Sports

Panther Kate Hanson (shown above, at right) fights for a rebound and goes back up for a basket in a recent contest against the Blue Jays. While Royal Valley led most of the way, the team couldn't quite close out the game and Sabetha stormed back for a victory.

RV girls' hot offensive start nearly sinks Sabetha on the road

For 21 minutes, the Lady Panther basketball team had the Sabetha Blue Jays right where they wanted them. Through an impressive defensive showing and a hot start offensively, Royal Valley held a lead for most of the first three quarters against the second-ranked team in Class 3A. In the final...

Wetmore, ACCHS teams have mixed results in return to action

To start 2016, just like some Jackson County teams, area teams from Wetmore and Atchison County Community high schools had tough tests to start the new year. Wetmore started things off by hitting the road to take on Axtell and while the boys basketball team didn’t have quite enough firepower to...

Royal Valley's Marshall Stewart (shown above, top) works on pinning his opponent to the mat in one of the team's home duals last Thursday. Stewart and the RVHS wrestlers had a lot of success on the night, sweeping their home quad with Pleasant Ridge, Atchison and Perry-Lecompton.

Panther wrestlers roll at home to start competition in 2016

Starting competition in 2016, the Royal Valley wrestling team had a clear-cut goal. After starting the season strong, coach Jason Puderbaugh noted he didn’t want his team to let up and it seemed the Panthers took that message to heart in a trio of duals in Hoyt on Thursday night. “I thought our...

Alumni get off to strong start in 2016

Over the Christmas break, high school athletes have been hard at work looking to come back strong in the second half of the basketball and wrestling seasons. Meanwhile, their counterparts at the collegiate level have been doing the same while still in competition and several athletes with local...

Jackson Heights' Zane Richter (shown above, second from right) comes down with a rebound early in Tuesday's NEKL contest against Valley Falls. Richter had another big night for the Cobras, but the team also showed some balance as numerous players hit key shots to give JHHS just enough separation in a 46-37 victory over the Dragons.

Cobra boys hold their ground in big league win over Valley Falls

Jackson Heights’ boys basketball team found itself in an odd position on Tuesday night against Valley Falls in its first game back from break. Used to being the aggressor and harassing teams with their defensive intensity, the Dragons gave the Cobras fits instead on the defensive end and JHHS...

Wildcat Lawson Henry (shown above, at right) grapples with an opponent from Tonganoxie during a dual earlier this season. Henry is one of several young wrestlers who keep coming along for the HHS wrestling team this winter.

Young Wildcat wrestlers continue to progress through busy early schedule

The young Wildcat wrestlers have been busy on the mat and had their third stand-alone dual of the season last Thursday, making the trip north to take on Big Seven League foe Sabetha. It was a tightly contested match-up between the last two league champions, but the Blue Jays came out slightly...

League champs, runners-up mark highs of MS girls basketball season

While high school basketball in Jackson County was just heating up before the Christmas break, the middle school girls basketball season was winding down during that same time. Like some of the county high school teams off to fast starts, though, several squads from Holton, Jackson Heights and...

Panther Tamo Thomas (shown above, middle right) floats a shot over the Santa Fe Trail defense in a non-league contest to close out the first half of the season. Thomas was strong for Royal Valley again, leading the team with 12 points in the 54-30 victory.

RV girls' big second quarter helps fuel victory over Santa Fe Trail to close out 2015

After a number of slow starts earlier this basketball season, the Lady Panthers finally seemed to find their pace as they built up to a steady cruising speed before racing ahead of visiting Santa Fe Trail on the way to a 54-30 victory on Friday night. Both teams needed some time to gear up, as it...

HHS guard Courtney Boswell (shown above, second from left) comes down with a rebound in the second half of Monday's home game against Hayden. Boswell helped Holton keep things close, but the visitors managed to pull out a 62-51 victory.

Holton girls basketball can't quite topple Hayden in intense battle

To start the basketball season, the Holton girls were tested on the road against Sabetha (currently ranked second in Class 3A) and coach Jon Holliday and his players didn’t like the results. Against a similarly tough Hayden team (#6 in 4A-DII) on Monday, host HHS managed a passing grade, but...

Richter's record-setting performance highlights Heights' split with Pleasant Ridge

While the Jackson Heights boys basketball team might have had some minor hiccups early in Tuesday night’s league match-up against Pleasant Ridge, the game was eventually marked by a record-setting performance as the Cobras recovered quickly on the way to a 78-52 victory. Once JHHS got over those...