BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
Kassidy Nixon was in foul trouble and the Central Plains girls faced a fierce challenge in quest of an eighth consecutive state basketball championship.
Brynna Hammeke rescued the Oilers with back-to-back steals and a block to spark a wild 49-44 semifinal 1A Division 2 semifinal victory over Hanover. Hanover sliced a 14-point deficit to 30-27 when Hammeke rode to the rescue with two layups off steals for a 34-27 lead.
"We had to fight to the end. That was a lot of fun tonight," Hammeke said "I have confidence in my teammates because if I jump the dribbler they'll cover my defensive player. Our zone defense was great tonight. We build off our crowd's energy, which gets us going."
The Oilers' strategy of taking time off the clock backfired when the Wildcats' Ceegan Adkins scored off a steal. Hammeke preserved the 34-29 lead when she blocked Avery Behrends' 3-pointer to end the quarter.
Mollie Steiner scored and Reese McGuire and Madison McGuire converted free throws for a 39-29 lead. Again, the Oilers ' delay strategy failed miserably with three consecutive turnovers Adkins scored off a steal, Tessa Lohse hit a 3-pointer and Michelle Zarybnicky converted two free throws for a 39-37 score with 4:11 left.
But the Oilers' defense tightened as the Wildcats scored one point on their next nine possessions. Nixon and Madison McGuire each had six steals as the Oilers forced 29 Hanover turnovers with an aggressive zone defense that stole the basketball in the passing lanes.
The intense semifinal featured a championship matchup with the two premier 1A Division 2 girls teams meeting in Friday's semifinal.
"Our girls are warriors. Our defense tonight was amazing," said Central Plains coach Pat Stiles. "All year, our offense comes off our defense. Playing a tough schedule against Sterling and Hesston prepared us for this moment. We played extremely well to get our lead."
Nixon scored two consecutive baskets off fast-break assists by Kyla Metro and Hammeke for a 43-37 lead. Madison McGuire and Nixon each made a free throw and Hammeke converted four free throws to seal the victory.
Hammeke scored 18 points and Nixon and Reese McGuire added eight apiece. The Oilers converted 5 of 22 3-pointers with 23 turnovers. Hanover's athletic Atkins scored 15 points and had seven steals. Behrends added 11 points and three steals.
"Hanover is athletic and long," Stiles said. "They kept battling. They're in the state tournament because they're a great basketball team. At times, it was tough to make a pass."
The Oilers secured a state record 24th consecutive state tournament victory. The Oilers (55-2 all time) have won a state record 51 consecutive postseason games. The Oilers and Claflin are 9-0 in state championship games.
During 24 consecutive state tournament wins, only wins over Jefferson North (47-45, 2014) and Cunningham (39-34, 2021) were close. The Oilers have captured seven state championships in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021. Claflin High School won state titles in 2005 and 2006 under coach Toby Holmes. Hanover captured state basketball titles in 2017 and 2018.
GOLDEN PLAINS 33, HUTCHINSON CC 23 — Unbeaten Rexford Golden Plains might earn another shot against seven-time champion Central Plains after a 33-23 semifinal victory over Hutchinson Central Christian. Golden Plains' Jordyn Fleckenstein scored eight points. The Bulldogs held the Cougars to 8 of 32 shooting and limited Kaylee Kauffman to eight points n 3 of 13 shooting.
HANOVER 47, HUTCHINSON CC 27 (3RD) – Hanover's Tessa Lohse scored 15 points and Ceegan Atkins and Massey Holle added 10 apiece in the third-place girls game. Anna Lambert led the Cougars with 12 points.
Hanover 4 11 14 15 – 44
Central Plains 13 13 7 16 — 49
HANOVER (19-5)—Atkins 6-9 3-6 15, Behrends 4-10 0-0 11, Zarybnicky 0-3 4-5 4, Allison Jueneman 0-0 4-4 4, Klipp 1-2 2-2 4, Lohse 1-6 0-0 3, Anna Jueneman 1-2 0-0 2, Holle 0-1 1-2 1, Totals 13-33 14-19 44.
CENTRAL PLAINS (23-1)—Hammeke 6-13 5-8 18, Nixon 3-7 1-3 8, Reese McGuire 2-7 2-2 8, Madison McGuire 2-4 3-4 7, Metro 1-7 2-2 5, Steiner 1-1 0-0 2, Soeken 0-1 1-2 1, Totals 15-40 14-21 49.
3-pointers—H 4-16 (Behrends 3-8, Lohse 1-6, Holle 0-1, Anna Jueneman 0-1), CP 5-22 (R. McGuire 2-7, Nixon 1-1, Hammeke 1-7, Metro 1-7). Rebounds—H 27 (Allison Jueneman 8); CP 25 (M. McGuire 7). Assists—H 5 (Lohse 2); CP 12 (Hammeke 6). Steals—H 20 (Atkins 7); CP 20 (Nixon 6, M. McGuire 6).
Hutch CC 8 8 2 5 — 23
Golden Plains 12 4 8 9 — 33
HUTCHINSON CC (20-4)—Kauffman 3-13 1-1 8, Alyssa Lambert 2-6 3-4 7, Jensen 1-2 0-0 2, Anna Lambert 0-6 2-4 2, Ramsey 0-3 0-0 0, Totals 8-32 6-9 23.
GOLDEN PLAINS (23-0)—Fleckenstein 2-3 4-4 8, Rayna Taylor 2-9 0-0 6, Miller 2-11 2-2 6, Rath 2-6 0-0 5, Sidney Taylor 1-2 0-0 2, Wark 2-5 0-2 4, Nieman 1-1 0-0 2, Totals 12-37 6-8 33.
3-pointers—CC 1-8 (Kauffman 1-7, Anna Lambert 0-1); GP 3-13 (R. Taylor 2-8, Rath 1-4, Miller 0-1). Rebounds—CC 21 (Alyssa Lambert 5); GP 25 (Miller 9). Assists—CC 6 (Jensen 3); GP 8 (Rath 3, Miller 3). Steals—CC 4 (Anna Lambert 2); GP 8 (Miller 6).
Hutch CC 4 12 8 3 — 27
Hanover 6 12 19 10 – 47
HUTCHINSON CC (20-5)—Kauffman 4-21 2-3 11, Anna Lambert 3-9 6-7 12, Alyssa Lambert 0-3 2-2 2, Ramsey 1-2 0-2 2, Barnett 0-0 0-2 0, Franz 0-1 0-0 0, Totals 8-36 10-16 27.
HANOVER (20-5)—Atkins 2-7 6-8 10, Behrends 2-4 0-1 4, Zarybnicky 1-4 4-4 6, Allison Jueneman 0-2 0-0 0, Lohse 5-11 1-2 15, Anna Jueneman 0-2 2-2 2, Holle 3-5 4-6 10, Coufal 0-1 0-0 0, Totals 13-36 17-23 47.
3-pointers—CC 1-15 (Kauffman 1-13, Anna Lambert 0-1, Franz 0-1); H 4-14 (Lohse 4-10, Zarybnicky 0-1, Behrends 0-1, Anna Jueneman 0-1, Coufal 0-1), Rebounds—CC 15 (Ramsey 6); H 43 (Behrends 10), Assists—CC 3 (Ramsey 2); H 9 (Behrends 5).Steals—CC 10 (Ramsey 3, Kauffman 3); H 11 (Zarybnicky 4).
