Wildcats get first win over Eudora in nearly a decade

By Andy Brown
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Updated: February 14, 2019

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone

Louisburg senior Brayden Gage glides to the basket for two points Tuesday during the Wildcats’ home win Tuesday over Eudora.

For the better part of a decade, the Louisburg boys basketball team has found zero success against Eudora.

Wins have been impossible to come by against the Cardinals and that included Louisburg’s 28-point loss to Eudora earlier in the season.

Mission impossible became possible for the Wildcats.

Louisburg held Eudora to just four points in the third quarter and put together an consistent offensive effort in its 49-39 victory Tuesday at Louisburg High School. The win improved the Wildcats’ record to 8-9 on the season and left for a happy locker room when it was all over.

“For us to lose the way we did against them the first time, we got it put on us pretty good, so it was a great win for sure,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “Obviously they are missing their key guy, but they are still a really good team. Their bigs are tough inside and they get really good position and are well-coached. It was important for us to get a win and it was a signature win that our program needed. Our kids are excited, for sure. That was a good basketball game.”

It was a back and forth first half that ended with a three-point Louisburg lead at halftime after senior Kohl Vogel knocked down a 3-pointer and freshman Julian Margrave made two free throws.

Louisburg’s defense stepped it up in the third quarter as it held the Cardinals’ offense in check and Vogel stepped up on the offensive end. Vogel scored five straight points and sophomore Ben Guetterman knocked down a 3-pointer to give Louisburg a nine-point lead.

Senior Brayden Gage made a runner in the lane late in the period, and Margrave knocked down a 3-pointer to put Louisburg up 12 going into the fourth quarter.

Vogel was a spark offensively for the Wildcats as he finished with a game-high 18 points and seven rebounds, while Margrave was next with eight points. Senior Dylan DeShazer and Gage each added seven points.

Junior Madden Rutherford also finished with seven rebounds and a team-high four assists.

“Kohl is our consistent offensive threat, for sure,” Pfannenstiel said. “He just finds ways to slash and score. I thought he was really good. We need him to score 16 to 20 points a game for us to be successful. The guys did a good job of getting the ball to him. We went back to wanting to push the ball a little bit more and I think that helps us out. I think that is Kohl’s game is getting out in transition.”

Eudora made things interesting in the fourth quarter as it cut the Wildcat lead to six and Louisburg had to call a couple different timeouts during that stretch. Louisburg would knock down its free throws in the final minutes as Gage converted a 3-point play and sophomore Weston Guetterman also hit a bucket to seal the win.

“It is almost like we got a little lead and then we started to relax a little bit,” Pfannenstiel said. “We have to learn play with a lead and the reason we got that lead to begin with was because we are disciplined fundamentally. I was proud of the way we responded because there have been times where things have gone downhill and they have continued to go downhill.”

Louisburg returns to action tonight when it host Bonner Springs in what is its first of three straight games at home to end the season. The game was moved from Friday due to weather concerns. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 10 14 13 12 – 49

EUD 11 10 4 14 – 39

LOUISBURG (8-9): Kohl Vogel 7-11 1-1 18; Julian Margrave 2-2 2-2 8; Brayden Gage 3-4 1-1 7; Dylan DeShazer 2-5 2-2 7; Ben Guetterman 1-5 0-0 3; Weston Guetterman 1-3 0-2 2; Noah Hill 1-2 0-0 2; Madden Rutherford 0-3 2-4 2. Totals: 17-37 8-12 49. 3-point field goals: 7, (Vogel 3, Margrave 2, DeShazer, B. Guetterman)