Board Report

Max Bottorff - 2nd Place

Elijah Web - 4th Place

Luke Smith - 5th Place

CONGRATULATIONS to both our boys and girls varsity wrestling teams on winning 1st Team All-State Academic Awards!

Boys 1st Team:

Mason Bottorff

Luke Smith

Cody Falk

Evan Falk

Easton Schletzbaum

Max Bottorff

Houston Schletzbaum

Elijah Webb

Boys Honorable Mention:

Rance Vessar

Kannon Crossland

Girls 1st Team:

Natasha Noor

Makayla Crossland

Lauren Smith

Tessa McAlexander

Girls Honorable Mention:

Kaylee McKee

Alexis Ellerman

Trinity Brooks

• NEKL Boys All League Wrestling:

• Mason Bottorff - 1st Team

• Ayden Powell - 2nd Team

• Luke Smith -= 1st Team

• Cody Falk - 1st Team

• EVan Falk - 1st Team

• Rance Vessar - 1st Team

• Easton Schletzbaum - 1st Team

• Max Bottorff - 1st Team

• Houston Schletzbaum - 1st Team

• Elijah Webb - 1st Team

• NEKL Girls All League Wrestling:

• Natasha Noor - 1st Team

• Ayran anderson - 2nd Team

• Tessa McAlexander - 2nd Team

Kinzee Bauerle

• 1st Team - Sports in Kansas 3A All State Basketball Team
• Sports in Kansas Player of the Year Finalist
• 3rd Team All State - KCBA (Basketball Coaches Association)
• 3rd Team KSHSAA All State Team 3A

• Gracie Kimmi and Rebekah Caplinger - 1st Place Business Management - Qualified for Nationals
• Evan Sinclair and Kaylee Foote - 4th Place Network Design - Qualified for Nationals!

On March 30, 2025 Kinzee Bauerel and Kori Wagner represented Atchison County Community High School as members of the gold and navy teams for the HCC Northeast Kansas All Star Basketball Game.

Spring Sport are underway!

JH Track: 54 students - coached by Andrew Eckert and Joyce Thompson

HS Track: 24 students - coached by Brian Malm, Kody Tegtmeier, John Kepler, and Nick Brungardt

HS Baseball - 29 students - coached by Timothy Grillot, Gunnar Koontz, and David Kesinger

HS Softball - 14 students - coached by Courtney Kasson and Alyssay Richardson

We currently have three athletes that are duel sporting between baseball and track.

April Meeting was held on April 2, 2025 at JCN.

1. Commissioner Report: Lary reported that pitch counts need to be check during the game to avoid going over the pitch counts with any pitchers.

2. Regional Baseball and Softball sites have been announced. 3A Baseball will be hosted by Sabetha and 3A Softball will be hosted by Marysville High School.

3. KSHSAA Report:

a) There are some volleyball rule changes that will be coming out for the 2025-2026 season. One change will be the placement of numbers on the jerseys. This could mean, we have to purchase new volleyball jerseys.

b) Shot Clocks will be discussed at the Executive Meeting in a few weeks. The feel from our representative and those that attended the KIAAA meeting is that we need to be prepared within three years for shot clocks.

c) Next year each facility we use for events must have an emergency plan written out and shared with the visiting teams or schools. All sports teams are required next year to have an emergency plan and to conduct drills using the emergency plan. A few teams implemented this during this past season and held drills, with the help of our school nurse. Next year I will have to report the dates of our drills to KSHSAA.

d) KSHSAA is updating the return to play and return to learn concussion protocols for next year. There will also be updates to the heat section of the handbook.

4. League Music Date Change: Maur Hill has not been able attend League music due to their Spring Break being the week prior to everyone else, because they are tied to BC spring break. The League is looking into moving the date up one week, so Maur Hill is able to attend.

5. Powerlifting: It was proposed to add Powerlifting as a league sanctioned sport. Lots of discussion ensued. This subject was tabled to the next meeting.

The April meeting of the Middle School League ADs was held on April 2, 2025 at JCN.

1. League set the dates for the NEKL JH Boys Wrestling League meet for December 2, 2025 at 4:30pm. The event will be held at Riverside. The NEKL JH Girls League meet for January 29, 2026 at 4:30pm. This event will be also held at Riverside.

2. 2026 Track Season - Adding the 200m hurdles to the NEKL Meet and change the Medley relay to the 4x400m.

Next Meeting - Thursday, May 15 at Oskaloosa at 10:00am.

1. Curtain indoor batting cages or ones that drop down from the ceiling. Looking into making the one we currently have into and curtain, so it would be much easier for maintenance or coaches to put up and put away after each use. A drop down or curtain one would be placed at the high school in the new addition. Update - Meeting with Ernie to see exactly what type of net we can get to work in the new addition.

2. New scoreboards, backboards, shot clock, and scoreboard controller. This year KSHSAA is allowing schools to test out shot clocks at high school basketball games on a volunteer basis. Currently Oskaloosa and Valley Falls have implemented the shot clock this year. Horton and Maur Hill have already looked into and purchased the items needed to potentially have shot clocks for next year. The other schools in the league have not made an attempt to purchase these items until KSHSAA mandates shot clocks for all schools. Most of us believe that shot clocks are going to become mandated at some point. After talking with the schools that have already purchased the set up, we would be looking at somewhere between $15,000 to $30,000, depending on our current equipment, wifi capabilities, and the structure of our electricity in the gym. Update: Until KSHSAA makes it mandatory for use of the shot clock at high school games, we are going to wait to get quotes or move forward. I do think it will be coming within the next 2 years based on talks with other ADs and our KSHSAA Representative.

1) Football Stadium Bleachers - at two home football games (this year and last year) we had people fall through the bleachers and had to fix with temporary boards while the games were going on. The bleachers need to be replaced. - We are looking into quotes for cost of fixing or replacing bleachers. Jeff and Tim Bell have offered to sell us lumber at cost to help with saving the district some money.

2) Track - Our track has been unusable for hosting track meets several years now and is only getting worse. With the track being used by community members, elementary students as well as JSH students for PE and other activities, and the track teams, there needs to be some concern about injuries taking place on the cracked and peeling track. Horton is replacing their track and they are looking to spend 1.3 millions dollars to get their track fixed.

3) Baseball/Softball Upgrades:

Update: After Ernie and Dr. Gaddis attended the County Commission meeting, there is some money collected in taxes that will allow us to make some upgrades to the baseball/softball complex. Coach Kasson, Coach Grillot, and I sat down and prioritized what needs to be upgraded over the next two years. Here are our priorities:

1. Fixing outdoor batting cages poles and nets

2. Getting Shade Built for overtop of the bleachers: Update: After meeting with contractors it makes the most sense to wait until we replace asphalts to put in new dugouts.

3. Installing a Hydrant closer to baseball field - will also benefit JH Football practice with access to water

4. Update and remodel dugouts to include better bleachers, cubbies for helmets and gloves, storage closet within the dugouts for easier access to equipment. Update: After meeting with contractors it makes the most sense to wait until we replace asphalts to put in new dugouts.

5. Building real bull pins for both fields on the home and visitor sides for pitchers to have a place to warm up. Update: Dr. Gaddis has had contractors already come out and look at what needs to be done, seems like we can proceed with getting this going soon.

6. New board and padding on the backstops for softball and baseball fields. Update: getting quotes for this project.

7. New Gator for dragging and marking the field Update: Dr. Gaddis is working on quotes.

8. Large bleachers for the softball field - they are much smaller than baseball

9. Real press boxes that are elevated for filming and scorekeeping

10. Sound System to play music, anthem, make announcements, and walk-up songs. Update: Quote was received by Mr. Kirby, approved, and items ordered. We are hoping to have sound systems installed and in use by the first home game.

11. New Scoreboard (which would include pitch counts) and Controllers. Update: the controllers were sent off to be fixed and been returned.

12. Storage building for equipment closer to the fields. Update: Mill Iron V has been contacted to help find the type of storage shed we are looking for.

13. New bases for the ECBA to be able to use that are seperate from the High School ones.

Update: We submitted our list to the county and all of the right now projects were accepted. Dr. Gaddis has had some contractors out to look at the work and some of the items we want to fix or add, would only make sense to complete at the same time as some of our long term projects. Gaddis spoke to the county about this and they decided they wanted us to submit a long term list instead and then the county will discuss.

For example adding in a elevated press box and sun shade for the bleachers would require digging into the asphalt, which needs replaced, so it doesn't make sense to do the sub shades and press bois, unless we are going to replace the asphalt too.

Dr. Gaddis has reached out to his contact at Mammoth and is having them work on some plans for many of these upgrades.

Other Items to potentially add to the long term plan:

1) Changing out toilets from porcelain to steel.

2) Adding venting system to concession so that hot dogs and hamburgers could be grilled inside on a counter top black stone. If this is not an option and new grill is needed.

3) Adding some kitchen cabinets to concessions for more storage.

4) Removing the garage door from concessions, closing it in to make serving windows - then may air conditioning window unit could be added to concession stand making it more bearable to work in on hot days.

Gold Sponsors:

L & L Construction

Bottorff Construction

IRB

Thrivent - Pat and Jennifer Maxwell

Mill Iron V

HB Custom Printing

Bunge

Martin Trash

Silver Sponsors:

Ag Risk Solutions

Exchange Bank

Martin Construction

Rubble Reprocessing

Advanced Hydraulic Supply

Bronze Sponsor:

Thrivent - Ben Hawk (New Sponsor added)

Black Level Sponsors:

Frontier Credit Union

Orange Level Sponsors:

Holton Livestock Exchange

Mueller's Locker Room

Kearney Construction

Foster Ford - Holton

Lewis Chevrolet - Atchison Auto Plaza

Pierce Heating and Cooling

GN Bank - Horton

Kex Rx - Atchison

5th Quarter Sponsors:

Mill Iron V