The fall sports season continues to cruise along at high speed, with local high-schoolers aplenty making their marks on the football field, volleyball court and cross country grounds.
Several have risen to the tops of their respective fields, and are the Iola Register’s nominees for the September Male and Female athletes of the month.
The male nominees are Iola High’s Keegan Hill for his cross country prowess and Tre Wilson for his exploits on the football field; Humboldt High senior quarterback Blake Ellis, and Marmaton Valley sophomore running back Cooper Scharff.
Female nominees are Iola’s Reese Curry for her work on the volleyball court, Crest cross country runner extraordinaire Josie Walter, Humboldt volleyball standout Shelby Shaughnessy and Yates Center’s Cayten Cummings, another volleyball star in the making.
Voting will run through Oct. 10. Just click here to vote.
Readers also may vote by email to [email protected], by calling us at (620) 365-2111, or by sending your ballot to us at 302 S. Washington Ave. in Iola.
The top vote-getters will receive a free specialty pizza courtesy of Rookie’s in Iola.
REESE CURRY, who earned first-team All-Pioneer League honors as a junior, has continued her torrid play as a senior. She leads the Mustangs in kills (nearly four per set) and service aces (31 for the season). She also ranks second in digs and third in blocks for the 11-9 Iola squad.
SHELBY SHAUGHNESSY has led another standout campaign for Humboldt’s Lady Cub volleyball team.
She leads the team in kills (215 or 3.7 per set), blocks (30), and service aces (40). She also ranks second on the team in digs for one of the hottest teams in the area. After a slow start, Humboldt has won 16 of its last 18 matches.
JOSIE WALTER has added to her already loaded cross country medal stand this season for the state’s second-ranked Class 1A team, the Crest Lady Lancers.
She took sixth in the brutal summer heat to open the year at Anderson County Invitational and fifth at Wellsville. She beat all comers by nearly a minute to win the Fort Scott Invitational, and is coming off a 15th place finish — out of 350 runners — at the storied Rim Rock High School Classic in Lawrence last weekend.
CAYTEN CUMMINGS, a Yates Center sophomore, earned second-team All-Three Rivers League honors her freshman campaign, and is well on her way to more all-league recognition this season. She leads the Wildcats with kills (154 overall, or 3.3 per set), blocks (11), aces (36), assists (117) and ranks third in digs with 112.
KEEGAN HILL entered his sophomore season at Iola High as a runner on a mission.
So far, so good.
Hill took home seventh at Anderson County, and then dusted all comers by nearly a minute in the Fort Scott Invitational. He also shined at a shorter “sprint,” taking second in a 1.5-mile race in Caney. He also ran a blistering 18:31 in the 5K at Rim Rock in Lawrence over the weekend.
TRE WILSON entered the 2024 football season at Iola High expecting to be one of the team’s leading receivers.
But injuries to the Mustang quarterback crew forced the IHS coaches to turn to the junior speedster to take over as primary signal caller.
In doing so, they may have saved the team’s season. Wilson leads Iola (3-1) in rushing with 454 yards over four games, an average of 9.5 yards per carry and six touchdowns. He also leads Iola in tackles, at 8.5 per contest, and has pulled in a team-high two interceptions. Oh, and his only reception of the year in week 1 also was good for a touchdown.
BLAKE ELLIS finished the 2023 season with more than 1,000 rushing and passing yards as Humboldt High’s starting quarterback. He’s well on his way to dwarfing both of those numbers this fall with the unbeaten Cubs. He’s averaging nearly 10 yards per carry (429 yards overall) and 11 rushing touchdowns. He’s also thrown for 443 yards and four more scores.
COOPER SCHARFF, a sophomore at Marmaton Valley, is one of several dynamic playmakers for the Wildcats this fall.
Despite limited touches — 24 carries and 11 receptions through four games — Scharff has already racked up 12 touchdowns. He averages 11 yards per carry and 22 yards per reception for the 3-1 Wildcats. Scharff also ranks second on the team in tackles, averaging eight per game and is tied for the team lead with two interceptions.
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