Back to Kpreps this fall, our contributors will hand out helmet stickers to a team or individual that delivered the most important performance of the week in their opinion. Check back each week to see the most recent helmet stickers, and follow @Kpreps on Twitter and Facebook to watch as the Kpreps helmet fills up with stickers as the season goes on.
Helmet sticker: Colony-Crest (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
Two years ago, the Colony-Crest Lancers finished 0-9 and scored 74 total points on the entire season. Last season, the Lancers opened 1-3 before reeling off five consecutive wins including a first-round playoff win over Marias des Cygnes Valley. Crest finished 6-4.
This year, Nick McAnulty’s Lancers have rolled to an undefeated regular season and a district championship. Crest will now prepare for a first-round playoff game against Wakefield. Friday’s scheduled opponent, Altoona-Midway, has forfeited.
The Lancers have averaged nearly 57 points per game this season behind standout senior quarterback Jacquez Coleman. Coleman has rushed for 746 yards and 14 touchdowns and passed for 320 more yards and eight scores.
But Coleman has had plenty of help in the backfield. Sophomore Holden Barker has rushed for 470 yards and 12 scores, while senior Stratton McGhee has contributed 430 yards and nine scores. Senior Caleb Nolan has added 276 yards and five scores. Senior Tyson Hermreck is the team’s leading receiver with 152 yards and five scores.
Defensively, Barker and McGhee lead the team with 60 and 57 tackles, respectively. Coleman also has three interceptions on defense.
Helmet sticker: Bishop Carroll (Alex Hammeke -- Kpreps)
After the public schools in the Greater Wichita Athletic League elected to play a closed schedule, Bishop Carroll and Kapaun Mt. Carmel were forced to reschedule almost all of their games. Kapaun picked up Western Athletic Conference (WAC) opponents and some schools that were previously scheduled to play the public schools, while Bishop Carroll turned things up a notch.
When the Golden Eagles released their schedule for the upcoming year, several commented on its strength, including the defending 6A champion in Derby, 6A #1 Lawrence, 6A-ranked Junction City, 5A ranked St. Thomas Aquinas, defending 4A champion Bishop Miege, 2019 WAC champion Dodge City, and rival Kapaun. Lawrence Free State, who went 8-2, was supposed to take on the Eagles last week, but had to cancel due to quarantine travel restrictions.
When Bishop Carroll traveled to Bishop Miege many expected a close game, but were instead surprised at how the Eagles pulled away from the Stags. Carroll rushed for 350 yards on the night, including 191 yards and three touchdowns from Hunter Trail. The Eagles finish out the regular season against Aquinas, which is looking to stop a two-game losing streak after consecutive losses to No. 1 Lawrence and Nebraska’s No. 1 Omaha-Westside.
Currently Bishop Carroll sits as the potential eight seed on the west side of the 5A bracket. Most teams shouldn’t count out Carroll any year, because of the dynasty built under coach Alan Schuckman and its continuation under Dusty Trail. This year should be no different. Expect a deep run for the Golden Eagles this fall, and the same for their opponents as well.
Helmet sticker: Fort Scott (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
Coach Bo Graham and the Fort Scott Tigers get one of my stickers this week. The Tigers improved to 5-0 with last Friday’s 22-18 victory at Wamego.
On the game’s final play, Fort Scott stopped Wamego quarterback Hayden Oviatt short on third-and-goal from the 1-yard line to preserve the four-point win.
Wamego led 18-16 heading into the fourth quarter when Fort Scott went on a 99-yard drive to take the lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by Malachi Vann. It was Vann’s second touchdown of the night.
The victory kept the Tigers unbeaten and in line for the No. 2 seed on the eastern side of Class 4A.
It’s been an amazing turn around for a Fort Scott team that finished just 1-8 in 2019 - Graham’s first season as head coach.
Four of Fort Scott’s five wins have come by six points or less. The Tigers will try and clinch the altered Southeast Kansas League title with a win over Coffeyville this week.
Helmet sticker: Ness City (Conor Nicholl – Kpreps)
Eight-Man, Division I, District 7 went 16-1 in non-district action, a historically great record. Wichita County has been ranked second in the classification virtually all year. Wichita County and surprising South Gray are both 7-0. As well, Ness City, Hodgeman County, and Meade have all been ranked in the top-10 at various points in the fall. The district also includes Spearville, which opened 4-0 and features one of the state’s leading rushers in Trace Tasset.
All but Wichita County have dealt with COVID-19 related issues, and Meade has missed a pair of contests. Ness City has encountered COVID-19 concerns and injuries. However, Ness City, after two consecutive losses, has had some key players return to the lineup. The Eagles earned back-to-back home wins versus Hodgeman County (30-6) and Meade (48-0) to move into strong position for a top-four district seeding and playoff berth.
The Eagles opened with a 46-0 road victory against Macksville, and then lost, 7-6, at Hill City. It marked the fewest points Hill City tallied in a win since ’97, back when the Ringnecks played 11-man.
Then, Ness City had its eight-man game cancelled versus La Crosse because of coronavirus issues with both schools. Ness City lost, 48-0, versus South Gray, and 58-8 at Wichita County before the last two wins. Coach Marc Cowles had led Ness City to 7-3, 5-5, 7-3 and 8-2 marks in the previous four falls – and improved the defense each season.
Ness City went from 34 points allowed a game to 33.6 to 20.2 to 16.7 last year. This season, the Eagles have another top-15 defense in the classification with 19.8 points permitted a contest. Ness City has the classification’s best scoring defense of any Division I team that doesn’t have a winning record, according to MaxPreps statewide lists.
Against Meade, Ness City led 20-0 after the first quarter and 33-0 at halftime in a game that finished in the third quarter. The Eagles ran 57 plays for 442 yards, including 393 rushing. Junior Jose Guzman collected 20 carries for 236 yards and three touchdowns.
Senior Edwin Rodriguez delivered 25 carries for 144 yards and three TDs. Junior Taylor Cable assisted on 10 tackles, including three for loss, and NC finished plus-1 in turnover margin. Notably, Guzman and Rodriguez both didn’t play versus Wichita County.
Versus Hill City, Guzman passed for 72 yards and three scores, and Rodriguez rushed 21 times for 145 yards and a TD. Cable enjoyed 14 total tackles, four TFLs, and a pair of sacks. Ness City limited Hill City to 117 total yards and was again plus-1 in TO margin.
Helmet sticker: Osawatomie (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
We wanted to also give a tip of the cap to the Osawatomie Trojans and head coach Rod Madden. The Trojans picked up their first win of the season on Friday, defeating Bishop Ward, 38-35. Earlier in the week, Madden announced his retirement at the end of the season after 30 years coaching.
Osawatomie surrendered a big lead, then rallied twice from being down in the second half to earn the win. Sutter Conrad scored on a 7-yard run with :51 seconds to put the Trojans up 38-35.
Osawatomie had a big night on the ground in rushing for 504 yards. Three Trojans eclipsed the 100-yard mark led by sophomore Seth Carrow’s 180 yards and two scores on 13 carries. Conrad rushed for 151 yards and two scores, while Toby Wilson added 135 yards and a touchdown.
ACA Sportsmanship Award (Week 7): Jude Stow of Caldwell High School
Kpreps is excited to bring back the A Class Athlete (ACA) weekly sportsmanship award for the 2020 season. We have teamed up with 'A Class Athlete' (ACA) to recognize those individuals or groups that demonstrate sportsmanship and high character during the heat of action. This award is open to students or student-athletes who goes above and beyond to demonstrate an act of kindness or sportsmanship.
We are pleased to present this week’s ACA Award to Jude Stow of Caldwell High School!
This photo and nomination were submitted by Coach Sean Blosser. In the photo, Jude, who was on the sideline after an injury, is talking with Blosser’s young son, Baer.
"If anyone wants to understand what coaching is about, I’d like for them to look at this picture. We just lost a tough game and one of our best players is still giving a two-year old the time of day to make him feel special! We have great kids at Caldwell!"
Coach Blosser told Kpreps, “(It is the) awesome part of coaching high school athletics. Watching young men and women making an impact even while dealing with adversity.”
Each week during the season, we will choose an individual or group as recipient of this award. Winners will receive the Sportsmanship Excellence Award Certificate, and the unique ACA helmet sticker as part of our Kpreps Helmet Stickers feature. At the end of the season, we will choose one overall winner, for the annual Kpreps-ACA Sportsmanship Award.
Please help us by emailing your nomination stories, pictures, or videos to matt@kpreps.com and ACA@kpreps.com. You can also send to Kpreps via social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc). Please include the name of the person(s) involved and a description of the act or event that you are nominating. Nominations for the award will be accepted through Tuesday of each week, with the winners announced thereafter. We will list the weekly winners here, at kpreps.com, and also on aclassathlete.com. The overall winner will be announced after the State Championship games.
ABOUT A Class Athlete:
A Class Athlete was started in 2016 to encourage young athletes in all sports, to play hard, play to win, but also to play with class and dignity. Originally targeting youth sports, ACA quickly expanded to include middle school and high school sports, and beyond (coaches, cheerleaders, fans – everyone!). In recent years, participation in youth sports has continued to decline, and the #1 reason according to the kids: 'It's not fun anymore.' ACA is determined to bring the fun and the kids back!
Participating in sports is very beneficial in many areas. It helps build confidence and self-esteem, teaches respect, teamwork, and leadership skills, and improves communication and cooperation – all qualities needed to be successful in life. It is said that participation in sports reveals a persons’ character. But ACA believes, when sportsmanship is emphasized, it is a very important aspect in building a young person's character and integrity.
For more information, please visit www.aclassathlete.com.
Helmet Stickers (2020 Season)
Week 1 – Cunningham, Goodland, Norton, Wichita Trinity
Week 2 – Bishop Ward, Burrton, Oakley, Wichita Collegiate
Week 3 – Blue Valley Northwest, Hutchinson, Lakeside-Downs, Syracuse
Week 4 – Inman, Minneapolis, Thomas More Prep
Week 5 – Lincoln, Santa Fe Trail, Southeast of Saline, West Franklin
Week 6 – Ellis, Halstead, South Gray, Topeka Seaman
A Class Athlete Sportsmanship Award (2020 Season)
Week 1 – Drew Schmelzle, Sabetha High School
Week 2 – Herington High School
Week 3 – James Lynn, Wichita Heights
Week 4 – Preston Miller, Meade
Week 5 – Demetrius Cox, Hillsboro
Week 6 – Cody Louquet, Rock Creek
Week 7 -- Jude Stow, Caldwell
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