Lady Cats down rival Paola on special Senior Night

Louisburg senior Adyson Ross finished with a double-double Tuesday against Paola on Senior Night and helped the Lady Cats to a 47-39 win.

As the ball was thrown into the air for the opening tip — the whistle blew and a technical foul was called on the Louisburg bench.

Normally, technicals are followed with frustration, anger and probably a bunch of yelling. Not in this case. Instead, the smiles could been seen up and down the Lady Cat bench.

It was Senior Night for Louisburg on Tuesday against Paola and the Lady Cats wanted to honor their seven seniors in the proper way. Only five could start, but that didn’t stop head coach Adrianne Lane from starting all seven.

One of the seven included senior Tehya Harvey, who has been out all season with a knee injury and Harvey was able to suit up and take the floor one last time.

“As a coach I have never had to worry about having too many seniors to start on senior night,” Lane said. “I wanted all of the girls to get the opportunity to start because all seven of them deserved to be honored on Senior Night.

“Tehya was very excited to suit up and be on the court with her teammates. I think this was a very special moment for her and I am so glad she got the opportunity to get on the court this season.”

Along with Harvey, seniors Adyson Ross, Delanie Tally, Emma Lohse, Emma Prettyman, Brianne Kuhlman and Ava Baker made it a memorable one as they left the floor with a 47-39 win over Paola.

The Lady Cats got out to a fast start and never looked back as they took a 17-point lead at one point in the second half. Louisburg has now won five of its last six games as the postseason draws near.

“The girls were very excited to get the win against Paola,” Lane said. “They started off great and played hard. I feel the girls have started playing so well together and their trust for each other is shown on the floor.”

It showed early on as the Lady Cats took a 15-8 lead after the first quarter and then held Paola to just four points in the second quarter. Louisburg led 28-12 at halftime.

Ross was a big part of the Louisburg success as she finished with a double-double to end her regular season home career. She finished with a team-high 14 points and had 10 rebounds.

Baker was second on the team with eight points. Prettyman had a strong performance under the basket with seven points, eight rebounds and a team-high four assists.

With the Lady Cats’ recent success, they have shot up the Class 4A standings and are currently in the mix for the No. 4 seed, which would allow them to host the upcoming sub-state tournament.

Even with all that success, the Lady Cats (13-6) will need to win one more to stay in contention for a top four seed. Louisburg will travel to Harrisonville (Mo.) tonight for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff in its regular season finale.

Along with all that, it will also be a special night for Lane. Her sister, BryAnn Middleton, is the Harrisonville head coach and Lane is excited for the opportunity to go up against her big sister.

“It will be a fun game for my family,” Lane said. “Harrisonville won its last game to make them conference champs, so they are having a great season. I think it will be a defensive battle.

“We both coach very similar philosophies, so I think the game will come down to who can take care of the basketball and finish in the lane.”

LOU 15 13 11 8 — 47

PAO 8 4 10 17 — 39

LOUISBURG (13-6): Adyson Ross 6-14 2-2 14; Ava Baker 4-5 0-1 8; Emma Prettyman 3-7 1-3 7; Emma Lohse 2-2 0-0 4; Ashley Branine 2-6 0-0 4; Brianne Kuhlman 1-4 2-2 4; Delanie Tally 1-12 1-2 4; Ashlyn Kuhlman 0-0 2-2 2. Totals: 19-51 8-12 47. 3-point field goals: 1, (Tally)

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