The Salina South girls basketball team used the power of the three-ball to reach the same win mark as last season.
Sophomore Kalysa Hamel hit four of the nine triples, the Cougars locked up Goddard’s leading scorer, and South coasted to a 60-39 victory Friday night at Salina South High School. The Cougars wrapped up the regular season at 9-11, recording the same amount of wins as last season. Goddard dropped to 7-13.
Both offenses exchanged buckets to start. Goddard’s only lead of the game was 6-5 before South junior Kylie Arnold propelled the Cougars ahead with eight of the 10 points, six coming off two threes. Hamel followed with a pair of treys and sophomore Acacia Weis connected from deep, giving South a 21-10 advantage after one.
Goddard trimmed margin to 21-14 early in the second, but Hamel’s third triple stretched the lead to double-digits, a theme that wouldn’t change for the remainder of the game. Goddard was within 10 late in the half before senior Mariah Janda scored before the buzzer, handing South a 33-21 cushion at the break.
Salina South dominated the third, outscoring the Lions 17-3. Sophomore Liberty Allen wrapped up the period by banking in a three at the horn. South pushed the lead out to as many as 29 points.
Hamel finished with 12 points. Junior Sydney Peterson paced the Cougars with 14 points.
Goddard’s top scorer was Maycee James, who ended up with 15 points, nine in the first half.
Salina South opens sub-state play next Tuesday with a home showdown against Great Bend. Tipoff is at 7 pm with pregame at 6:45 on Y93.7.
SOUTH 66, GODDARD 49
In the last five games, the Salina South boys faced murderer’s row, resulting in four defeats. That didn’t stop them from closing out the regular season with a lopsided victory.
South (15-4) raced out to a 6-0 lead. However, the Cougars would stall as the Lions crawled back within three, 8-5. Salina South got things going, scoring the final four points of the period, leading 12-5.
In fact, that 5-0 flurry ballooned to a 19-3 burst. During that stretch, senior Devon Junghans drilled a pair of threes, lobbed an alley oop to senior Colin Schreiber for a two-handed flush, and classmate Josh Jordan logged a couple buckets. In the end, South was up by 18 before settling with a 33-18 halftime advantage.
With the game in hand, the Cougars pushed the margin out to 20 before Goddard started to hit from deep, cutting the deficit to as little as 14. Goddard (1-19) would get no closer as South picked up the victory.
Jordan paced the Cougars with 16 points. Junghans added 15. Schreiber had a season-high 14 points.
Cam’ron Moses poured in 21 points for Goddard. Jackson LeFevre chipped in 15.
Salina South begins sub-state play next Wednesday, hosting cross-town rival Salina Central. Tipoff is slated for 7 pm with pregame at 6:45 on Y93.7.
