Midseason basketball tournament week is one of my favorite times of the year. It is a chance to see a ton of basketball, and watch squads grow in the process. This past week was no different, as a number of area teams were in action during their respective midseason basketball ...
Both city wrestling teams were in action this past weekend during the Husky Invitational. In the two-day event, which featured 21 teams, Free State’s wrestling team did well enough across the board to secure a fourth-place finish with 127.5 points. Lawrence High, meanwhile, scored 51.5 ...
Despite a loaded field of teams, the Free State boys basketball squad came away with some hardware at the McPherson Invitational. FSHS notched third place with a 48-30 win over Shawnee Heights Saturday afternoon, finishing the tournament with a 2-1 clip. The team's only loss came at the hands ...
Free State's boys basketball team gave up 16 points in the fourth quarter in an eventual 50-46 loss to Shawnee Mission East Friday at McPherson High School The Firebirds, who have had plenty of experience at closing out games this season, were unable continue their recent success in the final ...
Free State sophomore Shannon Clarke has been accustomed to being on the other end of assists from junior Caely Kesten, but her eyes got a little bigger than usual when she saw a pass coming her way from the Firebirds point guard in the first half of Thursday’s 56-26 home win over Gardner ...
Prior to the opening round of the McPherson Invitational, the Free State boys basketball coach Sam Stroh gave his team a challenge. With Noah Butler sidelined with an ankle injury, Stroh asked players to step up in his absence. And that they did. A trio of players scored in double figures, ...
Free State’s wrestling team claimed another impressive dual win Wednesday afternoon. Despite the meet being moved up two hours due to potential weather, the Firebirds took care of business from the very beginning. Free State defeated Shawnee Mission West by a 64-12 margin to extend its dual ...
Kevin Stewart knows it is no easy task to follow in the footsteps of the only head football coach Free State has ever known. Stewart, who introduced himself to the FSHS football team as the program’s next head coach Wednesday afternoon, made it clear that there is no replacing someone like ...
For the first time since mid-December, Free State’s boys basketball team didn’t have to sweat the outcome in the waning moments. The Firebirds never trailed — and led by double digits for much of the night — on their way to a 51-36 victory over Blue Valley West Tuesday night at FSHS. ...
Free State has found its new head football coach. Per a release from the school district, FSHS Athletic Director Amanda Faunce named Kevin Stewart the new head football coach and physical education teacher, beginning with the 2019-2020 school year. “Even though he is already a resident of ...
A total of 30 teams competed in the Basehor-Linwood tournament this past weekend. Free State’s wrestling team proved it can hang with the best, placing sixth as a team with a score of 113 points. FSHS actually tied with Andale, though both programs finished behind Bonner Springs (232), St. ...
OLATHE — For the second game in a row, Free State boys basketball coach Sam Stroh found himself relying on one of his top shooters to make a late-game free throw and secure a come-from-behind win. With the Firebirds up by 1 against Olathe Northwest with under two minutes to go, freshman ...
Since the start of the season, the Free State boys swim and dive team has had a clear goal on what it wants to accomplish this season. The Firebirds want to be Sunflower League champions for the first time in program history. They demonstrated how they can accomplish that feat during a ...
The two city bowling teams will kick off the season with one of the largest meets of the year. A total of 16 teams will compete in the Firebird Invitational, including both Free State and Lawrence High. The boys meet will begin at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, while the girls meet is slated to start at ...
OLATHE — More often than not, college freshmen from the visiting teams miss late-game shots in Allen Fieldhouse thanks to the loud, crazy atmosphere that makes it so historic. On Tuesday, the main gym at Olathe South was as close to that as you might get. With the game tied, sophomore ...
Olathe — Free State girls basketball coach Ted Juneau wouldn’t let his team quit. The Firebirds eyed an upset over Olathe South, the No. 3 team in Class 6A, trailing by five with under a minute to go. For the second game in a row, the Firebirds didn’t let a double-digit deficit to start ...
Free State’s wrestling team began the year with a runner-up finish at the Shawnee Mission South tournament. The Firebirds scored 190 points, trailing only Washburn Rural’s winning mark of 269 points. Blue Springs finished third with 186 points, while no other team scored more than 101 in ...
Free State boys basketball coach Sam Stroh had a simple message following the team’s first loss of the season. Execution was the theme of his postgame speech, as FSHS struggled to do the little things down the stretch during a 55-51 defeat to Olathe North Friday night at home. The Firebirds ...
It would have been easy for the Free State girls basketball team to roll over after facing an early deficit in its first game of 2019. An unbeaten Olathe North squad scored the first 16 points of the contest, but FSHS showed plenty of toughness by withstanding the early blow. The Firebirds ...
It was another remarkable year for area high school sports teams. A total of six teams won state titles in 2018, including a first-time state champion. Multiple squads finished as runners-up in their respective sport, while several individual athletes posted impressive campaigns, as well. ...