photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence's Cami Nauholz and Olathe South's Eve Long battle for a rebound in the substate championship at Olathe South on Friday, March 6, 2026, in Olathe.

OLATHE — The Lawrence girls basketball season ended on Friday night in the substate championship after the Lions lost 71-46 to Olathe South.

The Falcons came into the game 19-5 with an undefeated record against Sunflower League teams. Their record put them second in the substate seeding, while the Lions were seventh.

In the first half, the Falcons showed why they were undefeated, as they quickly got out to an insurmountable lead. Lawrence struggled with Olathe South’s combination of size and speed, as the Falcons were able to get downhill fast in transition.

“It hurt us a lot early,” Lawrence coach Jeff Dickson said. “I don’t think we played Lady Lion basketball. I think we got in our heads and got down early, which was frustrating.”

The Falcons scored two quick field goals within the first minute, leading to a Lawrence timeout. Junior Cami Nauholz scored in the paint, but the Falcons went on an 11-3 run, with the three points from Lawrence being a 3-pointer from sophomore Lucy Juelsgaard.

Lawrence called a second timeout after falling behind 15-5, but Olathe South picked right back up with an 8-2 run to close the quarter. Nauholz scored late on an assist from sophomore Zoey Barber, but the Lions trailed 23-7.

Turnovers were an issue for the Lions, which helped Olathe South’s already potent transition offense. Lawrence improved in that regard in the second quarter, which led to the Falcons only scoring 11 points.

Lawrence went scoreless over the first four minutes of the second quarter, only getting on the board with a field goal by Nauholz in the paint with 3:53 left in the half. Nauholz scored again with an assist from freshman Marley Doleman, and Juelsgaard hit a free throw to cut the deficit to 22 points heading into the second half.

“It was a tough matchup for us — it’s a tough matchup for anybody,” Dickson said. “That’s why they’re undefeated in the Sunflower League, that’s why they’re one of the best teams in the state.”

Lawrence came out hot in the second half after a locker room talk during the break. A screen got sophomore Macyn Ramsay open on a 3-pointer, which was her first field goal of the game. The Falcons got a bucket in the paint, but the Lions scored five points, three on an outside shot from Doleman.

“Dickson’s pep talk during half got us up,” senior Jada Baars-Turner said. “And I want to shout out Zoey — she really brought our team up. She didn’t back down. A lot of us came out timid because of the team we were playing, but Zoey brought our team up a lot.”

Nauholz collected two free throws and got another bucket in the paint, and Barber hit a 3-pointer as Lawrence made it a 43-27 game midway through the third quarter. But another dominant run for the Falcons put them up for good, leading 57-30 at the start of the final quarter.

Nauholz picked up 11 of Lawrence’s 16 points in the fourth quarter, as she reached 1,000 career points in the game. The Lions closed out with their bench unit, and Barber’s free throw in the final minute were the final points of the season for Lawrence. The final buzzer rang with Olathe South winning by 25.

“We definitely fought until the end,” Nauholz said. “Sometimes we don’t come out on top, but the most important part is that we kept fighting.”

Olathe South maintained control of its lead throughout the second half, but the offensive production from Lawrence drastically improved in the second half. After the Falcons outscored the Lions by 22 in the first half, the Falcons only improved upon their lead by three points in the second half.

“We wanted to make sure they knew that Lawrence High came to town,” Dickson said of the second-half effort. “We came here to win this game, and I hope the kids come out of this knowing that we did have an opportunity to do that, but there’s a certain way you have to play.”

Lawrence had a young team this year, with many contributors getting their first regular varsity minutes. Nauholz was the team’s only regular starter who returned, and Baars-Turner, who started at guard, was one of only two seniors on the roster.

“It’s hard to imagine how to play without them,” Nauholz said of the seniors Baars-Turner and La’Keyshia Woods. “They do so much for our team.”

Dickson said the senior group and Nauholz were instrumental in setting this team’s culture in a transitional year after significant roster turnover. The Lions improved upon their passing this season, and the team members lauded their chemistry and how much their love for their teammates led to their success on the court.

“I think we proved a lot of people wrong this year,” Baars-Turner said. “We showed a lot of people that we can play and that we’re a tough team. We’re not some underdog or anything.”

Despite the youth, the Lions were able to improve upon their record, their standings and their playoff run from a season ago. Dickson said he believes that this team can not only make the state tournament next year but win games there.

“(Olathe South) is who we want to be,” Dickson said. “We have to get stronger, we have to get tougher, we have to be mentally tougher, physically tougher, but that’s something we can do. That’s what we do at Lawrence High.”