Dennis Stiles (top left), John Lohse (top right), Jason Burk (bottom left) and Krystal (Bowes) Grojean will be inducted into the Louisburg High School Athletic Hall of Fame this fall.

It has been 11 years since
Louisburg High School had inducted a class into its athletic hall of fame, but
the wait for a new class is finally over.

The USD 416 Endowment Association, which oversees the LHS Athletic Hall of Fame, has announced a new 4-member class. Dennis Stiles (Class of 1969), John Lohse (1995), Jason Burk (1999) and Krystal (Bowes) Grojean (2001) were the top four vote getters in this year’s hall of fame voting and will be honored in an induction ceremony sometime this fall.

“Louisburg has a history of great athletes,” said Damon Dennis, a USD 416 Endowment Association board member. “We had a good cross-section of both young and older voters this year that really took their job seriously. The four athletes chosen represent several generations of former Wildcats and each one were dominant in their particular era and sports. The Endowment Association is excited to get the Hall of Fame going again and plan on some big things in the future.”

More than two dozen voters, that includes current members of the hall of fame, long-time Louisburg residents, teachers and coaches, voted on the class in June. Each voter was asked to submit their top four choices for the hall and votes were then tabulated.

To be eligible for the hall of fame, the inductee must wait at least 10 years following graduation to be nominated.

The last class that was inducted was in 2008 and Dennis, and the rest of the Endowment Association, is committed to making this a yearly occurrence moving forward.

Here
are the accomplishments of each of the newest hall of fame inductees. Look for
more information on an induction ceremony in the coming weeks.

Dennis Stiles – Class of 1969 – Football, Basketball, Track

Stiles
lettered 4 years in football and
track and 3 years in basketball. His senior year he was named all-league and
all-state in football and was co-captain on the Wildcat team that finished the
year 4-4.

As sophomore, he played on the varsity basketball team which was 12-0 in
league play, finished the year 19-3 and were district champions. He earned
honorable mention all-state honors his sophomore and junior seasons and was
second-team all-state his senior year. Stiles was at one time the school’s
career scoring leader.

 Stiles competed at the state
track meet as a junior and senior where he placed fourth in the discus his
senior year. He previously held school records in the discus and triple jump.
He also received a football scholarship to Kansas State University.

John Lohse – Class of 1995 – Football, Basketball and Baseball

Lohse lettered all four years in baseball and was selected to represent
Kansas in the all-star baseball classic his senior year. He was an all-league
pitcher and centerfielder for the Wildcats his sophomore through senior years.
He had a .510 average his junior and senior seasons with 10 home runs his
junior year and 12 more his senior season.

In football, Lohse was a 3-year letterwinner. He was an all-league wide
receiver his junior and senior seasons. In his senior year, he had 850 yards
receiving and 11 touchdowns and was later selected to represent Kansas in the
Metro Classic All-Star Game.

Lohse was also a 3-year letterwinner in basketball and was an
all-league selection his junior and senior seasons. He averaged a double-double
his junior and senior years.

Post-graduation, Lohse attended Pittsburg State on a baseball
scholarship and played on the Gorilla team for four years. He was selected to
the all-MIAA team his sophomore and junior seasons before injuring his shoulder
his senior year. He had a .315 average his junior and senior seasons. In his
first collegiate at-bat his freshman year, Lohse hit a game-winning grand slam
to give Pitt State its first win over Missouri Southern in five years.

Jason Burk – Class of 1999 – Track and Football

Burk was a 4-year letterwinner for the Louisburg track and field team
and qualified for state in all four years in four events. He accumulated 12
state medals, 16 regional track medals and 14 Frontier League medals. Burk was
selected to the Kansas City All-Metro track team in 1998 and 1999.

During his senior season, Burk was a state champion in both the triple
and long jump. He won the triple jump with a leap 48 feet and the long jump
with a mark of 22-5. He also finished fifth in the 100-meter dash and sixth in
the high jump. As a junior, Burk won a state championship in the triple jump
with mark of 46 feet and won three more state medals. He took second long jump,
fourth in the 100 dash and sixth in the 200 dash. As a sophomore, Burk won
state medals in the triple jump (second), long jump (fourth) and 4×100 relay
(third). He was a member of the 4×100 team that took second at state as a
freshman in 1996.

At one time, Burk held seven school records. He currently holds school
records in the triple jump, high jump and long jump. Burk holds the school
record for most points in a season with 326.

Burk also played football, where he was a part of bi-district, district
and regional championship teams.

Krystal (Bowes) Grojean – Class of 2001 – Volleyball, Basketball, Track

Bowes was a 4-year letterwinner in track before she was offered a
scholarship on the Wichita State track and field team.

In her senior season at Louisburg, Bowes earned three state medals,
including a second-place finish in the javelin with a throw of 145-10. She was
also third in the discus with a toss of 126-9 and fifth in the shot put at
37-5. As a sophomore and junior, she finished sixth in the discus at state. In
all, Bowes racked up five state medals in her high school career before moving
on to Wichita State. She is the current Louisburg record holder in the javelin
(146-10) and discus (137-11).

At Wichita State, she earned academic All-American honors and was a
team captain all four years. Bowes was a two-time NCAA national qualifier and
finished fifth in the javelin and was second in the Missouri Valley Conference
in 2006. In 2004, Bowes took first in the MVC in the javelin and fourth in the
discus. In 2003, she won the Missouri Valley Conference discus title, was
second in the javelin and fourth in the hammer throw. Bowes was also a member
two Shocker teams that won conference titles.

In volleyball and basketball at LHS, Bowes was a 3-year letterwinner in each sport and earned first-team all-Frontier League honors each season.

Current members of the LHS Hall of Fame

Class of 2005:

Tom
Stevens – 1934 – Track and Field (High Jump)

1947/48
Undefeated Football Teams

Richard
Meiers – 1949 – Basketball/Football

Don
Meek – 1965-1998 – Coach/Administrator

Larry
Harding – 1976-1994 – Volleyball/Golf Coach

Amy
Dodson Goode – 1986 – Volleyball/Basketball

Class of 2006:

Jim
Wells – 1936 – Track and Field (Pole Vault)/Football

Doug
Eaton – 1971 – Wrestling

Sue
Truman Apple – 1974 – Track and Field/Volleyball/Basketball

Mike
Meek – 1985- Football/Wrestling/Track and Field

Jamie
Waite – 1991 – Track and Field (Pole Vault)/Football/Basketball

Class of 2007

Alan
Taylor – 1949 – Football

Tim
Dozier – 1987 – Wrestling/Football

Beth
Dodson Dixon – 1989 – Volleyball/Basketball

Jeff
Lohse – 1991 – Baseball/Football/Basketball

Class of 2008

Greg
Kahmann – 1987 – Baseball/Football/Basketball

Mark
Buckingham – 1994 – Basketball

Louisburg senior Dylan DeShazer will continue his basketball career next season at Avila University as he signed a letter of intent with the Eagles on April 3.

Dylan DeShazer has been playing
basketball for most of his young life, and with college in his near-future, he
wasn’t ready to leave it behind just yet.

In fact, playing collegiate
basketball has always been a goal of DeShazer’s and he found the perfect opportunity
for him. On April 3, DeShazer made his decision known in front of family and
friends during a signing ceremony at Louisburg High School.

DeShazer signed his letter of
intent to play basketball at Avila University and he is excited to take the next
step in his journey with the Eagle program.

“It is definitely a big step,”
DeShazer said. “It is a little scary, but it is exciting too because I get a
chance to go to a different place, meet new people and do what I love, which is
playing basketball.

“Playing college basketball has
been a big goal for me for a long time. Now that it is actually happening, it
is just awesome. It really is an undescribeable feeling and am looking forward
to getting started.

The Louisburg senior started most
of the season for the Wildcat program and averaged eight points and five
rebounds in 22 minutes a contest. DeShazer, who stands at 6 feet, 5 inches, played
a lot under the basket for the Wildcats and will have a similar role next
season with Avila.

“They see me as a big man that can
play in and out, but mostly working inside,” DeShazer said. “He said he really
wants someone that will work hard and go all out for the team and I think that
I am that person.”

Avila is an
NAIA program in Kansas City, Mo., and is currently a member of the Kansas
Collegiate Athletic Conference. Although the Eagles struggled last season,
DeShazer is excited for the opportunity to fit in with the program, and the
school.

“I did like how
small and convenient it was,” he said. “They definitely have a good program and
I have watched them for a while. They have a friendly environment and something
I wanted to be a part of.

“I just want to
get comfortable and get to know people. I would like to get a good amount of
playing time, but really I want to just go and improve my skills.”

DeShazer had
his best game of the season in the Wildcats’ final game of the year in the
sub-state tournament as he scored a game-high 16 points and pulled down seven
rebounds against Anderson County.

He was a part
of a Louisburg senior class that helped turn around a program that had two wins
a year ago and helped the Wildcats to a 9-12 record. DeShazer’s four years with
the program was a special time for him.

“It really
hasn’t sunk in yet,” DeShazer said of his high school career coming to a close.
“I can’t even remember all these experiences the last four years because I have
had so many, but the stuff I do remember will stick with me forever. It was a
good experience for sure.”

Louisburg senior Kohl Vogel was selected to the All-Frontier League team recently after leading the Wildcats in scoring with 14 points per game.

The Frontier League provided a lot
of challenges throughout the season and the Louisburg boys basketball team was
well aware of its difficulties.

Louisburg had to navigate through some rough waters that included the eventual Class 4A state champion in Piper and another Class 5A state qualifier in Bonner Springs. Still, a few Wildcat players left impressions on the league coaches, including one in particular.

Senior Kohl Vogel, Louisburg’s
leading scorer, was the lone Wildcat to earn all-league honors as he was
selected to the honorable mention team.

Piper and Bonner Springs led the
way with six of the league’s top 10 players, and Piper led all league schools
with five selections overall.

“The Frontier League was loaded with
talent this year, so I knew it was going to be very competitive on the all-league
voting,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “When you add three extra teams
to the league (Piper, Bonner Springs and Tonganoxie), that narrows down the
number of post season honors. Piper and Bonner alone had 6 players on the first
and second team, so that goes to show you how tough it was going to be to land
on that list. Kohl missed out on second team by one vote.” 

 Vogel was a big part of the Wildcats’ offense
as he led the team with nearly 14 points per game. The Louisburg senior also
played well defensively as he finished with a team-high 2.2 steals a game to go
along with four rebounds.

“I really thought Kohl had a good enough
season to receive a second team honor, but it just didn’t quite work out,”
Pfannenstiel said. “He should be very proud of his honorable mention
honor. Kohl had a great year for us. He started off the year very
hot, having some big time scoring games.

“Kohl was a big spark for us both
offensively and defensively.  He definitely led us offensively, but was
great for us defensively as well. His aggressiveness at the top of our
press and zone really gave teams trouble. I was very proud of Kohl’s
effort this year. He’s got a motor on the basketball court that doesn’t stop.”

Bonner Springs led the way with
two first team selections in seniors Keyon Thomas and A.J. Watson. Spring Hill
senior Brennen Feeback, Ottawa junior Koby Johnson and Piper sophomore Tamar
Bates rounded out the first team.

ALL-FRONTIER LEAGUE BOYS BASKETBALL

FIRST TEAM

Keyon Thomas, Bonner Springs,
senior

Brennen Feeback, Spring Hill,
senior

Koby Johnson, Ottawa, junior

Tamar Bates, Piper, sophomore

A.J. Watson, Bonner Springs,
senior

SECOND TEAM

Trey Bates, Piper, senior

Rock Jerome, Eudora, senior

Brandan Jackson, Piper, senior

Nasjon Porter, Bonner Springs,
senior

Dallas Bond, Tonganoxie, sophomore

HONORABLE MENTION

Braijion Barnes, Piper, senior

Jayden Pierce, Eudora, senior

Jayson Brown, Ottawa, junior

John Frakes, Spring Hill, senior

Hayden Robbins, Tonganoxie, senior

Ty Shelley, Piper, junior

Kohl Vogel, Louisburg, senior

Seth Richmond, Paola, senior

Louisburg senior Dylan DeShazer goes up for a shot Wednesday during the Class 4A sub-state semfinal game at Anderson County High School. DeShazer scored a team-high 16 points in the Wildcats’ 57-35 loss to Anderson County.

GARNETT – After a close first half during Wednesday’s Class 4A sub-state semifinal, the Louisburg boys basketball team was just 16 minutes from a shot at the sub-state championship game.

Louisburg, the No. 13 seed,
trailed No. 4 Anderson County by just one point at halftime, but the second
half provided a much different story – one that wasn’t a happy ending for
Louisburg.

The Wildcats scored just 10 second half points and watched as Anderson County ended their season with a 57-35 loss at Anderson County High School.

Much of the game was decided from
behind the 3-point line where the Bulldogs thrived with a 9-for-16 performance
and the Wildcats were just 2-for-18 and shot just 30 percent for the game.

“That was the difference in the
game,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “It was just a cold night for us.
We shot too many 3’s probably in the first half and should have looked to get
the ball inside more. It wasn’t that they went on a big, fast run, it was just
more methodical and we just couldn’t find a way to score. They just slowly
stretched their lead and that is how the game goes sometimes.”

The two teams were involved in a close game back in December when the Wildcats traveled to Garnett and lost an 80-74 game in overtime.

Louisburg did better defensively this time around, but the Wildcats couldn’t get the offense to follow suit. Louisburg trailed 26-25 at halftime, but Anderson County knocked down several shots in the third quarter that led to a 19-6 run.

The Wildcats (9-12) had a tough
time containing Anderson County senior Justin Rockers as he knocked down three
3-pointers during that stretch and made six overall. Rockers also scored a
game-high 20 points and was one of three Bulldogs to score in double figures.

“Our guys were confident coming into the game and we knew this was a great opportunity for us,” Pfannenstiel said. “We were excited about coming back to Anderson County because we knew we had a shot. If we said going in that we would hold them to 57 points, I thought we would win because they are a high-flying team that really pushes the ball. We controlled the tempo for a while, but we just couldn’t score, especially in the second half.

“I was frustrated the very first
possession because our game plan was to know where (Carter Powelson) and (Kass
Allnutt) are and also know where (Rockers) is because if he gets his feet set he
is going to hit it. We let Rockers get a wide open look on the first possession
of the game and he knocked it down. He had a big night and we knew he was
capable of that. Despite that, we played good enough defensively but we just
couldn’t score.”

Louisburg senior Dylan DeShazer
didn’t have a problem scoring as he put together one of his best efforts of the
season. DeShazer finished with a game-high 16 points to go along with seven
rebounds and was the lone Wildcat to score in double figures.

Senior Brayden Gage was next on
the team in scoring with six points and junior Madden Rutherford led the
Wildcats with nine rebounds.

“Dylan was really good,”
Pfannenstiel said. “He was tough in there and he was really smooth and confident
shooting the ball. He had a big game for us and he almost single-handedly kept
us in the game there in the first half. Every time they went on a little run he
made some big shots and I was proud of him.”

Although the Wildcats saw their
season come to a close, they saw a big improvement from a year ago, including
in the win column as they jumped from two last season to nine this year.

It also marked the final game for
Wildcat seniors Kohl Vogel, Noah Hill, Gage and DeShazer and Pfannenstiel
appreciates what they gave to the program.

“I was very proud of what we have
done,” he said. “Our league was just incredible this year. When you add Piper
and Bonner Springs, two of the best teams in the state, that just added to our schedule.
The Frontier League is just a beast night in and night out. We thought we could
get a winning record, which was our goal, but we were close to getting there.
Wins and losses aren’t the only deciding factor in moving our program forward.

“I told our kids that it starts during the summer with all the workouts that they did. We did shooting workouts five days a week for the first month-and-a-half of summer because we need to develop as shooters. I knew it would be popular at first, but figured numbers would drop off as the summer went on, but every day I flipped on the lights and there were 20 dudes there waiting on me. That got me excited because I knew they cared about getting better and they had all bought in. The work ethic and leadership that these seniors displayed is going to carry on for a long time, a lot more than the wins and losses.”

LOU               10           15           6             4 – 35

AC                  13           13           19           12 – 57

LOUISBURG (9-12): Dylan DeShazer
7-11 2-4 16; Brayden Gage 2-4 2-2 6; Kohl Vogel 2-11 0-2 4; Ben Guetterman 1-5
0-0 3; Michael Waldron 1-4 0-0 3; Julian Margrave 1-3 0-0 2; Weston Guetterman
0-4 1-2 1. Totals: 14-47 5-10 35. 3-point field goals: 2, (B. Guetterman,
Waldron)              

Louisburg senior guard Brayden Gage passes the ball off to senior teammate Kohl Vogel during the Wildcats’ Senior Night game with Paola on Friday. The Wildcats rolled to a 51-33 victory.

The Louisburg boys basketball team
had a chance to sweep rival Paola last Friday during its Senior Night contest.

The Wildcats took full advantage.

Louisburg held Paola to just two
points in the first quarter and the Wildcats never let up in the 51-33 victory.
The win gave seniors Brayden Gage, Kohl Vogel, Dylan DeShazer and Noah Hill
some bragging rights as they played their final home game.

“It was definitely one of our
goals was to beat Paola and it meant everything with them being our rivals,”
Vogel said. “All of the seniors were ready to compete and that is what we did.”

Although they were able to pull
away offensively, the Wildcats (9-11) won the game on the defensive end as they
forced 28 Paola turnovers and Louisburg scored 20 points off of those mistakes.

Gage and Vogel and made things
difficult on the Panther offense as they consistently trapped the Paola ball
handlers at the top of the key and those steals led to several runouts.

For the game, Gage finished with a
team-high eight deflections and had four steals, while Vogel had a team-high
five steals to go along with a game-high 17 points.

“You could tell our kids had
something to play for and that the end of the season is near because we played
with that energy and really just made a lot of plays,” Louisburg Ty
Pfannenstiel said. “We started off slow, and with both teams playing zone,
sometimes that can happen, but our defense really sparked our offense. We got a
lot of steals, a lot of deflections and once we got confidence things really
kept going for us.”

Three of the four seniors got the Wildcats off to a good start as Hill started the game with four points, and in-between there was a Madden Rutherford 3-pointer to put Louisburg up 7-2. Vogel went on to hit a 3-pointer of his own, along with a pair of free throws and Gage hit a basket to give the Wildcats a 14-2 lead going into the second quarter.

The Wildcats expanded their lead
to 30-8 late in the second quarter after a basket from DeShazer and free throws
from Vogel, who went to the free-throw line 13 times for the game. Louisburg
went on to take a 31-13 halftime lead.

Along with the seniors, the Wildcats also got a good performance from sophomore guard Weston Guetterman as he joined Vogel in double figures with 11 points.

“It was a great team effort,”
Pfannenstiel said. “We talked the other day about everyone having their role
and they all have things that they do well. We just really stress that and
playing as a team and playing unselfish. Our energy was good and I thought
everyone was playing unselfish basketball. We don’t have any individual stars,
so it will take a great team effort to win and that was perfect heading into
postseason.”

Louisburg expanded its lead to 22 points at the end of the third quarter and the Wildcats were able to empty their bench in the fourth quarter to give their four seniors a nice ovation as they said their farewells.

“It was big to beat Paola on
Senior Night,” Gage said. “It is good to be able to say I was undefeated
against them my senior year in all sports. As for the other seniors, I think
they feel the same way and it was special that all four of us stepped up on
Senior Night and got the win.”

Postseason play now begins for the Wildcats as they are the No. 13 seed in the sub-state tournament and will travel to No. 4 Anderson County (14-5) for a 7 p.m., tipoff on Wednesday.

The winner of that game will play the winner of No. 5 Eudora (11-7) and No. 12 Tonganoxie (9-11) on Friday in the sub-state championship. Louisburg has played all three teams this season and have wins over Eudora and Tonganoxie and an overtime loss to Anderson County early in the season.

“They are familiar opponents, but
it has been awhile since we have played Anderson County and that is our only
focus right now,” Pfannenstiel said. “We have a little different look to us
now. We have added a little bit of depth. We were down DeShazer in that game
and I don’t think we went more than six deep at that time. It will be an
up-tempo game. They like to run and pressure, so we have to be able to play at
that tempo, but also know when it is time to be patient.”

LOU               14           17           14           6 – 51

PAO               2             11           10           10 – 33

LOUISBURG (9-11): Kohl Vogel 3-7
9-13 17; Weston Guetterman 4-5 1-2 11; Brayden Gage 3-8 0-1 6; Dylan DeShazer
1-4 3-6 5; Noah Hill 1-3 2-3 4; Ben Guetterman 1-3 0-0 3; Madden Rutherford 1-2
0-0 3; Julian Margrave 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 15-37 15-29 51. 3-point field goals:
6, (Vogel 2, W. Guetterman 2, B. Guetterman, Rutherford)

Louisburg sophomore Weston Guetterman drives to the basket during the second half of Tuesday’s game with Metro Academy.

Louisburg boys basketball coach Ty
Pfannenstiel was a little conflicted Tuesday following the Wildcats’ game with
Metro Academy.

On one hand, his team rallied from
25 points down to cut the Metro Academy lead to one late in Louisburg’s 63-60
loss. Pfannenstiel was more than pleased with his team’s fight.

However, as pleased as he was with
how his team finished, the Louisburg coach was just as frustrated with the start
as the Wildcats managed just 15 first half points and were on the verge of
having a running clock in the second half.

“That was a really good comeback,” Pfannenstiel said. “I wasn’t sure if we should be excited that we fought all the way back or that we should be mad that we came out so flat. I think it was disappointing how we started the game, but I thought we did a lot of nice things to get back in it and had a lot of guys that sparked us. We went with the hot hand and that group in the fourth quarter really carried us.

“We struggled to score early and
sometimes our energy is sparked when we see the ball go through the hoop and
sometimes it is getting the right guys on the court at the same time.”

The Wildcat underclassmen gave the
team the spark they were looking for as several of them made big baskets down
the stretch to get Louisburg back in it.

Junior Michael Waldron led the
Wildcats in scoring with 14 points, including four 3-pointers, as he keyed the
Wildcat comeback along with a few others. Freshman Julian Margrave came off the
bench to also finish in double figures with 13.

Madden Rutherford was able to help the Wildcats on both sides of the ball as he finished with eight points and had team-highs in rebounds (eight) and assists (four). Sophomores Ben Guetterman and Weston Guetterman added seven and six points, respectively.

Early in the contest, the Wildcats
weren’t able to get in a rhythm offensively and Metro Academy took advantage.
Metro knocked down eight 3-pointers in the contest, many of those coming in the
first half, and took a 32-15 halftime lead.

“We were standing around and
watching, not crashing the board and not moving without the ball,” Pfannenstiel
said. “I thought we were better in the second half. The gym was completely
quiet early on and we didn’t do a good job of communicating early. There were
times where I didn’t know what offense we were in because the guards weren’t getting
us set up. It was a weird start to it that is for sure, but those things add
up.”

The Wildcats will try and end
their regular season on a good night tonight when they host Paola. It is also
Senior Night for Louisburg as the Wildcats will honor Brayden Gage, Noah Hill,
Dylan DeShazer and Kohl Vogel for their time with the program.

“Our kids always get up for the
Paola game and they are going to be excited,” Pfannenstiel said. “Winning this
game is important because we want to send our seniors out on a good note, but also
to have some momentum going into sub-state. We want to enter the postseason
with as much confidence as we can.”

LOU               9             6             19           26 – 60

MA                20           12           16           15 – 63

LOUISBURG (8-11): Michael Waldron
4-8 2-2 14; Julian Margrave 6-11 0-0 13; Madden Rutherford 2-6 3-3 8; Ben
Guetterman 2-4 3-3 7; Weston Guetterman 1-4 4-5 6; Kohl Vogel 2-12 0-0 4;
Brayden Gage 2-4 0-0 4; Noah Hill 1-1 2-4 4. Totals: 20-54 14-17 60. 3-point
field goals: 6, (Waldron 4, Rutherford, Margrave)

Louisburg senior Kohl Vogel splits the Bonner Springs defense to put up a shot Thursday during the Wildcats’ game in Louisburg.

The Louisburg boys basketball team
knew it was going to be a difficult task Thursday when the Wildcats hosted
Bonner Springs, the No. 4-ranked team in Class 5A.

As it turned out, the Wildcats
were up for the challenge and even took a lead into the second quarter.
Unfortunately for Louisburg, Bonner Springs’ speed and athleticism won out in
the long run.

The Braves scored 48 points in the
second and third quarters as they downed Louisburg, 69-49, but the Wildcats
showed a lot of fight down the stretch despite being down double-digits in the
fourth quarter.

“I think we did some good things,
especially in the first half, before they were able to stretch the lead out a
little bit,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “We got out of our
triangle-and-2 and tried to give them a little different look, but those kids
just really know how to score. They play really well and move without the ball
and find the weaknesses in your defense.

“I thought our kids executed
really well and made it tough on them, especially early on. We were playing
against some really quick guards and really good athletes, so there were a lot of
good things we could take away from this.”

Louisburg (8-10) slowed the game
down in the first quarter and eventually built a 12-10 lead going into the
second period before the Braves outscored the Wildcats 48-22 in the next two quarters.

The Wildcats had a tough time
containing the Braves’ trio of Alan Watson, Keyon Thomas and Rishaud Dockery.
Watson led all scorers with 23 points, while Thomas and Dockery scored 14 and
12 points, respectively.

Bonner Springs scored 29 points
off Wildcat turnovers and were able to score a lot of points in transition.

Louisburg senior Kohl Vogel led
the Wildcats in scoring with 11 points and sophomore Ben Guetterman also scored
in double figures with 10. Freshman Julian Margrave and junior Madden
Rutherford added eight and seven points, respectively.

The Wildcats have two final games
remaining before postseason basketball arrives. Louisburg will host Metro
Academy at 6:30 p.m. tonight before ending the regular season at home against
Paola for Senior Night.

Pfannenstiel believes this game,
along with the Wildcats’ win over Eudora before that, will give his team some
confidence heading into an important part of their season.

“We played a complete game against
Eudora earlier in the week, but this was a different speed and style of game,”
he said. “But we needed a game like this as a toughness factor because you have
to be strong with the ball and be quick and look ahead. If we can play with
that same fight and intensity in these next two games, I think we will be in
good shape.”

LOU               12           14           8             15 – 49

BON              10           26           22           11 – 69

LOUISBURG (8-10): Kohl Vogel 5-10
0-0 11; Ben Guetterman 3-7 2-2 10; Julian Margrave 3-4 0-0 8; Madden Rutherford
3-4 0-1 7; Dylan DeShazer 2-4 1-4 5; Michael Waldron 1-5 1-3 3; Weston
Guetterman 1-3 0-0 2; Noah Hill 0-1 2-4 2; Brayden Gage 0-3 1-2 1. Totals:
18-42 7-16 49. 3-point field goals: 6, (B. Guetterman 2, Margrave 2, Vogel,
Rutherford)

Louisburg senior Brayden Gage glides to the basket for two points Tuesday during the Wildcats’ home win Tuesday over Eudora.

For the better part of a decade,
the Louisburg boys basketball team has found zero success against Eudora.

Wins have been impossible to come
by against the Cardinals and that included Louisburg’s 28-point loss to Eudora
earlier in the season.

Mission impossible became possible for the Wildcats.

Louisburg held Eudora to just four
points in the third quarter and put together an consistent offensive effort in
its 49-39 victory Tuesday at Louisburg High School. The win improved the
Wildcats’ record to 8-9 on the season and left for a happy locker room when it
was all over.

“For us to lose the way we did
against them the first time, we got it put on us pretty good, so it was a great
win for sure,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “Obviously they are
missing their key guy, but they are still a really good team. Their bigs are
tough inside and they get really good position and are well-coached. It was important
for us to get a win and it was a signature win that our program needed. Our
kids are excited, for sure. That was a good basketball game.”

It was a back and forth first half
that ended with a three-point Louisburg lead at halftime after senior Kohl
Vogel knocked down a 3-pointer and freshman Julian Margrave made two free
throws.

Louisburg’s defense stepped it up in the third quarter as it held the Cardinals’ offense in check and Vogel stepped up on the offensive end. Vogel scored five straight points and sophomore Ben Guetterman knocked down a 3-pointer to give Louisburg a nine-point lead.

Senior Brayden Gage made a runner
in the lane late in the period, and Margrave knocked down a 3-pointer to put
Louisburg up 12 going into the fourth quarter.

Vogel was a spark offensively for the Wildcats as he finished with a game-high 18 points and seven rebounds, while Margrave was next with eight points. Senior Dylan DeShazer and Gage each added seven points.

Junior Madden Rutherford also
finished with seven rebounds and a team-high four assists.

“Kohl is our consistent offensive
threat, for sure,” Pfannenstiel said. “He just finds ways to slash and score. I
thought he was really good. We need him to score 16 to 20 points a game for us
to be successful. The guys did a good job of getting the ball to him. We went
back to wanting to push the ball a little bit more and I think that helps us
out. I think that is Kohl’s game is getting out in transition.”

Eudora made things interesting in the
fourth quarter as it cut the Wildcat lead to six and Louisburg had to call a
couple different timeouts during that stretch. Louisburg would knock down its
free throws in the final minutes as Gage converted a 3-point play and sophomore
Weston Guetterman also hit a bucket to seal the win.

“It is almost like we got a little
lead and then we started to relax a little bit,” Pfannenstiel said. “We have to
learn play with a lead and the reason we got that lead to begin with was
because we are disciplined fundamentally. I was proud of the way we responded
because there have been times where things have gone downhill and they have
continued to go downhill.”

Louisburg returns to action tonight
when it host Bonner Springs in what is its first of three straight games at
home to end the season. The game was moved from Friday due to weather concerns.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU               10           14           13           12 – 49

EUD               11           10           4             14 – 39

LOUISBURG (8-9): Kohl Vogel 7-11
1-1 18; Julian Margrave 2-2 2-2 8; Brayden Gage 3-4 1-1 7; Dylan DeShazer 2-5
2-2 7; Ben Guetterman 1-5 0-0 3; Weston Guetterman 1-3 0-2 2; Noah Hill 1-2 0-0
2; Madden Rutherford 0-3 2-4 2. Totals: 17-37 8-12 49. 3-point field goals: 7,
(Vogel 3, Margrave 2, DeShazer, B. Guetterman)

Louisburg sophomore Ben Guetterman puts up a shot over a couple Spring Hill defenders Friday during the Wildcats’ game at Spring Hill High School.

SPRING HILL – Friday’s game with
Spring Hill was one the Louisburg boys basketball team would quickly like to
forget.

Offense for the Wildcats was
limited, and despite a solid defensive effort, Louisburg couldn’t get the road
win it was looking for in a 48-25 loss to the Broncos at Spring Hill High
School.

The Wildcats (7-9) put themselves
in a big hole early on as Louisburg went scoreless in the second quarter and
were outscored 27-5 in the second and third quarters. Louisburg had a difficult
time against Spring Hill’s length as it couldn’t get a good shot against the
Broncos’ zone defense.

“Spring Hill took us out of rhythm a little bit,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “I knew they had that zone in their pocket and I am surprised they didn’t use it the first time we played them. That is the first time a team we have played has primarily went zone against us. We have seen it a few times here and there, but with their length, they were able to cause some problems for us. We were pretty passive against it, we didn’t’ pass really well out of it and we didn’t catch ready to shoot.

“To not score at all in the second
quarter just really took us out of it and never really allowed us to get back
in it. We have to find ways to score no matter what someone is playing against
us and we just didn’t have it this time. Defensively I thought we played
alright and holding them under 50 is about where we want to be. We have to be
able to put the ball in the bucket.”

It was a competitive game after
the first quarter as Louisburg trailed just 12-9, but Spring Hill outscored the
Wildcats 10-0 in the second quarter and 17-5 in the third to pull away.

Louisburg had a tough time containing Spring Hill senior Brennen Feeback as he recorded a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

“He is just consistent,”
Pfannenstiel said of Feeback. “In all the games I have coached against him he
has probably been around the 15-20 point mark each time. He is a consistent
player and he has a lot of energy and bounce. He is a great player and he is
tough to stop.”

Wildcat senior Kohl Vogel led
Louisburg in scoring with 10 points, but was the lone Wildcat to reach double
figures.

The Wildcats return to action
Tuesday when they host Eudora for their first of four straight home games
before the start of the postseason. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

“We will get home and face a couple good teams in Eudora and Bonner Springs this week,” Pfannenstiel said. “It will be great to play in front of our fans again and hopefully we can get a little momentum going.”

LOU               9             0             5             11 – 25

SH                  12           10           17           9 – 48

LOUISBURG (7-9): Kohl Vogel 4-9
0-1 10; Dylan DeShazer 2-4 0-1 4; Weston Guetterman 1-3 1-2 3; Brayden Gage 1-4
0-1 2; Noah Hill 1-5 0-0 2; Ben Guetterman 1-7 0-0 2; Madden Rutherford 1-2 0-0
2. Totals: 11-41 1-5 25. 3-point field goals: 2, (Vogel 2)

Louisburg junior Madden Rutherford puts up a shot over an Ottawa defender Friday during the Wildcats’ homecoming game.

The Louisburg boys basketball team
needed to play one of its better games of the season Friday when it hosted
state-ranked Ottawa for homecoming.

Ottawa was ranked No. 6 in Class
4A coming into the game and the Wildcats had a big challenge on their hands. As
it turned out, Louisburg was more than ready for the Cyclones.

The Wildcats stayed within striking distance for much of the game, and even trailed by just three points with under two minutes left, but couldn’t get that key shot to go down in a 61-49 loss.

“I was definitely proud with the way
our guys fought and battled and pretty good Ottawa team,” Louisburg coach Ty
Pfannenstiel said. “This was a game we can definitely learn things from and get
better. It seemed like we just couldn’t get that big shot to fall to get the
lead there late, and I know some of the guys are frustrated, but we did some
good things out there.”

Louisburg (7-8) found itself down
six points at the end of the first quarter and the Wildcats lit it up from behind
the arch in the second quarter to cut into the Cyclone lead even more.
Louisburg knocked down four 3-pointers in the frame, including three from
Michael Waldron, who finished with a team-high nine points.

Freshman Julian Margrave also came off the bench to knock down a 3-pointer and senior Noah Hill had a couple big makes under the basket.

“Michael had a really good game
for us and probably one of his best ones,” Pfannenstiel said. “He had a really
great night shooting the ball and did some nice things. Michael, along with Ben
Guetterman, and now Julian, have given us some consistent perimeter shooting
and hopefully some others will be able to step up in that area as well.”

The Wildcats, which trailed 29-24
at halftime, hung around in the second half and threatened the Cyclones late in
the game when senior Brayden Gage knocked down a 3-pointer with 1 minute and 45
seconds left in the game to cut the Ottawa lead to 3.

Louisburg had a chance to tie the game following that possession, but couldn’t get the shots to fall. The Wildcats got good opportunities most of the night thanks to a patient offense.

“We have been much more patient
when we get into an offensive set and that is something that we needed to work
on because sometimes we have gotten out of control,” Pfannenstiel said. “But it
was almost to a fault that we didn’t run enough. Ottawa is kind of a big,
lumbering team and we should have gotten more run outs and we should have
emphasized it more. If we can get back to pushing the ball a little more, it
will add a dimension to our team.”

Defense was another reason the
Wildcats were able to hang around as they switched from a zone defense to a
man, which gave the Cyclones a different look. Louisburg was able to force 14
Ottawa turnovers, which led to some run outs, but the Wildcats missed a few easy
attempts in the first half.

“We got down early and they had a
great plan against our 1-3-1 and they did some things that we haven’t seen yet,”
Pfannenstiel said. “They were able to throw it over the top and find a weakness
in that zone. I was just proud of the way we battled back and we were right
there. I think we missed three easy layups in the first half and you can’t do
that stuff. That would have been huge going into halftime with a lead.

“I was a little worried at
halftime because our energy didn’t seem right, but we picked it up in the
second half we were more aggressive playing man and we were concerned about how
effective we would be in it. I think we proved that we can be confident in it.”

Senior Dylan DeShazer tied Waldron
with a team-best nine points, while Hill and senior Kohl Vogel added eight
points each in the loss.

Louisburg returns to action Friday
for its final regular season road game when it travels to Spring Hill. Tipoff
has been moved up to 6:45 p.m.

LOU               8             16           14           11 – 49

OTT               14           15           15           17 – 61

LOUISBURG (7-8): Dylan DeShazer 4
1-1 9; Michael Waldron 3 0-0 9; Kohl Vogel 3 0-0 8; Noah Hill 3 2-3 8; Julian
Margrave 2 0-0 5; Madden Rutherford 2 0-0 4; Ben Guetterman 1 1-1 3; Brayden
Gage 1 0-0 3. Totals: 19 4-5 49. 3-point field goals: 7, (Waldron 3, Vogel 2,
Gage, Margrave)

LOUISBURG RALLIES TO BEAT BALDWIN

For more than half of the game,
the Louisburg boys basketball team was trying to play catch-up after a bad
start against Baldwin last Thursday.

The Wildcats gave up 21 points in the first quarter and were in a big hole early. Louisburg didn’t let that bad start get them down as the Wildcats battled back to take the lead in the third quarter and eventually pulled away for a 71-61 win in Baldwin City.

Louisburg trailed 21-11 after the
first quarter, but the Wildcat offense picked up as it scored 25 points in the
second and trailed by just four at halftime.

It was the Wildcat defense that
rose to the occasion in the second half as it held Baldwin to just five points
in the third quarter and forced 19 turnovers for the game. Louisburg turned
those 19 turnovers into 24 points, which was key in its comeback.

Kohl Vogel led the Wildcats in
scoring with 14 points and the Louisburg senior also finished with five
assists. Sophomore Weston Guetterman and senior Dylan DeShazer each finished in
double figures with 11, while DeShazer also had a team-high seven rebounds.

Senior guard Brayden Gage also had
a strong game with nine points and six assists. Fellow senior Noah Hill
finished the game with seven points, five rebounds and five assists as nine
different Wildcats scored in the game.

LOU               11           25           14           21 – 71

BAL                21           19           5             16 – 61

LOUISBURG: Kohl Vogel 5-12 4-6 14;
Weston Guetterman 4-9 2-3 11; Dylan DeShazer 4-7 3-3 11; Brayden Gage 2-5 4-9
9; Ben Guetterman 2-6 2-2 10; Noah Hill 3-6 1-3 7; Michael Waldron 2-2 0-0 5;
Julian Margrave 2-2 0-0 4; Madden Rutherford 1-5 0-0 2. Totals: 25-54 16-26 71.
3-point field goals: 5, (B. Guetterman 2, W. Guetterman, Gage, Waldron)