Zemek To Sign LOI For WU

   RHS senior Britnee Zemek will sign a Letter Of Intent to play softball at Washburn University next year.

Earl Kovar (48) Passes Away

    Earl E. Kovar, 85, Liberty, MO passed away suddenly November 13, 2015.
    A celebration of his life with be 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19  with full military honors at 4:00 p.m.at Church-Archer-Pasley Funeral Home, Liberty, MO.
    Earl was born April 8, 1930 in Topeka, KS to Peter Paul and Anastasia Agnes (Martinek) Kovar. He was a 1948 graduate of Rossville High School. On June 18, 1955 he married Disca Ann McKown in Liberty, MO. After 30 years of service, Earl retired from the Post Office in 1985 and then enjoyed 30 years of traveling with his wife.
    He was preceded in death by his parents, Pete and Stella Kovar and sisters, Betty Ann Kovar and Agnes Anna Rafferty. Survivors include his wife of 60 years, Disca Ann Kovar; daughters, Kimberly Ann Thurmond (Craig) and Kay Marie Kovar (Susan Duncan); sister, Evelyn Marie Thompson; sister-in-law, Sammy Mihlhauser and extended family.
    Arrangements: Church-Archer- Pasley Funeral Home, 119 E. Franklin St., Liberty, MO 64068 816-781-2000 Newcomer's Church-Archer-Pasley Funeral Home, 

Book On Early Kansas Baseball History

Mark Evberle is writing a book about early Kansas baseball.  He would like old pictures.  If you have pictures of old baseball teams or games,  or even news articles,  I am sure that Mark would like to read or see what you have.  I am sure there is a lot of baseball history around Rossville.   And,  it might make it into Mark's book.

		Mark Eberle November 16 at 11:48am
As some of you know, I have been researching the early history of Kansas baseball (1858-1941). Part of this research is about what baseball was like back then from the perspective of the various types of teams: town teams (white males), women’s teams, African American teams, American Indian teams, Mexican American teams, youth & collegiate summer leagues, minor leagues, and major leagues (the teams touring through Kansas). The other part of the research is about the nine historical baseball parks in the state with grandstands constructed before WWII (1924-1940): Rossville, Kinsley, Wichita, Garden City, Chanute, Larned, Junction City, El Dorado, and Hays.  I submitted a book proposal based on this research to the University Press of Kansas this fall, and it was accepted last week. The manuscript is mostly complete, and I have until March 1, 2016 to finish it. I have visited a few local museums and libraries already, but I will also be searching for a few more old photographs and arranging permissions to include them in the book. After I submit the text, it will undergo reviews, editing, and design that will run through the summer, so the plan is to release the book in March 2017. Most book sales come during the first year, so they want this book to be “fresh” when high schools, summer leagues, and the Royals are gearing up for another baseball season.  If you have any questions, interest, or knowledge (or know someone who does) about any of the subjects listed above or any of the old ballparks in Kansas, please feel free to contact me. I check my e-mail regularly (meberle@fhsu.edu). The book is 16 months away, but I am happy to provide information in the meantime. I have already shared information about some of the old ballparks with people who are working to maintain them. I hope we don't lose any more of these historical structures. Kansas has some of the best in the country. Best regards.

Exchange Students In Baseball Film

 A Unique Experience For Exchange Students

    Quiet on the set and Play Ball!! The filming of a documentary was a unique experience to learn about America's favorite pastime: baseball. On  October 18, 2015, foreign exchange students at Rossville Junior/Senior High School joined the volunteer “extras” for the documentary ‘Town Teams:  Bigger than Baseball. The exchange students who were movie extras were Aom Yoksiri from Thailand and Gabriela Miele from Brazil from AYA, Academic Year in America: Iana Catana from Moldova and Artur from Kyrgyzstan with FLEX, Future Leaders Exchange program through the US Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. 

    Joe Campbell Stadium became the set for the 1919 baseball game; Model A and  Model T Fords were parked along the outfield fence, the baseball team wore pinstriped uniforms and the spectators were dressed up for the games. Artur  said, “Seeing all the old cars and talking to the owners was his favorite part.” Lisa Thornburg of Rossville PRIDE redesigned the scoreboard to look  like the board from the original game. Rossville Rattler volunteers Craig  Thornburg, Perry and Allan Foster completed the 1900’s look and removed  the advertisements from the outfield fence. Many volunteer hours made this  exciting day a success.

      The scene was near El Dorado, Kansas in 1919 during the oil boom.  The teams of Midian and the Oil Hill Empires were facing off to be the  champion of the oil belt in the Midwest. It is estimated that over 2,500 fans  came to watch the important game and three ringers were brought into play,  including Casey Stengel, Hall of Fame New York Yankee manager and Fred  “Dad” Bramble, a pitcher who played in the minor leagues. A thrilling part of  the reenactment was the brawl that started from a hard slide into second  base. The extras reacted with cheers and boos to the imaginary plays on the field. Iana said, “It was my first time taking part in shooting a film, I was  one of the girls who were supposed to be cheering for the boys playing in  one of the scenes, all the cameras were focused on us while we were  giggling.”

      The documentary is by DHTV Digital, a film production company from  Kansas City. The production director in Mark Honer spent the day adjusting cameras, moving the extras for the scenes and directing the action. Aom said, “We were there for five hours and it was fun, but I was glad to have a hotdog at the baseball stadium.” It was long day of shooting the action and then repositioning the cameras and then doing it again. ‘Town Teams;  Bigger than Baseball is set to be released in Spring 2016, just in time for another season of baseball. Gabriela said, “It was so much fun and I can’t  wait to see it.”

Left to Right:  Aom Yoksiri, Iana Catana, Artur Alimzhanov, Gabriela Miele

Rossville Will Host Wellsville

    Rossville will host Wellsville Friday in the semi-final round of the state playoffs.  Wellsville knocked off Sabetha,  the team that ended the Silver Lake Eagles chances at the title.
    Information about the Wellsville 31-14 victory over Sabetha is at:
http://cjonline.com/sports/2015-11-13/wellsville-holds-sabetha-advance-3a-state-semifinals
    The complete playoff bracket can be viewed at:
http://kshsaa.org/Public/ScoreCenter/Brackets/Football/3A.cfm?Activity=1

Wilma "Billee" Dolezilek (46) Passes Away

Wilma B. "Billee" Dolezilek, 86 passed away Friday, November 13, 2015.

She was born November 16, 1928 at Rossville the daughter of Charles and Sadie Viola Stum Baird.  She graduated from Rossville High School in 1946.  Mrs. Dolezilek lived all of her life in the Rossville community except for a few years she lived in Topeka.

Billee worked for the State of Kansas, and later for Volume Shoe Corporation in Topeka.  She was an active member of the Rossville High School Alumni Association.

On June 18, 1949 she was united in marriage to George D. Dolezilek in Topeka.  He preceded her in death on June 15, 1984.  She was also preceded in death by her 7 siblings and a grandson, Charles Bryson Dolezilek.

Survivors include three sons, Donald (Jane) Dolezilek, Dover, Charles (Vicki) Dolezilek, Aurora, CO., and Gerry (Nancy) Dolezilek, Kenai, AK; her daughter, Ann Dolezilek, Littleton, CO; five grandchildren, six great-grandchildren and 1 great-great-grandaughter.

Memorial services will be private.  Memorial contributions may be made to the Rossville Alumni Association and sent in care of Piper Funeral Home, 714 Maple St., St. Marys, Kansas 66536.

Note by Frank:   Wilma worked very hard behind the scenes for the Alumni Assn.  She maintained the data base of addresses and  other data for the Assn for many years and was always my best source of information for this web site and its predesessors for  the last 18 years.   She will be greatly missed by me and my readers.  

Rossville-Colgan Video

    The RHS=Colgan game begins at about the 4:45 point of this video:
http://ksnt.com/2015/11/13/football-frenzy-111315/
     There are also highlights of the game at:
http://www.wibw.com/sports/ksprepzone/headlines/KPZ-Sectional-St-Marys-Colgan-at-Rossville-347837331.html
     Both stations only showed first half highlights.  They missed Tucker Horak's run of the season where he shed numerous tacklers to battle all the way to the goal line from 54 yards out.
   

Rossville Defeats Colgan

From the Capital-Journal:

ROSSVILLE — As much of a lethal weapon as quarterback Tucker Horak is, defending Rossville is truly a “pick your poison” situation.

Colgan knew that going into Friday’s Class 3A playoff quarterfinal, but still concentrated its effort on containing the Bulldawgs’ All-State quarterback.

“You just can’t let Horak beat you,” Colgan coach Chuck Smith said. “Our game plan was to stop him and make the others beat you.”

And that’s just what happened. Christian Roduner and Dawson Hammes turned in big offensive nights and Horak delivered the knockout blow as Rossville fought past the Panthers 42-32 to earn a spot in the Class 3A semifinals. The defending champion Bulldawgs (12-0) won their 26th straight game and will play host to Wellsville (10-2), a 31-14 winner over Sabetha, next week.

Colgan finished the season 9-3, losing to Rossville in the playoffs for the second straight year.

In most offenses, Roduner and Hammes very well could be the headliners. But with Horak running the Bulldawg attack, the two are somewhat relegated to supporting roles, and that’s just fine with them.

At the same time, when they’re called upon, they’re ready.

“Every chance I get to have the ball, I want to make the most of it,” said Roduner, a senior receiver. “Same for Dawson. Early on when we get the ball, we just want to set the tempo. Whenever my number gets called, I get excited and I just do my job to the best of my ability whenever that happens.”

It was Roduner who got the Bulldawgs going in Friday’s game, busting a 46-yard touchdown run on a jet sweep five plays into the game. The Bulldawgs followed his lead, scoring on all three first-half possessions with Horak adding touchdown runs of 1 and 26 yards.

But just as was the case in last week’s playoff win over Nemaha Central, the Bulldawgs couldn’t shake Colgan. The Panthers answered Roduner’s opening touchdown with a field goal and then got a 2-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Cedeno to Connor O’Brien to cap their second drive.

Rossville led just 21-11 at halftime, thanks to Horak’s touchdown run with 1:20 left in the half.

“I thought they had a good game plan,” Rossville coach Derick Hammes said of Colgan. “We knew Cedeno was going to be tough to deal with. Fortunately, we built a little bit of a cushion at the beginning of the game. Our mistakes hurt us a bit and they made some plays.”

Rossville not only had a cushion but was on the verge of blowing out Colgan when Dawson Hammes finished off the Bulldawgs’ first drive of the second half with an 11-yard touchdown run to make it 28-11. Rossville’s defense opened the half with a three-and-out and then held on fourth down on Colgan’s next possession.

But the Panthers got a big break when a Horak pass to the flat was tipped up into the air by the Bulldawg receiver and O’Brien snagged it and returned it 55 yards to the Rossville 5. Two plays later, Cedeno hit O’Brien for a 4-yard score to get the Panthers back within 10.

Colgan couldn’t get any closer. After Horak hit Roduner for a 35-yard touchdown pass, Cedeno and O’Brien hooked up for a third score. Horak then delivered the back-breaker with another highlight-reel touchdown run, breaking one tackle after another on a 54-yard jaunt for a 42-25 lead.

Colgan scored in the final 20 seconds on a 2-yard pass from Cedeno to Garrett Normand, but it wasn’t enough.

Horak finished with 188 yards on the ground and three touchdowns, while throwing for 51 yards. But Hammes added 104 yards rushing and Roduner had a combined 123 yards rushing and receiving to offset a 215-yard passing night by Cedeno.

“I think our balance helped us tonight,” Hammes said. “They did a good job on a couple of our base plays of bottling Tucker up and we were going to need other guys. We’re certainly going to have to have that moving forward.”

Colgan (9-3) 3 8 7 14 — 32

Rossville (12-0) 14 7 7 14 — 42

Ross — Roduner 46 run (Nascimento kick)

Colgan — Steinmiller 22 field goal

Ross — Horak 1 run (Nascimento kick)

Colgan — O’Brien 2 pass from Cedeno (Esch pass from Cedeno)

Ross — Horak 26 run (Nascimento kick)

Ross — Hammes 11 run (Nascimento kick)

Colgan — O’Brien 4 pass from Cedeno (Steinmiller kick)

Ross — Roduner 35 pass from Horak (Nascimento kick)

Colgan — O’Brien 5 pass from Cedeno (Steinmiller kick)

Ross — Horak 54 run (Nascimento kick)

Colgan — Normand 2 pass from Cedeno (Steinmiller kick)

GAME IN FIGURES

                      Ross     Col

First downs        18      17

Rushes-yards  38-370 41-104

Passing             51      215

Comp-Att-Int 4-7-1 20-31-0

Punts            2-27.0  1-27.0

Fumbles-Lost   1-0     1-1

Penalties-Yards 5-40 6-58

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Colgan: Battitori 17-34, Cedeno 16-33, Stewart 1-minus 1, Beck 4-14, Hayes 2-40, Esch 1-minus 16. Rossville: Horak 21-188, Hammes 11-104, Roduner 5-75, Balch 1-3.

PASSING — Colgan: Cedeno 20-31-0, 215 yards. Rossville: Horak 4-7-1, 51 yards.

RECEIVING — Colgan: Hayes 2-12, Battitori 3-19, Normand 8-151, O’Brien 4-17, Stewart 1-7, Beck 2-9. Rossville: Roduner 3-48, Hammes 1-3.

Rossville Advances

    Rossville goes to the semifinal game next Friday after defeating St. Marys Colgan 42-32 on an ideal football night in Rossville.    The game wasn't quite as close as the score would indicate as Colgan scored their final TD with 17 seconds left on the clock.
    The Dawgs handled the panther running game,  but were susceptable to the long pass, and helped the panther cause with a couple pass interference  penalties.
    The Dawgs did most of  their damage on the ground with 365 rushing yards lead by Tucker Horak with 195, Dawson Hammes with 90  and Christian Roduner with 75 yards.  Tucker was 4/7 passing for 52 yards and one TD.
    Horak had one interception when his receiver juggled the ball and the panther defender grabbed it in mid-air and ran it back to within the 5 yard line, where Tucker eventually caught him. This resulted in an quick TD for the panthers two plays later.
 

Dawgs Lead At Half

    The Dawgs have a half-time lead over St. Marys Colgan of 21-11.   Each time has scored when they got the ball.  Rossville received the initial kick,  so they scored their three TDs.  Colgan only got a field goal on their first possession, but got a TD and 2 pt converstion the next time.  
    The Dawg defense has been able to stop the running game,  but Colgan has completed a number of passes to stay close.
    Colgan will receive the 2nd half kick-off,  which gives them a chance to close the gap in what has turned into a real dawg fight.

Kaw Valley # 321 Fifty Years Old

By The Capital-Journal

Two towns with a history as rivals, from two different counties, met on common ground 50 years ago to form one unified school district.

And so on Tuesday the students from Rossville Grade School, in Shawnee County, and those from St. Marys Grade School in adjoining Pottawatomie County got together in St. Marys to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of Kaw Valley USD 321.

In a show of both individuality and togetherness, the school kids maintained separate roles in building a common design that spelled out "Kaw Valley 50" over the length of a football field.

The red-clad kids from Rossville formed the "5" and the word "Kaw." The blue-clad St. Marys kids formed the "0" and the word "Valley."

An aerial drone recorded an overhead view of the formation for a district-wide grade school team photo, and a balloon release followed.

CJ Football Game Predictions

Capital-Journal CLASS 3A Computerized Football Playoff Predictions

93.9 Hoisington 0.4  HALSTEAD 93.5

106.5 ROSSVILLE 26 Colgan 80.5

85 SABETHA 1.2 Wellsville 83.8

106.7 WICHITA COLLEGIATE 14.1 Norton 92.6

2 N 2 Video

    New Video from Rossville High about safe driving.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs0RKSP6ksg&feature=em-subs_digest-g

Two Vehicle Accident On Main St.

From the Capital Journal:

by phil.anderson@cjonline.com

ROSSVILLE — No serious injuries were reported Monday morning in a two-vehicle collision in northwestern Shawnee County that restricted traffic on a highway for about an hour.

Emergency crews were called about 7:45 a.m. to the intersection of N.W. US-24 highway and Main in Rossville after a pickup truck and passenger car collided.

Authorities initially indicated one person suffered serious injuries in the crash, but officers later said those injuries didn’t require ambulance transportation to a hospital.

Shawnee County sheriff’s deputies on the scene said the crash occurred when a white Chevrolet passenger car that was northbound on Main failed to yield the right of way, pulling out in front of a gray Ford F-150 pickup truck that was eastbound on US-24 highway.

The driver’s side of the Chevy was heavily damaged, and the pickup truck’s front end also was damaged.

The vehicles came to rest against each other facing east on the northeast corner of the intersection.

Officers directed traffic around the crash scene until tow trucks arrived and moved the crashed vehicles.