It was a tough Friday night for the Sabetha girls and boys in the 3A State Semifinals as both Bluejay teams struggled mightily to put the ball through the hoop and dug themselves massive halftime deficites before losing double-digit contests.  Both Bluejay squads look to bounce back Saturday and finish their season with a win in the third place games at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.

GIRLS = Hesston 53, Sabetha 28

After a back and forth first quarter the game was tied at nine.  However, Sabetha did not make a field goal in the second quarter and was outscored 16-2 as the top ranked and undefeated Swathers built a 25-24 halftime edge.  Hesston (25-0) hit all 12 free throws in the final quarter and turned Sabetha over 18 times while pulling away for the win.  The Lady Bluejays got 18 points off the bench as Emily Meyer scored 9, Kalli Broxterman added 5 in the fourth quarter and Jena Winkler scored 4 points.  

The five Bluejay starters combined to make only three shots the entire game as Sabetha shot only 11 percent in the first half and 22 percent for the game while going 0-12 behind the arc.  Sabetha is now 21-4 and will play Silver Lake (a 68-53 loser to Cimmaron) in the third place game Saturday at 12:00 with live coverage on KNZA 103.9 FM and www.mscsports.net.  
 

BOYS = Wichita Collegiate 70, Sabetha 54

The lack of energy and excitment from the girls game carried over for the Sabetha boys who came out and made only one field goal in the first quarter while falling behind 18-3.  The Jays trailed 31-16 at halftime and got two buckets from Calder Keehn to start the third quarter and pull within 11, but they never got any closer as the Spartans puled back out to a 21 point margin and improved to 22-3 with the convincing victory.  Wichita Collegiate made 19 of 22 free throws and turned Sabetha over 13 times while six juniors on their squad combined for 65 points.  They will face Scott Community (24-1) in the 3A boys title game after the Beavers beat Wellsville 63-55.  

Brett Plattner scored 9 of his 15 points in the final quarter and Kellen Russell added 10 while Keehn and Kegan Schumann both added 6 as Sabetha lost for just the second time all season and shot only 38 percent for the contest.  The Jays will take on Wellsville in the third place game at 2:00 PM in Hutchinson on Saturday with live coverage on KNZA 103.9 FM and www.mscsports.net.