Lady Cats lose heartbreaker to Parsons in sub-state title game

Louisburg seniors Delanie Tally (left) and Brianne Kuhlman tries to trap Parsons’ Iniya Hinman on Saturday during the Class 4A sub-state championship at Louisburg High School.

As the final buzzer sounded, reality quickly started to sink in for members of the Louisburg girls basketball team. 

The Lady Cats, who were just one win away from a state tournament appearance, saw their season come to a close in heartbreaking fashion.

Louisburg fell in a close contest to Parsons, 41-39, in the Class 4A sub-state championship game Saturday at Louisburg High School. The loss ended its season with a 15-7 record, while the Vikings made their first state tournament in 30 years.

It was also the final game for seven Lady Cats seniors as Adyson Ross, Delanie Tally, Emma Lohse, Emma Prettyman, Ava Baker, Brianne Kuhlman and Tehya Harvey said goodbye to the program.

“Losing is never fun, but this loss was super tough for the girls,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “This team truly loves basketball and spending time together. They will miss more than playing basketball, they will miss each other and the team chemistry.”

The basket was not Louisburg’s friend Saturday as the Lady Cats shot 26 percent from the floor, many of those misses rimming out and open looks not falling.

Still, the Lady Cats did the work on the defensive end as they forced 21 turnovers and also pulled down 13 offensive rebounds. These extra opportunities turned into 12 second chance points, which were big for Louisburg.

However, the Lady Cats were just a few points short in their goal of getting to the state tournament. 

“The shots not falling were very frustrating,” Lane said. “I felt like we had several shots go in and out. The girls were taking great shots out of the offense, but we had a hard time getting them to fall.”

Parsons jumped out to a quick start as the Vikings led 11-6 after the first quarter, but Louisburg flipped the script in the second quarter and was able to take an 18-16 halftime lead.

The game was tied heading into the fourth quarter, but Parsons’ Iniya Hinman took over as she scored nine of the team’s 13 points in the final period. Parsons eventually built a seven-point lead late in the contest and Hinman finished with a game-high 25 points.

“Parsons was a good team and (Hinman) is a great player,” Lane said. “She was super athletic and was a natural scorer. She did a great job finishing in the lane when she did get looks.”

The Lady Cats tried to rally back. Ross grabbed and offensive rebound and a putback to cut it to five.

Then after a Parsons turnovers, Tally made a runner in the lane to make it a 3-point game with under a minute left. The Vikings then beat the Lady Cat press for a layup on the other end to extend their lead.

Baker kept Louisburg in it with a long 3-pointer to make it a 41-39 game. Parsons would go on to miss free throws and give the Lady Cats a chance to tie or take the lead with 14 seconds left.

Louisburg missed a pair of shots and the Vikings escaped the win.

“The girls tried everything we asked them to,” Lane said. “They worked hard and battled even when shots were not falling. They fought back after a tough first quarter, and never gave in. I know this team will be remembered for battling and fighting.”

Baker led the Lady Cats in scoring with 11 points on the night and also had a team-best seven rebounds and four steals. Ross added nine points and six rebounds in the loss.

Prettyman tallied six points and seven rebounds, while Tally added seven points. Kuhlman chipped in four points and had five rebounds and a team-best three assists from the point guard spot.

“This team has been so fun to coach,” Lane said. “I have coached the upperclassmen for three years, and I can say that I am so proud of them and all of their hard work and effort they put into this program. Their attitudes and their hard work every day set the tone for our team.

LOU 6 12 10 11 — 39

PAR 11 5 12 13 — 41

LOUISBURG (15-7): Ava Baker 4-12 2-4 11; Adyson Ross 3-11 3-4 9; Delanie Tally 3-11 0-0 7; Emma Prettyman 3-8 0-2 6; Brianne Kuhlman 1-8 1-2 4; Ashley Branine 1-3 0-0 2. Totals: 15-56 6-12 39. 3-point field goals: 3, (Tally, Baker, Kuhlman)