We're seeing a few leagues wake from their hibernation now that April is upon us, and that's great news.
A few top teams are back from touring and others are on a trip.
We want to focus on a couple of teams in the middle of the country.
The first is Wichita. The Kansas team was playing in Oklahoma but has switched to Kansas (the travel times for both states are similar) looking for more consistent competition. It has already worked out. Their A-side beat the Kansas City Jr. Blues 15-14 last week, with their JVs winning the same fixture also by a point, 22-21.
Does this mean Wichita has arrived? Not quite, said Head Coach Paul Enegren.
"We got started early," Enegren said. "What that means was we got a few late arrivals from wrestling and other sports. But that also allowed some other players to get time."
They logged good early results against United and Oklahoma teams Norman and F5 before tying the Blues in preseason.
They lost to St. Martin's Kingfishers but then added wins over St. Thomas Aquinas and St. James before last week's win over the Junior Blues.
All of this is a result of Wichita chasing competition. Rather than resting on their laurels, the Barbarians decided to put themselves in a position to play more tough games. Clearly the players have responded.
The second is Bixby. Tragically at the beginning of the season Bixby saw one of their top players passed away. Bixby returns to league play this week after a bye week. They are into the meat of their season now, but a season that requires a lot of travel and commitment. they looked very good at the Lindenwood tournament and new Head Coach Simon Hernandez said every player elevated after Jackson Neerman, last year's JV player of the year, passed.
"We have really gone back to basics and worked on mastering our craft," Hernandez said. "Our motto for this year is "control chaos.' Once we control that, every minute will be a step to victory. However, our celebration is also bittersweet. We're still grieving the loss of ur teammate. Jack was a funny, outgoing, crazy kid. Not only did we lose a mate, but a captain at that."
This season Bixby starts every game with 14 players on the field until the first stoppage No one wears #15, Jack Neerman's number, and instead after the first stoppage, the player wearing #16 runs on. It's a massive tribute to the young man, but the leading players, Bryson Davis among themand Sam DeWoody, along with Rhys Novosad and Hector Garcia, have helped channel that grief into a team.
Bixby hosts F5.
Other Notes: St. Thomas Aquinas vs Kingfishers and Georgetown Prep vs Fort Hunt may well be the biggest games of the week, although we're got an eye on Strake Jesuit vs Lake Travis in Texas and Rainier at Liberty in Washington. The Principia Tournament has been rained out, which is a shame.
