Free State junior forward Shannon Clarke (3) and SM West sophomore forward Taedyn Gray (23) jump for the opening tip. Free State fell to SM West 70-48 on Tuesday, Feb. 25.

Free State High School’s girls basketball team couldn’t keep up with a hot-shooting Shawnee Mission West team in a 70-48 loss Tuesday night at FSHS.

SM West got off to a fast start with an early 10-4 lead. It was an especially tough night for Free State senior Caely Kesten, who shot 1 of 8 from the field in the first half.

Much of the early offense for the Vikings came from senior guard Kierra Prim, who scored 12 of SM West’s first 17 points. She was everywhere on the floor; Prim followed up a putback layup off a missed 3-pointer from senior guard Ashlyn Henrie with an assist down low to junior forward Aiden Moxness.

Kesten answered with a baseline jumper and junior forward Shannon Clarke hit a pull-up jumper just inside the 3-point line, but the Firebirds found themselves trailing 19-8 at the end of the first quarter.

Free State did get off to a better start in the second quarter, as Clarke immediately grabbed a steal and sophomore guard Evy Harrell capitalized with an and-one.

But then Prim checked back in and the Vikings regained control. SM West continued to push it in the paint, only attempting two 3-pointers in the first half. The Vikings also shot 10 of 11 from the free-throw line.

SM West took a 37-19 lead into halftime.

Shots started to fall for Free State in the third quarter, as Kesten, Harrell and junior guard Robin Todd connected from beyond the arc. The problem was that Prim and freshman guard S’Mya Nichols stayed hot for the Vikings.

SM West grabbed its biggest lead of the night as Nichols hit a layup right before the buzzer, putting the Vikings up 55-31.

The Firebirds saved their best for last, as Kesten once again knocked down her first two shots, and Clarke and senior Joy Nunoo both hit 3s. Senior Raven Gueary also checked in late to force a turnover on defense, and Free State outscored SM West, 17-15, in the fourth quarter.

After the game, Free State recognized its five seniors — Kesten, Nunoo, Gueary, Macky Moore and Nyasha McVay — and the contributions they’ve made to the program over their four years.

Free State will close out the regular season at home against Gardner Edgerton on Friday. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.

Free State will close out the regular season at home against Gardner Edgerton on Friday. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.

Free State (48)

Caely Kesten 5-15 5-5 17, Shannon Clarke 4-9 0-0 9, Evy Harrell 3-7 2-3 9, Joy Nunoo 2-6 0-2 6, Daeci Jaillite-Walker 2-5 0-0 4, Robin Todd 1-1 0-0 3, Anna McIntire 0-1 0-0 0, Macky Moore 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 17-46 7-10 48.

Shawnee Mission West (70)

S’Mya Nichols 7-11 10-11 24, Kierra Prim 8-10 4-4 21, Taedyn Gray 4-11 2-2 10, CC Carter 2-7 1-2 6, Aaliyah Garcia 1-2 2-2 5, Aiden Moxness 1-2 0-0 2, Mary Humphreys 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 24-48 19-21 70.

Free State 8 11 12 17 — 48

Shawnee Mission West 19 18 18 15 — 70

3-point goals: Free State 7-19 (Kesten, Nunoo, Clarke, Harrell); Shawnee Mission West 3-7 (Garcia, Carter, Prin). Turnovers: Free State 22, Shawnee Mission West 17.