Free State's girls basketball team defeated Lawrence High Friday night in Allen Fieldhouse. Photos by Nick Krug/Lawrence Journal-World

During starter introductions, Lawrence High players launched shirts that read “Beat State” to the student section. Mission accomplished. Thanks to some key plays down the stretch, the Lawrence High boys basketball team secured a 50-42 win over Free State Friday night in Allen Fieldhouse. ...

Holding a 7-point lead at halftime over their crosstown rival, the Firebirds needed a spark in the second half to close the deal. “We thought our press was being effective and we just needed to get to the rim more,” Free State coach Nick Wood said. “We were settling for too many outside ...

The buzz around this year's City Showdown was palpable nearly 72 hours before tipoff. While fielding questions about this year's crosstown clash, which is slated to take place at 8 p.m. today at Allen Fieldhouse, there was an extra sense of focus for members of both Free State and Lawrence ...

The lone crosstown clash of the regular season between the Lawrence High and Free State girls basketball teams Friday will carry extra significance for a rivalry game. Both teams desperately need a victory with postseason play looming. Free State (6-11, 1-8 Sunflower League) has yet to win a ...

Both local bowling programs came away with a win in the City Showdown on Tuesday at Royal Crest Lanes. Lawrence High’s girls bowling team was victorious, while Free State’s boys bowling squad claimed a narrow victory in a dual between the two programs. LHS girls scored 1,993 as a team, ...

Free State's boys basketball team defeated Shawnee Mission North Tuesday night at FSHS on Feb. 18, 2020. Photos by Carter Gaskins/Lawrence Journal-World

Free State's girls basketball team lost to Shawnee Mission North on Tuesday night at FSHS on Feb. 18, 2020. Photos by Carter Gaskins/Lawrence Journal-World

It is not always easy to dig deep into the bench at this point in the season, especially during a grinding league battle. Fortunately for FSHS boys basketball coach Sam Stroh, he doesn’t have that issue. Free State needed a total-team effort to push past Shawnee Mission North, 63-45, on ...

Shawnee Mission North drilled a dozen 3-pointers, including seven triples in the first half, en route to a 62-52 victory over Free State on Tuesday at FSHS. The Firebirds have now dropped all six of their contests since upsetting Derby in the semifinals of the Lady Firebirds Winter Classic on ...

Free State sophomore Madyson Gray was one of four area wrestlers to make history this weekend. Based on her performance in the regional meet at Paola, Gray, along with three others, qualified for the inaugural girls state wrestling tournament. The regional meet featuring 20 area girls also was ...

Olathe — Lawrence High junior Trey Medina won the 152-pound weight class at the Sunflower League Invitational on Saturday after pinning Olathe North sophomore Landon Wilkes. LHS finished ninth as a team with 61 points. It was also a successful day for Free State, which finished in sixth ...

Prairie Village — In recent weeks, Free State has upped the aggressiveness of its defense, opting for more backcourt pressure. The Firebirds have been successful to varying degrees, but when it works, Free State has proven to be a tough beat. “We’re trying to have an attack mindset and ...

Prairie Village — Throughout this season, Free State coach Sam Stroh has consistently pointed to the Firebirds’ wins as “team efforts,” as Free State has relied on a productive bench. And in the Firebirds’ 60-46 road win over Shawnee Mission East on Friday night, that came to be true ...

Kris Daniels started the fourth quarter by draining a wide-open 3-pointer. Moments later, he finished a layup through contact, turned towards his teammates, and let out a yell. The momentum of Tuesday’s game at Free State had shifted for good thanks to the Firebird junior. In addition to ...

It’s been an up-and-down season for Free State girls basketball, and Tuesday was very nearly a high point against No. 4 Olathe West. Free State counterpunched Olathe West all night but couldn’t answer the Owls’ fourth-quarter flurry, as the Firebirds fell 66-62 at home Tuesday ...

Moments after stepping away from the podium, Lawrence High senior Emilie Rodman insisted that the rest of the varsity girls bowling team take another photo together. Rodman set her phone on the counter at College Lanes on Tuesday and took a group photo of the six-player squad. All the bowlers ...

Free State’s wrestling team ended up on the wrong end of a dual at Basehor-Linwood on Friday. Basehor-Linwood won seven of the 13 matches, including one by forfeit, en route to a 45-31 victory. Jett Barton, Austin Burenheide and Titus Birdashaw all won their respective open matches for the ...

Almost immediately after collecting his second-place medal for the 50-yard freestyle, Free State junior Reilley Moore had to quickly return to the pool for the 100-yard freestyle. “There’s a break in between the 50 and the 100, so I had time,” Moore said. “But I had to run over — ...

Olathe — It was exactly what Free State’s boys basketball team needed after what transpired just three days earlier. Coming off a 66-45 loss to Olathe East, the Firebirds got back to their old ways with a fitting overtime win. Thanks to timely shots and strong performance on the defensive ...