Methodology and the sweep that put Kapaun on top
In an annual accounting of athletic performance across more than 70 schools covered by The Eagle, Kapaun Mt. Carmel emerged as the clear leader for the 2025-26 school year. The ranking system that produced the list awarded points for league, regional and state finishes and added bonuses for winning records — a formula intended to reward both breadth and depth of success.
That approach produced what the paper called a sweeping result: Kapaun finished first in total points, boys points, girls points and points per sport. The Crusaders’ haul included four state championships and 17 top-eight state finishes, a combination that elevated their standing in several different comparative measures.
“Kapaun Mt. Carmel sports delivered excellence on a scale that no other Wichita-area high school could match in the 2025-26 school year.”
What the numbers say about Kapaun’s program
The ranking authors included a per-sport efficiency measure — how many points a school produced for each sport it offered — so that smaller programs with high success rates could be compared with larger schools that simply field more teams. Kapaun led that metric as well.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total points | 761 |
| Sports offered | 22 |
| Points per sport | 34.59 |
| State titles | 4 |
| Top-eight state finishes | 17 |
Why this matters locally
For Wichita-area schools, these rankings are more than bragging rights. They influence how communities see the return on public and private investment in athletics, affect coaching and youth-program pipelines, and shape recruiting for smaller colleges in the region. A program that produces multiple state titles and deep postseason runs in several sports simultaneously shows structural strength: coaching depth, year-round development systems and often steady participation numbers across grades.
The ranking also changes the narrative about which programs are thriving at both the team and departmental level. By recognizing top programs in several ways — pound-for-pound (points per sport), boys-only, girls-only, raw totals and class-by-class leaders — the list aims to reward both large, deep athletic departments and smaller schools that maximize limited opportunities.
Notable on-field moments
Photographs and game recaps accompanying the rankings underline the breadth of Kapaun’s success. One image captured the Crusaders celebrating a girls soccer quarterfinal victory over rival Bishop Carroll, a 5-3 score that illustrates how individual postseason results fed into the broader point totals.
- Multiple lenses: Rankings are produced per sport offered and by raw totals to show different dimensions of success.
- Rewarding postseason accomplishment: Points for league, regional and state finishes — plus bonuses for winning seasons — make deep playoff runs especially valuable.
- Local impact: High finishes influence community perception, youth participation and program funding conversations.
Looking ahead
For coaches, athletic directors and parents across Wichita, the 2025-26 rankings provide both a benchmark and a challenge. Kapaun’s sweep sets a high standard for other programs in the city and suburbs to chase. At the same time, the variety of ranking lenses means other schools can point to strengths on particular fronts — girls programs, boys programs, or efficiency per sport — even if they do not top the overall list.
As the next school year approaches, those programs will parse the same metrics that elevated Kapaun, adjusting coaching staffs, scheduling and youth development to try to climb the list. For Wichita residents who follow high school sports closely, the rankings will be a point of conversation at fall scrimmages and winter tournaments — and a measuring stick for how local athletics compare with the region’s best.
