A Barton County rivalry will be renewed tonight, when Great Bend High School entertains Hoisington in non-conference basketball action at Panther Fieldhouse.
Bragging rights will be at stake in this battle of nearby schools, along with the opportunity to kick-start the stretch run of the season.
The girls’ varsity game starts at 6 p.m., followed by the boys at 8.
“There’s nothing like getting fired up to play Hoisington at our place,” said Great Bend head coach Jason Tatkenhorst, whose team played top-flight competition in losing to Olathe South, Emporia and Shawnee Heights in succession last Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Glacier’s Edge Girls Basketball Tournament in Emporia.
Class 5A Great Bend, 1-12 overall, will be taking on a 10-4 Hoisington team that is unranked in 3A. The Lady Cardinals are coming off a 38-24 home loss to Hesston on Saturday night.
Hoisington sophomore Jordin Greer scored a game-high 19 points in the loss to Hesston, including a pair of 3-pointers.
Sophomore post player Morgan Harwood had a breakout weekend for Great Bend. She scored 11 points on Friday against Emporia, and topped that with a career-high 20 points against Shawnee Heights.
The Lady Panthers, who trailed by six after three quarters, carved on Shawnee Heights’ lead before falling 38-35. 
“We were really wanting to gain some momentum,” said Tatkenhorst, whose team defeated Larned 24-20 last Tuesday for its only win thus far. “Hopefully, we’ve learned more as a team and grown more as a team.
“We know that we have to play really well and be focused and hopefully, we can stick together and get some wins. We certainly think every game we play on the rest of our schedule is a winnable game.”