Scott City splits doubleheader with Lakin

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–The second half of the season kicked off on Friday night for both Lakin and Scott City, as the teams faced off in non-league action at the Scott Community Event Center. Both teams are in the Cimarron sub-state, and are looking to push to improving their seed. In the end, it would be a split in the doubleheader, as neither winning team trailed all night. The Lady Beavers would take a 64-27 win, while the Bronc Boys picked up a 63-52 victory. 

Scott City Girls 64, Lakin 27
Playing without one starter didn’t slow Scott City down, as they No. 3 ranked team in Class 3A started out strong. After they saw their lead dwindle to 6-5 with 4:59 left in the first quarter, a 14-3 run over a three-minute stretch pushed the lead to 20-8, before leading 20-10 after eight minutes. Lakin would go without a field goal for the next 11:13 of the game, as the Lady Beavers would go on a 19-3 run in that time frame to lead 39-13 with 5:51 left in the third quarter. Scott City (11-1) would eventually grow their lead to 50-20 with a little over two minutes left in the third period, and led 54-25 going into the fourth quarter. In the final period, the Lady Beavers went on an 11-2 run, as Lakin (6-6) would not hit a field goal for the final 10 minutes of the game, as Scott City picked up the win 64-27.

Leading the way for Scott City was Emily Weathers with 19 points, while Lyndi Rumford added 13 and Brynn McCormick finished with 10. The Lady Beavers were 5-7 at the line and had only three turnovers. Seven players scored in the game. Jaya Esquibel led Lakin with 16 points, as the Lady Bronc committed 16 turnovers. They finished 8-14 from the line. The Lady Beavers dominated the glass 29-18.

Scott City has now won four straight in the series, their longest win streak in the series since 2009-12. They also improved to 23-21 in the series since 1984, as they have won five straight.

Coach Sarah McCormick Postgame

Lakin Boys 63, Scott City 52
Lakin has not lost since December 14, and entered with seven straight wins. The Broncs would jump out and never trail. Scott City would trail 13-7 after the first quarter, and would eventually pull to within 17-14 with under five minutes left in the first half. After that, Lakin would close the half on a 10-2 run to take a 27-16 halftime lead. The Broncs opened up the second half with a triple, and eventually grew their lead out to 16 at 35-19 with 5:30 left in the third quarter. Scott City (6-6) would pull to within 12 at the 2:17 mark of the third quarter at 35-23. after that, Lakin (10-2) would take a 39-24 lead into the final quarter. The Broncs pushed their lead as big as 56-33 with 4:18 left. Scott City made one last surge at the end to get it closer, but Lakin would be too much, as they took a 63-52 win.

Hunter Davis led the way for Lakin with 29 points, as he went 12-12 at the foul line in the final eight minutes, and was 18-18 from the line. Sonnie Altman added 14. The Broncs were 23-27 from the free throw line and committed 16 turnovers. Parker Gooden was the lone Beaver in double figures, as he finished with 11 points. Scott City struggled at the line, going just 11-27, as they finished with 13 turnovers. Lakin won the rebounding edge 30-27.

With the win, Lakin has won two straight in Scott City for the first time since December of 2001, and January of 2002, which was their undefeated state championship season. The Beavers have won 21 of the last 24 in the series, and lead the series 35-12 since 1986.

Coach Brian Gentry Postgame

Scott City will play three games next week, with two on the road. They’ll travel to Holcomb for a makeup game from January 17 on Monday night, host Cimarron on Tuesday, and play at Hugoton next Friday. Lakin will play their makeup game from January 17 at Meade on Monday, and host Wichita County on Tuesday.