Scott City boys to the Orange & Black Championship, girls rally in overtime

Colby, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–The second day of the 30th Annual Paul Wintz/Tom Bowen Orange & Black Classic in Colby was a good day for Scott City, as they saw the Lady Beavers rally in overtime to win 48-45 over Fort Lupton, while the Beaver boys advanced to the championship game with a 74-49 over Kansas City Schlagle.

Coming in on a four-game losing streak, the Lady Beavers knew coming in they had a good chance to pick up a win. It wouldn’t be the easiest of routes though. After starting out up 6-0, Scott City (3-7) saw Fort Lupton score the games next eight points to lead 8-6 after one period. In the second quarter, the Lady Beavers would win the scoring battle 11-6 to take a 17-14 halftime lead. Scott City had their chances to open the game up, but couldn’t convert on some good looks. The Lady Beavers led 23-18 with 4:35 in the third quarter, only to see the Lady Blue Devils retake the lead late in the third frame. Scott City, however, would retake the lead and lead 28-27 heading into the final quarter. In the final period, Fort Lupton (3-10) tied it at 28 early in the fourth period, when Scott City took off and went on a 10-6 run in a three minute span in the frame to lead 38-34 with 1:12 left. The Lady Blue Devils put on a full court press and forced two straight turnovers. They would take a 39-38 lead with 26 seconds remaining. After a foul on Fort Lupton, Scott City hit one out of two foul shots with 23.5 seconds left, and headed to overtime tied at 39. In the extra session, the Lady Blue Devils led or tied for the first 3:42 of overtime. Trailing by one with 18.4 seconds in the first overtime, Mariah Campbell calmly drilled two free throws to give the Lady Beavers a 46-45 lead. Fort Lupton would turn the ball over and then Bailey Latta sank two free throws after an intentional foul to make the final 48-45. Scott City got a career-best from Latta, who scored 23 points, while Fort Lupton saw Yaricsa Delgado score 12 points. The game saw nine lead changes and seven ties. With their win, Scott City matched their win total from last two years, with three wins in each season.

Shelby Crawford Postgame

In the Colby Community Building, the Scott City boys led wire-to-wire, jumping out to a 12-7 lead after the first quarter. While not using a big run the Beavers grew their lead to in the second quarter. Their biggest run would be six straight, and a 11-3 run and led by as many as 14 points, on their way to a 30-19 lead at the break. The dagger by Scott City (9-1) was put in in the third quarter, as they broke the game open with a 10-0 run in the middle of the period to lead 47-22 with 3:30 in the third frame. Kansas City Schagle (3-6) made a run of their own, using a 10-1 run to end the period to pull to within 48-32 after three quarters. The Beavers would settle back in and score the first eight points of the fourth quarter, and pushed their lead to as big as 28 late in the ballgame. This was the Stallions first-ever loss in the Orange & Black, as they won the tournament in each of their first three appearances, and came in with a 10-0 record all-time in the tournament. It was a big day from Brett Meyer, who poured in a career-best 27 points, 18 coming in the first half, while Trey O’Neil added 21 and Sloan Baker produced 14 points for Scott City. Kansas City Schlagle got 12 points from Jordan Young. Scott City has now won 10 straight games in the Orange & Black Classic, dating back to the consolation semi-finals of the 2010 tournament. 

Glenn O’Neil Postgame

Scott City’s boys and girls will play in the Colby Community Building on Saturday. The Lady Beavers will play in the fourth place game at 2 pm against Colby. This is the first time since 2010 they have faced the Lady Eagles in the Orange & Black, when Colby won that game 45-27. The boys will face Hays in the championship game at 8:15. Scott City and Hays have met two times in the tournament’s 30-year history. Hays won the third place game over the Beavers in 2009 64-55.

Girls
Consolation
Scott City 48, Fort Lupton 45 OT
Colby 56, McCook 16
Championship
Pine Creek 58, KC Schlagle 31
Palmer Ridge 51, Fountain Ft. Carson 48

Boys
Consolation
Pine Creek 58, McCook 27
Fountain Ft. Carson 63, Colby 26
Championship
Scott City 74, KC Schlagle 49
Hays 73, Palmer Ridge 62