Winter high school sports notebook

Soccer signing

Greg Glatz, all-area, all-state soccer player from Free State High has orally committed to Baker University.

Glatz officially will sign a letter of intent at a date yet to be determined.

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Six degrees of Jake

Last week when LHS and FSHS grappled for city supremacy, LHS junior Jake Pfannenstiel was plenty familiar with his foe, FSHS freshman Jake Brown.

“It’s kind of hard wrestling someone you know,” Pfannenstiel said after the Lions’ 65-9 win. “It’s kind of hard when it’s your girlfriend’s best friend’s boyfriend, too. You have to beat him.”

¢Some call me Maurice

After the big wrestling victory, Pfannenstiel celebrated by firing up his iPod and listening to “The Joker” by the Steve Miller Band.

“I was jammin’,” he said.

¢Open season on fans

Prior to an impressive 21-point, eight-rebound effort in the opening round of the Firebird Winter Classic, FSHS sophomore center Ashli Hill just about nailed an unsuspecting FSHS fan in the face with a free T-shirt, which were being flung into the stands by all of the starters.

“I was trying to throw it up and my arm … I don’t know what happened,” Hill said apologetically.

¢Firebird frontcourt help

The FSHS boys hoops squad missed reliable rebounder and defender Chase Hoag Saturday in a 59-57 overtime loss to Olathe North. A junior forward, Hoag missed the game with a left hand injury, and the Eagles pounded the Firebirds in the paint. FSHS coach Chuck Law said Hoag might be back for Friday’s game with Shawnee Mission South.

¢It’s gotta be the shirt

Although they’re not blaming it entirely on the shirt, Lawrence High’s girls basketball players have asked that coach Kristin Mallory never wear her light blue, long-sleeved dress shirt on the bench again.

Saturday, at the championship game of the Capital Classic, Mallory donned the shirt for the second time this season. The result: both losses. The first came to Shawnee Mission East back on Jan. 8 and the second came Saturday, when LHS fell to Blue Valley 71-62.

Despite the pleas from her players, Mallory said she might wear the shirt again on purpose in order to allow the girls to exorcise the demons.

¢Another title for Oak Park

For the fourth consecutive year the Oak Park (Mo.) High wrestling team came away with the Baldwin Invitational Tournament title last weekend.

Oak Park, ranked No. 1 in Missouri’s Class 4 rankings, won the event with 419 points. Area school Santa Fe Trail finished second with 202 points.

Other area finishes were: Baldwin (4th, 167.5), Mill Valley (8th, 136.5) and Tonganoxie (9th, 134).