cBY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
DODGE CITY – The Great Bend girls worked hard for 16 minutes to hang within 27-22 against 6A Dodge City. The Red Demons put the game away with a 20-5 scoring burst for a 58-42 Western Athletic Conference basketball victory.
Jenna Mauler hit a pair of 3-pointers and Alyssa Herter converted a 3-pointer to keep Great Bend (5-14, 1-6 WAC) within striking distance at halftime. Candice Smith added four first-half points. The Panthers are seeded 16th in the 5A West standings and would play No. 1 ranked McPherson (18-1) in postseason.
"The first half, we played extremely hard and took advantage of what Dodge City was giving us," said Great Bend coach Carrie Minton. "We missed a few baskets inside, or we would've had the lead."
Dodge City (15-4, 5-2 WAC) converted four 3-pointers in the third quarter. Becca Unruh delivered a pair of 3-pointers and Perez and Johnson connected from long range for a 47-27 lead after three quarters. The Red Demons used physical defense to convert several scores after Panther turnovers.
"Dodge City came out and hit a couple of shots," Minton said. "We turned it over and they made a third-quarter run."
Dodge City had too much speed and athleticism for the Panthers. Johnson (15), Becca Unruh (14) and Perez (12) scored in double figures. Dodge City hit 5 of 25 3-pointers for the night.
Great Bend's Alyssa Herter scored a career high 13 points and Smith added 10 points and 11 rebounds for a double/double.
Great Bend 9 13 5 15 – 42
Dodge City 10 17 20 11 – 58
GREAT BEND (5-14, 1-6)–Herter 5-8 1-1 13, Smith 2-5 6-6 10, Mauler 2-6 0-0 6, Warren 2-6 1-1 5, Sydney Unruh 1-7 2-2 4, Schroeder 1-1 0-0 2, Harbaugh 0-2 2-4 2, Latham 0-3 0-0 0, Totals 13-38 12-14 42.
DODGE CITY (15-4, 5-2)–Johnson 4-11 7-7 15, Becca Unruh 4-9 4-4 14, Perez 5-7 0-0 12, Gutierrez 0-3 0-0 0, Kisa Unruh 0-8 2-2 2, Clark 1-2 0-0 2, Gonzalez 0-2 0-0 0, Okoro 1-3 4-4 6, Edwards 0-1 0-0 0, Foster 1-1 0-0 2, Solis 1-2 0-0 3, Landa 1-1 0-0 2, 18-50 17-17 58
3-pointers–GB 4-12 (Herter 2-2, Mauler 2-6, Latham 0-1, Unruh 0-3); DC 5-25 (Perez 2-4, B. Unruh 2-6, Solis 1-1, Gutierrez 0-2, Okoro 0-1, Clark 0-1, Edwards 0-1, Johnson 0-3, K. Unruh 0-6). Rebounds–GB 30 (Smith 11), DC 27 (Perez 5). Assists–GB 10 (Schroeder 2, Mauler 2, Unruh 2); DC 13 (K. Unruh 3). Steals–GB 3; DC 11 (Johnson 3).
