KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Encountering his first close game of his young career, Barton Community College head women’s basketball coach Carter Kruger had his sophomores get the job done.
Sophomores Erin Copeland and Ta’Kerra Williams sank free throws with less than a minute left to overtake Kansas City Kansas for a 47-44 victory on Tuesday night.
“It was good,” Kruger said. “I thought our communication between them and me was good down the stretch. It’s something that we work on. It didn’t really even feel like it was the first close game for me as a head coach.”
Copeland, a 5-foot-6 point guard, playing in her hometown, finished with a team-leading 12 points. She put in a pair of free throws with less than 40 seconds remaining to give Barton a 45-44 lead.
Williams, a 5-9 forward, pulled down a rebound during the Lady Blue Devils’ following possession. She was fouled, and she made both of her free throws to help secure the Lady Cougars’ lead.
Williams finished with a double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 13 rebounds.
“We relied on them to make the tough plays for us,” Kruger said. “Especially with the adventure we had from the line, I was a little nervous when they went up there, but they handled the situation very well.”
Barton finished only 13-for-28 (46.4 percent) from the free-throw line.
Sophomore guard Blair Bloomfield finished with eight points, all in the first half as Barton went into halftime tied 21-21.
“It was a back-and-forth game,” Kruger said. “It was not a game of runs, but a game of droughts. Both teams struggled to get going on offense.”
The Lady Cougars (5-1) have a week before their next game, hosting Cowley at Kirkman Activity Center on Tuesday. The game starts at 5:30 p.m.

                                                                      — Kevin Price