and track powerhouse,” Hinkle said. “There were just athletes galore, but the culture kind of changed. We were really good in soccer and decent in track and volleyball. We still had good kids and good athletes, but it was a big transition as far as sports go when I first got there. My kids grew up there and being involved and being able to watch their events was something that has always appealed to me.

“Basketball has always been in my blood. Other than my nine years as athletic director, I have coached in some capacity and I am a big basketball fan. Obviously, being an athletic director I am just a big sports fan in general.”

Still new in town, Hinkle is still trying to get to know his coaching staff, but he is excited about the situation he is walking into with the Wildcats finishing as state runner-ups in volleyball and girls soccer last season. Several cross country, golf, wrestling and track athletes also earned state medals.

However, if there is one thing he wanted to relay to everyone is that he wants to give his coaches the freedom to run their programs.

“I want to let the coaches, coach,” he said. “I am not going to be the guy that says this is how we did things in Liberal and I am not that type of leader. If it comes to the point where they need some advice, I want to be a resource for them. I don’t want to be someone that is looking for something.

“I have met a few of the coaches. I have let them know that I am here if they need anything. I have stopped by the weight room to speak to a few coaches and some have stopped by to introduce themselves. I am still learning names and faces. We have a coaches meeting on the 10^th and I will see and learn a lot more about them then.”

With all the success the Wildcats had last season in the sports arena, Hinkle is happy to be a part of the LHS family and is learning new things about the town every day.

“I have heard all types of things,” he said. “I have heard they take football pretty seriously here. I know they were state runner-up in volleyball and girls soccer last year and that is an exciting thing to walk into. I think expectations are obviously high in those sports, but I think everyone always has high expectations. I am not going to do anything different than normal and I am just going to sit back and observe for a while and take it all in.”

Hinkle will experience some different things along with his new position. This season, the Frontier League will welcome three new teams – Bonner Springs, Piper and Tonganoxie – and will say goodbye to De Soto.

Another big change will be the postseason formats with several sports as the Kansas State High School Activities Association reshuffled their classification system, eliminating Class 4A-Division II.

“With the changes in the league, the classification system and being a new AD, it is probably a good time to be coming on,” Hinkle said. “The learning curve is going to be the same for all of us.

“I walked into a good situation for scheduling because (Holloway) already had everything all taken care of,” he said. “I think the dynamics of the league are going to change. Liberal’s former girls basketball coach is the coach at Piper and I know a little bit about them. As far as the programs and rivalries, that is something that is going to come with time.”

Even with all the changes in his life – moving, starting a new job, getting to know new faces – Hinkle is ready for what lies ahead and the staff at Louisburg has helped with that transition.

“It has been a whirlwind and it has been information overload,” he said. “It is a lot of the same things I did in Liberal as athletic director, I just haven’t done it for the last five years. Being an assistant principal at Liberal last year, I think, helped me prepare for the principal side.

“People have just gone out of their way to be helpful. From the administration to the custodial staff to the secretaries, everyone has been super helpful. When I was out around town, people have welcomed me and it has been a friendly feel everywhere I have been.”