BY BUDDY TABLER

Special to the Tribune

HOISINGTON Haven's girls outscored Larned 28-10 after trailing 27-15 at halftime to outlast  Larned 43-37 in Friday's 3A Hoisington basketball substate.

Larned came out of the gate fast, outscoring the Lady Wildcats 16-4 in the opening quarter. Jadyn Crosby scored 9 first-half points and led the Lady Indians to a commanding 27-15 halftime lead, a half in which Larned made 6 of 12 three-point shots and 10 of 23 field goals.

“We came out ready to play and had a lot of early success, but we had that cold-shooting third quarter," said Larned coach Jerrod Smith. "It kind of took away our energy. We missed several easy attempts right after halftime. It took the wind out of our sails. We let Haven get to the free throw line way too much. That was the difference in the game.”

Sienna DeFrain had a big night with 25 points to lead Haven. Avery Brawner added nine points. Haven made 13 of 33 field goals for 40% but got a big advantage at the free throw line by making 17 of 27. Haven (15-7) plays Ellsworth for a 3A state tournament berth.

After a hot-shooting first half Larned dropped to 5 of 22 in the second half, 22%. The Indians finished at 15 of 45 (33%), but were 1 of 7 from the charity stripe. Larned's Jadyn Crosby scored nine first-half points. Taeten Reynolds and Akielah Collins each scored 8 while Kaylee Hagerman had 5, and Abby Holt 3.

Larned (9-13) graduates five Larned seniors who helped rebuild the Larned program -- Jaidyn Pinkston, Abigail Holt, Mackenzie Reinert, Akielah Collins and Arianna Hemken.

Haven coach Dwight Roper steadied his team at halftime and they aggressively attacked the basket in the second half which led to a lot of trips to the free throw line. Haven made 17 of 27 free throws compared to Larned’s 1 of 7, a difference of 16 points in a 6-point game.

Haven scored the first basket of the game but then trailed until 5:31 in the fourth quarter when they forged a 35-35 tie but Larned would score only two more times while the Lady Wildcats were adding to their total at the free throw line. Sadie Estill canned a pair of free throws with 21 seconds remaining to make it a two-possession game at 42-37 and Larned never scored again.

Larned 16 11 6 4 – 37

Haven 4 11 14 14 – 43

LARNED (9-13)— Crosby 3 1-2 9, Reynolds 3 0-0 8, Collins 4 0-3 8, Hagerman 2 0-2 5, Upson 2 0-0 4, Holt 1 0-0 3, Totals 15 1-7 37.

HAVEN (15-7)—Sienna DeFrain 8 9-12 25, Brawner 2 5-8 9, Estill 1 2-5 4, Sorrel DeFrain 1 0-0 2, Cooprider 0 1-2 1, Holzrichter 1 0-0 2, Totals 13 17-27 43.

3-pointers—L (Crosby 2, Reynolds 2, Hagerman 1, Holt 1); H ().

ELLSWORTH GIRLS 46, HOISINGTON 42 – Ellsworth’s Lainey Peschka scored 17 points and fellow sophomore Elyse Haxton contributed 16 points and four 3-pointers as the Bearcats outlasted Hoisington 46-42 in Friday’s 3A girls substate basketball semifinal.

Each team converted six 3-pointers. The Bearcats outscored the Cardinals 12-6 on free throws.

Hoisington’s Kylee Hahn scored 13 points and Jordyn Boxberger and Mallory Mooney added eight apiece. The Cardinals (14-8) were trying to become the first girls basketball team in school history to qualify for the state tournament.

“We had big dreams for this team and it’s been a great year,” said Hoisington coach Trina Lutters. “We’re proud of their effort. They were coachable players. It’s unfortunate when you go to postseason, and your season ends. We’ll miss our seniors. I’m thankful for my time here. The future is bright for Hoisington basketball.”

Ellsworth 15 6 11 14 – 46

Hoisington 10 10 10 12 – 42

ELLSWORTH (11-11)—Peschka 5 6-10 17, Haxton 5 2-2 16, Coonrod 1 3-4 5, Tenbrink 2 0-0 4, Lindsley 1 0-2 3, Kueser 0 1-2 1, Totals 14 12-20 46.

HOISINGTON (14-8)—Hahn 4 3-4 13, Boxberger 3 0-0 8, Mooney 3 0-0 8, Maier 1 3-4 5, Crawford 3 0-0 6, Lutters 1 0-0 2, Totals 15 6-8 42.

3-pointers—E 6 (Haxton 4, Peschka 1, Lindsley 1); H 6 (Boxberger 2, Mooney 2, Hahn 2).

3A HOISINGTON—Haven 15-7 vs. Ellsworth 11-11; Haven 43, Larned 37; Ellsworth 46, Hoisington 42; Haven 60, Lyons 29; Larned 68, Russell 33; Hoisington 71, Kingman 26; Ellsworth 58, Nickerson 37