Scott City drops two to Colby

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Two GWAC foes met up on Friday night in the new Scott Community Events Center, as the Scott City Beavers faced the Colby Eagles in a pair of big league matchups. Going in, it looked like the teams were evenly matched. In the end, it was the visitors who came out with a pair of wins, as the Colby girls survived a late Scott City rally in a 52-49 win, while the Eagle boys subdued the Beavers 50-36.

Colby Girls 52, Scott City 49
Not only did the two teams enter Friday’s matchup unbeaten, but also had state rankings coming in. Scott City entered ranked at No. 3, while Colby was No. 7, according to the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association polls. It would be a night where the Lady Eagles would grab the lead and never lose it. The Lady Beavers scored the first basket before Colby rattled off a 15-3 run to lead 15-6 with 2:07 left in the first quarter. Colby’s lead would eventually be 19-14 after eight minutes of play. Scott City would pull to within two early in the second period at 19-17, and that was the closest they got the rest of the way. The Lady Beagles used a 10-5 run over the final 3:25 of the first half to lead 32-24 at the break. To open the second half, Colby (8-0, 2-0 GWAC) used a 10-3 run to lead 42-27 with just over three minutes left in the third period. Scott City (6-1, 2-1) pulled to within 12 after three quarters at 46-34. Colby led 50-36 with 6:10 left, and that’s when the Lady Beavers would rally. An 11-0 run over the next three minutes got them to within 50-47 with 1:27 left. Both teams would trade two points, as Scott City got to within 52-49 with 12 seconds left. The Lady Eagles would miss a one-and-one, and the Lady Beavers would rebound, giving them one final shot with three seconds left. Scott City was unable to get a look, and fell 52-49.

Jill Stephens led the way with 15 points, while Brittany Foss added 13 points and Hallie Vaughn had 11 for the Lady Eagles. Colby was 12-18 at the free throw line, and finished with 17 turnovers. They outrebounded the Lady Beavers 31-19. Scott City was led by Brynn McCormick, who had a career-high 31 points, including seven triples. They were only 4-5 from the foul line and had 13 turnovers.

With the win, Colby snapped Scott City’s nine-game win streak in the series, the longest by the Lady Beavers in the series. It was Colby’s first win in Scott City since January 9, 2015, when they won 48-23. Since 1984, The Lady Eagles lead the series 45-13.

Colby Boys 50, Scott City 36
Scott City came in with a nice win over Goodland on Tuesday, while Colby had their season low against a talented Hoxie team. While it looked like an even matchup, it would turn out one-sided in the second half. The Beavers jumped out early and led 15-9 with 1:21 left in the first period, before the Eagles made a rally and never looked back. Colby would outscore Scott City 12-5 in the second frame to take a 24-19 halftime lead. The Beavers went scoreless in the second for nearly six straight minutes. To open the third, the Eagles hit their first four shots, and used a 13-3 run to lead 37-22 with 3:24 left in the third quarter. Colby (5-3, 1-1 GWAC) pushed their lead to 42-26 heading into the fourth quarter. Scott City (3-4, 1-2) would not be able to put together a run in the final eight minutes, and were only able to get to within 12 points, and fall 50-36. After the Beavers had a six-point lead, the Eagles used a 35-11 run in an 18-minute span.

Colby was led by Payton Wahlmeier and Ryan Myers with 14 points apiece. The Eagles were 9-18 at the foul line, and had 14 turnovers. Scott City got 12 points from Hunter Yager and 10 from Jackson Lewis. The Beavers were only able to have seven free throw attempts, and hit four of those. They committed 13 turnovers. Colby dominated the glass 32-22, and had 15 offensive boards.

With the win, Colby has now won two straight in the series for the first time since 2007 and 2009, and have won twice in Scott City for the first time since 1995 and 1997. The Beavers lead the series 30-29 since 1984.

Coach Brian Gentry Postgame