1A Div. 1 Sophomore Award Winners

<p>All-state honors are typically dominated by seniors, and to some degree, by juniors. Sophomores have to be pretty special to earn some statewide recognition. At the smaller classes, it does happen more frequently, and at the 1A level, a handful of sophs were recognized for their play last year.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1212167" first="Jordy" last="Dolloff"] of Wichita Classical was the lone 1A Div. 1 sophomore to earn all-state honors. But some other 2023s were recognized for their play at the 1A Div. 1 level:</p> <p><strong>Landon Grimmett</strong>, 5-foot-11 guard, Lebo:</p> <p>The heir apparent to all-timer [player_tooltip player_id="1072883" first="Devan" last="McEwen"], the athletic Grimmett earned honorable mention for helping Lebo on its playoff run. He showed he can produce points in bunches, highlighted by his 20 points against West Franklin. He knocked down three 3’s and finished with 10 points in the sub-state final loss to Madison.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1080195" first="Makaen" last="Hastings"], 5-foot-9 guard, Solomon:</p> <p>An athletic dynamo who fearlessly attacks the goal and finds shots from distance, Hastings put up 18.1 points per game as a sophomore, while also dishing out 3.8 assists. He earned honorable mention all state for the second year in a row. Hastings is getting good reviews from his work with SSA Hoops Elite this summer. With graduations, he will stand to earn a spot on the all-state team next year.</p> <p><strong>Rogelio Ibarra</strong>, 5-foot-9 guard, Macksville:</p> <p>One third of a dynamic sophomore trio with [player_tooltip player_id="1213186" first="Ryan" last="Kuckelman"] and <strong>Alexis Barron</strong>, Ibarra is a quick and acrobatic point guard. He raced his way to 16.3 points per game last year, and will be a tough guy to stop as he creates for this up-and-coming team.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1213186" first="Ryan" last="Kuckelman"], 6-foot-6 center, Macksville:</p> <p>One of the top big men and leading rebounders at the 1A level, Kuckelman earned honorable mention as a sophomore. He pulled down 10.2 boards and blocked 1.9 shots last year, and will be a force in the lane for Macksville to build around the next two years.</p> <p><strong>Ethan Waters</strong>, 6-foot guard, Fairfield:</p> <p>Waters is a versatile stat-sheet stuffer for the Falcons. He averaged 15.5 points, 8.2 boards and 2.0 assists, picking up honorable mention honors as a sophomore. His athleticism was on display as he picked off 2.7 steals and blocked 1.1 shots per game.</p>