Perry — Santa Fe Trail's boys basketball squad came to Perry-Lecompton High on the night of its winter dance.
The Chargers made sure the Kaws attended a bittersweet party.
The boys played a physical game, but Santa Fe Trail earned a 47-37 victory despite second-half P-L rallies.
The Chargers entered the second half with a nine-point lead, but the Kaws sliced it to two. The Chargers pulled away after coach Jason Shaffer grilled his players during a late timeout.
"It was a very intense timeout," Shaffer said. "There were some very harsh words, but it did motivate the kids."
The Kaws got most of their points from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter as the Chargers were left to hack away.
"In a game as up and down, physically demanding as that was, there are times when players took plays off," Shaffer said. "That laziness and not getting in correct position led to those fouls."
Guard Shawn Conklin's 19 points saved the Chargers.
Santa Fe Trail used its size to force Perry-Lecompton to only swing the ball around the perimeter, allowing little penetration toward the basket. The Kaws shot seven of 13 first-half shots from three-point range. Chargers center Jake Carter, listed as 6-foot-9, thwarted the Kaws down low.
But in the second half, the Kaws, led by forwards Willie Treaster and Chris Ketter, managed several points against Carter.
"I think we were scared of him in the first half," Treaster said. "After we figured out that he wasn't aggressive on defense, it was a lot easier to take it to the hoop."
Despite finding better shots closer to the basket, the Kaws failed to hit critical shots during the third and fourth quarter when they cut the Chargers' lead to four or fewer.
SFT girls 44, P-L 24
Hardly being able to hit shots at all cost the Kaws. The Chargers scored right off the opening tip on a Brooke Pryor layup, and the game scarcely was in doubt afterward as the Chargers went in to the second half with a 26-6 advantage, much to Kaws coach Mark Armstrong's displeasure. "When you have six points in a half, you deserve to lose by 30," he said.
| SFT | 10 | 12 | 11 | 14 | -- | 47 | |
| PL | 5 | 8 | 9 | 15 | -- | 37 |
| SFT | 8 | 18 | 9 | 9 | -- | 44 | |
| PL | 2 | 4 | 6 | 12 | -- | 24 |
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