Lawrence High senior Marissa Pope wipes away tears as she walks off the court with her teammates following their loss to Shawnee Mission Northwest in the sub-state championship game Saturday evening in Shawnee. The Lions fell to the Cougars, 46-23, ending their season.

Shawnee ? Long scoring droughts have been the Lawrence High girls basketball team’s kryptonite for the majority of the season, and it was no different for the Lions in a 46-23 loss Saturday to Shawnee Mission Northwest in their sub-state title-game matchup.

The Lions (7-14) dug themselves a 15-0 hole in the first 61?2 minutes and missed their first eight field goals.

“That’s a talented team,” LHS coach Jeff Dickson said of his former squad. “They’re long, they’re aggressive, and it just made it really difficult for us to get to the basket. They do such a great job of closing out on shots.”

With SMNW’s front line featuring three players 6-foot or taller, the Lions had a hard time getting shots to fall. LHS made six of its 42 field-goals attempts, but did knock down 10 of 16 shots from the free-throw line.

LHS started to find a rhythm offensively in the second quarter, scoring 13 of its 23 points in the second eight minutes, but the Lions’ offensive woes resurfaced in the second half. SMNW (19-3) held Lawrence High without a field goal for the first nine minutes and 19 seconds of the second half.

LHS seniors Matia Finley and Marissa Pope made the Lions’ only two shots after the break.

“It’s frustrating for the girls,” Dickson said. “They played so well down the stretch and have come out in four of the last five games and jumped all over people.”

The loss ended the Lions’ season, but Pope said Saturday’s setback did not take away from what the team accomplished.

“I’m incredibly proud of our season,” Pope said. “People didn’t expect us to get as far as we did. They didn’t expect us to get seven wins or win a sub-state game.”

Junior Alexis Boyd, sophomore Olivia Lemus and Pope scored four points apiece, and junior Gracie Reinsch scored a team-high five points.

The Lions will lose some valuable leadership from Pope and Rebecca and Matia Finley, but Dickson believes the sub-state title game and the team’s tough schedule will help the Lions’ returners next year.

“We play a high level of competition. If you look at the course of our season, we have losses to nine or 10 teams that are in the state tournament,” Dickson said. “Shawnee Mission Northwest is one of the most talented teams in the state.”

Junior Brenni Rose and senior Tracy Monahan led the way for the Class 6A-state-tournament-bound Cougars with 13 and 12 points, respectively.

Despite the loss, the Lions won four of their last six games, and the team’s late-season run was one that Pope will remember for a long time.

“It meant the world to me,” Pope said. “Those girls are my family, and I wouldn’t have wanted to play my last season with anyone else.”

SM NORTHWEST (46)

Brooklyn Wagler 1-2 4-4 6, Arielle Jackson 0-0 0-0 0, Sydney Thompson 1-3 1-3 3, Shelby McLain 1-3 2-2 5, Jessica VanDonselaar 0-0 0-0 0, Emmalee Rose 0-1 0-0 0, Melissa Schmidt 0-0 0-0 0, Gena Ojeda 0-0 0-0 0, Tatum Graves 1-4 1-4 3, Danielle Rehor 1-3 1-2 4, Brenni Rose 3-6 4-6 13, Tracy Monahan 5-6 2-4 12. Total 13-28 14-22 46.

LAWRENCE (23)

Olivia Lemus 1-2 1-2 4, Skylar Drum 0-2 2-3 2, Emma Bentzinger 0-0 0-0 0, Madison McKinney 0-0 0-0 0, Talima Harjo 0-0 0-0 0, E’lease Stafford 1-15 0-1 2, Marissa Pope 1-9 2-4 4, Matia Finley 1-3 0-0 2, Gracie Reinsch 1-1 3-4 5, Asia Goodwin 0-0 0-0 0, Alexis Boyd 1-9 2-2 4, Rebecca Finley 0-1 0-0 0. Total 6-42 10-16 23.

SMNW 15 17 8 6 — 46

Lawrence 2 13 2 6 — 23

Three-pointers: SMNW 4-6 (B. Rose 3, Rehor) Lawrence 1-14 (Lemus). Turnovers: SMNW 12 Lawrence 16.