By Brent Maycock – KSHSAA Covered
HUTCHINSON – Two-time defending champion Goodland has a vastly different look this year than its previous title teams.
That happens when you graduate a senior class like the one the Cowgirls bid adieu to after going undefeated a year ago to defend its 2022 state title.
But you know what? There’s an awfully familiar look to Goodland as well as the Cowgirls once again are in position to challenge for the Class 3A state championship.
It took everything Goodland had, but the Cowgirls kept their drive for a third straight state championship alive, edging upset-minded Girard 32-30 in Thursday’s state quarterfinals at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. Haley Biermann’s 3-pointer with 25 seconds left was the game-winner as the Cowgirls ran their win streak in Hutchinson to seven straight games.
Goodland (21-3) will take on Hesston (21-3) in Friday’s 8 p.m. semifinal after the Swathers routed Cheney 65-43.
The three-peat was in big-time danger as Goodland trailed 18-11 at halftime after making just 5 of 22 shots in the opening half against Girard’s zone defense. Rylee Brooks then hit a 3-pointer to start the third to push Girard’s lead to 10 and the Trojans extended it two 11 two minutes into the second half.
Then Goodland snapped to life. The Cowgirls put together a 9-0 run to cut Girard’s lead to two. Jeriah Adolph momentarily halted Goodland’s surge with a 3-point with just over a minute to go to put the Trojans up 26-21 at the end of the third.
Goodland then opened the fourth quarter with eight straight points, taking the lead with 5:47 left on a Marie Martin bucket. Girard took the punch, however, and got baskets from Hayden Buckley and Erika Boatman to go back on top with 3:31 left.
Girard had two possessions to extend its lead but turned it over on a jump ball tie-up and charge, the latter coming with 45 seconds to play. Thirteen seconds later, Biermann flashed open at the top of the key and buried the game-winner – her only basket of the night after missing her first nine field goal attempts and first six 3-pointers.
Girard still had time to tie and couldn’t convert a 3-pointer or a putback. Maddie Coester was fouled with 2.4 seconds left on a second putback try, but she missed both free throws and Goodland survived.
Martin came off the bench for 10 points to lead Goodland while Jaxi Mitchek had 8 points and 10 rebounds. Girard, which finished 17-7, was led by 7 points apiece from Boatman and Rylee Brooks.
SILVER LAKE 75, HAVEN 38 – Undefeated Silver Lake continued its dominant season, recording its 24th win double digits and 16th by at least 30 points.
The Eagles led 24-5 at the end of the first quarter and 41-13 at halftime, cruising into Friday’s 4 p.m. semifinal where they will take on Hayden (20-4) at 4 p.m. with the Wildcats handling Heritage Christian 48-33.
Silver Lake showed off a complete game in the rout. When it wasn’t MaKenzie McDaniel getting her points inside – 18 of the Eagles’ 46 in the paint – it was McKinley Kruger torching the Wildcats from outside. The senior guard hit 6 of 14 3-pointers and Silver Lake made six as a team in the first half while Haven finished the game 0 of 8 beyond the arc.
Defensively, the Eagles shut down more than just Haven’s perimeter game. The Wildcats made just 2 of 13 baskets in the first quarter and for the game went 14 off 44 (31.8%).
Sienna DeFrain led the Wildcats (16-8) with 20 points.
HAYDEN 48, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 33 – Late in the regular season, Hayden endured a scoreless first quarter in falling down big to Emporia.
In Thursday’s quarterfinals, the Wildcats flipped the script on Heritage Christian. Hayden shut out the Chargers 11-0 in the first period and rode the momentum of the lockdown start to a comfortable victory in their Class 3A debut after being in 4A for most of their existence.
Hayden (20-4) is in the state semifinals for the first time since 2016 and will take on a Silver Lake team that is just 10 miles down the road and has been a fixture of late in the 3A semifinals with this year’s appearance the third straight for the Eagles.
After leading 11-0 at the end of the first, Hayden stretched its lead to 25-7 by halftime and 38-13 at the end of the third before Heritage Christian erupted for 20 points in the final quarter to close the final margin.
Amelia Ramsey had a huge night for Hayden with 20 points and 14 rebounds while Brylee Meier added 12 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Heritage Christian ended the season with a program-best 20-4 mark and was led by 15 points from Mia Vinson, who hit 4 of 6 3-pointers, all in the second half.
HESSTON 65, CHENEY 43 – Hesston junior standout Kendal Brueggen put on a shooting display in her first state-tournament appearance, leading the Swathers to the state semifinals for the first time since 2015.
Brueggen hit 13 of 20 shots from the field, including 4 of 7 3-pointers, on her way to a 31-point game. Her hot start helped Hesston to a 20-9 lead at the end of the first quarter and 31-15 halftime advantage.
Hesston hit 9 of 14 shots overall in the first quarter and cooled only slightly in the second period where the Swathers hit 5 of 9 shots, finishing the half a sizzling 60.8% in the half. Cheney, meanwhile, hit just 3 of 13 shots in the half (23%).
Though the Cardinals heated up in the second half, Hesston never left an opening for them to make a dent in the lead.
Kaycee Mason backed Brueggen’s big game with 10 points. Cheney, which finished 19-5, was led by 15 points from Raegen Black.
CLASS 3A GIRLS STATE QUARTERFINAL BOXSCORES
SILVER LAKE 75, HAVEN 38
Haven … 5 … 8 … 15 … 10 … — … 38
Silver Lake … 24 … 17 … 17 … 17 … — … 75
Haven (16-8) – Brawner 3-14 2-2 8, Estill 1-3 0-0 2, Si. DeFrain 7-14 6-8 20, So. DeFrain 1-4 2-5 4, Cooprider 1-2 0-0 2, Holzrichter 1-5 0-0 2, Percy 0-0 0-0 0, Nisly 0-0 0-0 0, Idacavage 0-1 0-0 0, Williams 0-1 0-2 0, Minnis 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 14-44 10-17 38.
Silver Lake (24-0) – Deiter 4-11 0-0 9, McDaniel 9-14 0-2 18, Hanni 6-8 0-0 12, K. Kruger 2-8 1-1 5, M. Kruger 6-14 0-0 18, Wehrli 1-4 2-2 5, Bolan 1-2 1-2 3, Wise 0-0 0-0 0, Zordel 1-1 0-0 2, Heiman 1-1 0-1 2, Brewster 0-0 1-2 1, Wende 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 31-63 5-10 75.
3-point goals – Haven 0-8 (Brawner 0-2, Si. DeFrain 0-2, Estill 0-1, So. DeFrain 0-1, Holzrichter 0-2); Silver Lake 8-22 (M. Kruger 6-12, Deiter 1-4, Wehler 1-3, K. Kruger 0-1, Bolan 0-1, Wende 0-1). Rebounds – Haven 24 (Si. DeFrain 4), Silver Lake 40 (McDaniel 9). Assists – Haven 6 (Estill2), Silver Lake 22 (Hanni 8). Turnovers – Haven 12, Silver Lake 5. Total fouls – Haven 14, Silver Lake 11. Fouled out – none.
HAYDEN 48, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 33
Hayden … 11 … 14 … 13 … 10 … — … 48
Heritage Christian … 0 … 7 … 6 … 20 … — … 33
Hayden (20-4) – Sandstrom 2-8 2-2 6, Ramsey 67-10 5-5 20, Meier 5-8 0-0 12, Grunert 1-4 0-0 3, Greco 0-3 0-0 0, Rea. Huscher 0-3 0-0 0, Reid 1-1 0-0 2, Fuilton 2-7 0-0 4, Ree. Huscher 0-0 0-0 0, Foster 0-0 0-0 0, Watts 0-0 1-2 1, Borjon 0-0 0-0 0. Total 18-44 8-9 48.
Heritage Christian (20-4) – Ferguson 3-12 1-3 7, Sachau 0-6 1-2 1, Cunningham 2-2 0-0 5, Vinson 5-9 1-2 15, Schenk 1-11 2-3 4, Wolf 0-1 1-2 1, McVay 0-4 0-0 0, Gower 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 11-45 6-12 33.
3-point goals – Hayden 4-14 (Meier 2-4, Grunert 1-4, Ramsey 1-1, Sandstrom 0-1, Greco 0-1, Rea. Huscher 0-1, Fulton 0-2); Heritage 5-15 (Vinson 4-6, Cunningham 1-1, Ferguson 0-3, Sachau 0-1, McVay 0-4). Rebounds – Hayden 38 (Ramsey 14), Heritage Christian 23 (Schenk 4). Assists – Hayden 12 (Meier 4, Fulton 4), Heritage 9 (Sachau 3). Turnovers – Hayden 20, Heritage Christian 17. Total fouls – Hayden 16, Heritage Christian 10. Fouled out – none.
GOODLAND 32, GIRARD 30
Girard … 7 … 11 … 8 … 4 … — … 30
Goodland … 6 … 5 … 10 … 11 … — … 32
Girard (17-7) – Coester 1-3 0-0 2, Bradshaw 0-0 0-0 0, Buckley 1-5 0-0 2, R. Brooks 2-9 2-2 7, P. Brooks 2-3 0-0 4, Adolph 2-4 0-0 6, Boatman 3-9 1-3 7, Keller 1-2 0-0 2, Davied 0-0 0-0 0, Sisney 0-1 0-0 0, O’Rand 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 12-36 3-7 30.
Goodland (21-3) – L. Cure 0-5 1-2 1, Mitchek 4-8 0-0 8, Blochlinger 0-1 2-4 2, Ho. Biermann 1-4 0-0 3, Ha. Biermann 1-10 0-0 3, A. Cure 0-3 0-0 0, Linton 2-3 1-4 5, Martin 5-9 0-0 10. Totals 13-43 4-10 32.
3-point goals – Girard 3-11 (Adolph 2-4, R. Brooks 1-3, Boatman 0-1); Goodland 2-19 (Ho. Biermann 1-4, Ha. Biermann 1-7, L. Cure 0-2, A. Cure 0-3, Martin 0-3). Rebounds – Girard 23 (Boatman 7), Goodland 32 (Mitchek 10). Assists – Girard 11 (R. Brooks 5), Goodland 9 (Ho. Biermann 3, Ha. Biermann 3). Turnovers – Girard 17, Goodland 15. Total fouls – Girard 13, Goodland 16. Fouled out – Goodland: Blochlinger.
HESSTON 65, CHENEY 43
Cheney … 9 … 6 … 17 … 11 … — … 43
Hesston … 20 … 11 … 18 … 16 … — … 65
Cheney (19-5) – McCormick 1-4 3-6, 5, Black 5-10 4-10 15, Batt 0-1 4-4 4, Inslee 0-2 0-0 0, Ayres 3-8 3-4 10, Frieden 0-2 1-4 1, Block 1-1 2-2 4, Hedstrom 1-1 2-2 4, Fouquet 0-1 0-0 0, K. Wehrman 0-0 0-0 0, Wells 0-0 0-0 0, A. Wehrman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 11-30 19-32 43.
Hesston (21-3) – Brueggen 13-20 1-3 31, Proctor 3-4 1-1 7, Mason 5-7 0-1 10, Yoder 3-4 0-0 7, Magill 0-0 0-0 0, Phillips 1-2 0-0 2, Williams 3-3 2-3 8, White 0-0 0-0 0, Lehman 0-0 0-0 0, Krehbiel 0-0 0-0 0, Grilliot 0-0 0-0 0, Gillespie 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-40 4-8 65.
3-point goals – Cheney 2-15 (Black 1-2, Ayres 1-6, McCormick 0-3, Batt 0-1, Inslee 0-2, Frieden 0-1); Hesston 5-8 (Brueggen 4-7, Yoder 1-1). Rebounds – Cheney 15 (McCormick 4), Hesston 25 (Brueggen 7). Assists – Cheney 4 (Black 2), Hesston 14 (Proctor 5). Turnovers – Cheney 15, Hesston 18. Total fouls – Cheney 17, Hesston 26. Fouled out – none.
