Louisburg sophomore Kaitlyn Lewer makes her way up a hill alongside a Fort Scott runner Thursday at Lewis-Young Park during the Louisburg Invitational. Lewer led the Louisburg girls with a 10th place finish.

Lewis-Young Park felt right at home to the Louisburg High School cross country team as it competed in the Louisburg Invitational on Thursday.

The Wildcats took to the course in the six-team meet, and after running all those familiar hills, turns and straightaways, they came away with several pieces of hardware to show for it.

In all, five varsity runners earned medals, including junior Wyatt Reece who led the boys squad in third place overall and sophomore Kaitlyn Lewer, who paced the girls team in 10^th. The Louisburg girls also took third in the team standings.

“The kids always get pumped for our home meet,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “They either love our course or hate it. Most love it because they continue to show improvement even though their time does not show it after running at Pittsburg’s flat, fast and short course.”

The meet was also an opportunity to honor Louisburg’s nine senior runners. Seniors Lily Cook, Hailey Crowder, Kaitlyn Gaza, Liz Hildreth, Mara Justesen, Bryn O’Meara, Austin Raetzel, Grace Rolofson and Madelynn Yalowitz all ran on their home course for the final time.

“The senior group this year has been great,” coach Reece said. “The ones that have given the program four years have made it better and the late comers only added to this. They have been positive influences and welcoming to incoming freshman as well as those who found our sport later in their school career. I wish I could have had all of them for four years, but I will take what I can get.”

Wyatt Reece and teammate Tim Smith continue to run well for the Wildcats as both earned medals in the boys race. Wyatt’s third place finish of 18 minutes and 3 seconds was his second-fastest time of the season.

Junior Wyatt Reece turns the corner and heads to the finish line Thursday during the Louisburg Invitational.

Smith ran a time of 19:04 to finish 11^th overall, while Raetzel finished 29^th overall in 21:14. Fort Scott won the boys team title with 40 points and Spring Hill was second with 42.

“Wyatt ran a great race,” coach Reece said. “He was pumped to run our course and really attacked it. He knew he was not going to be challenging for first, but was ready to fight it out for second until Fort Scott jumped in, which was great to have them, and he turned to claiming third in the race which he did. Looking at past performances and what he is doing this year, he has made big gains in his racing and his times will soon show that.”

Lewer picked a good time to run her best race of the season for the girls team. The Lady Cats had to run without their top runner, Trinity Moore, for a second straight week due to an injury, but Lewer stepped up to lead Louisburg in 10^th with a season-best time of 22:47.

Teammates Isabelle Holtzen and Yalowitz also earned medals for the Louisburg girls team. Holtzen, a junior, took 12^th in 23:09 and Yalowitz was 13^th in 23:12.

Junior Reilly Alexander was next on the girls team in 22^nd in 24:34. Sophomore Alex Miller (25:07), sophomore Shaylor Whitham (25:18) and freshman Emily Williams (25:18) came in 26^th, 27^th and 28^th, respectively.

Senior Madelynn Yalowitz stays with a pack of runners Thursday. Yalowitz medaled 13th overall.

Louisburg was third in the team standing with 72 points and Fort Scott won the meet with 19 points. Spring Hill took second with 58.

“We are still improving as a group and we have a lot of work ahead of us,” coach Reece said. “Kaitlyn ran a great race to lead the team. She improved on her best time this year, from the Pittsburg meet the week before, and did it on a tougher course. The future this year, and years to come, looks bright with the hard working girls we have.”

In the junior varsity race, four Louisburg girls earned medals as Natalie George (fourth), Justesen (seventh), Hildreth (eighth) and Lilly Mick (10^th) all finished in the top 10.

Now the Wildcats will venture into the postseason as they will travel to the Frontier League meet Thursday in Baldwin City. The following week, Louisburg will take part in the regional meet in Burlington.

As the season is coming to a close, the Louisburg coaches and runners are excited to see what transpires.

“Postseason is always nerve racking for the runners, Coach A (Arianne Seidl) and myself,” coach Reece said. “We want them all to finish on a positive note and walk away from the season proud of their accomplishments. We hope that we have prepared them to peak for their last race. They are excited to compete and to reach their individual and team goals at the end of the season.

“As I said at the beginning of the year, it is going to be a fun ride and it has been. No matter the outcomes at league, regional and hopefully state, it has been a great year full of great performances and a step forward for the program.”

Louisburg senior Austin Raetzel leads a pack of runners during a meet earlier this season. The Wildcat cross country team traveled to Pittsburg last Thursday and left with two top 10 finishes on the boys side. 

PITTSBURG – The Louisburg High School cross country team ventured a little further south than normal to see some new competition.

The Wildcats took part in the Pittsburg Invitational on Thursday, and despite missing a key runner, fared well – especially on the boys side.

Juniors Tim Smith and Wyatt Reece each had top 10 finishes to earn medals for the fifth straight week and both runners ran a season-best time. Smith crossed the finish line in fifth in 17 minutes and 11 seconds and Reece came in eighth in 17:18.

Senior Austin Raetzel rounded out the Wildcat team in 60^th in 20:43.

“The boys ran well as individuals since we have not put a varsity team together yet,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “Wyatt and Tim are still showing improvement and are posed to make a great run at qualifying for state.”

As for the girls squad, the Lady Cats were without top runner Trinity Moore, who was out with an injury. Louisburg finished sixth in the team standings with 136 points. Fort Scott took first with 36 and Frontenac was second with 55 points.

“The girls ran well and not having a top runner causes us to add about 30-plus points to our team total,” coach Reece said. “We are still training well and the future meets will be exciting.”

Senior Madelynn Yalowitz led the Louisburg girls in 24^th overall with a time of 21:50. Junior Isabelle Holtzen was right behind her in 28^th in 22:06 and sophomore Kaitlyn Lewer took 33^rd in 22:20.

Junior Reilly Alexander finished in 24:03 to take 48^th and sophomore Shaylor Whitham was right behind her in 49^th in 24:04. Freshmen Emily Williams (24:28) and Natalie George (25:05) came in 52^nd and 60^th, respectively.

In the junior varsity races, sophomore Alex Miller finished fifth overall in 23:51 to earn a medal, while senior Mara Justesen was 12^th in 25:00. Bryn O’Meara (21^st), Lilly Mick (23^rd), Elizabeth Kratochvil (27^th), Kaitlyn Gaza (32nd), Lily Cook (44^th), Tomi Frederes (46^th), Piper Mills (49^th), Hailey Crowder (51^st), Mariah Wrigley (57^th), Weeraya Khongpatimakorn (59^th) and Grace Rolofson (61^st) also competed for the Lady Cats.

Gareth Baus had a strong race for the junior varsity boys as he took 14^th in 20:26. Evan Murphy (38^th), Jackson Staab (44^th), Keith Estle (47^th), Garrett Rolofson (48^th), Garrett Mills (49^th) and Parker Perentis (67^th) also ran for Louisburg.

Louisburg returns to action this Thursday when it competes in the Louisburg Invitational at Lewis-Young Park. The first race is set to begin at 3 p.m., which was moved up an hour due to weather concerns.

“We hope to tear it up at our home meet this week,” coach Reece said.

The Louisburg High School girls cross country team won the Ramsey Invitational on Thursday at Prairie View High School for the second straight season. Members of the team (from left) are Kaitlyn Lewer, Emily Williams, Madelynn Yalowitz, Alex Miller, Isabelle Holtzen, Trinity Moore and Reilly Alexander.

LA CYGNE – Just a year ago, the Louisburg High School girls cross country team made program history when it won its first ever team competition.

History repeated itself Thursday when Louisburg won the Ramsey Invitational for the second consecutive year at Prairie View High School. The Lady Cats scored 16 points and finished 33 points ahead of runner-up Blue Valley.

Louisburg had four runners finish in the top 10, but the entire team stepped up as a freshman ran her first varsity race and another runner moved up from junior varsity due to an injury. Freshman Emily Williams moved up to varsity after running well on the junior varsity level all season, while sophomore Alex Miller also moved up to varsity due to an injury to fellow sophomore Shaylor Whitham.

“It was awesome to finish first as a girls team again,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “We are definitely going for the three-peat next year.

“The young runners continue to step up when called upon as Emily and Alex did a great job. Emily has found a spot on the varsity squad even with Shaylor returning to the group for next week. It is great to see them working hard and putting the team first.”

Individually, the Louisburg boys and girls teams shined. Freshman Trinity Moore won the girls race as she ran a season-best time of 21 minutes and 51 seconds to win by 46 seconds.

Moore has finished in the top 10 in all four races this season and has made a big impact in her first year as her time on Thursday is the second-fastest time in program history.

She is getting pushed by a pair of upperclassmen as junior Isabelle Holtzen (23:24) and senior Madelynn Yalowitz (23:25) finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Sophomore Kaitlyn Lewer also had a top 10 finish as she took ninth (24:40).

“Trinity is having a great first year so far,” Reece said. “As she continues to gain experience she will only get better with the sport. The varsity girls push each other both in meets and at practice. They are almost always running together and work together on pace days to really push each other.”

Williams ran a time of 26 minutes to take 13^th overall and junior Reilly Alexander was 17^th in 26:47. Miller rounded out the varsity lineup in 21^st in 27:52.

Juniors Wyatt Reece and Tim Smith continue to run well for the Louisburg boys. Reece finished runner-up, just nine seconds behind the leader with a season-best time of 18:24, while Smith came in third in 18:45.

Senior Austin Raetzel finished in 21^st with a time of 21:22 to round out the Wildcat varsity runners.

“Wyatt and Tim ran well,” coach Reece said. “Wyatt did most of the work during the race up front. He made a move with about 500 meters left and did what he needed to do to win the race but fell short. Wyatt has been ‘racing’ this year which has been great to see. For this being Tim’s first year, he is doing fantastic as well.”

In the junior varsity girls race, freshman Natalie George took second overall in 26:58, while seniors Mara Justesen and Bryn O’Meara also had top 10 finishes in sixth and eighth, respectively.

Lilly Mick (12^th), Kaitlyn Gaza (17^th), Elizabeth Kratochvil (19^th), Hailey Crowder (22^nd), Lily Cook (24^th), Haley Earl (28^th), Janae Kuhlman (38^th) and Mariah Wrigley (39^th) also competed for Louisburg.

Gareth Baus led the junior varsity boys in 11^th overall, while Bryce Kuhlman came in 17^th, Jackson Staab (21^st), Evan Murphy (30^th), Garrett Rolofson (40^th), Parker Parentis (41^st) and Garrett Mills (42^nd) also competed for Louisburg.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to Pittsburg and the runners hope to see their times continue to go down.

“We get to go south this week and run against a few 4A schools that could be in our regional meet,” coach Reece said. “It should be great weather and fast times and there may be some shuffling of Top 7 all-time performances.”

Junior Isabelle Holtzen (left) sprints past a Spring Hill runner near the finish line as she gets some encouragement from Louisburg head coach John Reece on Thursday in Wellsville. Holtzen and the Lady Cats finished third in the team standings.

WELLSVILLE – It was another meet and another slew of medals for the Louisburg cross country team Thursday.

The Wildcat runners competed at the Wellsville Invitational and members of both the boys and girls teams finished toward the top of the pack. The Louisburg girls finished third in the team standings and three earned individual medals.

Louisburg also captured two individual medals on the boys side as it left Wellsville with plenty of hardware.

The Lady Cats finished with 70 points for their third place finish as Fort Scott won the meet with 45 points and Eudora was second with 53.

Louisburg got another good performance from freshman Trinity Moore as she had her third consecutive top 10 finish of the season as she came in fourth in 22 minute and 5 seconds to earn a medal.

Junior Isabelle Holtzen was just outside the top 10 as she took 11^th in 23:20 and senior teammate Madelynn Yalowitz came in 18^th in 23:37 as both garnered a medal.

Sophomores Shaylor Whitham (27^th), Kaitlyn Lewer (31^st), junior Reilly Alexander (41^st) and senior Kaitlyn Gaza (47^th) also competed for the Lady Cats.

“The competition was fierce for the girls,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “I knew Eudora was going to be strong, but I was surprised by Fort Scott. They have a great team this year. I felt like we had to earn the third place team medals, but it was not easy and a few places either direction could have totally changed the team outcomes. It is nice to see the girls continue to get individual medals at the meets. They are running strong.”

Louisburg junior Wyatt Reece runs away from a pair of runners toward the finish line Thursday in Wellsville.

Wyatt Reece came through with one of his better races on the season as he finished fourth to lead the boys team in 18:31. The Wildcat junior passed two runners in the final 200 meters to leap into the top five.

“Wyatt raced well,” coach Reece said. “He said he felt like he ran the turns well in the beginning which gave him a good position as the race played out. It would not be my plan for him to wait to run people down at the end but to put them away earlier in the race. He does have a great finish which looks like he saved something for the end, but it is just how he can finish even when tired. I am always telling the runners you can still run fast even when you are tired, and he can.”

Fellow junior Tim Smith also came through with medal-winning performance as he came in ninth in 18:53. Senior Austin Raetzel also competed for the Wildcats and took 54^th overall.

The Wellsville course provided a different change of pace from the week prior when the Wildcats ventured to hill-filled Eisenhower Road Course in Ottawa. The Wellsville course didn’t have the hills, but featured a lot of twists and turns to keep the runners on their toes.

“Every course has its challenges,” Reece said. “Wellsville is different than Ottawa but it has multiple tight turns which can be tricky and the minimal change in terrain means there is no time to relax on a down hill. But of course the temperature had to get back to its normal hotness, so that was different as well.”

The Wildcats also experienced some success on the junior varsity level, especially on the girls side. Freshman Emily Williams won the JV girls race in 26:26, while sophomore Alex Miller and freshman Natalie George came in third and seventh, respectively.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to the Prairie View Invitational. The meet is set to begin at 4 p.m.

For a photo gallery from the meet, make sure to click here.

Louisburg junior Tim Smith passes Spring Hill’s Trey Mathis to win the Ottawa triangular Thursday at the Eisenhower Road Course in Ottawa. Freshman Trinity Moore led the girls team as she finished second overall.

OTTAWA – The steep hills at the Eisenhower Road Course in Ottawa provided the toughest test of the season thus far for the Louisburg High School cross country team.

For some of the Wildcat runners, they took those hills head on Thursday and came away with some impressive performances from a few first-year runners. In a triangular with Ottawa and Spring Hill, Louisburg found itself in the front of the pack in both races.

Louisburg’s Tim Smith surpassed Spring Hill’s Trey Mathis in the final stretch as he won the boys’ side in 19 minutes and 13 seconds. Smith’s teammate, junior Wyatt Reece, also ran toward the front for most of the race and took fourth in 19:54.

Smith competed in his first-ever cross country race and it was a certainly a memorable one for the Wildcat junior.

“Tim ran a great race on Thursday,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “He, Wyatt and a Spring Hill runner set the tone for the race and Tim had it on the last hill to pull into the lead and stay there.”

The Louisburg girls also had a big day as they finished with nine medals and got a good performance from a first-year runner of their own. Freshman Trinity Moore had her second-straight top 10 performance as she took second place in 23:26.

Moore’s teammate, junior Isabelle Holtzen, was next to cross the finish line in 24:50 as she came in sixth. Senior Madelynn Yalowitz (25:12) and sophomore Kaitlyn Lewer (26:20) took eighth and 10^th, respectively.

The top 20 runners in each race earned medals.

“The girls team continues to impress Coach A (Arianne Seidl) and I,” coach Reece said. “Team scores were not kept but the girls won the meet by three points. The girls continue to work hard together both in practice and meets. Our number six through 10 runners on the squad continue to improve and are making the inner-squad competition fierce. This is going to be a fun season.”

Louisburg’s girls squad wasn’t done earning hardware as six more runners garnered medals.

Sophomore Shaylor Whitham finished 12^th overall in 26:40 and junior Reilly Alexander came in 15^th in 27:31. Freshman Natalie George (28:51), freshman Emily Williams (29:06), senior Mara Justesen (29:08) and junior Lilly Mick (29:16) came in 16^th, 17^th, 18^th and 20^th, respectively.

Seniors Lily Cook (21^st), Kaitlyn Gaza (23^rd), Bryn O’Meara (24^th), junior Tomi Frederes (26^th), freshman Elizabeth Kratochvil (27^th), sophomore Alex Miller (28^th), senior Hailey Crowder (29^th) and sophomore Weeraya Khongpatimakorn (30^th) also competed for the Wildcats.

Louisburg freshman Trinity Moore leads a pack of runners up a hill Thursday in Ottawa.

Freshman Evan Murphy (25:47) and sophomore Gareth Baus (26:29) finished just out of medal contention as they took 23^rd and 24^th, respectively. Sophomore Bryce Kuhlman (26^th), freshman Garrett Rolofson, junior Garrett Mills (28^th), sophomore Jackson Staab (29^th), freshman Keith Estle (30^th) and junior Parker Perentis (31^st) also ran for Louisburg.

The Wildcats return to action Thursday when they compete at the Wellsville Invitational. The meet is set to begin at 4 p.m.

To view a photo gallery from the meet, make sure to click here.

The Louisburg High School girls cross country team finished third at the Jerry Howarter Invitational on Thursday in Garnett. Members of the team are (from left) Kaitlyn Lewer, Kaitlyn Gaza, Trinity Moore, Reilly Alexander, Isabelle Holtzen, Madelynn Yalowitz and Shaylor Whitham.

GARNETT – The rolling hills of the Garnett Golf Course make it difficult for any runner, but when it is the first meet of the season, it makes the task even harder.

Those things didn’t seem to bother the Louisburg High School cross country team much. The Wildcats had two runners finish in the top 10 of the varsity race Thursday during the Jerry Howarter Invitational and the girls team had a historic finish themselves.

The Louisburg girls medaled third overall in the team standings with 86 points as Trinity Moore, Madelynn Yalowitz, Isabelle Holtzen, Shaylor Whitham, Kaitlyn Lewer, Reilly Alexander and Kaitlyn Gaza recorded the team’s highest finish at this event.

“The girls team did great,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “Four of our varsity runners were competing in cross country for the first time and they did a great job. I looked back at past years and this is the first time we have medaled as a team at Anderson County.”

Honors continued to roll in as one of those first time runners led the team with a top 10 finish. Moore, a freshman, led the Wildcat runners as she finished eighth overall in 22 minutes and 53 seconds.

“It was Trinity’s day (Thursday),” Reece said. “Next week could bring a different runner to the front of the group as they are all great runners. Trinity ran well and it was great to see that from a first time freshman.”

Louisburg also had two other runners garner medals. Yalowitz, a senior, took 14^th in 23:20, while Holtzen, a junior, came in 23^rd in 24:15.

Whitham (24:58) and Lewer (25:35), who are also first time runners as sophomores, took 31^st and 37^th, respectively. Alexander, a junior, also had a strong finish as she ran 27:22 to take 47^th in her inaugural race. Gaza rounded out the varsity lineup as she crossed the finish in 53^rd with a time of 28:43.

On the boys side, junior Wyatt Reece had one of the best performances on the varsity stage as he medaled sixth overall in 18:59. Wyatt, along with senior Austin Raetzel, were the lone runners to participate in the varsity meet. Raetzel was 65^th in 22:46.

“Wyatt ran a great race,” coach Reece said. “From last year’s 27th place finish to this year’s sixth place finish is awesome. He has set some tough goals for himself this year and he just checked off his first one with a top ten finish at Anderson County.”

The Wildcats also competed in two junior varsity races and a beginner’s race.

Natalie George led the Louisburg JV girls as she took 19^th in 28:13 and Mara Justesen was 26^th in 29:21. Alex Miller (29:33) and Bryn O’Meara (29:34) finished 28^th and 29^th, respectively.

Lilly Mick (34^th), Lily Cook (35^th) and Hailey Crowder (38^th) rounded out the junior varsity girls lineup.

Bryce Kuhlman led the JV boys in 25^th in 23 minutes and Gareth Baus was next on the team in 42^nd. Evan Murphy (44^th), Jackson Staab (48^th), Garrett Rolofson (50^th) and Garrett Mills (51^st) also ran for Louisburg.

In the beginners 2-mile race, freshman Emily Williams won the girls division in 16:07. Piper Mills (9^th), Elizabeth Kratochvil (10^th), Mariah Wrigley (15^th), Grace Rolofson (16^th) and Haley Early (18^th) also ran for the Wildcats.

Keith Estle came in 12^th on the boys side, while Parker Perentis and Frankie Hurst took 13^th and 18^th, respectively.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to Ottawa. The first race is set to begin at 4:30 p.m.

Louisburg junior Isabelle Holtzen is one of several returning runners from last season’s girls cross country team and she, and the rest of the Lady Cat runners, hope to earn a spot at the state meet this season.

After members of the Louisburg High School girls cross country team came up short of earning a spot at the Class 4A state meet last season, those same runners only had one thing in mind when preparing for the upcoming season.

It is what has been driving them during workouts all summer.

“For the girls team, we did not set a goal,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “We made a statement – ‘State’ – no exceptions.”

The Lady Cat runners have high expectations this season – and they should – as they have almost their full team back from a year ago.  Seniors Madelynn Yalowitz, Kaitlyn Gaza and Liz Hildreth, along with junior Isabelle Holtzen, return to lead the experienced group of runners.

Junior Lilly Mick, sophomore Alex Miller and senior Mara Justesen also competed at the regional meet a year ago and will be vying for a spot on the varsity roster. According to Reece, it will be difficult to decide on what his final team will look like as he has a few newcomers that have thrown their name into the mix as well.

“The girls are up in numbers and this will make it tough for coach A (Arianne Seidl) and I to pick a top seven for our first meet,” Reece said. “Hopefully it will create competition among teammates to perform well to claim a varsity spot. We will be looking to our past varsity runners to lead the way.”

Louisburg’s Wyatt Reece hopes for an even better junior season after qualifying for state as a sophomore.

What won’t be difficult for the coaches to figure is who the top boy runner will be. Junior Wyatt Reece returns after earning a spot at the Class 4A state cross country meet last season.

Reece finished 71^st at the Wamego Country Club last October and the experience left him wanting more.

“Wyatt’s state qualification definitely motivated him,” coach Reece said. “He has been working hard all summer and attended a cross country camp in Colorado Springs, along with Isabelle and Madelynn, to continue to improve on his training. He wants to go to state again and move up way in the places. I hope to see him compete at the front of the field in all of our meets and really push himself.”

As far as the boys team goes, the Wildcats will be low in numbers compared to the girls side. Louisburg lost several varsity runners from last season due to graduation and the Wildcats return several inexperienced runners.

One of those runners is sophomore Tim Smith, who ran the distance races for the Louisburg track team last spring, and coach Reece hopes he, along with several others, can get better. Senior Austin Raetzel also looks to provide some experience for Louisburg as he is the lone senior boy runner.

“Numbers wise the boys team is a little down, but we do have several new runners this year,” coach Reece said. “It could be awhile before we field a complete varsity team.”

The Wildcats are ready to see if all the hard work over the summer has paid off when they open their season Thursday in Garnett for the Jerry Howarter Invitational. The meet is set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

They will also get an opportunity to run on their home course when they host the Louisburg Invitational on Oct. 6.

After making the playoffs a season ago, the Louisburg High School football watched its number rise by a small number as they try to improve off of its 7-3 season in 2015. The Wildcats hold a scrimmage at 8 a.m., on Saturday.

A week into the fall sports season, all of the Louisburg High School sports teams have seen their participation numbers rise from last year – albeit by a small number.

It would make sense as all four programs made strides in the 2015-16 campaign. The football team returned to the playoffs after a 3-win season the year before and volleyball placed third at the state tournament.

Boys soccer won its first regional title in five years despite a rough beginning. Meanwhile, cross country qualified a runner for the state meet for the first time in several years and the girls team made program history when it won its first ever meet.

Needless to say, last year’s results have left several excited for what is to come in all sports.

Sophie McMullen is one of three returning varsity players from last season’s third place finish at state for the LHS volleyball team.

Louisburg’s football team won seven games last season, which was four more than the year before despite a first-round exit in the playoffs. The Wildcats saw their numbers rise from 58 to 63 this season and are ready to make an improvement on the field as well.

They are going through 2-a-days now and will finish a grueling week with an 8 a.m. scrimmage Saturday.

“The first couple days have gone real well, however we are a little limited in what we can do and expect without full pads,” football coach Kyle Littrell said. “We have a great group of kids who have committed themselves to our grueling summer program and the seniors have really taken the leadership role and ran with it.”

Volleyball spent the first three days of practice going through tryouts, but head coach Jessica Compliment saw numbers rise from 28 to 36 this season, which means a few more cuts than last year, but Louisburg has to replace five varsity players from a year ago.

The Lady Cats might have the shortest amount of time to get ready of all the sports as they open their season with the preseason Frontier League tournament on Aug. 27 in Baldwin.

“The first few days of practice have centered around testing and conditioning,” Compliment said. “We started practice with the team on Thursday. I know the players are ready to get the season going, which is good because we have a quick turnaround with a tournament in a week.”

Louisburg’s (from left) Jon Paul Totta, Kyle Allen and Jacob Arnett take part in a drill during a soccer practice Wednesday.

First-year boys soccer coach Kyle Conley inherits a Wildcat program that won the regional tournament and advanced to the state quarterfinals. The numbers for the Wildcats program were up by just two from last year, but Conley has liked what he has seen out of his group thus far.

“The kids are focused and determined,” Conley said. “I am very pleased with their attitudes and work ethic. They seem eager to learn from each session. I love how the kids are believing in the program and my philosophy.

“It is really good to finally get started and get things going. I am excited to see what this team will become. I do understand that our league is incredibly talented, but our mind set it going to be we have something to prove.”

As for cross country, head coach John Reece has seen a large number return for the season, especially on the girls. The Wildcats have 36 runners out this season – with 24 of those competing on the girls team. Louisburg had 31 total runners out a year ago.

Louisburg cross country runners Kaitlyn Gaza (left) and Lilly Mick finish up a practice run Wednesday.

Junior Wyatt Reece returns to help the boys after qualifying for the state meet as a sophomore.

“Practices have started great, especially since it is not 110 degrees in the shade,” coach Reece said. “Those who ran through the summer are ahead of the game. We hope to do some great things this year with almost all of my varsity girls returning.”

Look for full previews on each team next week at Louisburg Sports Zone.

Last October, Paola activities director Jeff Hines went to a Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) regional meeting to get updates on classification issues.

Six months later, Hines found himself in Topeka, in front of the Kansas Senate Education Committee to talk about a bill that could change the way schools are classified.

On Thursday, Hines sat in front of the committee to discuss Senate Bill 464 – a bill that he proposed with guidance of Sen. Caryn Tyson.

Statute 72-130 establishes specific guidelines pertaining to the organizational structure and functions of KSHSAA. Senate Bill 464 would change one part of the statute and strike the line which allows schools to be classified only by student enrollment.

“The total number of students in schools is a great starting point for classifying them,” Hines said.  “It makes sense that the largest schools should play the largest schools and the smallest schools should play the smallest schools, but there are other things that need to be considered.”

For several months, KSHSAA has had a classification committee discuss different ways to have a competitive balance with its member schools. They came up with ideas of reducing the number of classifications or changing the number of schools in a division.

“There were no other factors being considered and that bothered me,” Hines said, “All that would do was reshuffle the schools just a little bit but we would have the same problem.”

The problem for the committee was its hands were tied thanks to the wording in Statute 72-130 that specifically states schools can only be classified by enrollment numbers and nothing else.

So Hines went to work and helped create Senate Bill 464, which does not give a specific solution to the problem, but rather would take wording out of the statute to allow KSHSAA to figure out how to classify schools on its own.

Hines gave a 15 minute testimony in front of the committee and then answered questions from the committee members for more than 30 minutes afterward. Before the hearing, Hines received support from every member in the Frontier League, Pioneer League and all but two schools in the Kaw Valley League, as those two didn’t respond before the hearing.

Following Hines’ testimony, Sen. Vicki Schmidt, R-Topeka, had concerns as to why KSHSAA did not come in front of the committee itself to ask for changes.

Hines informed the committee that it would be redundant for KSHSAA to endorse the plan, because if approved, member schools would still have to vote on it. He believes Bill 464 would let KSHSAA come up with a system and let schools improve it, instead of the legislature.

“KSHSAA wants to be neutral because this proposal would affect different schools in different ways,” Hines said. “It could be very beneficial to some schools and others may not like it because they might have to move up a class. So, why should KSHSAA have to pick sides in it and pit member against member? It doesn’t have to be that way in my opinion.

“Yes, a school that has to move up a classification might not like it, but is it the best thing overall for the association? They can’t look themselves in the mirror and say ‘No, this isn’t the right thing to do?’

A major problem for some member schools in KSHSAA is they do not believe it is competitively equal the way it is currently structured.

“I am not a believer in participation medals,” Hines said. “If they are kindergartners, sure, but when you start playing, part of being successful later in life is learning how to compete. We all competed for a job when you have gone in for an interview and that is good. You need to have that skillset and I am not saying that we need to give more trophies out and give everyone a shot, but I just want a system in place that is equitable for all so that some don’t have an unfair advantage at the expense of the rest and I think that is what is happening.”

One of the problems is the lack of balance between championships won between public and private high schools. Hines did research and presented numbers at the hearing at the number of state championships won between private and public schools from 2004 to 2014.

Here is what he found.

• Private schools make up slightly less than 8 percent of the KSHSAA membership.
• Private schools have won slightly less than 32 percent of the state championships.
• Based on membership percentage, private schools should only win approximately 8 percent of the titles, not nearly 32 percent.
• Private schools are winning four times more state titles than should be expected based on their memberships.
• Private schools are nine times more likely to win five or more state titles than their public school peers.

“In that period of time, I looked for who has won five or more state titles,” Hines said. “That is a difficult feat. You look at Paola’s history and we have won like seven and Louisburg has won three in 100-plus years. During those 10 years, 37 percent of those private schools won five or more during that time and public schools had 4 percent win five or more. Private schools are nine times more likely to become a dynasty or a successful program with strong tradition. You tell me how we are all the same?”

Another problem they are facing is schools with a high percentage of low socioeconomic status (SCS) students, cannot compete against fellow schools in their own classification in many activities, including football.

“There is a whole bunch of schools in the Kansas City, Kansas school district that are 6A or 5A that have no business competing against those really hard schools,” Hines said. “They don’t have resources, they don’t have the students, there is no interest and they have all those things working against them and I feel bad for those kids. Who wants to trot out against some of those bigger schools and know you are going to get your ears boxed in? That is not fun. Moreover, it is not challenging for the kids those schools are playing against.”

Hines believes competition is important when it comes to the growth of the student athlete and it is beneficial for the school and its community.

“Not only what it does for grades, but for what it does for the human spirit,” Hines said.
“When I was the FFA advisor in Paola, we won 10 state championships in nine years and you could tell the interest by the students and the community went through the roof. You can say the same thing about Louisburg and what Jim Morgan does with his FFA kids. People flock to success.

“Naturally, when they are there they feel better about themselves, they want to work harder in the classroom to stay eligible and kids that want to stay involved are going to be more successful in life. It is all about having the chance to be successful.”

During Hines’ testimony in front of the Senate Education Committee, not all of the legislatures seemed open to the idea. Molly Baumgardner, R-Louisburg, asked Hines if he would be willing to relinquish state funding if the legislature agrees to release oversight of how KSHSAA classifies schools.

“If we relinquished the funding behind it, (high school activities) would disappear,” Hines said at the hearing.

No action was taken following the hearing, but the committee chairman spent 15 minutes with him and Tyson to help them strategize on what to do next.

One option is to amend the bill to include more specifics that could include a multiplier or a separate division for private schools and a low SCS school de-multiplier.

Another option, Hines said, would be to have the classification committee draft a letter to the Senate Education Committee that states they would like to study these other factors as part of a proposal for revamping the classification system, but not until they feel the legislature is open to changing the law.

Whatever decision comes next, however, Hines wants it to be decided by multiple people within KSHSAA on how to proceed.

“I don’t feel comfortable making that change because I feel a committee needs to do the work,” Hines said. “I shouldn’t be doing it, nor should 11 legislators, you need more. We should let the classification committee work on it and hopefully we can get some things accomplished.

“The only way to allow this to happen is to remove the barrier in place that exists due to the state statute.”

Here are the Louisburg Sports Zone Top 10 Stories of the Year. In each brief explanation of the story, there will be a link to the full story of when the event actually happened. Thanks again for a successful 2015 and I am already looking forward to 2016.

Hogan Welch (left) and Wyatt Reece each qualified for state in their respective sports.

10. Welch and Reece qualify for state

LHS students Hogan Welch and Wyatt Reece each put together strong seasons in their respective sports.

In May, Welch qualified for the Class 4A state golf tournament after he shot an 85 at the Osawatomie Golf Course to become one of five individual qualifiers for state. It was the first time Welch had qualified for the state tournament and would shoot a 79 a week later in McPherson to finish 40^th overall.

As for Reece, he qualified for the state cross country meet for the first time in his career in October. The Louisburg sophomore came in 13^th overall and was also one of five individual qualifiers. A week later Reece traveled to Wamego to compete at the state meet and ran a 18:43 to come in 71^st.

Louisburg’s Jimmy Dolan (left) and Mya Diacono each suffered major head injuries from an accident just days apart. The Louisburg community rallied together to help the two families.

9. Accidents bring Louisburg community together

Jimmy Dolan and Mya Diacono live in the same community but were worlds apart from each other.

Jimmy, a junior at Louisburg High School, loves to wrestle, hang out with friends and live the life of a teenager.

It was a far cry from 9-year-old Mya who loves soccer, horses and spending time with her fourth-grade friends at Broadmoor Elementary. In a town of less than 5,000 people, the two had never met.

Two tragic accidents changed all of that.

On Jan. 12, Jimmy lost control of his vehicle while driving to school and suffered a major brain injury. Just 42 days later, Mya was involved in an automobile accident just outside the Louisburg city limits that left her with the same severe brain trauma.

That was when the Louisburg community came together to help the two families cope with a burden no family should have to bear. Since then, both Jimmy and Mya are on the road to recovery thanks to the help of a lot of people.

Louisburg Soccer Club president Karin Olson (second from left), Louisburg HIgh School junior Maddie McDaniel (middle) and fundraising organizer DIana Moore (right) receive the WIN for KC Sprint Teamwork Award on Feb. 13 in Kansas City, Mo.

8. Girls soccer raises funds to start program, wins award

A fundraising committee made a big push to make sure there was a girls soccer program at Louisburg High School.

The committee raised $39,000 in almost a year’s time to fund the program for three years. Thanks to all the hard work, the group was also recognized by the WIN for KC organization. The Lady Cats’ soccer season will kickoff in late March.

Louisburg graduates Kody Cook (left) and Garrett Griffin are each winding down their careers with their respective Division I football programs.

7. Griffin, Cook wrap up college careers

Louisburg High School graduates Kody Cook and Garrett Griffin have lived the lives a lot of football fans could only hope for.

Both are wrapping up their Division I collegiate football careers and are doing it with a lot of success. Cook is living his dream with the Kansas State football team as he has made contributions at both the wide receiver and quarterback positions to help the Wildcats to the Liberty Bowl.

Griffin, on the other hand, battled through an injury-plagued senior season to help Air Force reach the Armed Forces Bowl and made several big plays at the tight end spot.

Louisburg quarterback Austin Terry was one of several players responsible for the Wildcats’ turnaround this season.

6. Wildcat football has big turnaround

After finishing with just three wins a year ago, the Louisburg High School football team put together a strong season in 2015 as they finished with seven wins.

Those seven victories put the Wildcats within a game of Paola for the Frontier League title and Louisburg also earned a spot in the regional playoffs before falling to Basehor-Linwood in a tight contest.

The Louisburg High School soccer team captured its first regional crown since 2010 after a 2-0 win over Coffeyville.

5. Louisburg soccer wins regional crown

Through much of the regular season, the Louisburg High School soccer team didn’t have much to cheer about.

The Wildcats had just four wins during the regular season, but they seemed to find the right chemistry in the postseason. Louisburg rattled off three consecutive wins in the postseason, including a 2-0 victory over Coffeyville-Field Kindley in the regional championship.

It was the Wildcats’ first regional title since 2010 and their sixth in the last 10 years.

Anders Vance won a regional title in the 285-pound weight class last February as he was one of five Wildcats to earn state bids.

4. Louisburg wrestling qualifies five for state

The Louisburg wrestling team hadn’t been a part of the state tournament since 2012 – that is before last season.

The Wildcats put together a breakout season as they qualified five for the state tournament, while Anders Vance won the regional crown at 285 pounds. Brenton Wrigley (195 pounds), Mason Koechner (220), Nathan Keegan (113) and Ryan Adams (138) all made the trip to Salina for the Class 4A state tourney.

Jeff Lohse (left) and Ben York each stepped away from their head coaching posts in 2015.

3. Long-time coaches resign from post

Jeff Lohse and Ben York had been fixtures in their respective sports for Louisburg High School, but both decided to call it quits this year.

Lohse, who spent the last 17 years as the head coach for the LHS baseball team, stepped down from his spot in May, citing personal reasons. Lohse led the Wildcats to two state tournament appearances.

York, who was the head coach when the boys soccer program started, also cited personal reasons for leaving the Wildcat soccer program after 13 years. York helped the Wildcats to six regional titles in the last 10 years.

Connor McMullen won the state title in the discus back in May and became Louisburg’s first track state champion since 2011.

2. McMullen wins state title in discus, Dennis medals in hurdles

Louisburg High School senior Connor McMullen finally got the state title in the discus he had been searching for.

McMullen recorded a throw of 173 feet, 1 inch on his final attempt to win the Class 4A state discus title in Wichita back in May. He would also medal eighth in the javelin with a toss of 164-02.

Fellow senior Sean Dennis also garnered a state medal as he took fourth in the 110-meter hurdles. The boys and girls team combined sent a total of 11 athletes to the state meet.

The Louisburg High School volleyball team finished third overall in 2015 after making it to state for the fifth time in the last six seasons.

1. Lady Cat volleyball takes third at state

The Louisburg High School volleyball team has made a habit of making the trip to Salina in recent years and this season was no exception.

This time, however, the Lady Cats finished with a victory.

After ending their season with a runner-up performance and two fourth-place finishes at state the last three years, Louisburg won its final match of the season in 2015 as it defeated Tonganoxie in the third-place match.

The Lady Cats qualified for the state tournament for the fifth time in the last six years.