Perkins County faces Hershey in first game of SPVA tournament

After a victory over Paxton last Tuesday, the Lady Plainsmen suffered losses against both Chase County and Wauneta-Palisade over the weekend.

This week they will be competing in the SPVA tournament.

Paxton

Tuesday, Jan. 12, the Lady Plainsmen headed to Paxton to face the Lady Tigers.

Paxton gained first possession of the ball, but Perkins County’s defense prevented them from scoring right away. The Lady Tigers took two shots before senior Dani Burge caught the rebound and Perkins County hustled to their hoop.

Freshman Kailee Potts made the first two baskets of the game with the help of sophomore Meredith Gloy and junior Samantha Patrick, who each snagged the ball from Paxton while at Perkins County’s hoop.

The Lady Plainsmen continued their strong start through the rest of the first quarter, and scored another 10 points. They entered the second quarter 14-10, with Perkins County ahead.

Perkins County scored another 14 points in the second quarter, and the Lady Tigers picked up 15 points, making the game 28-25 going into half, with the Lady Plainsmen still in the lead.

The game continued to be close through the third quarter, with both teams scoring baskets in the first 30 seconds of the quarter, and they entered the final quarter of the game 38-33.

Near the end of the fourth, the game was 48-43. With the help of an assist by Burge, Potts got the ball at the top of the arc and sank a tre, making the final score 51-43.

“Although this may not have been our sharpest game, the girls still found a way to win,” said Coach Deanne Bishop. “Our composure with end-of-the-game situations helped us finish on a strong note.

Potts was Perkins County’s top scorer of the game with 31 points and had the only three-point basket for the team.

Burge had the most rebounds for the team having caught 10, with Gloy just behind her at eight.

Chase County

The Lady Plainsmen traveled to Imperial Thursday, Jan. 14 for a game against Chase County’s Lady Longhorns.

Chase County started the game strong by not only winning the tip, but also following up with an unanswered 13 points.

The Lady Plainsmen scored their first two points of the game when senior Rylee Huff sank two free throw shots after she was fouled while charging the basket for a shot.

Perkins County scored just seven more points before the end of the quarter, which the Lady Longhorns matched. 

They ended the first quarter with Perkins County behind, 20-9.

Though they started out down, the Lady Plainsmen continued to fight to overcome Chase County, scoring 11 points in the second and holding the Lady Longhorns to 10.

The game was 30-20 at the end of the first half, with Chase County up.

In the third quarter, Chase County scored 22 unanswered points, greatly increasing their lead.

“We felt good about our adjustments headed into half,” Bishop said. “However, we went cold from the field in the third quarter.”

The game was 52-20 entering the final quarter. Huff and freshman Katie Cook were the only two scorers for Perkins County, with a two-point shot from Huff and a free throw from Cook. The Lady Longhorns scored nine more points, solidifying their win.

The Lady Plainsmen fell to Chase County 23-61.

“Chase County is a well-Coached team; they have many offensive weapons,” Bishop said.

Potts was the top scorer for the Lady Plainsmen with 10 points. Junior Hallie Fisher had the most rebounds for the team with six, and Huff was not far behind with five.

Wauneta-Palisade

Friday, Jan. 15 Perkins County hosted Wauneta-Palisade in a home game.

The game started off pretty strong for Perkins County, scoring 15 points in the first quarter to the Lady Broncos’ 12 points, giving them a three-point lead in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Wauneta-Palisade scored another 12 points while holding the Lady Plainsmen to nine, and tying the game at half.

“After a competitive two quarters, the girls found themselves tied with Wauneta at half,” Bishop said. “In the second half, Wauneta was the more aggressive team on the boards and when attacking the rim.”

The Broncos certainly showed that aggression, scoring 22 more points in the third quarter while again holding Perkins County to nine points, making the score 46-33 going into the fourth.

In the end, Wauneta-Palisade secured their victory by scoring 14 points in the final quarter to the Lady Plainsmen’s eight. The final score was 60-41.

Bishop said the team got into a bit of foul trouble in the second half, which limited what they wanted to do defensively.

“I give a lot of credit to Coach Cox; his teams are always known for their aggressive play and stellar shooting,” Bishop continued.

Potts scored 15 points, making her Perkins County’s top scorer. She also had the most rebounds with seven, and Burge and Fisher were close behind with five rebounds each.

Junior Autumn Anderson made the only three-point basket for the Lady Plainsmen.

SPVA

Tuesday, the Lady Plainsmen kicked off the SPVA tournament with a game against fourth seeded Hershey.

They had faced Hershey earlier in the season where they fell 48-34, and Hershey has since changed head coaches.

“The Hershey players seem to be responding to their new coach in a positive way,” Bishop noted. “They’re on a 5-1 run headed into conference. They’re playing some top-notch ball right now.”

The winner of the Perkins County vs. Hershey game will move on to play North Platte St. Pat’s Friday, Jan 22 at 6:30 p.m. at North Platte Community College.

If Perkins County falls to Hershey, they will either play Friday at 5 p.m. or Saturday, Jan. 23 at 1:30 p.m.

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