Free State girls hoops takes 3rd place at Firebird Winter Classic; LHS finishes 6th

Free State High’s girls basketball team had seen this play out before.


The Firebirds had a strong first quarter on Saturday, then their offense was limited by a full-court defense, which led to a comeback by their opponent.


Only this time, Free State fought back with some big baskets to beat Wichita Heights, 48-44. After the Firebirds’ two-point loss to Hutchinson on Friday, they weren’t about to let the same thing happen again.


It’s easy to see how much freshman point guard Cameryn Thomas means to them after they committed 27 turnovers. But credit to them for playing such strong defense and rebounding so well that they could go through offensive slumps throughout the game and still find a way to win.


Lawrence High’s girls basketball team played well early and brought a lot of energy to a 10:30 a.m. start time, but too many mistakes cost them in a 61-48 loss to Highland Park.


In a game with 50 fouls and a combined 63 free throws (not a typo), it was difficult for either team to get into an offensive rhythm. But the Lions hurt themselves by not rebounding well after missed free throws, which let Highland Park go on a few big runs in the second half.


“If we don’t want to continue to feel this way,” LHS coach Jeff Dickson said after the loss, “we have got to take those next steps, and it’s not for a lack of effort and it’s not for a lack of working on it. We’ve got to get that to transfer from what we do in practice into a game setting.”


In case you missed it, we’re copying one of the popular features of KUsports.com, “Keegan’s Ratings,” where Sports Editor Tom Keegan ranks KU football and men’s basketball players after every game he attends and I’m bringing back the high school ratings for this basketball season. These individual rankings are just one person’s opinion, but it’s a good way to look at how each person impacted each game.

Lawrence High girls basketball

1. Alexis Boyd, jr. — When the Lions needed a bucket, they turned to Boyd in the fourth quarter. She scored a team-high 15 points with some nice moves in the paint and around the free-throw line. She also had four rebounds.

2. Marissa Pope, sr. — The 5-foot-3 senior point guard didn’t have her shots dropping, but Pope made some great passes to set up her teammates, ending up with four assists. She also played good defense on the perimeter, snagging two steals to go along with seven points.


3. Skylar Drum, so. — Drum was a little more aggressive with her shot than in the past few games, and it paid off with 10 points on 3 of 8 shooting from the field. She also grabbed six rebounds.


4. Matia Finley, sr. — A two-time defending state champion in the discus in track and field, Finley’s had a good stretch of basketball lately. She grabbed eight rebounds and scored five points. She also blocked a shot.


5. Olivia Lemus, so. — Lemus scored eight points on 3 of 10 shooting, but her two threes dropped at some big moments, one of them giving the Lions a brief lead early in the fourth quarter. She also had three rebounds and three steals.


6. Rebecca Finley, sr. — With her twin sister in some foul trouble in the third quarter, Finley made the most of her time on the court with solid defense. She also grabbed six rebounds.


7. E’lease Stafford, fr. — Stafford had some good moments, scoring two points and grabbing four rebounds. But she also had some plays where she didn’t box out on free throws, which led to offensive rebounds for Highland Park.


8. Gracie Reinsch, jr. — Reinsch played well off of the bench, scoring a point at the free throw line and grabbing two rebounds.


9. Devon Spoonhunter, sr. — Spoonhunter didn’t make a shot, going 0 for 2 from the field, but she played solid defense in the low post, blocking one shot.


10. Emma Bentzinger, jr. — The 5-foot-7 junior was aggressive off of the bench. She was on the court when the Lions were starting to make a comeback in the third quarter, and went hard after loose balls. She didn’t attempt any shots.


11. Madison McKinney, so. — McKinney played a few minutes but didn’t record any stats besides a foul.


12. Asia Goodwin, fr. — Goodwin entered in the final minute of the game after a few players fouled out.


• Next up: 7 p.m. Monday vs. Barstow (Mo.). Record: 2-10.

Free State girls basketball

1. Sarah Coversup, sr. — With Madison Piper in foul trouble for most of the second half, the Firebirds leaned on Coversup for offense. She responded with a game-high 18 points, going 8 for 10 at the free throw line. Coversup also played some point guard down the stretch. She added four rebounds, two steals and a block.


2. Madison Piper, so. — As mentioned above, Piper was in foul trouble throughout the game, playing nine minutes with four fouls. But credit to her for not picking up the fifth, and still making an impact on both sides of the court. She finished with a double-double: 12 points and 10 rebounds.


3. Hannah Walter, jr. — I don’t remember Walter leaving the court in the second half, and it shows how valuable she was on both sides of the ball. She scored a season-high eight points, with six of them at the free throw line. Her other two points came on a putback to give the Firebirds a lead in the fourth quarter they would never give up. She also had seven rebounds and two assists, including one pass as she was falling out of bounds to Coversup for a layup.


4. Adriana Jadlow, sr. — Jadlow didn’t have her shots falling on Saturday, but you couldn’t tell by the way she was grabbing rebounds. She had a game-high 12 boards to go along with two points, an assist and a steal. She also did a good job playing the passing lanes on defense, denying passes in the low post.


5. Jaycie Bishop, so. — The 5-foot-5 sophomore stepped up with big plays when the Firebirds needed her. She scored seven points and played solid defense on the perimeter. When Free State was playing man-to-man defense, she guarded the Falcons’ top three-point shooter, and held her to 0 for 8 shooting behind the arc.


6. Morgan Gantz, sr. — Gantz missed a three-pointer, her only shot, but she did a lot of things that don’t show up in the box score. She was the primary ball handler until she fouled out in the fourth quarter, and did a good job running the offense when she broke past the full-court press.


7. Hannah Shoemaker, sr. — Shoemaker provided a lift off of the bench, playing great help defense in the Firebirds’ 2-3 zone. She scored one point and grabbed three rebounds.


• Next up: 7 p.m. Tuesday at KC Schagle. Record: 10-2.
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