Graf gleans Sun's top honor again: Yale-bound SM East senior does it all for Lancers; repeats as All-Sun Player of Year

A household name in Sun Country, one Janna Graf’s.

For that, thank a sparkling high school basketball career that made deep impressions early.

Yet far more critically, Graf has continued to chip away, ultimately progressing with the sort of lasting inroads of which prep legends are made and programs built.

And so, we welcome back to the limelight this Shawnee Mission East High School senior for a rare repeat run as the No. 1 girls basketball player in all of Sun Country.

We are not alone, of course.

She also is a reigning two-time Sunflower League Player of the Year.

A classroom star as well, she departs for the Ivy League and Yale University’s women’s hoops program as a first-team all-state selection this season by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association. She rates No. 2 on the her high school’s all-time scoring and rebounding list by virtue of her 1,200 career points and 620 career rebounds.

(Insert breath here.)

Her storied prep career culminated with a senior year when Graf averaged 21 points and 9.9 rebounds per game for the co-Sunflower League champions (along with eventual Class 6A state-champion Olathe South, which also posted a 10-1 league mark).

The versatile Graf also proved good for four steals and three assists a game for the Lancers, who advanced to the state tournament for a second time in as many years this season.

Last year’s trip to state had marked the first for the Lancers since 1990.

“We coaches always say if you work hard enough, you can be anything you want to be,” said Lancers coach Rick Rhoades, who will move on to coach the brand new Blue Valley Southwest girls program next season after guiding SM East for the past six seasons.

Former team assistant Scott Stein will guide the Lancers next season.

“She is not going to wow you with her athletic ability,” Rhoades said of Graf, “but her incredible work ethic and determination is like no other player that I have coached in my 20 years.”

As for her versatility, “Janna can play every position on the floor,” Rhoades noted. “Her stats will back that up. She is willing to play any position that her team needs her to play. Come to think of it, she has played all positions in her career at SM East.”

Below, listed alphabetically, are the four elite players who join Graf to make up this year’s All-Sun first-team cast:

DaShawn Harden

Junior

St. Thomas Aquinas

The 5-9 Harden, who earned the distinction of the East Kansas League’s Most Valuable Player this season, led the Saints in their assault at the Class 5A state tournament in Topeka.

There, Aquinas emerged as state runner-up and completed a remarkable 23-2 season that included an undefeated run through the tough East Kansas League portion of the slate.

Harden led a deep Aquinas team in scoring this season with 13.7 points per game.

She also rated tops among Saints in steals per game and assists per game with 4.5 and 3.0, respectively. She proved second on the Aquinas team in rebounds with 4.1 per contest.

Harden, a first-team Kansas Basketball Coaches Association all-state selection in 5A, transferred to Olathe South on April 2 and plans to play for the reigning 6A state-champion Falcons next season.

After declaring a non-binding oral commitment to Kansas University as a freshman, this DiRenna Award finalist withdrew her commitment to the Jayhawks in March and has reopened her recruiting process.

“DaShawn really improved her focus and effort on and off the floor this season,” St. Thomas Aquinas coach Rick Hetzel, the All-Sun Girls Basketball Coach of the Year, said. “She matured both as a player and a person. It is fun to coach a kid that gives that much effort.”

Lizzy Jeronimus

Junior

SM West

This 5-11 guard/forward is a repeat All-Sun first-team selection.

A three-year letterwinner for the Vikings, Jeronimus was a second-team all-state selection in Class 6A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association as well as a repeat first-team All-Sunflower League choice.

She averaged 16 points, 7.5 rebounds. 2.5 steals, 2.5 assists and a pair of blocks per contest this season after averaging 14.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore for Coach Mark Rabbitt’s team.

“The best part about Lizzy is that she is a better teammate and a better person than she is a player,” said Rabbitt, who will serve as the boys coach at brand new Blue Valley Southwest next season after a pair of seasons leading the Vikings girls.

“And that is saying something because she is one heck of a player. Lizzy is one of the most dynamic players in the city.

“She can play point guard – she was our starting point guard as a sophomore – and is now one of the best players in the league with her back to the goal, and she is more naturally a wing player. Over the past year, she has really stepped up her defense and rebounding as well. She led our team in almost every statistical category, but honestly, statistics don’t do justice to the impact she has on a game.”

Brianna Kulas

Senior

SM North

Kulas, a 5-11 guard, will continue her basketball career at Kansas State University next season after closing out a memorable prep career with a stellar senior campaign.

She averaged 17 points per game to go along with five rebounds and three blocked shots.

Blessed with tremendous range, she converted 49 percent of her three-point attempts this season.

Honored as a first-team All-Sun performer now for a second straight season, the consistent Kulas also was a first-team All-Sunflower League selection for a second in as many campaigns. She gleaned honorable-mention all-state status from the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association for a second straight year as well.

“Brianna has guard skills in a post’s body,” SM North coach Kelly Dennis said, “which makes her unique and allows her to achieve special things on the court. Everyone at SM North is excited to see Brianna compete at K-State the next four years.”

Shandelyn Stewart

Junior

Bishop Miege

Stewart, a 5-10 junior, proved a vital cog in the Stags’ fourth-place finish at the Class 5A state tournament at the Topeka Expocentre.

Stewart also had a starting role in the team’s run to the 5A state title in 2009.

This season, the junior registered 16 points per game along with an eight-rebound average.

She further averaged four assists and a pair of blocks per contest.

The Kansas Basketball Coaches Association named Stewart a first-team all-state performer in 5A.

Closer to home, Stewart earned first-team All-East Kansas League status.

“Shandelyn was our go-to player in big situations when we needed a score,” Miege coach Terry English said. “She played almost all 32 minutes (of each game) and was always up for the challenge to guard the best player on the opposing team.

“We are looking forward to great things from her in her senior season.”

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