Louisburg senior Chloe Renner passes off to a teammate after getting on the floor for a loose ball Thursday in the consolation semifinals of the Top Gun Tournament at Wellsville High School.

WELLSVILLE – Sophomore Carson Buffington can normally be found underneath the hoop, mixing it up for a rebound or a loose ball and getting the easy basket.

So when Buffington lined up for a 3-pointer during the consolation semifinal game of the Top Gun Tournament on Thursday, it looked a little out of place for some. Still, Buffington let the shot fly and knocked it down like she had done it all season.

The basket brought cheers from her bench and all coach Shawn Lowry could do was give a little smirk. It was that kind of night for the Lady Cats.

“I will say she has yellowish light, but she knows she can take that,” Lowry said. “She actually has a good shot from out there and she is starting to get more confident with it now. She is a pretty good shooter.”

Actually, a lot of the Louisburg team displayed that 3-point prowess against Anderson County as the Lady Cats set a tournament record for made 3-pointers in a game with a 63-25 blowout to advance to the fifth-place game on Saturday at Wellsville High School.

Louisburg nailed 14 3-pointers on the night as the Lady Cats put on their best shooting display of the season in what was an important bounce back game after losing to Spring Hill in the opening round of the tournament. The old record of 12 was set in 2005.

“When shots are falling like that, you know it is probably going to be a pretty good night,” Lowry said. “It started with our defense and our defensive intensity on the other end of the floor. Our intensity was really good and it was good coming off the bench, too.

“I challenged some of our players off the bench and they responded. Some of the players like Haley Cain, Kennia Hankinson, Isabelle Holtzen and Chloe Renner were really solid off the bench.”

Freshman Haley Cain works her way toward the basket against Anderson County on Thursday in Wellsville.

The 3-point shooting has been a big bonus for the Lady Cats as of late as they have made 34 shots from behind-the-arch in the last three games, including 10 each against Spring Hill in their previous two meetings.

Senior Madisen Simpson got it all started Thursday as she connected on five 3-pointers and scored a team-high 16 points and was one of three players to score in double figures. Hankinson, a sophomore, had three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points off the bench, while senior Tayler Lancaster had 10 points with two 3-pointers.

“When you set a tournament record, and there have been a lot of good teams in this tournament, that is a good thing for our girls,” Lowry said. “A lot of them contributed to that and we have been shooting the ball well lately, and this coming off the last two games where we have had 10 each.”

Paige Buffington had a pair of long shots, while Carson Buffington and junior Mikayla Quinn each had a trey to total the record-setting mark.

Defense got the Lady Cats (6-5) started as they frustrated Anderson County offensively and held the Bulldogs to no field goals in the first quarter, which led to a comfortable 39-12 lead at halftime.

Louisburg didn’t play like it had a big lead as it continued to pressure Anderson County and outscored the Bulldogs 15-7 in the third quarter before enforcing a running clock for the fourth.

The Lady Cats will face off with Wellsville for fifth place at 1:15 p.m. Saturday and they realize it is an important game.

“We wanted to get two wins out of this tournament and it started with Anderson County,” Lowry said. “This is our first step and Saturday we want to get that second win. It is going to be a tough one against a really good Wellsville team, but we will be ready.”

LOU               17           22           15           9 – 63

AC                  4             8             7             6 – 25

LOUISBURG (6-5): Madisen Simpson 16, Kennia Hankinson 11, Tayler Lancaster 10, Carson Buffington 8, Paige Buffington 6, Haley Cain 5, Mikayla Quinn 3, Isabelle Holtzen 2, Kody Lowry 2. Totals: 22 7-13 63. 3-point field goals: 14, (Simpson 5, Hankinson 3, P. Buffington 2, Lancaster 2, C. Buffington 1 Quinn 1)

Louisburg falls in close battle with Spring Hill

Just five days after the Louisburg girls basketball team earned an 11-point win over Spring Hill, the Lady Cats once again faced off with the Broncos — this time in the first round of the Top Gun Tournament.

The two teams found themselves in a back-and-forth match-up, but this time it was Spring Hill that came out on top.

Louisburg rallied from a double digit deficit to eventually take the lead late, but couldn’t hold on in a 59-57 loss.

Louisburg senior Paige Buffington drives the lane Tuesday against Spring Hill in Wellsville.

“That was a battle,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “That first quarter we really came out flat, but we really battled back and showed a lot in that fourth quarter to come back and take the lead. It showed a lot about this group. It was a really good basketball game. It was one where, if you are not directly involved, it was a fun one to watch and take in.”

The Lady Cats found themselves down by 10 points in the third quarter only to storm back. Louisburg senior Tayler Lancaster led the Lady Cats as she knocked down three 3-pointers in the third, including one with 47 seconds left that banked off the glass.

Lancaster continued her hot-shooting early in the fourth and gave the Lady Cats the lead at 44-41. Spring Hill eventually took a 47-44 advantage, only to see Lancaster tie the game again with a 3-pointer with four minutes left.

“Tayler had a great game and hit some big baskets,” Lowry said. “It all starts with ball pressure with her and she did great in the game.”

Fellow senior Madisen Simpson knocked down a 3-pointer to give Louisburg a 52-48 advantage. Simpson and Paige Buffington knocked down free throws to give the Lady Cats a 55-51 lead with a minute left.

Spring Hill cut the deficit to two with 56 seconds remaining, then stole the ball and Lauren Delker scored to tie the game for the Broncos. The two teams would trade free throws, but Delker struck again with a basket with 3.8 seconds left to give the Broncos the win.

Simpson led Louisburg in scoring with 22 points, while Lancaster finished with 18, including her five 3-pointers. Spring Hill’s Meghan Goff led all scorers with 23 points and Delker added 12 in the win.

LOU               6             13           20           18 – 57

SH                  10           14           17           18 – 59

LOUISBURG: Madisen Simpson 22, Tayler Lancaster 18, Paige Buffington 7, Carson Buffington 6, Kennia Hankinson 3, Emalee Overbay 1. Totals: 14 19-28 57. 3-point field goals: 10, (Lancaster 5, Simpson 4, Hankinson 1)

Louisburg junior Dalton Ribordy draws some contact and scores a basket during Tuesday’s home contest against De Soto at Louisburg High School. The Wildcats captured their third-straight win with a 56-40 victory over De Soto.

On two different occasions, the Louisburg High School boys basketball team had a chance to let De Soto stay in the game or even take the lead.

Louisburg wasn’t about to let that happen.

The Wildcats used a big second and fourth quarters on both ends of the floor to pull away from De Soto for a 56-40 win Tuesday in Louisburg. In the process, the Wildcats recorded their third consecutive victory after they won the final two games of the Baldwin Invitational last week.

“The first half we just gave up too many offensive rebounds and putbacks and that kept it close,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson said. “Our on-ball defense a few times wasn’t the best. It was a testament to those guys that they were able to fix those things. They are doing a good job of looking for each other on the court. Now we have to put together four quarters.”

De Soto trailed Louisburg 14-13 at the end of the first quarter, but the Wildcats turned the pressure up defensively in the second quarter and went on a 13-4 run to go up 27-17 at halftime.

Again, De Soto made another run in the third quarter as it scored on offensive rebounds and drives to the basket and cut the Louisburg lead in half.

Senior Sam Guetterman drives past a De Soto defender Tuesday in the Wildcats’ 16-point win.

In the fourth quarter, the Wildcats (6-6) made it a point to the get the ball inside to senior T.J. Dover and junior Dalton Ribordy and it worked. Louisburg ended the game on a 16-5 run that was spurred on by several baskets by the two Wildcat forwards.

“That is exactly what we need to do to be successful,” Nelson said. “We need to get the ball into Ribordy and T.J. and play inside-out. That frees up Jayce (Geiman), Grant (Harding), Sam (Guetterman) and everyone else on the perimeter to get open shots or drive it. We did a good job of that this time and it is something that we need to continue to do.”

Dover was one of three Wildcats players to score in double figures. He tied with Harding for a team-high 15 points and Geiman added 11, along with a pair of 3-pointers. Ribordy added six points, including a couple big baskets during the Wildcats’ fourth quarter run.

“We have been working hard on post entry and T.J. and Dalton are so athletic inside,” Nelson said. “If we can get the ball inside, then we can do some good things. We keep improving in that area and they are being more assertive down low and the guards are doing a better job looking for them.”

After a rough start to the season, the Wildcats’ three-game winning streak has brought their record back to .500 and they earned their second Frontier League win. Louisburg will now try to keep those winning ways going as it hosts Spring Hill at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

The game will follow homecoming ceremonies that had to be rescheduled from earlier this month.

“Our biggest attribute right now is our mentality,” Nelson said. “This is the second game in a row where we have played a good, scrappy team. Instead of letting them back into it and getting a lead, we pulled away instead and that is good to see. Hopefully we can keep playing well.”

LOU               14           13           13           16 – 56

DES                13           4             18           5 – 40

LOUISBURG (6-6): Grant Harding 15, T.J. Dover 15, Jayce Geiman 11, Dalton Ribordy 6, Sam Guetterman 4, Jake Hill 2, Desmond Doles 2, Dalton Stone 1. Totals: 21-41 12-18 56. 3-point field goals: 2, (Geiman 2)

Louisburg senior T.J. Dover goes up for a blocked shot against Bishop Ward during the consolation semifinals of the Baldwin Invitational on Friday at Baldwin High School. The Wildcats defeated Baldwin on Saturday for fifth-place.

BALDWIN CITY — Last year at this time, the Louisburg High School boys basketball team was entering the Baldwin Invitational Tournament on a high note with a 6-3 record and the Wildcats were feeling confident.

After it was over, the Wildcats walked away with three straight losses, which led to a long string of defeats to end the 2016 season. It was a pivotal point in their season.

“I think the boys remember that,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson. “As we entered the tourney last year, we had a decent record, but hadn’t played the same competition as this year going in. I feel like an improved early schedule really helped us mentally and also didn’t provide us with a ‘false sense’ of where we really were as a program.”

That improved schedule and better mentality left Louisburg with a better feeling after leaving Baldwin.

Despite losing the first game of the tournament, the Wildcats bounced back with two straight wins, including a 56-47 victory over Baldwin in the fifth-place game Saturday at Baldwin High School.

Louisburg (5-6) used a big second half to overcome a halftime deficit and possibly played its best two quarters of the season according its coach.

Louisburg senior Jake Hill (right) battles for a rebound Friday at Baldwin High School.

“In my opinion, the second half of the game was some of the best basketball in my time here,” Nelson said. “We were patient with the ball, picked the opportune moments to attack and did so with confidence and authority. Plus, we didn’t settle for low percentage shots which further allowed us to pull away. Lastly, our defense was aggressive the entire game and we didn’t allow many uncontested shots which prevented them from shooting a high percentage from deep.”

The Wildcats have defeated the Bulldogs in two previous meetings this season, but each time Baldwin stayed in the game with its 3-point shooting. This time around, Louisburg held Baldwin to just 4 for 16 from 3-point range.

Senior Grant Harding also provided a bulk of the scoring punch for Louisburg as he finished with a game-high 24 points and gave the Wildcats a lift when they needed him. For his performance in the three games, Harding was also named to the all-tournament team.

Still, the Wildcats got production from up and down their lineup and fellow senior Sam Guetterman nearly had a double-double with 11 points and eight rebounds, while junior Dalton Ribordy had a team-high nine rebounds and senior T.J. Dover finished with eight points.

“As a group, we had a great tournament,” Nelson said. “Offensively, we didn’t force anything, moved the ball and didn’t settle for contested, low percentage shots. When Grant was open, he shot, when a lane was available, he drove. Same thing with Jayce, Sammy, T.J., Dalton and others.

“Everybody knows Grant is our biggest offensive threat given his inside and outside ability and it was nice to see him take control when the chance presented itself, but just as important was how the others played to their strengths. If we can keep playing to our individual strengths in a team oriented manner, we can fulfill the potential our staff sees in them.”

After an even first quarter, Baldwin took a 23-21 halftime lead, but the Wildcats came out strong in the second half as they outscored the Bulldogs 18-11 in the third quarter to pull away.

Louisburg has another busy week as it hosts De Soto in a makeup game Tuesday and will then host Spring Hill on Friday for homecoming. Both games will tipoff at 7:30 p.m.

LOU               11           10           18           17 – 56

BAL                11           12           11           13 – 47

LOUISBURG (5-6): Grant Harding 24, Sam Guetterman 11, T.J. Dover 7, Jayce Geiman 5, Dalton Ribordy 4, Desmond Doles 4. Totals: 20-43 13-24 56. 3-point field goals: 3, (Harding 3)

LOUISBURG ROLLS BISHOP WARD

Coming off a rough overtime loss earlier in the week to Wellsville, Louisburg had a chance to redeem itself Friday in the consolation finals against Bishop Ward.

The Wildcats took advantage of that opportunity as it rolled to a 45-24 win to advance to the fifth-place game.

Jayce Geiman and Grant Harding each led the Wildcats in scoring with 12 points each, while T.J. Dover finished with eight. Harding also had a team-high seven rebounds in the contest.

LOU               11           11           10           13 – 45

BW                5             7             6             6 – 24

LOUISBURG: Jayce Geiman 12, Grant Harding 12, T.J. Dover 8, Dalton Ribordy 6, Dalton Stone 3, Sam Guetterman 2, Alex Seuferling 2. Totals: 18-41 6-15 45. 3-point field goals: 3, (Geiman 2, Stone)

Louisburg senior Paige Buffington tries to dribble past a Spring Hill defender Thursday during the Lady Cats’ home contest against the Broncos. Louisburg defeated Spring Hill 60-49.

It never mattered how close Spring Hill got — or even when the Broncos took the lead for a few moments — Louisburg wasn’t about to give in, especially on its home floor.

Louisburg got a career-high in points from senior Madisen Simpson and the Lady Cats connected on 10 3-pointers as they put away Spring Hill, 60-49, in front of a large contingent of fans Tuesday at Louisburg High School.

The Lady Cats used a big second half to overcome a halftime deficit and improve their record to 5-4 and are currently 3-1 in Frontier League play.

“This is a big win for us and another one for us to build off of,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “After not playing for a week prior to this, it was good to come back and play well. This was a team that is in our league, in our substate and someone we are going to see in a tournament coming up.

“It was really good to get this win on our home floor. We had a great crowd, a fantastic student section and it felt like substate so that was neat for the girls to play in.”

Simpson provided the Lady Cats with several big baskets down the stretch as she connected of five of the team’s 10-3-pointers and scored 31 points, which was a new career high. Her previous personal best was set last month with a 28-point performance with a win at Ottawa.

Madisen Simpson drives to the basket for two points Thursday against Spring Hill. Simpson scored a career-high 31 points.

“This is her senior year and she put a lot of work in on her own and it is showing for her now,” Lowry said. “Madisen is playing with great confidence and she is playing her tail off all the way around. She is doing it defensively, offensively, she was our point guard in this game and she is taking care of the basketball for us. We are asking a lot of her, but that is why she is a captain.”

The two teams stayed within a few points of each other in the first half, but Louisburg took a three point lead to end the first as Simpson finished the quarter with five straight points and sophomore Kennia Hankinson hit a 3-pointer to overcome a small Spring Hill lead.

Spring Hill found its rhythm offensively in the second quarter as it scored 18 points in the frame. Louisburg’s Tayler Lancaster made a 3-pointer and Emalee Overbay hit a basket to open up a five point lead for the Lady Cats, but Spring Hill went on a 8-0 run to take a 22-19 advantage.

Simpson responded with back-to-back 3-pointers to give Louisburg the lead again, but the Broncos went on mini 7-2 run to take a 29-27 halftime lead.

Spring Hill played several different lineups and Louisburg had to adjust. Sometimes the Broncos would play with two post players in Savannah Leaton and Camie Williams who stand 6-0 and 6-1, respectively, and other times they would play with quicker lineups.

Isabelle Holtzen gets on the floor to tie up a Spring Hill player for a loose ball Thursday.

The Broncos would also try and change defenses to confuse the Lady Cats, but Louisburg was able to shoot itself out of any problem it encountered.

“Spring Hill mixes their defenses up quite a bit and give us different looks with their zone and man,” Lowry said. “I wasn’t sure what lineup they were going to start with, but we were prepared for those differences. We are not a big team, but you see how we play against big teams, and that is with toughness. Our girls will play with anyone no matter how tall they are.”

Lousiburg took the lead right back to start the third quarter and never gave it back to the Broncos. Simpson and Lancaster opened with back-to-back 3-pointers and eventually took a 42-36 lead into the fourth.

Spring Hill caught fire to start the fourth as Spring Hill’s Lauren Delker hit back-to-back 3-pointers to tie it at 44-all with under five minutes left in the contest.

However, Louisburg’s Paige Buffington and Lancaster answered with two consecutive 3-pointers of their own to stop the Spring Hill run and the Lady Cats were able to pull away from there.

“Those are just two more seniors that basically said there that they refuse to lose on their home floor,” Lowry said. “It is a pride thing for us too. We want to defend this place and we work really hard to make sure we win as many games as we can at home.”

Lancaster ended the game with nine points and was second on the team in scoring. Buffington finished with seven points, six assists and a pair of steals.

On the glass, sophomore Carson Buffington finished with a team-high 13 rebounds and guard Isabelle Holtzen was next with five.

The Lady Cats won’t have to wait long to see Spring Hill again as they will face off with the Broncos Tuesday in the opening round of the Top Gun Tournament at Wellsville High School. Tipoff is set for 6:45 p.m., and if the Lady Cats advance, could meet Piper — the No. 1 team in Class 4A — in the next round.

“It is a fun tournament,” Lowry said. “I would love to have our tournament back, but this one is great to play in. They do a lot of different things for the girls and we will play some great teams. The No. 1 team in the state is sitting there and there is an opportunity that we will get to play them. I know the girls are looking forward to the tournament.”

LOU               14           13           15           18 – 60

SH                  11           18           7             13 – 49

LOUISBURG (5-4): Madisen Simpson 31, Tayler Lancaster 9, Paige Buffington 7, Carson Buffington 4, Emalee Overbay 4, Kennia Hankinson 3, Chloe Renner 2. Totals: 19-49 12-18 60. 3-point field goals: 10, (Simpson 5, Lancaster 3, P. Buffington, Hankinson)

Louisburg senior Grant Harding drives to the basket Tuesday during the first round of the Baldwin Invitational Tournament at Baldwin High School. Harding scored a team-high 16 points in the 57-50 overtime loss.

BALDWIN CITY – All signs were pointing to a Louisburg victory in its first round contest Tuesday in the Baldwin Invitational.

The foreshadowing appeared in the form of a shot from Jayce Geiman. The Louisburg senior hit a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the game with Wellsville into overtime and all the momentum swung over to the Wildcat bench.

That momentum quickly raced back to the other side of the floor.

Wellsville opened the extra period with a basket and the Wildcats were on the wrong end of two charging calls that took away possessions and they couldn’t recover in a 57-50 loss.

“The guys couldn’t have been more disappointed,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson said. “Did they know that they didn’t play their best game? Absolutely. Our on-ball defense was subpar, our help defense was abnormally weak and we missed a lot of bunnies. They battled as best they could through it and for that, I’m proud. But that is a game we should have won.”

Louisburg (3-6) had to battle back from a fourth quarter deficit to send the game to an extra period. The Wildcats were down five points with under five minutes remaining, but senior Sam Guetterman hit a jumper and a 3-pointer to cut the Eagle lead to one.

Fellow senior T.J. Dover responded to give the Wildcats a one-point lead with three minutes left in regulation and senior Grant Harding followed that up with a steal and a breakaway dunk to put Louisburg up three.

Wellsville answered back with a quick 6-0 run to take a 48-45 lead with 12 seconds left. The Wildcats got the ball back with one last chance and Geiman answered with a 3-pointer from several feet behind the 3-point line at the buzzer to tie it.

Senior Jayce Geiman connects on a 3-pointer at the buzzer Tuesday to send the Wildcats’ game with Wellsville to overtime.

“Coach (Drew) Harding drew up a double screen for Grant curling off of it with Jayce as a secondary option,” Nelson said. “Wellsville’s defensive rotation was fantastic, and credit to Jayce for sliding until he found an opening. I felt like that was great momentum going in to overtime, and was confident, but we picked up a few early fouls in overtime and it switched the momentum.”

That it did.

Wellsville scored a quick basket to take the lead in overtime, and as the Wildcats tried to answer on their next possession, were called for a charge — one of six for the game — and two in the overtime.

The charges gave the Eagles extra possessions and they took advantage either at the free throw line or at the basket.

“I’ve never seen a game where charges were so numerous,” Nelson said. “To their credit, the boys were never discouraged by the calls, and never voiced displeasure and I’m proud of them for that. I don’t necessarily think it took away from our aggression, but it did alter our play to where we were trying to avoid contact at all and consequently some of our shots were altered a bit.”

Both teams traded leads in the first half and the Wildcats had to rally from five points down in the second quarter and eventually took a one-point lead at halftime. Down 20-15 with three minutes left in the first half, junior Dalton Ribordy scored a basket and Geiman followed it up with five straight points, including a 3-pointer to tie the game with a minute remaining.

Junior Dalton Ribordy (right) gets on the floor for a loose ball Tuesday against Wellsville.

Guetterman added a free throw with one second left and the Wildcats had a 23-22 lead in the locker room at halftime.

Harding was one of two Wildcats in double figures as he led the way with 16 points and Geiman finished with 12. Ribordy and Dover each had five rebounds to lead Louisburg.

The Wildcats return to action Friday when they face off with Bishop Ward in the consolation semifinals. Bishop Ward fell to Bonner Springs in their contest, 63-20. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.

Louisburg will either play Baldwin or Anderson County for fifth or seventh place Saturday.

“These next two games are most definitely important, but more important is what did we learn from Tuesday’s game?” Nelson said. “We are focused on improving and peaking for substate, and to that end, these upcoming games are quite important.”

LOU               11           12           11           14           2 – 50

WEL              9             13           13           13           9 – 57

LOUISBURG (3-6): Grant Harding 16, Jayce Geiman 12, Sam Guetterman 8, T.J. Dover 6, Dalton Ribordy 6, Desmond Doles 2. Totals: 18-45 11-18 50. 3-point field goals: 4, (Geiman 2, Harding, Guetterman).

Louisburg sophomore Carson Buffington gets on the floor for a loose ball Tuesday in the Lady Cats’ home game with Frontenac. Buffington finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds in the 50-27 win.

Following Friday’s 30-plus point loss to state-ranked Baldwin, the Louisburg High School girls basketball team walked off the floor with one of the worst feelings possible.

Not only did the Lady Cats lose the game, they were beaten to loose balls, struggled defensively and it was a performance they just wanted to put behind them.

Before they did that, however, they wanted to use that game as motivation. Louisburg didn’t want to experience that feeling again – and four days later – the Lady Cats changed all that.

The Lady Cats were on the right end of a blowout game this time around as they downed Frontenac 50-27 on Tuesday at Louisburg High School.

They were on the floor for loose balls, smothered Frontenac on defense and were aggressive on the glass – a total turnaround from Friday.

“We talked at practice that one game, good or bad, doesn’t define us,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. ‘I said that is all about how we respond and react. That is who they are, that is their character that showed (Tuesday).

“I was really proud of the defensive effort and we got on the floor immediately. Anything that went on the floor we were battling for. They were disappointed in themselves last week and letting someone beat them to loose balls. That won’t be happening with this group and it showed.”

Senior Chloe Renner goes up for a basket Tuesday against Frontenac.

In between all those floor burns, the Lady Cats (4-4) were also efficient offensively, especially in the first half. Louisburg jumped out to a 17-5 lead in the first quarter and outscored Frontenac 16-5 in the second to take a 33-14 halftime lead.

Senior Madisen Simpson provided Louisburg with a big boost offensively, especially from behind-the-arch as she finished with 22 points, including four 3-pointers.

Sophomore Carson Buffington provided the Lady Cats with a presence down low with a double-double. Buffington scored 10 points and pulled down a team-high 15 rebounds to go along with several tussles on the floor for loose balls.

Senior Chloe Renner came off the bench to finish with nine points and six rebounds.

“We took care of the ball against a defense that we don’t see a lot of and only had a couple days to prepare for,” Lowry said. “I thought the girls did a nice job with that and understanding what they were supposed to do. We have some girls that are just flat out battling for everything and I can’t say that enough. From the seniors, on down the line, everyone was just working hard.

“Carson was playing like a crazy woman out there and she was all over the floor for loose balls and rebounds and that was really fun to see.”

Defensively, the Lady Cats frustrated Frontenac and held the Raiders’ best post player, Kaylee Harper, to 13 points. Harper scored nine of Frontenac’s first 11 points before picking up her second foul and the Lady Cats took advantage.

“She is a good player,” Lowry said of Harper. “She is a nice player and we will see some other ones like that here pretty soon. It was a nice challenge for us to get to play someone like that. I thought everyone did a real nice job defensively.”

Louisburg forced 14 steals and turned those into easy baskets in transition. Senior Paige Buffington was especially active as she had a team-high eight steals to go along with seven assists offensively.

The Lady Cats also rebounded well as they pulled down 17 offensive boards, which turned into several second chance opportunities.

“It is contagious in that when someone lays out for a play, it feeds, but it can be contagious the other way,” Lowry said. “The moping and putting your head down is also contagious. We want to start out that we will battle for everything.”

Louisburg will try for its second straight win Friday when it hosts De Soto for homecoming. Tipoff is set for approximately 6 p.m.

“It is a big game for us and for where the league is at right now,” Lowry said. “It is on our home floor and we are excited to play, especially after Tuesday.”

LOU               17           16           9             8 – 50

FRON            9             5             8             5 – 27

LOUISBURG (4-4): Madisen Simpson 22, Carson Buffington 10, Chloe Renner 9, Kennia Hankinson 3, Haley Cain 2, Tayler Lancaster 2, Paige Buffington 2. Totals: 16-52 13-20 50. 3-point field goals: 5, (Simpson 4, Hankinson)

Louisburg senior Jayce Geiman gets the ball across half-court thanks to a screen from teammate Dalton Ribordy on Tuesday during the Wildcats’ home game against Frontenac. The Wildcats fell 71-59.

The Louisburg High School boys basketball team hoped to get its second consecutive win when the Wildcats returned home for the first time in three weeks.

Frontenac had other plans.

The Raiders scored a lot of points in transition and limited the Louisburg offense with their zone defense as they handed the Wildcats a 71-59 loss in what was up-and-down game that featured a lot of free throws.

“We knew we had to do coming in and we didn’t assert ourselves very well,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson said. “We didn’t stick to the script the entire time and that hurt us. When we did do that in the second half, we started getting to the line and getting some weak side buckets, stuff that we should have started doing all along.”

The two teams combined for 55 free throws and Frontenac made more free throws (23) than Louisburg (20) attempted. While that was a big difference in the game, Louisburg also struggled from the field against the Raiders’ zone defense as it shot just 32 percent for the contest.

Louisburg and Frontenac went back-and-forth in the first half as the lead changed hands seven times and had seven more ties.

Frontenac pulled away in the third quarter as it outscored Louisburg 20-10 to build a 12-point lead going into the fourth quarter. The Raiders’ lead expanded to 15 before the Wildcats cut it to nine on Jayce Geiman’s 3-pointer with less than four minutes left in the game.

The Raiders stopped Louisburg’s mini-run to put the lead back up to 17 with two minutes left and sealed the win. Frontenac got those points in transition off Wildcat misses and from the free-throw line.

Junior Desmond Doles goes up for two points Tuesday against Frontenac.

“All that was a manifestation of our lack of communication,” Nelson said. “I don’t know remember the last time that our rotation was that slow, but when we don’t communicate or assert ourselves then stuff like this happens.

“When our shots were falling, it can carry over to the defensive end and guys hang their heads a little bit. But maybe that is on me for not motivating them enough.”

Geiman led the Wildcat scoring with 17 points, including five 3-pointers against the Frontenac zone. Senior Grant Harding also finished in double figures with 16 points, while junior Desmond Doles came off the bench to add eight points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Senior T.J. Dover added six rebounds in the loss, while junior Dalton Ribordy and senior Sam Guetterman had five a piece.

Louisburg will try and get a Frontier League win Friday when it hosts De Soto for homecoming. Tipoff is set for approximately 7:30 p.m.

“If we come out and set the tempo then good things are going to happen,” Nelson said. “If we are too reactive then we leave ourselves open to bad things happening. These kids know how to do it, we just have to be consistent and play through adversity.”

LOU               11           16           10           22 – 59

FRON            14           15           20           22 – 71

LOUISBURG (3-5): Jayce Geiman 17, Grant Harding 16, Desmond Doles 8, Sam Guetterman 6, T.J Dover 6, Dalton Stone 3, Dalton Ribordy 2. Totals: 20-62 12-20 59. 3-point field goals: 6, (Geiman 5, Stone)

Louisburg senior Sam Guetterman saves the ball from going out of bounds Friday against Baldwin. The Wildcats defeated Baldwin on the road with a 68-58 victory.

BALDWIN CITY – Playing back-to-back games against the top two teams in the Frontier League gave the Louisburg boys basketball team some perspective going into the holiday break.

The Wildcats had a chance to right those wrongs in practice from those two losses against state-ranked Eudora and Ottawa, and learn from their mistakes to prepare them for the grind of the next two months.

The first challenge was against Baldwin on the road Friday and the Wildcats passed it with flying colors. Despite a late charge from the Bulldogs, Louisburg held on for a 68-58 win to snap that two-game losing streak and win its first Frontier League contest.

“They boys were fantastic,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson said of his team. “Defensively, we were fantastic. Offensively, we asserted ourselves really, really well. To Baldwin’s credit, they got hot at the end and couldn’t miss, but to our kids’ credit, they responded. Free throws really won the game for us, which is an anomaly for us, but shows progress.”

Louisburg was able to overcome a hot-shooting fourth quarter from the Bulldogs after building a 17-point lead to end the third. Baldwin scored 24 points thanks to five 3-pointers in the fourth, but the Wildcats won the game at the free-throw line and on the boards.

The Wildcats (3-4) converted on just 16 of 31 from the free-throw line, but hit several down the stretch the keep the lead at double digits.

Louisburg also did work on the glass. The Wildcats got three offensive rebounds off missed free throws in the final three minutes thanks to junior Dalton Ribordy and senior Dalton Stone that gave Louisburg more chances at the line.

“It was a nine-point game and you could feel the momentum start to switch, but those offensive rebounds by Ribordy and Stone were huge,” Nelson said. “All that momentum then went back to us. We built a big lead up and we knew Baldwin was streaky and was a scrappy team, but we were able to hold on and the guys never panicked.”

Offensively, the Wildcats were efficient most of the night as they had four players score in double figures, despite having to deal with some early foul trouble. Senior Grant Harding led all scorers with 22 points as he was able get to the free-throw line several times in the fourth quarter.

Dalton Stone goes in for a layup Friday against Baldwin at Baldwin High School.

Senior forward T.J. Dover, who was saddled with two quick fouls to start the game, came alive in the third quarter as he scored 12 of his 16 points in the frame. Senior guard Jayce Geiman helped get the Wildcats off to a good start as he scored 10 of his 15 points in the first half and fellow senior Sam Guetterman also had a good night with 10 points.

“Our ball movement was fantastic,” Nelson said. “I don’t think that we forced much of anything. We had two-and-half weeks over break to kind of beat up on each other, and we focused on moving the ball around and getting the open shot and not just settling. Hopefully this game will give them some confidence moving forward.”

The Wildcats opened the game on a 7-0 run on baskets from Dover, Guetterman and a 3-pointer from Geiman. Baldwin eventually cut the lead to 10-7, but Harding knocked down a basket, was fouled and converted the 3-point play at the free-throw line.

Harding then stole a Baldwin pass two possessions later for a dunk and a 15-7 Louisburg advantage. The Wildcats then hunkered down defensively as they held Baldwin to just four points in the second quarter and eventually took a 29-16 halftime lead.

Louisburg built a 20-point lead late in the third quarter that was challenged by the Bulldogs. Baldwin, which hit 12 3-pointers in the contest, connected on five in the fourth quarter alone.

Baldwin eventually cut the lead to nine points with under three minutes left in the game, but the Wildcats kept the Bulldogs at bay from the free-throw line.

“They wouldn’t die,” Nelson said of Baldwin. “We were denying the ball and they just seemed to make everything. I think that was the best thing about this win is we were able to overcome the storm and stay with the game plan. The boys reaped the rewards of what we have been working on.”

Louisburg returns to action with a pair of home games this week. The Wildcats will host Frontenac on Tuesday and then will play De Soto on Friday for homecoming.

LOU               15           14           22           17 – 68

BAL                12           4             18           24 – 58

LOUISBURG (3-4): Grant Harding 22, T.J. Dover 16, Jayce Geiman 15, Sam Guetterman 10, Dalton Stone 2, Dalton Ribordy 2, Jake Hill 1. Totals: 27 16-31 68. 3-point field goals: 3, (Geiman 3)

Louisburg sophomore Kennia Hankinson dives on the floor for a loose ball with a Baldwin player Friday at Baldwin High School. The Lady Cats fell to the No. 4 ranked Bulldogs, 65-26.

BALDWIN CITY – Just a month ago, the Louisburg girls basketball team played state-ranked Baldwin to a six-point game.

At the time, it was a step in the right direction for the Lady Cats.

The two teams saw each other again Friday when Louisburg traveled to Baldwin in its first game back from the holiday break.

It was a totally different contest.

Baldwin, the No. 4 team in Class 4A-Division I, jumped on the Lady Cats early and handed Louisburg a 65-26 loss. It was the first Frontier League loss for the Lady Cats and ended a three-game winning streak.

“It was a different Louisburg team this time around,” Louisburg coach Shawn Lowry said. “It was that as much as anything. We have some things we need to work on. We are going to get back at it in practice. We have two home games this week and we are going to get back to work. We know this is a process and journey. Baldwin is a really good team, but they didn’t get our best shot.”

Baldwin asserted itself early as it used a full-court press to force several first half turnovers and quick shots. The Lady Cats (3-4) also dealt with foul problems as they were never able to get in any kind of rhythm.

Following a Madisen Simpson 3-pointer that tied the game early in the first quarter, the Bulldogs went on a 19-4 run to take 17-point lead and the Lady Cats were unable to get much closer.

“I think a lot of it was just confidence for us,” Lowry said. “It was mentally more than anything. We had a hard time with their press and our defense wasn’t that great. We just need to get back at it in practice and get better.”

Simpson led Louisburg in scoring with eight points, while senior Paige Buffington and sophomore Kennia Hankinson scored six and five points, respectively. Sophomore Carson Buffington finished with a team-high eight rebounds.

Baldwin’s Abby Ogle led all scorers with 23 points.

Louisburg returns to action Tuesday when it hosts Frontenac and then will play its second home game Friday when it faces off with De Soto for homecoming. Tipoff for both games is set for approximately 6 p.m.

LOU               7             8             7             4 – 26

BAL                22           18           23           2 – 65

LOUISBURG (3-4): Madisen Simpson 8, Paige Buffington 6, Kennia Hankinson 5, Isabelle Holtzen 3, Chloe Renner 3, Emalee Overbay 1. Totals: 7-32 9-21 26. 3-point field goals: 3, (Simpson 2, Hankinson)

Louisburg senior Sam Guetterman battles for a rebound during Monday’s league contest in Ottawa. The Wildcats fell to the Cyclones, 61-36, in their final game before the holiday break.

OTTAWA – For one quarter, the Louisburg High School boys basketball team stayed right with the No. 3 team in the state.

From there, Ottawa showed why it was ranked in the top half of Class 4A-Division I.

Ottawa used a big second quarter and handed Louisburg its second straight loss, 61-36, in its final game before the holiday break. The Cyclones outscored the Wildcats 17-4 before halftime and Louisburg was forced to play catch up for most of the game.

Louisburg and Ottawa found themselves in a back-and-forth first period that saw Ottawa take 15-13 advantage.

“The first quarter we were proactive and we set our tempo and good things happened,” Louisburg coach Jason Nelson said. “Then after that, a couple little things happened and everything changed. It is on me to get them in better position and have a better reaction to adversity. We burned a timeout and we talked about it, but it didn’t work.

“We saw against two of the best teams in our league that when we are proactive, and not reactive, then we are good. These boys want to be good and now we have two weeks to work on asserting ourselves for 32 minutes.”

The Wildcats (2-4) had a tough time stopping the Cyclone combination of Isaac McCullough and Perry Carroll, who combined for 42 of Ottawa’s 61 points. McCullough led all scorers with 23 points, including five 3-pointers. Carroll shot 9 for 11 from the field for 19 points.

“We let them get hot,” Nelson said. “But there were times where McCullough hit so many contested threes and I thought our defense was pretty good on most of them. When they get points like that, you just have to tip your hat to them.”

Louisburg senior Jayce Geiman led the Wildcats in scoring with 13 points, while fellow seniors T.J. Dover and Sam Guetterman scored eight and seven points, respectively. Junior Dalton Ribordy led Louisburg with four rebounds.

The Wildcats hope to stop their losing skid when they return from the holiday break on Jan. 6 when they travel to Baldwin. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU               13           4             12           7 – 36

OTT               15           17           21           8 – 61

LOUISBURG (2-4): Jayce Geiman 13, T.J. Dover 8, Sam Guetterman 7, Grant Harding 4, Jake Hill 2, Dalton Ribordy 2. Totals: 15-36 2-4 36. 3-point field goals: 4, (Geiman 3, Guetterman)