It was a successful, and eventful, 2018 for Louisburg High School athletics and for those who are connected to the Wildcat program. This past year created a lot of school history for LHS and several programs brought back state hardware to Louisburg.

Below are the Top 10 stories from 2018, along with a brief explanation of each. Included in the explanation is the link to the actual story from the event.

This year was a blast to cover and I was blessed to have the opportunity to go along for the ride with many of these. As much fun as it was, I can’t wait for 2019 to begin. Looking forward to it!

10. Dillon medals at state golf for second straight year

EMPORIA – All season,
Calvin Dillon had been atop or near the front of leaderboard and that didn’t
change in what was his biggest tournament of the season.

The Louisburg High School sophomore went up against the state’s best during the Class 4A state golf tournament on May 19 at the Emporia Municipal Course and did more than old his own. Dillon earned a state medal as he finished 11^thoverall with a 3-over par 74.

It was the second consecutive state medal for Dillon
after he finished 10^th overall last season at
Wamego as a freshman.

“It is a real honor
to earn another state medal, especially with the quality players that were at
the state tournament,” Dillon said. “There were lots of good players and lots
of good teams.”

It
was another notch on Dillon’s list of accomplishments that included a Frontier
League title and six straight tournament victories during the 2018 season.

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9. Conley, Ebenstein named Class 4A Coach of the Year

Louisburg
girls soccer coach Kyle Conley and Wildcat football coach Robert Ebenstein both
led their respective teams to special seasons.

Those seasons were special enough for both coaches to earn two big awards.

Conley was rewarded for all his hard work in June when it was announced that he was named as the Kansas Soccer Coaches Association’s Girls Coach of the Year for Class 4-1A.

He guided the Wildcats to a 14-7 record and a spot in the
state championship match, where the Lady Cats finished second overall. The
finish was something to remember for Wildcat fans as that was accomplished in
just the program’s third year of existence.

He has posted a
41-18-2 record during his time as the Wildcat girls head coach and also guided
the Louisburg boys soccer team to its best finish in program history in 2017
with a fourth place finish at state.

As for Ebenstein, he
guided the Wildcats to 10 straight victories and a regional championship to
start the 2018 season, before getting knocked out in the sectional round
against eventual state champion, Bishop Miege.

Following the season, the Kansas Football Coaches Association named Ebenstein as the Class 4A Coach of the Year. Ebenstein, who is just in his second season as head coach, has a 16-4 record with the Wildcats as he guided his team to a Frontier League championship this year.

8.
Holtzen finishes Louisburg career with 12 varsity letters

Once Isabelle Holtzen
received her diploma and walked out of Louisburg High School for the last time
as a student, she officially became one of the most decorated female athletes
in school history.

No, she doesn’t have any individual state championships, or even
one as part of a team. Holtzen’s decorations aren’t ones in the form of
trophies or all-state honors, but instead, they can be found on the front of
her letter jacket.

Holtzen became the first female athlete in at least 20 years to earn 12 varsity letters, which means she lettered on the varsity level in three sports in each of her four years of high school.

In research done by Louisburg Sports Zone, it was unable to find
the last athlete to accomplish the feat, which could mean Holtzen could be the
first Lady Cat to do so. She competed in cross country, basketball and track
and field

The last athlete to come close was in 2001 when Krystal Bowes
earned 10 varsity letters before moving on to a collegiate track career at
Wichita State.

“The biggest thing that it means to me is to just have an
opportunity to participate in three sports at a school like Louisburg,” Holtzen
said. “The bigger the school that you go to, the harder it is to play multiple
sports at the varsity level and I think Louisburg is unique in that fact. The
best part of this whole journey was I think my freshman year because there was
no pressure and no one was expecting anything from me. It was surprising and
exciting to be able to letter in all three sports.”

Holtzen is currently at
Northern Iowa, where she received a scholarship to pole vault for the Panther
Track and Field Team.

7.
Dixon earns All-American, Player of the Year honors, signs with Kansas State

Louisburg
senior Anna Dixon led the Lady Cat volleyball program all season and she was recognized
for her play on the court.

Dixon was named to the Under Armour Volleyball All-American team as she received a spot on the honorable mention squad when the list was released in November.

Dixon, the 6-foot-3 outside hitter, was recently named the Class 4A Player of the Year by the Kansas Volleyball Association, and along with that was also selected to the all-state first team.

It was the second year in a row Dixon was named player of the
year, as she had to share the honor last season with Rose Hill’s Gracie Van
Driel.

The honors certainly didn’t stop there as Dixon was
all named to the All-Frontier League first team as she helped guide the Lady
Cats to an undefeated league season.

Dixon led the Lady Cats in kills with 584 in 105 sets
played. She also finished with 325 digs, as she played all six rotations and
also had 50 aces and 42 blocks.

In her four years with the program, Dixon finished
with 2,003 kills, which would place that total among the best the school has
ever seen.

All that success resulted in a dream come true for Dixon as she made it official last November when she signed to play volleyball at Kansas State.

“I have always known Kansas State was going to be my
home,” Dixon said. “Even since I committed as a sophomore, I always wanted to
go up to Manhattan and see the girls and spend time with the team. K-State is where
I need to be.”

6. Louisburg wrestling sends six to state, Holtzen
earns first state medal

SALINA – As the final
whistle sounded in his blood round match, Cade Holtzen looked up into the
rafters of the Tony’s Pizza Events Center and smiled.

He had finally reached
his goal.

Holtzen defeated Columbus’ Gabe Porter by a 6-0 decision Saturday during the Class 4A Kansas State Wrestling Championships in Salina and secured his state medal.

“It is one of the best
feelings that I have had in my life,” Holtzen said. “Just knowing that I’m
going to place – you just can’t match that with anything else.”

It certainly wasn’t
easy for the Louisburg freshman as he faced a win or go home with nothing
scenario heading into his match with Porter. Holtzen pulled out the victory and
eventually finished sixth overall at 113 pounds to give Louisburg a state
medalist for the third consecutive season.

“It is pretty cool,”
he said. “I have been working for this all season, so to get a state medal is
great. It may not have been as high as I wanted, but any state medal is pretty
amazing.”

Holtzen had a special
year for the Wildcats as he finished with a 45-6 record and broke the school
record for most wins in a single season. He won four different tournaments and
was a Frontier League and regional tournament runner-up.

To add to his resume,
he became only the second freshman in school history to earn state medal –
second to only Austin Hood, who would go on to with three state titles.

Austin Moore finished
one victory shy of earning his first state medal, while Ryan Adams, Thad
Hendrix and Blue Caplinger also picked up wins at the state tournament.

5. Moore, Johnson
finished in top 10 at state cross country, girls qualify for second straight
year

WAMEGO – It was going
to be hard for the Louisburg High School girls cross country team to duplicate
its magical season of 2017.

Not only did the Lady Cats qualify their team for state for the
first time in program history, but they also had a top five finisher in Trinity
Moore.

Fast forward to 2018, Louisburg wasn’t able to match that successful
run – the Lady Cats took it a step further.

Moore, along with freshman Reese Johnson, each had a top 10 finish during the Class 4A Kansas State Cross Country Championships at Wamego Country Club, and it is the first time in school history that two female runners had medaled at a state meet. Louisburg added on to that as the girls finished fifth in the team standings with 154 points, which is also the highest finish in school history.

Moore, who finished
fifth at state a year ago, bested her performance by one place as she took
fourth with one of her better performances of the season. Johnson was right
behind her as she crossed the finish line in sixth.

Shaylor Whitham, Carlee Gassman, Kaitlyn Lewer, Delaney Wright and Kennady Wilkerson were also members of the Lady Cats’ team to run at state. Emily Williams was a member of the regional team that finished second overall.

4. Louisburg track
earns six state medals, Gassman state runner-up in 300 hurdles

WICHITA – Carlee Gassman had broken the Louisburg High School 300-meter hurdle record three different times in 2018 prior to the state track meet.

She picked the perfect time to make it a fourth.

Gassman broke her own school record in the 300 hurdles in May at the Class 4A Kansas State Track and Field Championships in Wichita as she ran a time of 45.68 seconds to earn a silver medal as she was the Wildcats’ top performer on the weekend. Andale’s Abby Smarsh, who is a senior, won the event in 44.73.

It was the Louisburg sophomore’s first time competing at the
Kansas meet as she transferred in from Iowa last year, where she qualified for
the state meet there in the 400 hurdles.

Gassman’s medal in the 300 hurdles was just one of six the
Wildcats were able to bring home following the two-day meet. Those six medals
were the most Louisburg has earned since 2011, when the Wildcats combined to
medal in 10 events and the boys won their first team state title.

The 300 hurdles wasn’t the only event Gassman found success in
as she also medaled in the long jump. Gassman, who hadn’t competed in the event
prior to this year, finished fifth with a mark of 17 feet, 0.25 inches.

Isabelle Holtzen
would go on to finish sixth in the pole vault, the boys 4×400 team of Chris
Williams, Blue Caplinger, Ben Wiedenmann and Justin Collins went on to take
seventh. Williams finished eighth in the 400-meter run and Trent Martin medaled
eighth in the boys pole vault.

3. Louisburg
volleyball takes runner-up at state for second straight season

HUTCHINSON – The
feeling was much of the same.

The pride of finishing as a state-runner up was a popular one
among the members of the Louisburg volleyball team. At the same time, the
frustration of taking second in state in back-to-back seasons was just as
prevalent.

Louisburg wasn’t quite sure what to feel following its 25-13 and 25-14 loss to Bishop Miege in the championship game of the Class 4A state tournament Saturday at Hutchinson Sports Arena.

In 2017, the Lady
Cats fell to Rose Hill by two points in the championship match, and fast
forward to the present, they were in the same spot – holding the state
runner-up trophy. It was the 15^th time in
program history that Louisburg finished in the top four at state.

The Lady Cats rattled off four straight wins to start
the tournament, including knocking off No. 1 seed Independence, and defending
state champions Rose Hill and Topeka Hayden. Louisburg then battled back to
defeat Andale in the state semifinals.

“The loss was tough,”
Louisburg coach Jessica Compliment said. “To come so close to a state title two
years in a row, only to come up short is tough. But with that being said, it is
a huge accomplishment for this team to get back to the state championship and
make it two years in a row. Finishing second is nothing to hang our heads on.
Last year’s finish fueled the fire for the team this year, and I challenged the
returning players to use this loss and feeling to fuel them for next year.”

Louisburg has been
one of the more dominant teams in Class 4A in the last decade as the Lady Cats
have made the state tournament seven out of the last nine years and have
finished as a state runner-up on three different occasions, along with several
third and fourth place finishes. They finished 2018 with a 36-9 record.

2. Louisburg girls
soccer advances to title game, has best finish in program history

NORTH NEWTON – The obstacle
seemed insurmountable – and it was.

The Louisburg High School girls soccer team found itself in the
Class 4-1A state championship match in the program’s third year of existence,
but if they wanted to take it another step further, the Wildcats were going to
have to knock the defending state champion of its perch.

Unfortunately, Bishop Miege wasn’t about to be moved.

In a state title game that was played in the sweltering heat in late May at Bethel College, the Wildcats couldn’t stay with the Stags in a 5-0 defeat. It was the third consecutive title for Bishop Miege, while Louisburg earned a state plaque for the first time in its short history.

It was special season for the Wildcats as the night before they knocked off Topeka Hayden, 1-0, in the state semifinals to secure the program’s first state plaque. In 2017, Louisburg both games in its state tournament appearance and finished fourth.

The road to this state
championship appearance has been an interesting one for the Wildcats. More than
three years ago, a group of Louisburg parents and citizens raised enough money
to begin the girls soccer program and fund it for three years.

Louisburg was in the final year of that funding, and while the
program isn’t going away, the team realized they needed to play for more than
themselves.

“We played for the community tonight,” Louisburg senior Bailey Belcher
said after the Hayden win. “We have to remember that when they raised money for
this program, it was just through this year, so I think we owed it to them to
play well. I really think it might have helped with how we played and I think
it was one of the best games we played all season.”

“It is a third-year program
with 41 wins, three regional championships, two state final fours and now a
state runner-up,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said after the title game. “We
just have kids who come in and work their butt off. They are not soft, they
aren’t weak and from top to bottom they are going to work hard.

“We worked hard, but we just played Miege. That is one of the
best teams in the state, and that stinks, but our kids played hard, worked
their tail off and it was a great year. We had people criticize us for how we
got there, but we won games and that really motivated the kids. It got them
fired up to go do something bigger than themselves. I couldn’t be more proud of
they stuck together and what they accomplished.”

1. Football wins 10 straight, takes Frontier League title and regional championship

It had been almost two
months since Louisburg and Piper squared off on the football field in what was
one of the more entertaining games on the Wildcats’ schedule.

Back in early
September, Louisburg left Piper High School with a seven-point win – a victory
that would help propel them to a Frontier League championship and a perfect
regular season.

The two teams squared
off again and the stakes were a bit higher. The game, at least for Louisburg
anyway, was even more exciting.

The Wildcats dominated action from the opening kickoff and never looked back in a 48-0 win over the Pirates. In the process, Louisburg won the school’s first regional championship since 2016 and are off to a 10-0 start for the first time since 2010.

Louisburg advanced to the sectional round where it fell to eventual state champion Bishop Miege, 55-21, and finished its season with a 10-1 record.

It was as season
marked with special moments, including a 28-7 victory over then-undefeated
Paola late in the year to secure a league title.

“Being 10-0 and then having
that first loss of the season was very disappointing,” Louisburg coach Robert
Ebenstein said. “Losing always sucks, but losing in the playoffs and having to
wait until next August is the worst.  At the end of the day, Miege is a
very good team and we did some good things. We got them to fourth down on
multiple drives in the first quarter, we just couldn’t make the plays on
those big downs. Then we got behind a little and started pressing.

“Overall it was a great year.
I am very proud of our guys and excited for them that they were able to get
double digit wins for only the third time since 2000, and there was a
lot of really good football played during that time period. It was a lot
fun to be a part of.”

With all that success, honors
started to roll in for its players as running backs Austin Moore and Blue
Caplinger, along with linemen Brayden White and Kiefer Tucker all earned
all-state honors.

Moore and White went on to be
semifinalists for the Simone Awards and Moore was also selected to participate
in the Kansas Shrine Bowl in the summer of 2019. Ebenstein was also named as
coach of the year by the football coaches association.

Most recently, Moore was
named the Kansas Small-Class Player of the Year and Running Back of the Year by
810varsity.com, while White was named the Small-Class Lineman of the Year.
Ebenstein was also named Kansas Small-Class Coach of the Year by 810 Varsity.

Louisburg senior Carson Buffington drives to the basket during the Lady Cats’ home contest against Turner on Tuesday at LHS. Buffington finished with a game-high 12 points.

The best way for the Louisburg girls basketball team to shake off a 40-plus point loss was to record a blowout win of its own.

After losing a tough game to state-ranked Piper last week, the Lady Cats bounced back nicely Tuesday in their final game before the holiday break. Louisburg jumped to an early lead against Turner and never looked back in a 57-23 win at Louisburg High School.

“We will take this one and move on, especially after last Friday’s game and sometimes when you come back like this, you are not sure what to expect after having just one day of practice,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “With all that said, we had moments of playing hard. Over this break, we have to do some things in regards to our team’s toughness and our effort all the time. There are times when it is good, but we have to work on it being good all the time.”

The Lady Cats (4-2) controlled the game from the opening tipoff as they jumped out to a 16-4 lead to start the game. Louisburg used its defense to get out to a big lead as sophomore Alyse Moore recorded three straight steals to end the quarter and give the Lady Cats a 20-8 lead.

It was much of the same in the second quarter as Louisburg outscored Turner 20-6 and built a 40-14 lead at halftime.

Although the game was all but wrapped up, the Lady Cats came out slow to start the second half and scored just one point through the first four minutes of the third quarter. Lowry decided to bring in five new players and it jumped start the Lady Cat offense.

Junior Sydni Keagle, sophomores Megan Foote, Brooklyn Diederich, and freshmen Delaney Wright and Jordan Mynsted gave the Lady Cats a lift as they ended the quarter on an 11-0 run to put Louisburg up 52-22.

“It was one of those times where if kids on the floor aren’t giving what I think they need to give, then there are kids on that bench that are willing to give that and they want their opportunity,” Lowry said. “Those girls worked really hard there and gave us a spark.”

Senior Carson Buffington and Diederich led the Lady Cats in scoring with 12 points. Buffington also added a team-high six rebounds, four assists and four steals, while Diederich recorded a team-high five steals.

Moore also finished in double figures with 10 points, six rebounds and four steals, while sophomore Madilyn Melton had nine points and four rebounds.

The Lady Cats have had a good start to their season as they were able to put together a winning record through their first six games, but they realize the schedule will only get harder.

“To be 4-2, and to have the upside that we have yet to come, I am happy going into break with where we are,” Lowry said. “It gives us some things to work on over break, but overall I am happy with our record and we will see what happens later.”

LOU               20           20           12           5– 57

TUR               8             6             8             1– 23

LOUISBURG (4-2): Carson Buffington 4-7 1-4 12; Brooklyn Diederich 4-11 3-7 12; Alyse Moore 2-4 6-12 10; Madilyn Melton 3-7 3-4 9; Kennia Hankinson 2-5 0-0 5; Sydni Keagle 2-4 0-3 4; Megan Foote 1-1 0-0 3; Delaney Wright 0-0 2-4 2. Totals: 18-42 15-34 57. 3-point field goals: 6, (Buffington 3, Diederich, Hankinson, Foote)

Louisburg senior Kennia Hankinson looks to make a pass during the Lady Cats’ game with Piper on Friday at Piper High School. Piper handed Louisburg a 66-17 loss.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – The Louisburg girls basketball team knew it was going to have its hands full when it traveled to Piper to face off with Class 4A’s second-ranked program.

Piper certainly lived up to its ranking as the Pirates caused problems for the Lady Cats and handed them their second loss of the season, 66-17.

The Pirates made things difficult from the opening tip as they outscored the Lady Cats 20-4 in the first quarter and went into the locker room with a 35-6 lead at halftime.

Piper senior Ryan Cobbins celebrated a milestone during the game as she scored her 1,000^th career point late in the first quarter. Cobbins was a difficult matchup the entire night as she scored the game’s first seven points and finished with 19 points.

Louisburg senior Kennia Hankinson led the Lady Cats in scoring with six points, while senior Carson Buffington and Haley Cain each finished with three.

The Lady Cats return to action tonight when it hosts Turner in their final game of 2018. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at Louisburg High School.

LOU               4             2             5             6– 17

PIP                 20           15           23           8– 66

LOUISBURG (3-2): Kennia Hankinson 2-5 2-3 6; Carson Buffington 1-3 0-0 3; Haley Cain 1-4 1-4 3; Alyse Moore 0-2 2-7 2; Erin Lemke 0-1 2-2 2; Brooklyn Diederich 0-2 1-2 1. Totals: 4-22 8-19 17. 3-point field goals: 1, (Buffington)

Louisburg junior Erin Lemke drives to the basket during a game earlier this season. The Lady Cats earned its second consecutive win Tuesday when it downed Frontenac, 57-51.

FRONTENAC – It was the second straight road challenge for the Louisburg girls basketball team Tuesday when it made the trek to Frontenac, and just like the one last Friday, the Lady Cats passed another test.

The Lady Cats got out to a strong start in the first quarter and they were able to hold off Frontenac for a 57-51 victory and moved their record to 3-1 on the season.

“I was looking forward to playing Frontenac early in our season because it is a tough environment to play in and their kids are always very physical and tough,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “This kind of game was going to provide us the opportunity the find out more things about our team. 

“The girls embraced the challenge and battled with great toughness and effort. I really like how all the girls are pushing, challenging and competing because of their commitment and their togetherness.”

Louisburg controlled the action early as it took an 11-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and eventually led 24-15 at halftime. Frontenac clawed its way back and eventually took a 48-47 lead with 3 minutes left in the game.

The Lady Cats built a 3-point lead with under two minutes remaining and were able to hold Frontenac off to preserve the win.

Sophomore Madilyn Melton provided a bulk of the scoring for Louisburg as she led the way with a team-high 21 points. Fellow sophomore Brooklyn Diederich finished with 13 points, including a pair of 3-pointers.

Alyse Moore, another sophomore, was a force on both ends of the floor for Louisburg as she recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds to go along with four assists. Senior Carson Buffington had eight points and a team-high with 13 rebounds and also had seven assists.

“It was very proud that all three levels of our program competed the way they did and all three came away with wins,” Lowry said.

Louisburg will hit the road again Friday when it travels to Piper for its third consecutive away game. The Lady Cats will face the No. 2-ranked Pirates in a 6 p.m. tipoff at Piper High School.

LOU               11           13           16           17– 57

FRN               3             12           17           19– 51

LOUISBURG (3-1): Madilyn Melton 21, Brooklyn Diederich 13, Alyse Moore 11, Carson Buffington 8, Erin Lemke 3, Kennia Hankinson 1. Totals: 24 7-22 57. 3-point field goals: 2, (Diederich 2)

Louisburg sophomore Brooklyn Diederich drives past an Anderson County player Friday in Garnett. The Lady Cats pulled away for a 53-43 victory over the Bulldogs.

GARNETT – For most of the game’s 32 minutes, the defense of the Louisburg girls basketball team made things difficult on Anderson County.

The Lady Cats forced Anderson County into 33 turnovers on the road and it led to a 53-43 victory Friday at Anderson County High School. As nice as those stats were for Louisburg, the game still left plenty for the Lady Cats to work on.

Offensively, Louisburg turned the ball over 19 times and several players were saddled with foul trouble for most of the first half. Still, despite those things, a win away from home trumps everything.

“Any time you can compete and win a game on the road, it is a good win,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “Anderson County is a program that is getting better and you can see that in the way they were playing. Any time you can go on the road and play that hard, make a lot of mistakes and still come away with a win is great.”

It was a rough start for both teams as both scored just seven points in what was a turnover-filled first quarter. The Lady Cats were able to settle down offensively in the second quarter and put some distance between themselves and the Bulldogs.

Louisburg outscored Anderson County 21-10 in the second quarter and took a 28-17 lead at halftime. The Lady Cats were able to do that despite the fact they had three players with three fouls in the first half.

Sophomore Brooklyn Diederich, junior Sydni Keagle and senior Kennia Hankinson came off the bench to provide crucial minutes for Louisburg. Diederich scored a season-high 11 points and was active defensively.

“Brooklyn came off the bench and I thought she played really hard,” Lowry said. “Offensively she did some good things, but defensively she helped us a lot there. Kennia came off the bench, and since it is her first game back, it is going to take her a little bit to get going, but I think she worked through the nerves and contributed a lot. I was really proud of what Sydni did out there as well. They all gave us big minutes.”

Sophomore Madilyn Melton was a steady force offensively for the Lady Cats as she finished with a game-high 20 points and had five rebounds.

Junior Erin Lemke had a game-high seven rebounds for Louisburg, while sophomore Alyse Moore and junior Haley Cain each had six rebounds. Senior Carson Buffington and Moore both finished with seven points to help the Lady Cats, while Buffington and Diederich led the way defensively with four steals each.

Louisburg (2-1) continued to put away Anderson County in the third quarter as it tallied 18 points in the frame and forced 12 Bulldog turnovers that helped the Lady Cats build a 49-28 lead early in the fourth quarter.

“We still have a lot of stuff to clean up rotation-wise and we are not flying to the ball like we need to, but with that said, the base stuff we are doing I really like,” Lowry said of his defense. “The girls are seeing more all the time and are working hard at it. This is only our third game running it, so we will only get better at it.

“We have to get better at scoring the ball. We are getting opportunities, but we just need to be able to finish. We will work on that and part of it is mentality to be able to finish.”

It was the best of both worlds for Lowry on Friday as his team was able to get a win, but also gave him a list of things to work on at practice as the Lady Cats prepared for their game at Frontenac today.

“I am excited to watch film with the girls on this one because there are plethora of teaching moments in this game,” he said. “I think it still speaks to how inexperienced we are in some places and some of the things that we are doing. We can fix all that stuff and work on it, but I still like their effort and toughness in making those mistakes. We are going to keep getting better.”

LOU               7             21           18           9 – 53

AC                  7             10           11           15 – 43

LOUISBURG (2-1): Madilyn Melton 8-10 3-3 20; Brooklyn Diederich 4-10 3-3 11; Carson Buffington 3-10 0-0 7; Alyse Moore 2-10 3-8 7; Erin Lemke 1-4 1-2 3; Haley Cain 0-2 2-2 2; Sydni Keagle 1-1 0-0 2; Kennia Hankinson 0-5 1-2 1. Totals: 19-52 13-20 53. 3-point field goals: 2, (Melton, Buffington)

Madisen Simpson, a Louisburg High School graduate, is currently averaging nine points a game for the Hannibal-LaGrange women’s basketball team this season.

Madisen Simpson’s first year of collegiate basketball was a memorable one – that was until it was cut short due to injury.

Simpson, a 2017 Louisburg High School graduate, tore her ACL last season while planning for Hannibal-LaGrange. The road to recovery was a difficult one for Simpson, but now she is starting to see the fruits of her labor.

Now in her second season with the NAIA program out of Hannibal, Mo., Simpson is fully healthy and among one of the top players on the Trojan squad.

“The injury was difficult for me,” Simpson said. “I think it was something that I never thought would happen to me and I couldn’t imagine being off the court for 6 to 8 months. Coming back took some time, and it wasn’t the easiest. But I knew I was ready to be back, and all I had to do was push myself. Luckily, I have some amazing teammates who were by my side and my parents did everything they could for me.”

Simpson is averaging nearly nine points a contest for the Trojans and is one of the top outside shooters in the NAIA. She is currently 13^th in the nation with 26 3-point field goals made and 25^th in 3-pointers made per game.

Although the Trojans are just 2-8 to start their season, Simpson is excited to be back playing the sport she loves and watching her team grow throughout the season.

“Being back on the court is an amazing feeling,” she said. “I was counting down the days after surgery, but I think I came back a little timid, so it took some time getting used to it all again. I definitely had some things, and still do, that I need to work on. But I am glad to be back with my team again on the court.”

Simpson, who plays most of her games hours away from her hometown, will get a home game of sorts Saturday. Hannibal-LaGrange will travel to Park University on Saturday, which is only about 45 minutes away from Louisburg, and she hopes to see some familiar faces for the 1 p.m. tipoff.

“I love coming to Park and play,” Simpson said. “Being close to home is always a good feeling and I loved seeing the support from the community when I played there last year. Louisburg is so supportive and I couldn’t have asked for a better community to grow up in.”

Louisburg junior Haley Cain gets on the floor for a loose ball Tuesday during the Lady Cats’ home game against Burlington. The Lady Cats lost their first game of the season, 48-32.

 

The Louisburg girls basketball team encountered its first major test of the season Tuesday when it hosted the No. 3-ranked team in Class 3A, Burlington.

Burlington pressed the Lady Cats through much of the first half, and knocked down several open looks off turnovers, as it handed the Lady Cats their first loss of the season, 48-32.

“Our heads weren’t right before the game started and that falls on me,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “We have to do a better job of preparing them mentally to be ready to go into a game like that against a really good team. We can’t be psyched out before the tipoff. We knew what they were going to do and it is a program that has run that stuff for many years. I thought we were ready to go, but obviously we weren’t.”

Burlington jumped on the Lady Cats early as it took a 20-4 lead at the end of the first quarter, with many of those points coming off Louisburg turnovers. Louisburg wasn’t able to dig out of the hole as Burlington outscored the Lady Cats 14-6 and took a 34-10 lead at halftime. Burlington also knocked down seven 3-pointers in the game.

The Lady Cats had a difficult time getting their offense going against a Burlington team that pressured the ball and weren’t able to score much in transition. Only three players scored for Louisburg and bulk of the points came thanks to Carson Buffington and Madilyn Melton.

Buffington nearly finished with a double-double as she scored 14 points, pulled down eight rebounds and also added four steals. Melton also recorded double figures with 13 points, and was second on the team with five rebounds, along with junior Haley Cain.

Sophomore Megan Foote came off the bench to score five points in the second half in which the Wildcats were able to chip into Burlington’s lead. Louisburg won the second half 22-14, but the Lady Cats weren’t able to overcome the big deficit.

“We didn’t play defense very well compared to last Friday,” Lowry said. “We have to do a much better job with stances and rotations and flying to the ball. At the same time, Burlington has a great senior class with some really nice players.

“For me, I want us to feel that feeling the bottom of your stomach that you don’t like very much after a loss. This group doesn’t like this very much, so I am happy to see that. I think they will come back to practice to work really hard and get ready for Friday’s game. Our preparation has to be at a higher level in preparing for every game we are going in to.”

Louisburg will try to get back on track this Friday when it travels to Anderson County for its first road contest. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

 

LOU               4             6             14           8 – 32

BUR               20           14           10           4 – 48

LOUISBURG (1-1): Carson Buffington 4-8 4-5 14; Madilyn Melton 4-14 5-6 13; Megan Foote 2-2 0-0 5. Totals: 10-43 9-11 32. 3-point field goals: 3, (Buffington 2, Foote)

Louisburg junior Sydni Keagle rips down a rebound Friday during the Lady Cats’ season opener against Tonganoxie at Louisburg High School. The Lady Cats rolled to a 58-26 win.

 

It was a new season for the Louisburg girls basketball team Friday when it opened at home against Tonganoxie, but the Lady Cats had a little different look to them.

Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry wanted to play to his team’s strength and decided to employ a 1-3-1 defense to start the year. It would allow the longer, more athletic Lady Cats to cause more havoc.

It may have been just one game, but the new strategy worked like a charm.

The Lady Cats forced 25 turnovers and recorded 18 steals en route to a 58-26 victory over the Chieftains, in which Louisburg forced a running clock in the fourth quarter. It was the start to the season the Lady Cats were looking for.

“They are jacked up,” Lowry said of his team. “After you go through three weeks of practice and the preseason conditioning that we had, just to get on the court and play in a game is great. Then to have a win on your home floor in the season opener is fantastic.”

Offensively, Louisburg was able to feed off its defense as it used a 20-point third quarter to pull away from Tonganoxie as it got several baskets in transition. Defensively, the Lady Cats frustrated the Chieftains as they held them to just seven second half points.

“It is something we have worked on from the start of this season, but we did some stuff that I hadn’t really done before,” Lowry said of his defense. “For our first night out, I thought it went pretty good. There are a lot of things that we need to clean up, some rotation stuff that we need to work on, but all-in-all it was pretty good.

“All year long it is going to have to be that way for us. Our defense is going to have to set the tone every night out. Our effort, our hustle and our toughness is going to have to shine in every game for us to be successful.”

Several players shined for Louisburg on Friday as the Lady Cats had three finish in double figures. Sophomore Madilyn Melton had a strong start to her season as she finished with a game-high 20 points.

Forwards Carson Buffington and Alyse Moore also cracked double figure scoring, and were also problems for Tonganoxie on the defensive end. Buffington, a senior, finished with 13 points and a game-high nine rebounds. She also had six steals and a team-high five assists.

As for Moore, the Louisburg sophomore finished with a team-high seven steals to go along with her 13 points and was 4-for-4 from the field and 5-for-7 from the free-throw line. She also added three assists.

The Lady Cats also got help from players that were new to the varsity lineup, including junior Erin Lemke, who finished with seven points.

“We got a lot of opportunities off our motion stuff and it really got us some cleaner looks at the basket without having to create a lot of things on our own,” Lowry said. “The girls did well with it. We do have some girls that are learning new positions, but I am so proud of those kids that have been junior varsity players for us and have developed and grown up. You have girls like Sydni Keagle, Erin Lemke and Alyse Moore who are playing a lot of varsity minutes and they did great.”

Both teams struggled to get into a rhythm offensively early in the game, but the Lady Cats did get out to an 8-2 lead in the first quarter and eventually settled in and led 30-19 at halftime.

The second half was all Louisburg as it outscored Tonganoxie 20-6 in the third quarter to pull away, and it was all thanks to the Lady Cats’ new defense.

“That is a good team over in that other locker room,” Lowry said of Tonganoxie. “They have some really good seniors and some really good post players. In fairness to them, going into the first game of the season and going against a team you haven’t seen before, was probably tough and they maybe weren’t expecting that defense. If we played them next week and they knew what to expect, who knows what the outcome would be. But I thought our girls did a good job tonight.”

Louisburg will try to make it back-to-back wins Tuesday when it hosts Burlington, which is currently ranked No. 3 in Class 3A. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

 

LOU               14           16           20           8 – 58

TON              9             10           6             1 – 26

LOUISBURG (1-0): Madilyn Melton 8-14 3-7 20; Carson Buffington 4-8 4-8 13; Alyse Moore 4-4 5-7 13; Erin Lemke 3-5 1-2 7; Haley Cain 1-3 0-2 2; Megan Foote 1-4 0-0 2; Aly Traffis 0-0 1-2 1. Totals: 21-42 14-28 58. 3-point field goals: 2, (Melton, Buffington)

Louisburg senior Carson Buffington returns to lead the Lady Cats after earning All-Frontier League second team honors last year. Buffington and the Lady Cats open their season Friday at home against Tonganoxie.

 

In what was an eight-win season a year ago, the Louisburg girls basketball team featured a lot of youth and inexperience in its varsity lineup.

It was an up and down season that featured a pair of wins over rival Paola, before falling to the Panthers in the sub-state tournament and watched them advance to state. The Lady Cats also had to say goodbye to two starters from a year ago, including all-league performer Bailey Belcher.

However, the good thing about playing with a young team is that they get older and more experienced and head coach Shawn Lowry hopes that pays off for his group.

“We have been fortunate to have several unselfish players that have embraced the process of their development by playing wherever it was best for their team at the time and in many cases playing up to the six-quarter limit many nights,” Lowry said. “As such, several of those girls are now positioned to step in at varsity roles to contribute.

“Last year we talked about having inexperience and a learning curve with new and young players. This year those players are more experienced, have a better understanding of expectations and have hit the ground running.”

One of those players is senior Carson Buffington, who has hit the ground running since her freshman season. The Louisburg forward has led the Frontier League in rebounding the last three years, and is a 3-time all-league player, including a second team selection a year ago.

Buffington was selected team captain, along with junior forward Haley Cain, and both players fixture to be prominent players underneath the basket.

“Carson’s leadership has been important for our team since she was a freshman,” Lowry said. “At that time, it was more subtle in what she gave in practices and games. Now as a senior, she has really developed into a great leader for us. She’s our vocal leader, no one works harder than she works and she is one of the most unselfish players.”

Three starters return to help lead the Lady Cats this year in Buffington, Cain and sophomore Madilyn Melton, who started several games as a freshman. Juniors Sydni Keagle and Erin Lemke will also crack the starting five after seeing varsity minutes off the bench last season.

Senior Kennia Hankinson, along with sophomores Alyse Moore, Megan Foote, Brooklyn Diederich and freshman Delaney Wright will also be in the varsity rotation this season.

“What has been great coming into this season has been the growth and development of several players from last season,” Lowry said. “We have several juniors and sophomores that are much stronger, more confident and improved fundamentally. We have had very good competition in our practices, girls are really pressing each other and I expect we will have several girls play big roles at various points throughout the season.”

The Lady Cats will need that experience as their schedule got tougher this year with the addition of three teams to the Frontier League in Piper, Bonner Springs and Tonganoxie. Add in returning state champion Baldwin to the mix and it will be another tough road through the league.

“The Frontier League will again have some of the very best teams in the state, particularly with the addition of those three schools,” Lowry said. “Along with a very strong league, we will have the opportunity to play some very good teams in our non-conference and tournament schedule. With that said, I trust in our players to compete with great effort, toughness and pride every time we take the floor.”

Louisburg will get its first chance to compete Friday when it hosts Tonganoxie in a 6 p.m., tipoff. The Lady Cats have been preparing for this day since offseason workouts began over the summer.

“The girls are working very hard in preparing for the upcoming season,” Lowry said. “Our upperclassmen have been great in fostering an environment that is competitive and positive with their work ethic and attitudes. The girls are always anxious to start playing games after the preseason conditioning work and three weeks of practice.”

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.”