Barber’s Bests: The best performances from the final week of the regular season

With playoff positioning on the line for some and a winless season at risk for others, these five Wichita athletes put on a show.

Here are the top performances from Week 8 of the 2018 high school football season:

Mason Edwards: Maize South junior running back

222 rushing yards, 3 rushing touchdowns, 59-22 win vs. Wichita North

It was on his birthday no less.

Edwards helped Maize South to a 5-0 finish to the 2018 season with a monster performance on the Mavericks’ senior night 59-22 win over Wichita North. He had 222 rushing yards and three scores.

Edwards was one of the many Mavericks deserving of a spot in the top five. Senior receiver Corey Minks had 103 receiving yards and three total touchdowns. And senior Andrew Bliss had 102 rushing yards and another score.

Zach Dressler: Douglass senior running back

20 carries, 220 rushing yards, 6 rushing touchdowns, 65-14 win vs. Belle Plaine

Dressler had one of his best games of his already outstanding 2018 season.

His 220 yards and six scores helped Douglass has its second straight district championship and its best record (7-1) this century. But he didn’t have the best touchdown of the night. That came from freshman Matthew Reynolds.

Reynolds hid behind the offensive line, took a sneaky handoff and took off down the left sideline.

Evan Kruse: Campus senior quarterback

9-of-14 passing, 265 passing yards, 6 passing touchdowns, 277.4 passer rating, 49-12 win vs. Hutchinson

Campus has owned Hutchinson over the past two seasons, and Kruse was a big reason in 2018.

The Colts’ transfer quarterback had an impressively efficient night, throwing for six scores on just 14 passes. Campus finished the regular season at 5-3 with the No. 7 seed in Class 6A West.

The Colts’ five-win regular season since the mid-2000s.

Tre Washington: Derby senior running back

35 carries, 258 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns, 35-21 win at Maize

In one of the most high-profile games in Kansas, Washington came through.

Derby has quietly become one of the top rushing teams in Kansas with talented receivers outside to match. Washington has helped the Panthers to more than 2,000 rushing yards in 2018.

The Maize defense came in as one of the best in Class 5A, and Washington had several flashes of excellence around the outside on high-efficiency speed option plays.

Nate Adler: Trinity Academy senior quarterback/linebacker

23-of-35 passing, 341 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, 37 rushing yards, 12 1/2 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 27-8 win vs. Haven

It was their last chance, and he took advantage.

Trinity Academy came into senior night without a win in 2018 after a brutal schedule. Adler was phenomenal on both sides of the ball, helping the Knights to their first win of the season.

Neither Trinity nor Haven qualified for the state playoffs, but Adler’s statline proved it meant more than what it seemed.