DCHS hoops cruise past Ulysses

DODGE CITY, Kan. — The Dodge City High School basketball teams swept the Ulysses Tigers on Tuesday night in the DCHS Fieldhouse with the girls winning 87-31 and the boys taking down the Tigers, 70-46.

DODGE CITY GIRLS 87, ULYSSES 31

The Lady Demons improved to 5-2 on the season with a dismantling of the Tigers in record fashion. Dodge City had lost two straight games coming into the clash with the Tigers and had gotten off to slow starts in both of those games. That would not be the case on Tuesday night, as the Lady Demons got off to a 10-0 start in the opening minutes of the contest. They’d use that spark to lead 23-6 after the first quarter of play.

The second quarter would be very similar to the first quarter for Dodge City, as they’d outscore the Tigers, 33-9 in the quarter. The 33 second quarter points are the most that Dodge City has scored in a single quarter all season long. Kisa Unruh, who hit eight three pointers in a win over Junction City in the first game of the season had six in the first half of Tuesday’s game. Unruh was held in check on Friday night at McPherson, scoring a career-low one point, but she wouldn’t let that stop her from shooting on Tuesday night. Dodge City led 56-15 at the halftime break. 

Dodge City doubled up the Tigers in the third quarter, 24-12 to lead 80-27 after three quarters of play. The 53-point lead after three quarters resulted in a running-clock in the fourth quarter, the third time that Dodge City has done that to an opponent this season. The Lady Demons would score just seven points in the final quarter, but with the big lead, all five starters didn’t play in the final eight minutes. 

The Lady Demons shot a season-best 63% from the field in the game and hit a season-high 11 three pointers, seven of which came from Unruh. She finished with a game-high 27 points, 4 assists and 6 steals with no turnovers. Sophomore Camree Johnson added 15 points and 6 rebounds, while juniors Lauren Gleason and Alisia Solis both finished with 10 points apiece. Gleason also added 4 rebounds and a game-high 7 assists.

Dodge City is now 5-2 on the season and will take on Cimarron on Friday night at United Wireless Arena with tipoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Ulysses: Garcia 7, Riley 10, Lerma 7, Nagel 6, Baeza 1.

Dodge City: B. Unruh 5, Johnson 15, K. Unruh 27, Clark 2, Gonzalez 1, Perez 7, Gleason 10, Okoro 4, Foster 4, Solis 10, Landa 2.

DODGE CITY BOYS 70, ULYSSES 46

The Dodge City High School boys could do one of two things on Tuesday night when they hosted the Tigers after a 41-point loss on Friday night in McPherson. The Red Demons could either come out flat after getting blown out, or the complete opposite and luckily for Dodge City fans, it was the opposite. 

The Red Demons played with a big spark in the first quarter and led 18-12 after the first eight minutes with the Tigers. Dodge City was playing without their leading scorer, sophomore guard Cooper Scheck for the second straight game due to a hand injury, so other players would have to step up and fill his shoes. Dodge City used an 7-0 run midway through the second quarter to go up eight, 27-19. The Red Demon lead would reach double figures at the 1:36 mark in the half on a three-pointer to make it 33-22. Dodge City would hit another three to lead 36-23 at the halftime break.

Dodge City came out firing on all cylinders in the second half and would grab a 20-point lead, 45-25 with 4:52 to go in the third quarter and would then lead 53-36 going into the final quarter. Ulysses made a bit of a run in the fourth quarter and pulled within 56-44 with 6:36 to go, but the Red Demons responded with an 8-0 run to get some more cushion and go up 64-44. The Red Demons would outscore the Tigers, 14-5 in the final 6:49 to cruise to the 24-point victory, the first win of the season for the Red Demons. 

Dodge City shot just 33% from the field, but outrebounded the Tigers, 59-39. Aidan Sowers scored a game-high 14 points and pulled down 5 rebounds. Dylan Smith added 13 points and 7 rebounds, while Cooper Loll added 10 points and 7 boards. John Johnson added 6 points and 12 rebounds, while Josh Harshberger had 6 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.

The Red Demons improve to 1-5 on the season and will host Cimarron on Friday night at United Wireless Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. 

Ulysses: Walker 6, Galindo 9, Nightengale 13, Martinez 2, Alvarado 2, Scott 2, Sifuentes 9, Rosales 2, Duran 1.

Dodge City: Barajas 5, Smith 13, Harshberger 6, Cox 3, Sanchez 4, Taylor 6, Johnson 6, Chavez 3, Sowers 14, Loll 10.