Events
The association's largest event is the Kansas State track and field championships, which are held the weekend before Memorial Day at Cessna Stadium on the campus of Wichita State University. The meet, which features athletes from schools in all six classes, is one of the nation's largest high school meet, with more than 3,300 athletes participating. The state track meet hosted its 100th competition in 2010. Former GWAL Athletic Director and current Assistant Superintendent of Wichita Public Schools, Bill Faflick holds the position of Meet Director and has been widely praised for his direction of the meet.
The eight-man football championships are held the Saturday before Thanksgiving, while the 11-man football title games are held the Saturday after Thanksgiving, ensuring the football season ends before December 1. The games are held at various sites across the state, with popular sites including Fort Hays State University in Hays, Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas, the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas State University in Manhattan, Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, and Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, as well as high school stadiums in Salina and Topeka. The eight-man championships are currently held at Fischer Field in Newton.
Kansas is one of the few states, especially in the Midwest, that holds state football championship games at different sites. State championships in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin are held at a single central location, while Ohio holds its games at stadiums in Canton and Massillon, which are located only 11 miles apart.
The state basketball championships are held the second week of March, with girls and boys competition taking place at the same time. The sites for the six classes remained constant from 1990 through 2010, with 6A at Wichita State, 5A at the Kansas Expocenter in Topeka, 4A at the Bicentennial Center in Salina, 3A at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 2A at Bramlage Coliseum on the KSU campus, and 1A at Fort Hays State's Gross Memorial Coliseum. The 4A, 3A and 1A tournaments began at their current locations in 1980.
In 2011, the 6A tournament moved to Charles Koch Arena on the campus of Wichita State University, with Emporia taking over the Class 1A-Division I tournament. The 1A-Division II tournament remained at Hays.
The University of Kansas' Allen Fieldhouse has not hosted a state basketball tournament since 1987.
State championships for baseball and softball are held at the same time as the track championship, usually at community colleges or large recreational fields, although some championships have been held at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium in Wichita, home of the National Baseball Congress tournament and the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball's Wichita Wingnuts, as well as Hoglund Ballpark at KU in Lawrence. The 2011 Class 6A tournament was hosted by KU, and the 5A tournament was hosted by Wichita State at Eck Stadium.
State championships for wrestling are held in late February every year. Up until 2005, classes 6,5, and 4A held separate but concurrently running tournaments at the Kansas Coliseum in Wichita, Kansas, while 3-2-1A held their tournament at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. After that year, KSHSAA began looking for alternative sites for the classes to hold their tournaments for a number of reasons, including remodeling which was to begin on the Coliseum in the following years.
In 2006, 4A left 5A and 6A and held its own tournament at the Bicentennial Center in Salina, Kansas, while the other classes stayed at their respective sites. In the 2007-08 season, each of the 4 classes competed in 4 separate facilities, as the Coliseum was not be available. 3-2-1A and 4A remained in Hays and Salina respectively, while 6A moved to Charles Koch Arena at Wichita State University and 5A moved to Hutchinson High School.
The 2009 6A and 5A championships returned to the Kansas Coliseum, but only for a one-year contract. The 2010 5A and 6A state wrestling tournaments were held at the Intrust Bank Arena. The 2011 6A and 5A state championships were moved to the Hartman Arena in Park City, Kansas, and will continue there in 2012..
Due to Kansas' cold climate in the winter, the championships for golf, tennis, and soccer are split. Girls compete in golf and tennis in the fall and soccer in the spring, while boys compete in soccer in the fall and golf and tennis in the spring. Boys' golf teams may compete in grass green (traditional) or sand green competition. Girls who attend schools without golf, tennis, and soccer teams are allowed to play on the boys' teams at the school.
Read more about this topic: Kansas State High School Activities Association
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