County girls bounce back
Staff writer
Four of five county girls’ teams bounced back from last week’s losses with victories this week.
Marion
An extremely low-scoring first quarter matchup between the Warriors and Sedgwick ended 42-26 in Marion’s favor Friday night. After the first quarter, the score was 2 to 1.
“Well, the first quarter was an offensive struggle,” coach Jason Hett said. “We could not put the ball in the basket, but our defense played well and kept them from scoring as well.”
Senior Hailey Harshman led her team with 16 points scored and seven rebounds. Dylan Kraus scored 13 points and had nine rebounds and five assists. Kate Wessel scored eight.
“I was pleased with how our defense showed up tonight, we guarded well and made them work for everything they got,” Hett said. “Proud of how we just kept grinding even when something we usually get were not there right away.”
Marion’s last game of the regular season will be Friday on the road against Central Christian Academy.
“This group has really come together and done some really good things this season,” Hett said. “They come to practice every day with good attitudes and have put in the work to improve and get better each week.”
Goessel
It took a while for Goessel or Herington to score their first basket, but the Bluebirds pulled ahead of Herington 12-8 at the end of the first quarter.
After a low scoring second period, Goessel led at halftime, 19-12.
Pressure defense gave the Bluebirds a boost as they held the Railers scoreless in the third quarter and led 30-12.
Goessel then coasted to a 41-18 victory on Senior night on their home court.
Mackenzie Voth led Goessel with 10 points. Jayley Schmidt and Delaney Duerksen each added 8.
The Bluebirds are now 12-6 and await their seed for the sub-state tournament beginning Feb. 24.
Friday’s scheduled game against Hartford has been forfeited to Goessel because of injuries on the Hartford team.
Hillsboro
Hillsboro defeated Council Grove 62-30 on the road Friday night.
Amyah Werth had a hot hand on offense, scoring 35 points, 21 of them from beyond the arc.
“Hopefully, she can stay hot rolling into the post-season,” coach Micah Ratzlaff said.
Hillsboro’s last game of the regular season will be at home Friday for senior night.
The Trojans will be hosts to Nickerson.
Centre
The Cougars beat Peabody-Burns 29-25 at homecoming Friday night.
Junior Ryleigh Jones scored 20 points and had 12 rebounds and 3 steals. Senior Anna Godinez Vinduska scored five with two assists.
“We really struggled at both ends of the court for about the first 10 minutes and were down 11,” coach Landon Hinkson said. “After that the defense was great for the rest of the game, and we were able to slowly chip away at the lead.”
The Cougars will be on the road Friday for their last game of the season against Chase County.
Peabody-Burns
Peabody-Burns played back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday.
On Thursday, Peabody-Burns lost 46-40 at home against Solomon. Adyson Winter scored 14, and Sarah Winfrey scored 13. Abbigail Menedez-Campos pulled down nine rebounds.
On Friday, the Warriors’ traveled to Centre and lost in a low-scoring defensive battle, 29-25. Winter scored eight, and Winfrey scored seven.
“This season has been about building the program and discovering who the Lady Warriors are – a team defined by effort, energy, and a willingness to compete,” coach Linsey Foth said. “We play our best basketball when we push the pace and play with confidence.”
The Warriors will be on the road Friday for their last game of the regular season against Tescott.