ABILENE, Kan.—
The final week of the 2012 North Central Kansas League football season is upon us and the final NCKL game of the season will be played in Clay Center and there is still a lot to be determined in the 2012 campaign.The Wamego Red Raiders wrapped up the 2012 NCKL championship a couple of weeks ago, but with just one game left to play all six NCKL teams still have a shot at making it to the postseason. In most cases it will come down to points and in several cases it will take bizarre circumstances for NCKL teams to qualify but with just one game left to play, all six NCKL teams have playoff hopes.
For Concordia and Clay Center their playoff goals have been achieved, it is just still up in the air as to which will be district champion and which will be district runner-up. The other thing that will be determined in Clay Center Thursday night is how the final NCKL standings will break down. If Concordia wins the Panthers will earn second place in the NCKL, but if Clay Center returns to its early season dominance the Tigers will force a log jam in the middle of the NCKL standings.
The Marysville Lady Bulldog volleyball team went into the sub-state tournament with a 20-20 record and seeded No. 4 but the Lady Bulldogs put together three straight victories to qualify for this weekend’s Class 3A state tournament.
Concordia
The Lady Panther golf team had two individuals qualify for the Class 4A state tournament. Stormie Hittle placed 65th with a round of 114 while Janae Champlin finished 70th with a round of 116. The Concordia cross country teams traveled to Buhler on Saturday for the Class 4A regional meet where the Lady Panthers qualified two individual runners for this weekend’s Class 4A state meet while the Panther boys qualified one individual for the state meet. As teams, the Lady Panthers finished in fourth place with 104 points while the Panther boys were seventh with 187 points. The Lady Panther volleyball team had its season end on Saturday with a 21-19 record after it went 0-1 in the Wamego sub-state tournament. The Lady Panthers lost 27-25, 25-22 to Abilene in the opening round of the tournament. The Panther football team sealed a playoff berth Friday night with a 34-24 win over Goodland. The Panthers will play Clay Center this Thursday night for the district championship.
Abilene
The Cowgirl tennis team had one state entrant and finished in 16th place in the Class 4A state tennis tournament on Monday with 3 points. The Abilene cross country teams traveled to Buhler on Saturday for the Class 4A regional meet where none of the Cowboys or Cowgirls were able to qualify for the state meet. The Cowboys finished in 11th place with 297 points while the Cowgirls were 12th with 264 points. The Cowgirl volleyball team had its season end on Saturday with a 28-9 record when it went 1-1 in the Wamego sub-state tournament. The Cowgirls opened the tournament by knocking off Concordia 27-25, 25-22 but fell in the semifinals to NCKL foe Wamego 25-27, 25-22, 25-18. The Cowboy football team suffered its seventh loss of the season Friday night when it got beat 47-14 by McPherson. It will take a lot of different point scenarios to occur, but the Cowboys are still in the hunt for the postseason this Thursday night when they play host to Smoky Valley in the regular season finale.
Clay Center
The Lady Tiger golf team had one individual play in the Class 4A state tournament on Monday and Sage Alquist finished in 64th place after firing a round of 113. The Clay Center cross country teams competed in the Buhler Class 4A regional meet on Saturday where the Lady Tigers qualified for state by placing third with 108 points and the Tiger boys qualified for state by placing second with 84 points. The Clay Center volleyball team had its season ended on Saturday with a 15-19 record when the Lady Tigers lost 25-8, 25-14 to Wamego in the opening round of the Wamego sub-state tournament. The Tigers sealed up their playoff bid Friday night with a 25-10 win over Colby. Thursday night the Tigers will play host to Concordia for the football district championship.
Marysville
The Lady Bulldog tennis team finished in fifth place at the Class 3-2-1A state tournament on Monday with 19 points. The Marysville cross country teams ran at the Riley County Class 3A regional meet on Saturday where each squad qualified one individual for this weekend’s state meet in Wamego. The Bulldog girls did not have enough runners to earn a valid team score while the Bulldog boys placed 12th with 273 points. The Lady Bulldog volleyball team went into the Nemaha Valley sub-state tournament with a 20-20 record and was seeded just fourth, but the squad put together three straight victories, topping Sabetha 25-11, 25-12 in the opening round, Wathena-Riverside 25-23, 25-19 in the semifinals and Nemaha Valley 25-22, 19-25, 25-15 in the championship title to win the right to play in this weekend’s Class 3A state tournament. The Bulldogs are still searching for their first win in the 2012 season after being topped 49-23 by Riley County this past Friday night. If that first win comes this Thursday when Marysville plays host to Nemaha Valley, if different point scenarios occur Marysville could playoff bound with a 1-8 record.
Wamego
The Lady Raider tennis team finished in 12th place at the Class 4A state tournament on Monday with 7 points. The Wamego cross country teams ran in the Bonner Springs Class 4A regional meet on Saturday where both of their teams qualified for state. The Lady Raiders qualified by placing third with 72 points while the Raider boys won the meet with 25 points. The Lady Raider volleyball team hosted a sub-state tournament on Saturday but went 2-1 in the tournament to see its season halted with a 25-7 record. The Lady Raiders beat Clay Center 25-8, 25-14 in the opening round, Abilene 25-27, 25-22, 25-18 in the semifinals but lost 25-17, 25-6 to McPherson in the championship match. The Red Raiders suffered their second straight loss this past Friday night when they fell 26-18 to Royal Valley. The Red Raiders will finish off their regular season this Friday night when they play at Topeka Hayden.
Chapman
The Lady Irish tennis team finished in 11th place at the Class 4A state tournament with 8 points. The Chapman cross country teams ran at the Buhler Class 4A regional meet on Saturday where the Irish were unable to qualify any individual or either team for the state meet. The Lady Irish did not have enough runners to earn a valid team score while the Irish boys placed 12th with 306 points. The Lady Irish volleyball team saw its 2012 season come to an end on Saturday with an opening round loss to McPherson in the Wamego sub-state tournament. The Lady Irish, who finished the season with a 3-26 record, lost 25-8, 25-12 to McPherson in the opening round. The Fighting Irish suffered their fourth loss of the season this past Friday night when they lost 21-14 to Smoky Valley. The Irish, however, still have playoff hopes this Thursday night when they play at McPherson.
