Sandite Alumni Report: Hutchinson Routs Colby, Kersgieter Suffers Ankle Injury

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Journey Armstead knocks down a 3-pointer during the second half of No. 2 Hutchinson's 69-35 win over Colby on Wednesday at the Colby Event Center. (Billy Watson/Blue Dragon Sports Information)

2019 Charles Page High School alum Holly Kersgieter suffered an ankle injury last Saturday in Kansas’s 60-55 loss to Oklahoma and missed Wednesday’s 67-53 win over BYU. No timetable has been given yet for her return.

The Jayhawks (11-10, 4-6) travel to TCU (15-7, 2-7) Saturday at 6:00 p.m.

2019 alum Isabella Regalado helped coach Southeastern Oklahoma State to a 64-57 win over Arkansas State on Thursday. Regalado is a graduate assistant for the Savage Storm, which improved to 7-12 overall and 3-10 in Great American Conference play. Southeastern will host Harding Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

2023 alum Hailey Jackson and 2022 alum Journey Armstead continued their undefeated season at Hutchinson Community College, where the Blue Dragons improved to 20-0 with a 69-35 win over Colby Community College on Wednesday.

Armstead scored 10 points to surpass 500 points in her college career, adding 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Jackson scored 4 points with 3 boards.

The Blue Dragons are ranked No. 2 in the country and will host Independence, Kansas (12-9) Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Men’s Basketball

2021 alum Marlo Fox is in his junior year at Rogers State University (11-9, 8-6). The Hillcats fell 80-74 to Washburn in overtime on Thursday. RSU will host Emporia State (14-8 7-7) Saturday at 4:00 p.m. for Homecoming.

Sandite College Report: Kersgieter Sets Kansas Record, Hutchinson Stays Undefeated

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Charles Page High School 2019 alum Holly Kersgieter recently set the school record for made three-pointers at the University of Kansas.

The fifth-year senior set the record on Saturday, January 6th, in a 73-64 defeat at Texas Tech, scoring a team-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field.

Kersgieter was 3-of-6 on treys for 239 threes in her career, eclipsing the previous record of 237 held by Angie Halbleib since 1997.

“I’m really proud of Holly. It’s been an absolute joy to be a part of her career, to coach her, see her development and improvement,” said head coach Brandon Schneider after the game. “I think the most impressive thing right now with her and the three-point shot is the percentage that she’s shooting.”

The former Sandite now stands at 38-of-87 for a three-point percentage of 43.7%, which ranks 22nd in the NCAA Division I.

She has started all 19 games for the Jayhawks, who are 10-9 overall and 3-5 in Big 12 play following a 60-58 win against Iowa State on Wednesday. Kersgieter is averaging 11.4 points, 1.6 assists, 1.2 steals, and 4.8 rebounds per game.

She recorded her first double-double of the season and 10th of her career with 12 points and 10 rebounds at Kansas State on Jan. 20. She ranks No. 7 on KU’s all-time scoring list with 1,776 career points, surpassing Lynn Pride (1,774) at KSU.

The Jayhawks will travel to Oklahoma (12-6, 6-1) Saturday at 6:00 p.m.

Regalado Coaching Savage Storm

Kersgieter’s fellow 2019 Sandite alum, Isabella Regalado, is coaching as a graduate assistant at Southeastern Oklahoma State this season. The Savage Storm is 6-12 on the year, competing in the NCAA Division II Great American Conference.

Blue Dragons Stay Rolling

Hutchinson Community College remains undefeated at 19-0 and is ranked No. 4 in the NJCAA. The Dragons have two former Sandites starting in 2023 alum Hailey Jackson and 2022 alum Journey Armstead (2022).

Most recently the Dragons survived an 82-77 encounter with No. 12 Dodge City in Jayhawk Conference play. Armstead had 14 points, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 4 rebounds in the latest win while Jackson had 12 points.

Jackson is averaging 12.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.4 steals per game while Armstead has 10.7 points, 4.2 boards, 4.8 assists, and 2.2 steals.

Hutchinson will return to action Wednesday at Colby Community College (6-13, 2-12).

Holly Kersgieter Surpasses 1,600 Career Points at University of Kansas

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Charles Page High School 2019 alum Holly Kersgieter is solidifying her place in the history books as super senior at the University of Kansas.

Kersgieter was a Preseason All-Big 12 Honorable Mention after averaging 13.8 points and 6 rebounds last season with a team-best 66 steals.

The Jayhawks are 2-1 on the season, sandwiching a 91-85 loss to Penn State (5-1) with an 88-46 win over Northwestern State (0-4) and a 70-61 win over Kansas City (2-3).

In the season-opener against Northwestern, Kersgieter was 6-of-9 in the field for a team-high 17 points, moving up to No. 10 on KU’s career scoring list. She made five treys to help her team set a new single-game school record with 16 total three-pointers.

In the loss to Penn State she was 9-of-14 for a team-best 24 points, 4 boards, 6 assists, and a steal to reach 1600 career points.

She was 6-of-12 against Kansas City for 15 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and a steal.

Kansas will return to action at the Cayman Islands Classic on Friday with a 4:00 p.m. game against No. 9 Virginia Tech (3-1), followed by a game against No. 6 UConn (3-1) on Saturday.

Isabella Regalado, also from the class of 2019, wrapped up a four-year playing career last year at Missouri Valley College and is now a graduate assistant at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, an NCAA Division II program in Durant.

The Bison are 4-2 on the season thus far and will kick off league play with their Great American Conference opener against Southern Nazarene on November 30th.

Hailey Jackson (Class of 2023) and Journey Armstead (2022) have Hutchinson Community College off to a 7-0 start on the season, including a conference win.

The Blue Dragons won their season opener 87-56 against Eastern Oklahoma State College (4-3). Jackson had 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists while Armstead was 5-of-5 for 14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals.

Jackson had 15 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double in an 82-43 win over Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (2-4). Armstead had 8 points and 5 boards.

Trailing 26-23 after the first quarter, the Dragons quickly turned things around in a 107-63 rout of Neosho County CC (5-2). Armstead scored 12 points with 6 assists while Jackson had 11 points and 9 rebounds.

Jackson had 13 points and 3 rebounds in a 106-33 decimation of Labette (0-5) while Armstead had 6 points, 6 boards, and 3 steals.

In an 83-65 win over Redlands (4-2), Jackson scored 12 points with 7 rebounds while Armstead had 12 points with 4 rebounds in a win that elevated the Dragons to No. 22 in the NJCAA rankings.

The Dragons’ first big test came in a 72-20 upset of No. 11 Dodge City (7-1), the reigning KJCCC champions. Hutchinson trailed 10 points in the final 3:20 of the game when Armstead led a rally with 8 points over that period.

Armstead scored a season-high 17 points with a career-high 9 rebounds, along with 4 assists and 2 steals. Jackson had 8 points and 7 rebounds.

In their most recent game, the No. 15 Blue Dragons won 80-54 against Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa (1-7). Armstead was 6-of-8 for a team-high 14 points and 4 assists. Jackson had her second double-double of the season, going 8-for-8 at the free-throw line for 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks.

Hutchinson will return to action on Saturday with a conference home game against Colby Community College (3-3).

Sandite Alumni Report: Holly Kersgieter named Big 12 Player of the Week

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Charles Page High School Class of 2019 graduate Holly Kersgieter picked up Big 12 Conference Player of the Week, and Freshman of the Week honors following her collegiate debut with the University of Kansas Women’s Basketball Team (2-0) this past weekend.

Kansas kicked off the season with an 84-72 non-conference home win against Indiana State (1-1) Thursday evening, led by Kersgieter with 24 points and 10 rebounds in her college debut.

Kersgieter was the second player on the board, driving through triple coverage for a layup and a 4-0 lead, setting the tone of her performance to come.

The former Sandite All-State performer was 8-of-14 on field goals, 4-of-7 from three point range, and 4-of-8 from the charity stripe with 5 offensive rebounds, 4 defensive rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, and 2 steals.

Next up for Kansas was a dominant 91-50 beatdown of the University of Chicago at Illinois (0-3). In that game Kersgieter put up 8 points, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 offensive rebounds, and 5 defensive rebounds while shooting 3-of-6 on field goals and 2-of-2 on free throws.

The Jayhawks are coming off a 13-18 season with a 2-16 conference mark under now fourth-year head coach Brandon Schneider. They were picked to finish last in the ten-team Big 12 Conference in last month’s preseason coaches’ poll.

Kansas will return to action Wednesday, November 13th at 7:00 p.m. with a home game against Omaha (1-2).

University of Tulsa (1-1) freshman Destiny Johnson didn’t see any action in the Hurricane’s season-opening 67-63 loss to Stephen F. Austin State University (2-0), but played five minutes of a 79-77 win over Arkansas State (1-1). The Sandite was 1-of-2 on free throws for 1 point, 1 steal, and 1 assist. She did not make any field goal attempts.

Northeastern State University (0-2) started the season with a 71-59 loss to Northwestern Oklahoma (1-1) and a 51-39 loss to the University of Mary (2-3). Freshman Isabella Regalado has yet to make her collegiate debut.

Men’s Basketball

The University of Central Oklahoma (0-2) went down 64-56 to the University of Mary (1-1) in overtime on Friday, then fell 63-55 to Northwestern Oklahoma State (1-1).

Sophomore Colt Savage only played 7 minutes in the season debut, collecting two defensive rebounds and going 0-of-1 in the field. He saw far more action on Saturday, going 2-of-6 on field goals and 4-of-6 at the stripe for 8 points and 1 defensive rebound.

The Bronchos will travel to Oklahoma Christian (0-0) Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. before playing William Jewel (1-1) and Upper Iowa (1-1) this weekend at the Fairfield Inn Classic in Warrensburg, Missouri.

UCO also picked up a recent commitment from Charles Page senior standout Davon Richardson, who averaged 15.7 points and 8.4 rebounds in his junior year. Richardson will officially sign a letter of intent Wednesday morning.

CPHS Track: Sandite relay team places 3rd at Kansas

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While the majority of the Charles Page High School Track and Field team was competing at the recent John Jacobs Invitational in Norman, four Sandites traveled to Lawrence for the University of Kansas Relays.

Joseph Mattison, Joel Mackey, Jaelyn Jackson, and Aden Baughman placed third out of 24 teams in the 1600-meter medley, finishing in 3:36.1. Mattison and Mackey ran the 200-meter legs in 46.11, Jackson ran the 400 in 52.23, and Baughman finished the 800 in 1:57.77.

Mackey ran the individual 100-meter dash in 10.99 for 16th place, Jackson placed 27th in the 400 in 53.64, and Baughman placed 12th in the 800 in 1:59.17.

The Sandites will return to action at the 6A Regional Track Meet in Ponca City on Saturday where they are the defending Regional Champions in the 4x800. Mackey is the returning Regional Champion in the 100 and the Regional Runner-Up in the 200. Baughman is the returning Regional Champion in the 800 and Jackson was Runner-Up.

NCAA Softball: Sydney Pennington hits home run, father catches it over the fence

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Pennington scores in the Regional Championship game her senior season.

You could practice it a thousand times and it would never happen on purpose. But in game one of Oklahoma State softball’s series against the University of Kansas, sophomore standout Sydney Pennington hit a three-run homer over the left field fence, directly into the ungloved hand of her father.

Pennington is a 2017 graduate of Charles Page High School in Sand Springs, Oklahoma. She is seventh on her team in batting average at .292 and second in home runs. She has cleared the stadium nine times this season and sixteen times in her career.

Cowgirl softball fans often park their trucks in the grass just outside the left field fence to watch from their tailgates. In an 8-1 Friday victory, Pennington went yard and the ball found Brett Pennington ready and waiting.

The entire play was caught on camera and can be viewed below.

Brett is no stranger to division one athletics. A two-time undefeated high school wrestling State Champion, he was offered a full ride to wrestle for the Oklahoma Sooners before retiring from the mat due to asthma. He then went to Connor’s State for baseball before finally ending up in the Crimson and Cream from 1995-1996. Now he has added softball outfield experience to his collegiate resume.

The Pokes are 29-11 this season with a 7-2 conference record. They are ranked 16th in the nation and are second in the Big 12. Their only league losses are to No. 10 Texas and Baylor. They will return to action with a three-game series against Iowa State (22-15, 1-5) Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in Ames.

Sydney Pennington is one of only five Cowgirls to play all forty games this season. She has 35 hits, 24 runs, 29 RBI, and a .938 fielding average. She was a Big 12 All-Freshman last season, playing left field and shortstop. She has been playing third base this season.

Pennington season highlights…

Hit a solo homer in a 3-0 win against Sam Houston State.
Hit an RBI single to take the lead in a 13-2 victory over Hofstra.
Hit an RBI double in an 8-0 shutout of Syracuse.
Homered in a 12-2 run-rule win over McNeese State.
Went yard in both games of a double-header sweep of No.24 Oregon.
Batted 3-of-4 with two homers in a 16-1 run-rule of Central Arkansas.
Had her fourth-straight multi-hit game in an 8-0 shutout of Samford.
Scored the lone run in a 10-1 loss to No. 22 Ole Miss.
Hit a three-run homer, a double, and 5 RBIs in a 21-2 run-rule of Baylor.
Went 3-of-4 with two doubles in a 7-3 win over Kansas.