By KYLE MANTHE
The Washburn Review
Friday was Senior Night for Topeka West girl’s basketball as the Chargers played host to Emporia, the No. 5-ranked 5A team in the state.
The Spartans played spoiler to the proceedings, riding 23 points from senior Gracie Gilpin to a 60-19 win.
“That’s what we talked about at halftime, it’s kind of a microcosm of our season, when we do the things that we need to do we are actually pretty good and when we don’t do those we are not very good,” said Chargers coach Jeff Skar.
The loss moved Topeka West to 2-16 on the year heading into the final week of the regular season.
Topeka West honored seniors Whitley Benson and Brynna Mays Friday night on Senior Night at West. [Photos by Kyle Manthe/Special to TSN]
The Chargers stayed close early on with the team's first basket coming from senior Brynna Mays who got the start on senior night. An old-fashioned three-point play from junior Azaryah Duncan kept them within one point midway through the quarter.
Emporia created some distance, finishing the quarter on a 7-0 run with the last five from Gilpin to lead 15-7 after one.
The Spartans pressure picked up in the second quarter, leading to turnovers from Topeka West.
Gilpin took advantage of the extra opportunities, scoring nine in the quarter.
A five-point burst from sophomore Addie Kirmer put Emporia up by 20 late in the quarter before it entered halftime with a 35-12 lead.
“Against a team like that they are going to exploit any mistake that you guys make and then it snowballs from there. They are a really good team and well-coached with good players,” Skar said.
The third quarter started fittingly with a 3-pointer from Gilpin, the first of three she made in the quarter as the lead quickly grew to 30 points as the starters swapped places with the bench.
The Spartans' bench picked up where the starters left off to build a 40-point lead at the end of the third quarter.
With a running clock, the fourth quarter was low scoring on both sides, with a combined three points as Emporia left with the 41-point win.
Following the game, Mays and fellow senior Whitley Benson were recognized on the court.
“They are the best kids, they are the kind of kids that you love to coach because they do all of the right things on and off the court,” Skar said.
“Whitley is going to Mizzou, tried to talk her into going to Kansas but they are big Mizzou family so I am happy for her. Brenna got a major scholarship at WSU, it was a very highly competitive scholarship and she made it through all of the rounds … that’s what it’s all about.''
Gilpin led all scorers with her 23 points, including six 3-pointers, all coming in the first three quarters. Kirmer added 12 points and junior Rebecca Snyder finished in double figures with 10.
For the Chargers, Duncan was the leading scorer with eight points. Next was sophomore Zoe Clark, who finished with three.
The loss moved Topeka West to 2-12 in Centennial League play.
Next up for the Chargers is a matchup at Highland Park on Tuesday.
EMPORIA GIRLS 60, TOPEKA WEST 19
Emporia: 15 20 23 2 -- 60
Topeka West: 7 5 6 1 -- 19
Emporia (14-4, 10-4) – Gilpin 8-20 1-4 23, Kirmer 4-6 2-2 12, Cooper 0-0 0-0 0, Wiltz 0-2 0-0 0, Ryl. Peak 1-3 0-0 2, Stewart 1-2 0-0 2, A. Baker 1-3 0-0 3, Shivley 2-3 0-0 4, Gutierrez 0-1 0-0 0, T. Baker 0-2 0-0 0, Garcia 0-2 2-2 2, Snyder 5-7 0-0 10, Ryan Peak 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 23-52 4-8 60.
Topeka West (2-16, 2-12) – Hopper 0-0 0-0 0, Sanchez 1-1 0-2 2, Mays 1-2 0-0 2, Foster 0-0 0-0 0, Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Duncan 2-5 4-7 8, Benson 0-4 0-0 0, Clark 1-1 0-0 3, Ford 1-3 0-0 2, Bearman 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 7-19 4-10 19.
3-point goals – Emporia 9 (Gilpin 6, Kirmer 2, A. Baker 1). Topeka West 1 (Clark). Total fouls – Emporia 14, Topeka West 12. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – None.
