|
Nonconference play heated up in the second week of high school basketball in the state of Kansas. A big rivalry game between Atchison and Pleasant Ridge built up over the past few years and the girls game was a prime example of how close the battles can get.
The first half saw both teams trade buckets with the Lady Rams putting up enough points to lead at the half 25-22. At the end of the third quarter, the Lady Red closed the gap to tie it at 33-33. With the game knotted up at 42-42 with 10 seconds left, the Lady Rams’ sophomore Holly Ewert fired a shot at the buzzer, but couldn’t drill it and the game went into overtime. Big turnovers by Pleasant Ridge led to free throws for Atchison and the Lady Red escaped with a narrow 50-47 overtime victory.
Junior Laurene Cushinberry led all scorers with 19 points to be our Bank of Atchison Player of the Game. Senior Arika Smith chipped in 14 points. For the Lady Rams, junior Kelsey Carpenter dropped 13 points while junior Ashley Lingenfelser finished with 10 off the bench.
The Lady Red improved to 1-1 with the next game being this Friday against Savannah while Pleasant Ridge fell to 1-1 and plays Maur Hill Mount Academy.
In boys competition, Pleasant Ridge started the game off perfectly. The Rams rebounded and held Atchison to just 10 points in the first seven minutes. Atchison’s Wykeen Gill Jr. drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer to cut the deficit to three after one quarter, trailing 16-13. The switch turned on for the Redmen as the second quarter saw everything go Atchison’s way. The Redmen outscored the Rams 35-8 in the second to lead 48-24 at the half. From then on, Atchison cruised to an 84-45 victory.
Five Redmen finished with double figures, but sophomore Jerome Luster Jr. found his shot in the second half, ending the game with 19 points to be the Bank of Atchison Player of the Game. Senior Tanner Huntington recorded 18 points, senior Ivan Cushinberry had 12 off the bench and junior RaShaun Chambers and sophomore Wykeen Gill Jr. contributed with 10 points apiece. The lone double-figure scorer for Pleasant Ridge was senior Sean Spurlock with 13 points.
With the win, Atchison is 2-0 to start the season with the next game against Savannah while Pleasant Ridge falls to 0-2 and plays Maur Hill Mount Academy.
|
