Eudora girls basketball lost to Bishop Miege 68-35 in the first round of the 4A state basketball tournament in Salina on Thursday, ending the Cardinals’ season.

The Cardinals finished with a 20-3 record and their first trip to the state tournament since 2022.

The Stags came in with a 15-game win streak in the state tournament. They played mistake-free while the Cardinals struggled to hit shots. The Stags built an early lead over the Cardinals, which they kept throughout the game. Jayla McClinton was a problem for the Cardinals to guard, and she finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Three other Stags scored 10 or more points.

The Stags went on a 6-0 run before the Cardinals scored their first bucket of the game from sophomore Brynn Deterding. She finished with 10 points and was the only Cardinal to finish in double figures. The pace picked up after a slow first half of the first quarter as both teams scored in the paint. The first quarter ended with Bishop Miege holding a 20-10 lead.

Neither team made much headway at the start of the second quarter, and both teams struggled to finish shots in the latter half. The Stags finished with only eight points, six of which came in the first four minutes. The Cardinals scored nine points and trailed 28-19 at halftime.

Bishop Miege pulled away through the first four minutes of the third quarter. The Stags went on a 16-0 run before Deterding scored the first points of the half for Eudora on free throws. The third quarter ended with the Stags leading by 21 points.

The Stags went on another run midway through the final quarter to put the game away for good. They scored 13 unanswered points to take a 67-33 lead with over two minutes left in the game. The Cardinals scored to end the run, but both teams pulled their starters shortly after.

Eudora will lose a few seniors who started in the state tournament but will have a young core return next season. Deterding will be a junior next year, and Avah Dye, who scored six points with a team-high 11 rebounds, will be a sophomore.