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Hayden boys rally falls short in 45-42 loss to Manhattan
By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
Considering the start, you would think Friday's Centennial League boys game at Hayden was going to be all Manhattan.
The Indians would go on a 11-0 run to start the game before the Wildcats finally got on the board with 3:55 left in the first quarter Hayden would get on the board and Manhattan went up 25-8 in the second quarter.
Hayden sophomore Carter Compton scored 14 points with a pair of 3-pointers in Friday's 45-42 loss to Manhattan. [File photo/TSN]
Hayden junior Connor Hanika scored 14 points in Friday's 45-42 home Centennial League loss to Manhattan. [File photo/TSN]
But the Wildcats kept fighting and gave itself a chance down the stretch before dropping a 45-42 decision to the Indians at the Bueltel Activity Center.
“Unfortunately, too often we start games too passive,'' Hayden coach Dwayne Anthony said. "I’m not surprised when they bunker down and start executing and then we make it a game per se. I was disappointed tonight with how long it took to do that and with all the talk that we’ve had that, we need to start games with that same intensity.”
The Wildcats used an 8-0 run to cut its halftime deficit to 25-16 and would come out of halftime scratching and clawing and would end the third quarter still down by 9 (35-26) before sophomore Carter Compton, whose family just moved to Topeka, would score 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Wildcats grab their first lead of the game with only 5:13 left.
But Manhattan would get a 3-pointer and then two free throws in the final 2 minutes to escape the hard-fought game with the 3-point win.
Cair Paravel boys hold on for 71-67 Flint Hills League win over West Franklin
By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Cair Paravel Latin boys withstood a furious fourth quarter rally by West Franklin Friday to hold off the Falcons to win on the Lions’ home floor, 71-67.
Senior Jase Pavlik scored 18 points to lead the way as Cair Paravel topped West Franklin 71-67 Friday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Cair Paravel coach Chip Kueffer and the Lions' bench react to a big play in Friday's 71-67 win over West Franklin. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Lions led by 17 with five minutes remaining, but had to hit free throws in the final couple of minutes to stave off the comeback.
The Lions improved to 4-5 on the season, 2-3 in the Flint Hills League. Cair Paravel had to replace eight players from last year’s squad and coach Chip Kueffer said the learning process is ongoing.
“It helped tonight that we were at home, for sure,” Kueffer said. “The way the game played out says a lot about our youth, because we were playing a lot of young guys, and it says a lot about our leadership. So, we were able to hold onto it. Ideally, you’d like to win that game by 20. But I think we learned more from it because we were able to win a close one.”
Providing leadership, as well as 18 points, Friday was senior guard Jase Pavlik. Juniors Caleb Cleverdon and Lucas Marichal added 12 and 10 points respectively.
Coming off the bench to combine for 20 points were freshmen Chase Hastert with 13 and Blaine Durbin with seven.
“These new guys, they’ve been in the system and they’re very skilled,” Pavlik said. “The thing I like about our team is we’re smart. But we’ve got to learn to play in pressure situations. Coach said we had four turnovers at half, and I think we ended up with like 18. After the game we discussed that we haven’t been in that scenario yet.”
“To lose eight guys at a small school, that’s tough,” the Lions’ second-year coach said. “It kind of feels like my first year again because of the new league, the new schedule, playing a lot of the teams for the first time.
“The kids love each other and that makes it easier, but we’re not playing well yet. Once we get it figured out, I think we can be good.”
Cair Paravel's girls bid comes up short in 36-33 Flint Hills loss to West Franklin
By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Cair Paravel Latin girls battled to the wire in search of their second win of the season, coming up just short at home against West Franklin 36-33 Friday.
Karsyn Hastert led Cair Paravel with 10 points in Friday's 36-33 Flint Hills League loss to West Franklin. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
First-year coach Jaley Barkley praised the Lions' effort and sees improvement from the eight players suited up.
“We’ve played some tough teams but we’ve learned so much these past couple of games,” Barkley said. “This was one of our first games that was close to the end, so just learning to finish those last couple of minutes in the fourth quarter is huge, being able to push with our small team, just being able to figure out how to finish strong.”
The Lions are navigating the Flint Hills League for the first time, with a small roster and limited experience. Barkley had to juggle the lineup in the final minutes after two players fouled out. But she is happy with the chemistry of the group.
“The girls have grown so much and they are great together,” Barkley said. “I wouldn’t say it’s a struggle (to have just eight players). It’s more of a joy just being able to figure out how to work with these eight girls.”
Freshman London Backman (12) scored seven points Friday in Cair Paravel's 36-33 home loss to West Franklin. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Lions were led Friday by 10 points from junior Karsyn Hastert. Freshman London Backman added seven.
