Holcomb sweeps Scott City

Holcomb, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Holcomb and Scott City faced off on Friday night in their final tune up before next weeks midseason tournaments. The night would belong to the Longhorns, as the girls pulled away in the fourth quarter to take a 47-34 win, while the Holcomb boys used a second period run to win 60-33

Holcomb Girls 47, Scott City 34
The first half would be a battle, as there were four ties and three lead changes. Holcomb jumped out early with an 11-9 lead after the first quarter, and led 16-10 early in the second quarter, before Scott City made a run. The Lady Beavers closed the half with a 12-5 run to take a 22-21 halftime lead. Much like their last game, Scott City led by one at the break and had a tough third quarter. Unfortunately for them, history would repeat itself. Trailing 24-23 early in the third frame, the Lady Longhorns used an 8-0 run to lead 31-24 with 1:41 left in the third quarter. The Lady Beavers would hit a three to pull to within four, but a banked in three at the end of the period by Jera Kruleski gave Holcomb a 34-27 lead heading into the fourth quarter. They scored the first five points, and turned their run into a 20-6 run to lead 43-30 with 2:31 left. Scott City got to within nine, but Holcomb scored the final four points to win 47-34.

Jera Kruleski led all scorers with 14 points to lead Holcomb, who has won three straight out of the Christmas break. Scott City got 11 points each from Erika Felker and Alli Patton, who have now dropped three in a row. 

With the win, the Lady Longhorns snapped a five-game losing streak at home to Scott City, and have now won two of the last three in the series. They now lead the all-time series 33-28.

Scott City  9 13  5   7-34
Holcomb 1110 13 13-47

Scott City (5-4): Stevens 0 0-0 0; Rumford 2 0-0 4; Strine 4 0-0 8; Sowers 0 0-0 0; Ford 0 0-0 0; Felker 5 0-2 11; Cupp 0 0-0 0; Cramer 0 0-0 0; Patton 4 1-2 11; Team: 15 1-4 34
Holcomb (5-4): Deniston 0 1-2 1; Kruleski 6 3-4 18; Cornelson 3 3-4 9; P. Jones 1 2-2 4; H. Jones 2 2-2 7; Rude 2 4-6 8; Team: 14 15-20 47

Three Pointers: Scott City 3 (Patton 2, Felker 1); Holcomb 4 (Kruleski 3, H. Jones 1); Rebounds: Scott City 21, Holcomb 24; Turnovers: Scott City 14, Holcomb 19; Fouls: Scott City 17, Holcomb 9; Fouled Out: Scott City (Felker, Patton).

Coach Amy Felker Postgame

Coach Andrea Ardery Postgame

Holcomb Boys 60, Scott City 33
The finale of the night would be a tight game, until the midway point of the second quarter. Holcomb, the No. 8 team in Class 3A, never trailed and were tied once early on at two. Scott City would found themselves down 12-10 at the first quarter, and to within 16-14 with 5:54 left before the break. After the Beavers were down three at the 4:25 mark before the break, the Longhorns would take the game over and never look back, using a 12-0 run and closed the final 3:19 of the half on a 17-4 run to take a 35-19 lead at the break. Scott City was unable to put a run together in the second half, as Holcomb would crash the board and use second chance opportunity to build their lead to 51-26 heading into the fourth frame. The Longhorns led by as many as 32 at 60-28 in the middle of the fourth quarter, before settling for a 60-33 win.

Holcomb got 18 points from Cooper Autry and 16 from Kaden Johnson, as they have now won five straight. Scott City was led by Carter Gooden with 10 points, who dropped their first game in three games. 

Holcomb has now won four straight in the series. Scott City leads the all-time series 32-29.

Scott City 10   9   7 7-33
Holcomb  12 23 16 9-60

Scott City (4-5): Duff 0 0-0 0; Thomas 1 0-0 2; Noll 0 0-0 0; Rodriguez 1 2-4 2; Thon 1 0-0 2; Rumford 1 0-0 2; Hawkins 3 1-2 7; Bailey 2 0-0 5; Weathers 0 1-2 1; Tarango 0 0-0 0; Gooden 4 2-3 10; Team: 13 6-11 33
Holcomb (8-1): Tolbert 3 0-0 8; Palacios 0 0-0 0; Sizemore 3 3-4 9; Mesa 2 0-0 4; Orosco 0 0-0 0; VanPelt 2 0-0 5; Garcia 0 0-0 0; Cox 0 0-0 0; Johnson 5 5-5 16; Autry 7 2-4 18; Team 22 11-13 60

Three-Pointers: Scott City 1 (Bailey 1), Holcomb 6 (Autry 3, Tolbert 2, VanPelt 1); Rebounds: Scott City 15, Holcomb 22; Turnovers: Scott City 20, Holcomb 12; Fouls: Scott City 15, Holcomb 13 Fouled Out: None.

Coach Brian Gentry Postgame

Coach Chad Novack Postgame

Up next for Scott City is the Sterling Invitational Tournament. On Tuesday, the girls face Smoky Valley at 5 pm, while the boys take on Kingman at 6 pm. Holcomb begins play in the Hillsboro Trojan Classic on Tuesday, as the girls take on Clay Center at 3 pm, and the boys also play Clay Center at 4:30 pm.