WEBB CITY, Mo. — The College Heights Christian girls basketball team was unable to overcome foul trouble on Friday night.
As a result, a stellar season came to an abrupt end.
Second-seeded Greenfield finished the first half on a 16-0 run and then held off top-seeded College Heights down the stretch for a 58-44 victory in the championship game of the Class 2 District 12 tournament inside Webb City High School’s Cardinal Dome.
Five College Heights players fouled out of the game, including four senior starters — Catie Secker, Lainey Lett, Grace Bishop and Kaynahn Burk.
“We take full responsibility for the loss, but we got into early foul trouble with some calls that probably shouldn’t have been called,” College Heights coach John Blankenship said. “Because of our foul trouble, we tried to let a few minutes pass by before we got into our press. Because of our foul trouble, we couldn’t press. You saw at the end of the game, when we extended our pressure, we created some turnovers and got back into the game. If we could have done that from the start, it might have been a different outcome. Credit Greenfield. They played well tonight.”
College Heights was whistled for 32 fouls, while Greenfield was called for 20. The Wildcats shot 43 free throws, making 23. The Cougars, who were attempting to repeat as district champs, went to the charity stripe 21 times, with 15 makes.
“Catie Secker picked up a couple of really quick fouls and couldn’t get into a rhythm,” Blankenship said. “We had an advantage in the post. I thought we should have been to the free-throw line a few more times. But we had to play through that.”
The Cougars end the season with a record of 22-3. College Heights won a Ozark 7 Conference title and captured three tournament championships this winter (Gem City Classic, Lancer Classic, Warrior Classic).
“I could not be more proud, we’ve had such a great season with a lot of accomplishments,” Blankenship said.
Taking the court for the final time in a CHC uniform were Bishop, Secker, Lett and Burk.
All four seniors played key roles as the Cougars advanced to a district championship game for three straight seasons.
“I love these seniors,” Blankenship said. “I could not be more proud of them. They have meant so much to our program. It was tough in the locker room…saying our goodbyes. They’ve been so instrumental the last two years and even when they were sophomores. It’s always great to get a district championship when you have a team that can win it. So we’re disappointed.”
GAME RECAP
College Heights led 7-1 when Greenfield rattled off seven straight points.
Bishop’s two free throws gave the Cougars a 9-8 lead at the end of the low-scoring first period.
A bucket in the lane from Lett gave CHC a 15-13 advantage, but that’s when Greenfield got going in a big way.
The Wildcats scored 16 unanswered points, with five different players scoring in the surge for a 29-15 halftime lead.
Greenfield then scored the first five points of the second half, capping 21 unanswered, to take a 34-15 advantage.
Secker and Lett both fouled out in the third quarter and Greenfield took its largest lead at 41-19.
Down 43-23 early in the fourth quarter, College Heights didn’t quit.
The Cougars put together a 13-3 burst, trimming their deficit to seven with three minutes to play.
However, CHC’s Bishop and Burk fouled out. The Wildcats scored five unanswered points to gain some breathing room.
Jayli Johnson’s hoop cut Greenfield’s lead to eight with a minute to play, but the Wildcats closed the game by making 7-of-8 at the charity stripe.
Blankenship noted he was proud of the way his team, which had a number of reserves on the floor, battled back in the fourth quarter.
“They played hard all the way through,” Blankenship said. “Give Greenfield credit. They played well and shot the ball well. No. 12 (Marlie Wright) is a great player. She’s very quick and hard to defend. Our younger kids came in and fought hard and played well. Hopefully this will motivate them to keep working hard for next year.”
NAMES & NUMBERS
A sophomore guard, Johnson led College Heights with 18 points, while Bishop scored 12 on 5-of-9 shooting.
Lett had seven points, while sophomore Addie Lawrence contributed five points and 12 rebounds before becoming the fifth CHC player to foul out.
Sophomore guard Marlie Wright poured in 28 points for the Wildcats. She made 8-of-10 field goal attempts and 10-of-12 foul shorts.
Tatum Torres added 11 points and 17 rebounds for Greenfield.
College Heights entered the night ranked fourth in Class 2 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association, while Greenfield is ranked seventh.
According to the school’s Twitter account, it’s Greenfield’s first district title in 26 years.
Greenfield (21-6) will meet District 11 champion Blue Eye (22-5) on Wednesday in the sectional round.
