Scott City splits with Southwestern Heights

Kismet, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Two teams in the Cimarron Sub-State met up Tuesday night at Southwestern Heights High School, as the Mustangs hosted Scott City for a non-league doubleheader. It was an opportunity for the teams to continue to make a push to improve their seeding. For the Beavers, it would be their final non-league games of the regular season. In the end, the night would see a split, as the Scott City girls rolled to a 61-22 win, and the Southwestern Heights boys rallied to stun the Beavers 53-51 at the buzzer.

Scott City Girls 61, Southwestern Heights 22
The No. 5 team in Class 3A started off sluggish, and found themselves down 5-0, just 90 seconds into the game. After that, everything clicked and they never looked back. Scott City went on an 11-0 run and would take a 14-7 lead after the first quarter. For an 11 minute stretch of the first half, the Lady Beavers went on a 31-2 run to build their lead at 31-7 with 3:42 left before halftime. Southwestern Heights would exchange baskets the rest of the half, as they trailed 36-12 at the break. Scott City (14-2) used an 11-2 run to lead by 33 at 47-14 with 3:37 left in the third frame, and took a 50-18 lead into the fourth quarter. In the final frame, a running clock was used, as the Lady Beavers would outscore Southwestern Heights (2-13) 11-4 in that span, en route to the 61-22 win. Scott City led by as many as 41 in the game.

Leading the way for Scott City was Brynn McCormick with 14 points, while Amber Latta added 12. The Lady Beavers saw 11 different players score at least one point, as they had nine turnovers, and finished 16-19 at the charity line. Susanna Carillo led Southwestern Heights with six points. They finished 4-6 at the foul line, and had 20 turnovers. Scott City outrebounded the Lady Mustangs 38-26.

With the win, Scott City is now 6-1 all time against Southwestern Heights, including a 3-1 record at Southwestern Heights. The Lady Beavers have won five straight in the series.

Coach Sarah McCormick Postgame

Southwestern Heights Boys 53, Scott City 51
Scott City never trailed for the first 31:50 of the game. It would turn out to be a game that the Mustangs would steal at home, thanks to a second half rally. The Beavers jumped out early 5-0, and grew their lead to seven with a little over two minutes left in the first quarter at 15-8. After leading 21-16 after the opening stanza, a 10-5 second quarter gave Scott City their largest lead of the night at 31-21 at the break. Southwestern Heights (7-8) scored the first five points of the second half, only to see the Beavers bounce back to lead 36-26 with 3:46 left in the third quarter. The Mustangs would respond with a 10-2 run over the final 2:40 of the third to pull to within 38-36 after three quarters. Scott City (8-8) opened the fourth quarter with a 7-2 run and led 45-38 with 6:18 remaining. Southwestern Heights would score seven unanswered to tie the game for the first time at 45 with 3:38 left. The Beavers would retake the lead at 47-45, and last at 49-47 with 33.1 left. The Mustangs got one free throw to get to within one with 18.9 left, and got the ball back after Scott City stepped out of bounds. Southwestern Heights took their first lead with 10.8 left on a basket and three-point play to go up 51-49. The Beavers got fouled with 7.6 seconds left, and Jackson Lewis tied the game at 51 with a pair of free throws. Southwestern Heights took the ball the length of the floor, as they missed the winning layup, but a Demetrio Flores rebound and putback just bounced in as time expired, giving the Mustangs a thrilling 53-51 win.

Sergio Chavez led Southwestern Heights with 20 points off the bench, and was their lone double-figure scorer. He was the lone player that shot free throws for the Mustangs, as he went 3-7 at the line. They committed 13 turnovers. Scott City got 22 from Hunter Yager and 10 off the bench from Ronnie Weathers. The Beavers struggled at the foul line, going just 8-15 for the game, as they finished with nine turnovers. Southwestern Heights won the rebounding edge 30-22.

It was the first win in the series for the Mustangs. Scott City leads the all-time series 8-1, and are now 3-1 all time at Southwestern Heights against the Mustangs. The win for Southwestern Heights was their second straight and it was the second straight loss for the Beavers.

Coach Brian Gentry Postgame