Sometimes when you pull ahead in a community college basketball game, it’s easy to just run away with it.
Other times a team will hang around, forcing their opponent to step up their game.
Such was the case for Barton’s women’s basketball team, who led most of the night, but couldn’t build a comfortable lead in their 76-66 win over Pratt on Saturday at Kirkman Activity Center.
“We were up for most of the game,” Barton head coach Carter Kruger said. “Anytime we got up by six or seven, they’d come right back with a run to tie it up or close the gap.
“We had to play a better second half than we did the first half, which we did, thankfully.”
Kruger said it wasn’t a pretty win.
“It was a character-building game because we had to win ugly,” Kruger said. “We were able to win ugly, which is a good thing.”
Kailai Brantner was the Lady Cougars’ leading scorer, going 5-for-9 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free-throw line.
“They really forced Kailai to be a scorer,” Kruger said. “She did an excellent job for us. She made some long shots, and she got to the basket.”
Mariana Lambert added 17 points, going 5-for-6 from the line.
“She’s really been coming along for us,” Kruger said. “She’s really started hitting shots, and playing up to her potential. She was good on both sides of the court for us.”
Barton hosts Dodge City on Wednesday night with the women’s game starting at 5:30 p.m.

— Kevin Price