Jay Daubenberger
Liberal, Kansas – Seward County hit the road on Wednesday afternoon for a three-hour trip out east to Great Bend for a matchup with the Barton Cougars where it was a back and forth battle through the first twenty minutes and despite scoring 31 in the fourth quarter, the Lady Saints were unable to topple the Cougars as they fell 70-62.
It was a defensive battle throughout the first half of action as both sides struggled to score until Ari Gordon lifted the lid off the rim for Seward County with a mid-range floater to put the first points on the board with a 2-0 lead three minutes in. Jamia Carter cashed in back-to-back triples for the Lady Saints with time draining down in the quarter to keep the score within one 11-10 as Barton held a small lead after the first ten minutes.
Quarter two saw a higher frequency of shots going through the rim with Gordon once again finding her way to the basket off a steal for two to keep Seward County close to the Cougars. A knockdown three from Naomi Aragonez allowed SCCC to retake a 19-18 advantage over Barton. Another Lady Saints triple by Xoe Rosalez combined with a slash down the lane from Carter for an easy reverse layup kept their lead alive 26-25 but a quick four-point run by the Cougars put Seward County behind 29-26 entering the halftime break.
Scoring was hard to come by for the green and white throughout the third quarter as they could only score five points throughout the third while Barton jumped out in front with 20 points of their own in the quarter.
The final quarter was a different story for the Lady Saints as they pressed on defense to force multiple turnovers in a row for the Cougars that allowed Seward County to chip away bit by bit at the Barton lead. Gordon spun her way to the hoop off a steal followed by another banked in triple from Carter to put the score at 54-36. An 8-0 run capped by a long range two by Carter allowed Seward County to keep creeping closer before another long-range bomb by Carter and a floater from Rosalez brought it to single figures 65-56. A last second three from the top of the arc by Kayla Peoples brought the score to within eight but time ran out as the Lady Saints fell 70-62 to the Cougars despite a high scoring fourth quarter of action.
Carter led all scorers on the afternoon with 21 points while Gordon and Allie Myers each added on 12 points apiece with Myers also hauling in 9 rebounds and Gordon snatching away a career high 9 steals.
Seward County now sits at a 14-10 overall record with a conference record of 10-8 against Jayhawk opponents. They will be back in the Green House on Saturday when they take on long time KJCCC rival Garden City with tip-off scheduled for 2:00 PM with Saints Shootaround at 1:45 on 107.5. Conestoga Energy is the buyout sponsor.
