CONCORDIA — Although it didn’t translate into a victory, Barton Community College head women’s basketball coach Darin Spence said his team’s passion returned to the hardwood.
Barton’s Shea Shoemaker drilled a 3-pointer from the left wing — her only points of the game — to pull the Lady Cougars within 51-48 of Cloud County on Wednesday night at Arley A. Bryant Gymnasium.
But Cloud answered by turning the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Western Division tilt into a foul shooting contest down the stretch. The Lady Thunderbirds converted 8 of 12 free throws during the final three minutes, 38 seconds to hold on for a 61-57 victory.
“I’m pleased with the way we competed,” Spence said. “If we compete like this, it allows us to make adjustments and allows us to be in every game we play.
“We need to compete like we did tonight every day.”
Barton forward Dionne Harris scored 14 of her game-high 21 points in the second half in a game that was close from start to finish.
The difference down the stretch was Cloud guard Aleesha Coulter, a freshman from Auckland, New Zealand. After crashing to the court in a scramble for the ball midway through the second half and banging her head on the floor, she returned in the late going and converted 5 of 6 free throws in the final 1:10.
Coulter finished with 16 points, including 8 for 9 on free throws, and post player Tera Ingalsbe added 14 points.
While Harris was dominant after halftime, finishing the game 6-for-12 from the field and making 8 of 10 free throws, Barton post player Netanya Jackson scored all but three of her 14 points in the first half. She finished matching teammate Blair Bloomfield, a native of nearby Clifton, with eight rebounds.
“It’s a team where we’re trying to figure it out vs. a team that has had it figured out for years” Spence said of Cloud. “But it all starts with how we decide to compete or not compete.
“If we’re competing like we did tonight and like we did against Independence, we can win a lot more games.”
It was Barton’s first conference road loss after winning its previous three. The Lady Cougars’ record now stands at 13-9 overall, 3-5 in the West.
Cloud improved to 14-7, 5-3.
JUNIOR COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Kansas Jayhawk Community
College Conference
Western Division
At Concordia
Arley A. Bryant Gymnasium
WOMEN
Wednesday
Cloud County 61, Barton 57
BARTON (13-9, 3-5)
Raven Anderson 1-8 0-0 2, Blair Bloomfield 4-10 3-4 11, Taschell Phillips 0-2 0-0 0, Netanya Jackson 5-11 4-5 14, Erin Copeland 1-7 4-4 6, Devan Boeger 0-3 0-0 0, Shea Shoemaker 1-9 0-0 3, Ta’Kerra Williams 0-1 0-0 0, Dionne Harris 6-12 8-10 21.Totals 18-63 19-23 57.
CLOUD (14-7, 5-3)
Aleesha Coulter 3-8 8-9 16, Ashley Evans 1-6 2-2 5, Brieona Warner 2-5 2-4 6, Megan Stagner 2-8 0-0 6, Tera Ingalsbe 5-9 4-9 14, Jessica Downard 1-1 3-4 6, Rachel Tailele 0-2 0-0 0, Hailey Kelly 0-0 0-0 0, Paige Champlin 0-4 6-6 6, Melinda Pride 1-4 0-0 4. Totals 15-48 25-34 61.
Halftime — Cloud County 28, Barton 25. Three-point goals — Barton 2-12 (Harris 1-1, Shoemaker 1-5, Boeger 0-3, Copeland 0-3); Cloud 6-13 (Stagner 2-4, Coulter 2-5, Evans 1-3). Rebounds — Cloud 50 (Jackson 8, Bloomfield 8); Cloud 39 (Champlin 6, Ingalsbe 6). Assists — Barton 11 (Copeland 5); Cloud 10 (Evans 2, Downard 2). Steals — Barton 10 (Copeland 4); Cloud 8 (Warner 2, Champln 2). Turnovers — Barton 23, Cloud 22.
