The 2024-25 athletic school year, at the high school level, is now complete and the North Central Kansas League had three baseball and three softball teams that saw their seasons completed this past week in their respective Class 4A state tournaments, but only one of those six teams, the Rock Creek Mustang baseball team, saw its season play out until the final day as five of the six teams lost their opening round games in the state tournament this past week.
The Rock Creek Mustangs, however, won their Class 4A state baseball tournament opener to qualify for the semifinals, but lost the semifinal game before closing out the season with a 3rd place finish on Saturday.
The Mustangs were joined by NCKL rivals Abilene and Clay Center in the Class 4A state tournament, but the Cowboys and Tigers lost their state openers on Thursday.
Chapman, Wamego and Rock Creek all qualified for the Class 4A state softball tournament, but all three NCKL teams lost their state softball opening round games to see their seasons come to an end one day shy of playing to the end.
Here is a look at what each NCKL team did this past week:
ABILENE
The Cowgirl softball team finished in 7th place in the NCKL with a 5-19, 2-10 record. … The Cowboy baseball team lost 4-2 against Fort Scott on Thursday in the opening round of the Class 4A state tournament. The Cowboys finished the season with a 16-11 record.
CHAPMAN
The Lady Irish softball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday when it lost 4-0 against Fort Scott in the opening round of the Class 4A state tournament. The Lady Irish finished the season with a 23-4 record. … The Fighting Irish baseball team finished the season in 6th place in the NCKL with an 11-12, 4-8 record.
CLAY CENTER
The Lady Tiger softball team finished the season in 5th place in the NCKL with a 6-15, 4-8 record. … The Tiger baseball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday when it lost 4-3 against Paola in the opening round of the Class 4A state tournament. The Tigers finished the season with a 17-7 record.
CONCORDIA
The Lady Panther softball team finished the season in 6th place in the NCKL with an 8-13, 2-10 record. … The Panther baseball team finished the season in 5th place in the NCKL with a 13-8, 5-7 record.
MARYSVILLE
The Lady Bulldog softball team finished the season in 4th place in the NCKL with a 12-10, 6-6 record. … The Bulldog baseball team finished the season in 7th place in the NCKL with a 10-14, 1-11 record.
ROCK CREEK
The Lady Mustang softball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday when it lost 4-0 against Eudora in the opening round of the Class 4A state tournament. The Lady Mustangs finished the season with a 17-7 record. … The Mustang baseball team opened play in the Class 4A state tournament on Thursday with a 3-1 victory against Mulvane. The Mustangs defeated McPherson 3-1 on Friday in the semifinals but lost 6-4 against Fort Scott in the championship game. The Mustangs finished the season as the 2nd place team in Class 4A with a 23-7 record.
WAMEGO
The Lady Raider softball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday when it lost 4-2 against Clearwater in the opening round of the Class 4A state tournament. The Lady Raiders finished the season with a 19-5 record. … The Red Raider baseball team finished the season in 4th place in the NCKL with a 12-8, 7-5 record.
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2025 NCKL Softball Standings
NCKL Overall
Team W L W L
Wamego 10 2 19 5
Chapman 10 2 23 6
Rock Creek 8 4 17 7
Marysville 6 6 12 10
Clay Center 4 8 6 15
Concordia 2 10 8 13
Abilene 2 10 5 19
Thursday, May 29
Clearwater 4, Wamego 2
Eudora 4, Rock Creek 0
Fort Scott 4, Chapman 0
2025 NCKL Baseball Standings
NCKL Overall
Team W L W L
Rock Creek 10 2 23 7
Clay Center 9 3 18 7
Abilene 6 6 16 11
Wamego 7 5 12 8
Concordia 5 7 13 8
Chapman 4 8 11 12
Marysville 1 11 10 14
Thursday, May 29
Rock Creek 3, Mulvane 1
Fort Scott 4, Abilene 2
Paola 4, Clay Center 3
Friday, May 30
Rock Creek 3, McPherson 1
Fort Scott 6, Rock Creek 4
