Board Highlights

The Piper High School Men’s Powerlifting Team, coached by Kevin Coker and Justin Richmond, delivered a strong performance this season. The team, fielding a squad of 37 athletes—10 of them seniors—powered their way to a fifth-place team finish at the 5A State Meet in the clean while also finishing in fourth place as a team at the 5A State Deadlift Meet, amassing a notable collection of individual medals bringing home 6 bronze medals, 5 silver medals, and 7 gold medals.

Three Pirates—Keith Slaughter, Jacob Bruce, and Jovahni Perez—secured top-25 finishes in power ratio for the lightweight divisions, while in the power weight classes, Noah Collins and Connor Musil both landed in the top 25 for power ratio.

In the 123lb class, senior Jovahni Perez continued his dominance by earning his second consecutive state championship. Jovahni earned a bronze medal in the bench press, gold in the clean, and gold in the squat with a commanding 280-pound squat, winning the event by a 35-pound margin. Over the course of his illustrious career, Perez has amassed four bronze, four silver, and six gold state medals and owns nine school records across two weight classes, solidifying his status as one of Piper’s all-time greats.

In the 140lb division, senior Kellen Heier is the 2025 state runner-up, earning the silver medal with an impressive 720lb total, highlighted by a silver medal in the deadlift with a 330lb lift—2.4 times his body weight.

In the 148lb class, junior Jacob Bruce posted two personal bests en route to a fourth-place finish. His 210-pound bench, 300-pound squat, and 210-pound clean netted him two fourth-place event finishes and a bronze medal in the clean.

Connor Musil led the way for the Pirates in the 181lb class, capturing gold in the squat with a school-record 455-pound effort. He also tied his career-best (and school record) 260-pound clean to claim silver. Musil totaled 930 pounds, finishing fourth overall.

Senior Noah Collins set a new school record and claimed a bronze medal with a 465-pound squat, contributing to his 1,025-pound total. Collins holds 11 school records across three weight classes and has earned six bronze medals over the course of his career.

Junior lifter Arrin Taylor earned his way to a bronze medal finish in the Men’s Power Weight division, benching 270lb for a bronze medal and deadlifting 450lb on the way to a 1,125lb total.

Senior Keith Slaughter continued to cement his legendary status by clinching his fourth state championship trophy. Slaughter boasts 12 gold and four silver state medals, holds 17 Piper school records across three weight classes, and is the owner of three state records. Though he moved up to compete in a new weight class in 2025, Slaughter still earned the coveted Lightweight Lifter of the Meet for the second time in as many years. Slaughter’s career is highlighted by setting a Kansas state record in 2024 with a 6.775 power ratio—a mark that established him as the strongest pound-for-pound lifter in the history of Kansas High School Powerlifting.

The Piper High School Women’s Powerlifting Team, coached by Kevin Coker and Justin Richmond, once again showcased its depth and talent at the Kansas 5A State Powerlifting Meets this year, capturing a hard-earned third-place finish at the 5A Clean Meet and a state runner-up finish at the Kansas 5A Deadlift Meet. The team brought home a wealth of individual honors, including 25 bronze medals, 15 silver medals, and 16 gold medals.

The Pirates, who fielded 35 athletes—including ten seniors—demonstrated formidable strength in nearly every weight class, underscoring the program’s reputation as a force in Kansas powerlifting.

In the 105lb class, junior Natalie McCoy swept first place in every event, totaling 435 lbs and showcasing a remarkable 4.175 power ratio. McCoy has either tied or set new standards for every school record in the 105lb class.

In the 114lb division, junior Isabella Larrosa was steady in every lift, finishing second overall with a 400lb total.

In the 123lb division, freshman Sadie Young claimed first in the squat and finished second overall with a 430lb total.

Senior Maya Cruz battled to a fourth-place power ratio. The decorated senior holds multiple records, including squat, total, and power ratio. Her career highlight came in 2023 as the state runner-up, earning two bronze medals and two silver medals at the state meet in her career.

Junior Calei McConnell excelled with career-best lifts in the bench press, squat, and clean, achieving a career-best 485lb total and a bronze medal finish.

Sophomore Caliyah Jones secured silver with a 505lb total, highlighted by a gold medal squat. Jones also brought home silver medals in the bench press and the deadlift.

Sophomore Brynley Green capped off her season with a silver medal finish for total weight lifted, highlighted by a silver medal squat that secured her state runner-up finish.

Juniors Maia Dolinar and Nora Turney, alongside senior Rylie Wiseman, ensured Piper remained among the top contenders in the 148lb division. Wiseman and Dolinar tied for third in the clean with impressive 155lb lifts.

Dolinar improved on her fourth-place finish in 2024, earning state runner-up in the class in 2025. She earned bronze medals in the bench press and clean.

Nora Turney finished third in the class, highlighted by a bronze medal lift in the clean with a 170lb effort. Turney also earned silver medals in the bench press and deadlift at the state meet.

Sophomore Ellie Bennett continued the championship streak in the 165lb class by earning bronze medals in the bench and deadlift, but she capped off the day with a gold medal squat, elevating her to first in total and bringing home the championship title in the class.

Junior Lillie Bauer continued her rise by breaking a school record in the squat with a 290lb lift, securing a bronze medal. She added another bronze with a career-best clean and finished the day at 540lbs for fourth overall.

Senior Brylee Little wrapped up her career by sweeping the 172lb class—claiming four gold medals, including an impressive 640lb total. She ends her career with four bronze medals, two silver medals, and four gold medals at the state meet, including a runner-up overall finish in 2023 and a 2025 class championship.

Senior Malia Martin continued her record-breaking dominance, raising her own state record squat from 300lb to 315lbs. In 2024, Martin set new state records in the bench press, squat, and total weight. She will end her high school career as a four-time state champion, holding four state records across 4A and 5A. Remarkably, Martin has gone 16-for-16 in opportunities to win gold at the state meet, making her the most decorated athlete in Piper powerlifting history and one of the all-time greats in Kansas High School Powerlifting. Martin has won more gold medals in powerlifting than any competitor in the history of Piper High School Powerlifting.

The Pirates will graduate 10 seniors: Kylie Cox, Kaelynn Coffman, Maya Cruz, Brylee Little, Malia Martin, Allyson McKinney, Morgan Miller, Kamryn Monroe, Tatiana Pate, and Rylie Wiseman, whose leadership has built a consistent contender in Kansas High School Powerlifting.

Congratulations to this month’s Classified Hype Squad Member, Courtney Wagner, intervention aide at Piper Creek Elementary. Her supervisor said, “Courtney is such a calm and encouraging presence for our students. She is a committed helper and such a wonderful teammate. She helps so many students in a day and is a solid teacher with our intervention team. We are so grateful for Miss Wagner at Piper Creek.”

A colleague said, “Courtney goes above and beyond in her role as an interventionist aide. She is definitely more like a third certified interventionist at PCE. In my years of working with her she has proved to be reliable, collaborative and willing to expand her knowledge to improve her instruction. The students enjoy her small groups and respond well to her calm nature. I am so proud to call her my teammate!”

Another team member said, “Courtney goes above and beyond in her duties as a member of the Piper Creek Intervention team. She is here everyday, working with students and helping with all the other responsibilities of the intervention team. She steps right in to do whatever is needed to be done. She knows almost all of the students and is well liked by them. Piper Creek Intervention is extremely appreciative and lucky to have her on the team.”

Courtney is joined by her principal, Mrs. Jenny Golden. Congrats, Courtney!

Congratulations to this month’s Certified Hype Squad member, Michael Dolezal,(DA-LEZ-AL) 6th Grade Science Teacher at Piper Middle School!

Mr. Dolezal was not nominated once, but three times by his students! Here is what they had to say:

“He is always super kind and considerate, he cares a lot about his students and will check on you and is super friendly.”

“He is constantly providing help to students, and makes sure that everyone knows how to do an assignment before he assigns it.”

“Whenever anyone has a problem he is always there to support them, he also cares a lot for his students and helps them to be successful. He's helped me a lot with my work and when I am caught up, he's kind and helpful, and gives good advice.”

Michael was joined by his principal, Mr. Tim Leffert.