Two and a half months ago, both Free State and Lawrence’s girls flag football teams started their inaugural seasons. Both teams were hoping at least seven girls would show up, just enough to field a team and allow a few backups while a number of girls played both offense and defense. What ended up happening at the first practice far surpassed either teams’ coaches. “We didn’t have enough jerseys at ...
Kansas guard Elmarko Jackson had a lot of confidence heading into last year’s men’s basketball season after coming off a season in which he played over 18 minutes per game. Then came the knee injury, a tear of his patellar tendon in his left knee, during the KU basketball camp scrimmage in June of 2024. A year that was supposed to include a jump in his performance and role became a year of sitting on the ...
A few months before arriving on campus at Kansas, freshman guard Darryn Peterson said he was most excited to play with his center, Flory Bidunga. Now, just weeks away from the regular season, Bidunga and Peterson are building chemistry and a two-man game that the Jayhawks can rely on throughout the upcoming season. “My job is to make him look better, and his job is to make us look better,” Bidunga said. ...
Olathe — Free State’s first girls flag football season went all the way to the state semifinal round, two months into every member of the team’s first-ever flag football season. "These kids were unbelievable in the growth and maturity they showed," Free State coach Adam Barmann said. "From our first practice on August 19 to today, it's just a night-and-day difference." The Firebirds entered the ...
Olathe — Free State sent four girls to the 6A state girls tennis tournament and came away with all four Firebirds placing in the tournament, leading the Firebirds to a second-place team finish. The highlight came from freshman Eli Ward, who won the singles bracket and finished the season as an undefeated state champion. Ward's season was dominant — she finished 24-0 and never dropped a set. The most points ...
Lawrence offensive coordinator Taylor Stuart joined the LHS coaching staff in 2023 and was unsure of what the receiving corps would look like when a sophomore, Jaxon Becker, lined up as one of the top receivers on varsity during the first summer practices. “I was thinking to myself, ‘Man, we must be pretty limited at receiver to have a sophomore going in,” Stuart said. “Obviously, from the get-go, ...