Scott City girls stunned at home, boys hold off Cimarron

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Two schools that are in the Colby Sub-State met up Tuesday night at Scott Community High School in non-league play. Cimarron entered Scott City with 7-6 records for both teams, while the Lady Beavers were 12-1 and the Beaver boys at 5-8. In the end, it would be a split, as the Lady Bluejays stunned Scott City 60-51, while the Beavers boys held off Cimarron with a 60-53 win.

Girls
Scott City had a change in their lineup for the first time this year. Senior Bailey Latta was out with an injury, which forced Madison Shapland into the starting lineup for the first time. Early on, the Lady Beavers seemed to be ok, leading by three early on. Then a drought occurred. Cimarron would go on an 8-0 run to take a 10-5 lead with 7:28 remaining in the first half. Scott City ended a seven-minute drought seconds later, going on a 10-0 run to lead 15-10 with over five minutes left in the first half. When it looked like the Lady Beavers had things in order, the Lady Bluejays came right back, and took the lead at halftime, using a 9-3 run over the final 3:27 of the half to lead 24-23 at the break. It was Michaela Pachner’s putback that barely crawled in as the horn sounded.

Scott City would score the first three points of the third quarter to take a 26-24 lead early into the second half. Cimarron (8-6) would go on an 8-2 run to go up 32-27 with 4:17 left in the third quarter. The Lady Bluejays would never trail the rest of the night. After Scott City (12-2) pulled to within 35-32 with 3:16 remaining, Cimarron closed out the quarter on a 9-1 run to take a 44-33 lead into the fourth quarter. When it seemed like the Lady Beavers were destined for a big comeback, the Lady Bluejays had an answer. Scott City did diminish a 12-point deficit to four with 2:30 remaining at 53-49 off a Kaitlyn Roberts three, but it would be too much of a deficit to overcome. Cimarron went 8-12 in the final quarter at the foul line, and closed the game on a 7-2 run to pull off the upset 60-51.

Leading the way for Cimarron was junior Taylor Jantz with 21 points, while Camaren Bartlett added 16 and Clara Bartlett had 10. The Lady Bluejays were 10-16 at the free throw line, but finished with 25 turnovers. Scott City got 21 points from Kaitlyn Roberts, who tied a career high with seven three’s, while Emily Smith and Macie Price added 10 apiece. The Lady Beavers were 9-17 at the foul line and had 17 turnovers. Cimarron won the rebounding battle 30-25.

With the win, Cimarron has won eight of their last nine games against Scott City since 2011, and have won four straight over the Lady Beavers in Scott City since 2011. The loss for the Lady Beavers saw their nine-game winning streak snapped, their longest since the 1994-95 season. Despite the loss, Scott City will be guaranteed a first round home game in sub-state play, and Cimarron is now tied with Colby and Norton for second place in the sub-state standings. Norton will have all six games counted for sub-state, while both Colby and Cimarron will have five, since their last games of the regular season is after records are turned in for seeding.

Boys
The last two games saw Scott City start out ice cold shooting. In both games, they had only one field goal and five first quarter points. Tuesday was different. The Beavers were tied just twice, and scored 18 first quarter points, taking an 18-11 lead after the first quarter. While the opening eight minutes were high scoring, the second period saw both teams score eight points, as Scott City took a 26-19 lead, hitting only three field goals.

To begin the second half, the Beavers scored the first four points to take their biggest lead of the night at 30-19 with 7:12 remaining in the third period. Cimarron (7-7) would chip away and pull to within 32-27 with 4:39 left in the third period. A three by Jordan Horn would spark Scott City (6-8) on a 6-1 run to go up 38-28 with exactly three minutes left in the third quarter. The Bluejays made a comeback with six consecutive points in 94 seconds to get to within 38-34 with 1:26 left in the third frame. It would be the Beavers who would stretch it back out to seven going into the fourth quarter at 43-36. The fourth frame would see Cimarron go on a 6-2 run to pull to within 45-42 with seven minutes remaining. Both teams would trade two points, and with 4:45 remaining, it was a Scott City lead of 51-48. The Beavers would hit their free throws down the stretch and snap their two-game losing streak at 60-53. They closed out the final 4:10 of the game on a 9-5 run.

Scott City got 12 points apiece from Jordan Horn and Marshal Faurot. They were 14-19 at the foul line, including a 12-17 performance in the second half. The Beavers finished with eight turnovers. Jaylen Pickle, the Kansas State Football signee, finished with a game-high 21 points, which included a 9-11 free throw shooting performance. The Blujays shot 17-22 at the charity line and had 13 turnovers. Cimarron won the rebounding battle 27-20.

With the win, Scott City not only snapped a two-game losing streak, but also snapped a five-game losing streak at home. They have now won 12 straight games in the series over Cimarron since 2005. The win by Scott City pushes them into the fifth spot in the Colby Sub-State, while Cimarron is in the fourth spot with a one-game lead.

Coach Brian Gentry Postgame

Scott City will host Colby on Friday night, while Cimarron hosts Lakin on Friday. The Eagles had Tuesday night off, while the Broncs swept Wichita County.