HAYS — DeSoto High School’s 48-36 victory over Great Bend’s girls Friday afternoon in a consolation game of the Hays City Shoot-Out at Felten Middle School was closer than the score indicated.
Much closer.
Leading 37-31 at the midpoint of the fourth quarter, the Lady Wildcats (1-1) scored 10 unanswered points to suddenly turn a tight game into their favor.
“It’s step-by-step,” GBHS head coach Jason Tatkenhorst said. “We sure would have liked to come out of there with a win.
“At the same time, it’s a step in the right direction, so we’ve got to keep remembering that.”
The Lady Panthers (0-2), who dropped into Saturday’s seventh-place game at Felten, had an added spring in their step against DeSoto after absorbing a 75-25 season-opening loss to Newton in a shoot-out opener on Friday afternoon.
GBHS senior post player Liz Kutina scored a career-high 18 points, hitting five field goals and going 8-for-10 at the free-throw line. She scored nine first-half points to keep her team close as they went into the locker room down 20-17 at halftime.
“Liz stepped up there for us and scored some points,” Tatkenhorst said. “She got to the free-throw line, and really played like the player we think she is.”
The Lady Panthers put together their best stretch of the young season at the outset of the third quarter. A 7-0 burst during the opening three minutes gave Great Bend a 24-20 lead, via an Olivia Basye 3-pointer and back-to-back buckets by Kutina, her second coming off a Basye assist.
“It’s good to see that because we feel we’re capable of that,” Tatkenhorst said of the run. “I felt our girls loosened up a lot. We need more of that. Sometimes the game is not that easy, I guess.”
Great Bend had made a statement that they were going to go toe-to-toe with the Lady Wildcats, and that was the case the rest of the third quarter and into the fourth.
Baskets by Kutina and Hannah Hildebrand helped the Lady Panthers stay close in the midst of DeSoto unleashing a 9-4 run to forge ahead 29-28 after three periods.
DeSoto had a 6-0 run at the start of the final quarter, capped by Tori Marshall’s 3-pointer with 5:33 left for a 35-29 lead.
But Basye found Kelsey Crosby, who finished with six points, flashing along the left baseline for a basket to cut the margin to 35-31.
That’s when the game turned.
Paige Williams, who led DeSoto with a game-high 19 points, 11 in the first half, converted two free throws at the 3:33 mark, the first of 10 unanswered points. Six-foot freshman Megan Bonar, the daughter of DeSoto head coach Jim Bonar, scored six of her 11 second-half points during that stretch and finished with 16.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

Hays City Shoot-Out
At Hays
Felten Middle School

GIRLS

Friday
Consolation bracket

DeSoto 48, Great Bend 36
DeSOTO  (1-1)
     Katie Gehrt 0 0-0 0, Shelby Deghand 0 1-3 1, MacKenzie Lancaster 0 0-0 0, Maria Pileski 0 0-0 0, Tori Marshall 2 0-0 5, Kayli Farley 1 0-0 2, Paige Williams 5 9-10 19, Megan Bonar 4 8-12 16, Taylor Saucerman 2 1-2 5, Bri Maskus 0 0-0 0, Megan Brashears 0 0-0 0, Melissa Lambert 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 19-27 36.
GREAT BEND (0-2)
     Brandi Schneider 0 0-0 0, Emily Cruse 0 0-0 0, Olivia Basye 1 0-0 3, Katelyn Henning 0 0-2 0, Hannah Hildebrand 1 0-0 2, Kelsie Doll 0 0-0 0, Liz Kutina 5 8-10 18, Regan Unruh 0 2-2 2, Kaylie Doll 0 0-0 0, McKenna Mauler 0 0-0 0, Tarynn Stueder 0 1-2 1, Morgan Harwood 1 2-3 4, Kelsey Crosby 3 0-0 6. Totals 11 13-19 48.
DeSoto                  8   12   9  19  —  48
Great Bend           7   10  11   8  —  36
    Three-point goals — DeSoto 1 (Marshall); Great Bend 1 (Basye). Fouled out — Gehrt.

HAYS CITY SHOOT-OUT
At Hays

GIRLS
Thursday
Riley County 42, Colby 37
Newton 76, Great Bend 26
Hays 38, Kearney, Neb. 30
TMP-Marian 47, DeSoto 37

Friday
TMP 51, Newton 47 
DeSoto 48, Great Bend 36
Riley County 54, Hays High 22
Colby 47, Kearney 32

Saturday
Championship
Riley County 49, TMP 26
Third place
Newton 46, Hays 40
Consolation
DeSoto 48, Colby 45
Seventh place
Kearney 52, Great Bend 42