Louisburg junior Shylar Whiting puts up a shot in the lane Tuesday at Tonganoxie. Whiting finished with eight points, with six of those coming in the final quarter.

TONGANOXIE — It wasn’t the best shooting night of the year for Louisburg.

Shots weren’t falling, free throws rimmed out and the Lady Cats lost the turnover battle Tuesday against Tonganoxie. Despite all that going against them, Louisburg found a way a win — on the road.

Against a Tonganoxie team they lost to by double digits in the season opener, the Lady Cats traveled to Tonganoxie and left with a gritty 40-39 victory over the Chieftains.

“They have no quit in them and I think that is the theme for the season,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “Our fourth quarters have been awesome, so if we can put together a complete game like we play in the fourth then we would be hard to beat. But the girls hung in there despite a tough shooting night. We couldn’t make anything around the basket. They just did a great job.”

It was looking like a tough road loss with under a minute left and the Lady Cats down by two points. However, junior Ashlyn Kuhlman got a wide open look from 3-point range with 16 seconds left and knocked it down to put Louisburg up one.

Tonganoxie had two different opportunities to try and take the lead in the final seconds, but the Lady Cat defense came up big and Kuhlman’s shot was the game-winner.

“That was a huge shot,” Lane said. “Ash hadn’t had a great shooting night until then and I was very proud of her to have the confidence to shoot it. That would have been a hard spot for anyone and she didn’t hesitate. Shooters have to keep shooting and I am glad that she did. When she shot it I knew it was going in.”

Louisburg did have a difficult shooting night as the Lady Cats converted just 25 percent of their shots and were under 50 percent from the free-throw line. Mix that in with 15 turnovers and it was a recipe for loss.

Instead, the Lady Cats found a way to get an important win that helps them in the postseason standings and to try and get a playoff spot with four games remaining.

It didn’t look promising for Louisburg as it found itself down six points late in the third quarter. With the offense struggling, juniors Jillian Asher and Shylar Whiting gave it a jump start.

Asher hit a 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter to cut the lead to three, then Whiting hit a pair of jumpers to start the fourth quarter to give Louisburg a 34-33 advantage.

After a Tonganoxie basket that put the Chieftains in front, the Lady Cats answered right back when Asher found Whiting for a layup and Louisburg had a 36-35 lead midway through the fourth.

Tonganoxie had an 39-37 lead late in the contest, but Kuhlman had a wide open look at the top of the key and knocked down what turned out to the be the game-winning 3-pointer with 16 seconds remaining.

It was a victory the Lady Cats (4-12) needed and were able to avenge a loss from earlier in the season at the same time.

“Our defense was just a lot better than the last time we played them,” Lane said. “We contained a lot better than we did the first time. The first game it seemed like they were just kicking it out and shooting 3s and I don’t even know that they did a lot of that. Our goal was to contain and not let them kick out and shoot wide open 3-pointers.”

Asher was big offensively for Louisburg as she scored a game-high 13 points, including three 3-pointers and was 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.

Kuhlman finished with eight points, but was active on the glass as she recorded a team-high 15 rebounds. Whiting also had eight points and two steals.

Junior Sabra Brueggen and sophomore Zyleigh Melton each had five rebounds, while Brueggen had a team-high three assists.

Louisburg will try for back-to-back wins tonight as the Lady Cats host Spring Hill. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

LOU 5 15 10 10 — 40

TON 7 12 14 6 — 39

LOUISBURG (4-12): Jillian Asher 3-4 4-4 13; Ashlyn Kuhlman 3-16 1-2 8; Shylar Whiting 4-14 0-0 8; Morgan Latham 2-7 0-2 4; Sami Lane 1-6 0-0 3; Ally Brown 1-2 1-1 3; Zyleigh Melton 0-2 1-4 1. Totals: 14-56 7-15 40. 3-point field goals: 5, (Asher 3, Kuhlman, Lane)

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week eight of the winter sports season, sponsored by Dr. Laura’s Orthdontics.

BRADY HICKEY, SENIOR, BOYS BASKETBALL

Louisburg senior Brady Hickey helped lead the Wildcat boys basketball team in what was a busy 3-game week. Hickey scored 36 total points on the week, including a 15-point performance last Saturday against Lee’s Summit.

Hickey nearly recorded a double-double Friday against Ottawa as he finished with 12 points and added eight rebounds from the point guard spot. In a win over Paola on Jan. 30, Hickey scored nine points and had three assists to help lead the Wildcats.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the winter season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Myles Vohs

Week 2: Andrew Jamison

Week 3: Nathan Parker

Week 4: Elias Pugh

Week 5: Ashton Moore

Week 6: Colin Brown

Week 7: Ashlyn Kuhlman

Louisburg sophomore Zyleigh Melton goes up for a shot Friday during the Lady Cats’ game at Ottawa.

OTTAWA — The Louisburg girls basketball team was riding a mini 2-game winning streak heading into Friday’s contest at Ottawa. 

However, the Cyclones are one of the top teams in the Frontier League and were poised to end that streak. Ottawa used a big second quarter and pulled away to hand Louisburg a 45-29 loss.

Ottawa outscored Louisburg, 18-5, in the second quarter and made it difficult for the Lady Cats to get back in the game.

“Ottawa is a very talented team and playing at Ottawa is always a hard environment to play in,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “I thought we played hard and did a good job defending them with different defenses.”

Louisburg trailed by just seven after the first quarter, but an Ottawa run pushed the Cyclones’ lead to 20 points at halftime.

The Lady Cats didn’t give in, however. Louisburg held Ottawa to just 14 points in the second half and outscored the Cyclones, 14-4, in the final quarter.

“This team does not give up,” Lane said. “I love their heart and their grit. They battled the fourth quarter and did a great job running offense and not quitting.”

Louisburg got the opportunities on offense it wanted at times, but couldn’t get the shots to fall as the Lady Cats shot 23 percent from the field. Combined with 23 turnovers, that made it difficult to get the road win.

Junior Sami Lane led Louisburg in scoring with six points on a pair of 3-pointers, while junior Ashlyn Kuhlman had a team-high eight rebonds and three assists.

Jillian Asher and Zyleigh Melton each chipped in five points in the loss, while Sabra Brueggen had five rebounds and two assists.

Louisburg will go on the road tonight as the Lady Cats travel to Tonganoxie for a Frontier League contest. It will be a rematch of the Lady Cats’ season opening loss from back in December.

“The game at Tongie is a big game,” coach Lane said. “We need to get this win to help us get a spot in the postseason. I also think if we could play with Tongie it will show how much we have improved throughout the season.”

LOU 6 5 4 14 — 29

OTT 13 18 10 4 — 45

LOUISBURG (3-12): Sami Lane 2-7 0-0 6; Jillian Asher 2-2 0-0 5; Zyleigh Melton 1-5 3-3 5; Ashlyn Kuhlman 2-12 0-0 4; Sabra Brueggen 2-7 0-0 4; Ally Brown 1-3 0-0 3; Morgan Latham 1-4 0-0 2. Totals: 11-47 3-5 29. 3-point field goals: (Lane 2, Asher, Brown)

Louisburg junior Conlee Hovey goes up for a shot Friday during the Wildcats’ game at Ottawa.

OTTAWA — The Louisburg boys basketball team ventured into Friday’s game at Ottawa on an upswing.

The Wildcats had won two straight and wanted nothing more than to get a big league road victory. Instead, a tough second quarter haunted Louisburg in a 62-52 loss to the Cyclones.

Louisburg found itself down by nine at halftime and the Wildcats were unable to get much closer in the second half.

“The second quarter was definitely a problem for us, but the third quarter we were scoring and getting the ball inside and finishing,” Louisburg coach Ben Doll said. “But we had three possessions there where they got offensive rebounds that turned into points. When you are trying to beat a really good team, you can’t give up offensive rebounds and not get loose balls. To me that was the difference in the game. We were scoring, we just weren’t getting stops and it was second chances for them.”

It was an up-and-down game to start as the Wildcats trailed Ottawa, 19-18, at the end of the first quarter.

The Cyclones outscored the Wildcats 18-10 in the second quarter to pull away for the halftime lead. Turnovers were the culprit for Louisburg as the Wildcats turned the ball over 15 times in the game, which led to 17 Ottawa points.

In what was an evenly-played second half, the Wildcats were able to trim the lead to seven, but couldn’t get any closer.

Junior Conlee Hovey led the Wildcats in scoring as he was effective underneath the basket with a team-high 13 points and five rebounds. 

Senior Brady Hickey made an impact in several different areas for the Wildcats. He finished with 12 points, but pulled down a team-high eight rebounds from the guard spot.

Senior Nathan Parker had a team-high three assists to go along with eight points

“To take the positives out of it, was that Ottawa is a really good team,” Doll said. “Where we were a few weeks ago, where we lost four in a row, we lost to teams that weren’t anywhere as close to as good as Ottawa. I really like the way we competed against Ottawa and how hard the guys played. Ottawa beat a really good Baldwin team the night before, so there were some positives to take away.”

Louisburg will try and get back on the winning track today when the Wildcats travel to Tonganoxie for another Frontier League matchup. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 18 10 14 10 — 52

OTT 19 18 16 9 — 62

LOUISBURG (6-9): Conlee Hovey 6-7 1-3 13; Brady Hickey 5-10 1-2 12; Nathan Parker 3-13 2-2 8; Luke Hill 2-7 0-0 6; Brock Vohs 3-4 0-0 6; Luke Schultz 2-5 1-3 5; Jaymes Melton 0-1 2-2 2. Totals: 21-49 7-12 52. 3-point field goals: 3, (Hill 2, Hickey)

Wildcats fall in 810 Showcase to Lee’s Summit

LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — In what was late addition to the schedule, Louisburg squared off with Lee’s Summit High School during the 810 Varsity Showcase on Saturday at Lee’s Summit West High School.

Louisburg head coach Ben Doll wanted his team to get an opportunity to go up against a larger school in a classic that featured some of the top teams in the Kansas City metro area.

For one half, the Wildcats were able to stay with Lee’s Summit, but the Tigers pulled away in the second half and handed Louisburg a 71-46 setback.

“In the first half we were definitely holding our own,” Doll said. “We followed the game plan, we knew they were a driving team so we did a good job playing gaps and played really good defense. We just made some silly turnovers, which turned out to be the difference in the first half. In the second half, our defense let down and our turnovers continued. I think the whole season it has been turnovers that has been the difference between us winning and losing.”

Louisburg trailed 28-20 at halftime, but the Wildcats were able to say with the Tigers. Turnovers, unfortunately haunted the Wildcats as they committed 23 for the game and it turned into 21 points on the other end.

Lee’s Summit outscored Louisburg 24-13 in the third quarter to pull away.

Senior Brady Hickey paced the Wildcats offensively as he scored a team-high 15 points, including seven points in the first quarter to keep his team in it.

Senior Nathan Parker finished in double figures with 10 points, while Myles Vohs and Luke Schultz each added six. 

Junior Conlee Hovey had a team-high 11 rebounds,  while seniors Jaymes Melton, Brock Vohs and Parker each added six rebounds. Parker also had four assists.

“Brady is getting more confident in being able to create his own shot,” Doll said. “In the second half, he did some good things too and did a good job driving to the basket. Conlee did a good job rebounding, which he has been doing a lot lately.

“The thing for us was the opportunity to go up against a bigger school to prepare us for the postseason and atmosphere that it brings. That is where we need to be thinking right now, which is good, I just wish our second half had been a little better. Playing back to back nights is hard and we played really good teams on both nights.”

LOU 12 8 13 13 — 46

LEE 18 10 24 19 — 71

LOUISBURG: Brady Hickey 5-8 4-6 15; Nathan Parker 4-14 1-1 10; Myles Vohs 3-6 0-2 6; Luke Schultz 2-6 2-4 6; Conlee Hovey 1-6 2-2 4; Bristol Barbour 1-1 0-0 2; Brock Vohs 1-3 0-1 2; Jaymes Melton 0-2 1-2 1. Totals: 17-47 10-18 46. 3-point field goals: 2, (Parker, Hickey)

Louisburg seniors (from left) Brock Vohs and Brady Hickey team up to double team a Paola player Tuesday in Louisburg.

Ben Doll has coached basketball for more than two decades, but what he, and the rest of the Louisburg team, experienced Tuesday was something of a first.

The Wildcats hosted rival Paola and put together a defensive performance to remember. Louisburg jumped out to a big lead at halftime and cruised to a 47-16 victory over the Panthers.

Louisburg never let the Panthers get going as they held them scoreless in the second half and the Wildcats picked up their second straight win.

“It was interesting and wasn’t something we really realized until we got into the fourth quarter,” Doll said. “I’ve spent 25 years coaching high school basketball, and I don’t think I have ever seen something like that on the varsity level for an entire half.”

The Wildcats (5-7) controlled the game from start to finish as they took a 17-7 after one quarter and led 33-16 at halftime. 

It was the type of effort Doll was looking for as the Wildcats put together a complete game performance.

“They played really good,” he said. “The second half we were just trying to keep up with what we did in the first half. I thought they played great in the first half and scored 33 points, which is good for us. We just spent most of the second half trying to work clock and work on our offense. We could have scored more, but that wasn’t the goal and it was to work on other stuff and play good defense. Our defense was great in the first half too.”

Louisburg had a balanced scoring performance from up and down its lineup.

Senior Brady Hickey led the Wildcats in scoring with nine points and three assists. Junior Myles Vohs and senior Nathan Parker each finished with eight points and Vohs had a team-high four assists.

Senior Brock Vohs, along with juniors Gavin Lohse and Luke Schultz, each finished with six points. Schultz and senior Jaymes Melton each tallied five rebounds to lead Louisburg.

After an upset win against Bonner Springs last Friday, Doll sees confidence building in his group as they hit the final stretch of games this month.

“There is confidence for sure,” Doll said. “The win against Bonner was as big one for us and we were able to keep that going against Paola. The key in basketball is to play your best at the end of the season and that is what we are trying to do.”

Louisburg will try to keep its winning streak going this Friday when it travels to Ottawa. The Wildcats then turn around and play Saturday against Lee’s Summit at Lee’s Summit West High School in the 810 Varsity Showcase.

“Ottawa is really good,” Doll said. “It will be a great test for us. They really like to run and it is going to be similar to what we saw against Bonner, so we are going to have to do a good job of getting back on defense.”

LOU 17 16 12 2 — 47

PAO 7 9 0 0 — 16

LOUISBURG (5-7): Brady Hickey 3-5 0-0 9; Nathan Parker 2-7 3-3 8; Myles Vohs 3-5 0-0 8; Gavin Lohse 3-5 0-0 6; Luke Schultz 2-6 2-2 6; Brock Vohs 3-6 0-0 6; Conlee Hovey 1-2 0-0 2; Jaymes Melton 1-1 0-1 2. Totals: 18-42 5-6 47. 3-point field goals: 6, (Hickey 3, M. Vohs 2, Parker)

Louisburg sophomore Zyleigh Melton gets on the floor for a loose ball during Tuesday’s home victory over Paola.

For the first time this season, the Louisburg girls basketball team has found itself in the midst of a winning streak.

The Lady Cats hosted rival Paola on Tuesday and came away with a 42-38 victory over the Panthers to record their second straight win on the season.

It may not have been the cleanest or smoothest game on either side, but Louisburg battled through adversity and made the plays it needed to down the stretch.

“It was a very strange game,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “I didn’t feel like we could get much going on offense and Paola was a pretty physical team. It made it hard for us to get going. I thought we did a great job holding on and hitting some big free throws there at the end.”

Nine of the 13 points Louisburg scored in the final quarter came at the free-throw line. Sophomore Zyleigh Melton, along with juniors Sabra Brueggen, Ashlyn Kuhlman and Jillian Asher all knocked down crucial free throws in what was a close game throughout.

As a team, the Lady Cats were 17-for-24 from the line. Brueggen was 8-for-8 for the game, as she hit several in the first half, while Melton and Kuhlman combined for seven points from the line in the fourth quarter.

“Those were big for us, even ones that we hit early,” Lane said. “I know Sabra had like four or so early in the game and then hit some late too that were key. It is great that we can make those when we need to. 

“We have definitely been working on them, but when they can do that in a pressure situation it says a lot of them as a basketball player. Those were the difference in the game for sure. They kept putting us at the line and we couldn’t get much going offensively other than those, so they were key.”

Paola jumped out to a 10-4 lead early on, but the Lady Cats were able to battle back and take a 15-14 lead on a 3-pointer from Ally Brown midway through the second quarter.

It was tied at 18-all at halftime before the Lady Cats went on a mini 7-3 run to put them up 29-25 at end of the third quarter thanks to baskets from Kuhlman and Brown.

Louisburg extended its lead to six early in the fourth on a basket from sophomore McKenna Lohse, but Paola went on a mini 5-0 run to make it a one-point game.

The Lady Cats earned their living at the free throw line as two Melton free throws pushed the lead out to three. Kuhlman followed with two more and Melton added another with under 10 seconds left to seal the win.

Brueggen led the Lady Cats in scoring with 10 points, while Latham and Melton each finished with six. Kuhlman led Louisburg with five rebounds and Lohse added four in the win.

It was Melton’s play that Lane said was a difference maker for her team.

“Zyleigh played really hard out there,” Lane said. “I told her after the game that if I had a game ball she would be the one to get it. She played hard, played good defense and made some free throws at the end.”

Louisburg will try and make it three in a row Friday when it travels to Ottawa for a Frontier League matchup. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

LOU 8 10 11 13 — 42

PAO 10 8 7 13 — 38

LOUISBURG (3-11): Sabra Brueggen 1-5 8-8 10; Morgan Latham 3-3 0-0 6; Zyleigh Melton 1-4 4-8 6; Jillian Asher 2-5 1-2 5; Ashlyn Kuhlman 1-5 3-4 5; Ally Brown 2-2 0-0 5; McKenna Lohse 1-1 0-0 2; Shylar Whiting 1-4 0-0 2; Addy Stohs 0-1 1-2 1. Totals: 12-35 17-24 42. 3-point field goals: 1, (Brown)

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week seven of the winter sports season, sponsored by Louisburg Family Dental.

ASHLYN KUHLMAN, JUNIOR, GIRLS BASKETBALL

Louisburg junior Ashlyn Kuhlman put together a strong performance for the Louisburg girls basketball team last Friday at home against Bonner Springs. Kuhlman scored a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds in the Lady Cats’ 40-35 win over the Braves, which was their first Frontier League victory. She also had two blocks in the game and has 26 for the season.

Kuhlman leads the Lady Cats in scoring as she averages nearly nine points a contest and has a team-high 19 made 3-pointers. She also leads Louisburg with 61 rebounds on the season.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the winter season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Myles Vohs

Week 2: Andrew Jamison

Week 3: Nathan Parker

Week 4: Elias Pugh

Week 5: Ashton Moore

Week 6: Colin Brown

Louisburg’s Brock Vohs slaps hands with head coach Ben Doll after the Wildcats’ 53-45 victory over Bonner Springs on Friday at home.

Throughout the first half of the season, the Louisburg and Bonner Springs boys basketball teams have gone in two different directions.

Going into Friday’s game at Louisburg, the Wildcats had lost four in a row and were in the midst of a slump. As for Bonner Springs, the Braves had won nine of their first 12 games to start the year and were toward atop the Frontier League standings.

At least for a night anyway, those roles were reversed.

The Wildcats put together one of their better performances of the season and upset the Braves in a 53-45 victory. The win snapped a losing streak that saw a pair of overtime setbacks and a road loss at Wamego.

“That is a really big win because that is a really good team,” Louisburg coach Ben Doll said. “They are a 5A team and are toward the top of their sub-state right now. It was a win that we absolutely needed and it couldn’t have come at a better time after losing four in a row.”

In what was an intense, back-and-forth contest — the Wildcats and Braves were all tied at halftime. Louisburg used a big third quarter to go up five and increased its lead to as much as nine.

However, Bonner Springs battled back to cut the Wildcat lead to just two with two minutes left in the contest. The Braves missed a layup just seconds later that would have tied the game.

Instead the Wildcats took advantage as Conlee Hovey scored to make it a four-point lead, and then after a defensive stop, senior Nathan Parker was fouled on a 3-point attempt.

Parker converted on all three, and would hit two more with under a minute left to help ice the game.

Louisburg also turned the tide by dominating the rebounding department. The Wildcats out-rebounded the Braves 51-21 and pulled down 22 offensive boards that led to 13 second chance points.

“We had a lot of really big rebounds from a lot of guys,” Doll said. “Jaymes (Melton), Conlee, Gavin (Lohse) and Luke (Schultz) had some big rebounds for us. Down the stretch, when the game got tight, we hit some big free throws as well. Nate is not the guy to foul if you are the other team and he was big in the fourth quarter there from the line.”

Parker once again led the Wildcats in scoring with with 17 points, including three 3-pointers. Hovey was also big underneath the basket for Louisburg as he posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. He also had a team-high three assists with Parker.

Senior Brady Hickey also hit some big shots down the stretch with eight points to go along with seven rebounds. Gavin Lohse added nine rebounds in the win, while senior Brock Vohs had five points and five rebounds. 

“Our guys were ready to go,” Doll said. “Our players, from things they thought and heard, was that Bonner didn’t respect us and was planning to just notch a win and get out of here. I think that had an impact on the game. It was nice to see that enthusiasm and effort from our guys.”

Louisburg will try for back-to-back wins tonight as the Wildcats host rival Paola. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 13 11 13 16 — 53

BON 11 13 8 13 — 45

LOUISBURG (5-7): Nathan Parker 4-10 6-7 17; Conlee Hovey 5-10 1-3 11; Brady Hickey 2-8 3-6 8; Brock Vohs 2-4 1-2 5; Luke Hill 1-3 2-4 4; Myles Vohs 2-3 0-0 4; Luke Schultz 1-3 1-3 3; Gavin Lohse 0-7 1-2 1. Totals: 17-50 15-27 53. 3-point field goals: 4, (Parker 3, Hickey)

Wildcats fall on road to Wamego

WAMEGO — After what was a close first half, one bad quarter doomed Louisburg on the road last Tuesday at Wamego.

The Red Raiders outscored Louisburg by 11 points in the third quarter and it turned out to be the different in a 56-45 loss.

Louisburg also didn’t help themselves in the turnover department with 19, which led to 19 points for Wamego.

“It was a long ways to go for a game on a Tuesday, but I felt that we could have definitely won the game,” Doll said. “We ended the game with 19 turnovers and I told the guys that no matter who you play, you aren’t going to win many games with that many mistakes.”

Nathan Parker led the Wildcats in scoring with 11 points on the night, while senior Luke Hill also scored in double figures with 10. Brady Hickey added nine points, four rebounds and three assists in the loss.

LOU 5 13 9 18 — 45

WAM 12 5 20 19 — 56

LOUISBURG: Nathan Parker 4-17 2-2 11; Luke Hill 4-12 0-0 10; Brady Hickey 4-7 0-0 9; Brock Vohs 2-5 2-4 6; Luke Schultz 0-1 3-4 3; Conlee Hovey 1-1 0-0 2; Myles Vohs 1-2 0-0 2; Jaymes Melton 1-3 0-0 2. Totals: 17-48 7-10 45. 3-point field goals: 4, (Hill 2, Parker, Hickey)

Louisburg junior Ashlyn Kuhlman drives the lane Friday at home against Bonner Springs. Kuhlman finished with a game-high 15 points.

For much of the season, the Louisburg girls basketball team has been forced to play catch up. 

Starting the season with no varsity experience, the Lady Cats had just one win going into Friday’s home contest against Bonner Springs. Louisburg has constantly had to play from behind.

That didn’t have to on Friday.

The Lady Cats played in front from the opening whistle and never trailed as they held off Bonner Springs for a 40-35 victory. It was also the first Frontier League win for Louisburg and it came at a great time.

“We really played as a team,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “The bench was awesome. Everyone that was in played to their role and no one tried to do anything fancy. It was just a great game all around.”

Louisburg (2-11) kept the Braves at arm’s length for the entire game, despite second and fourth quarter runs by Bonner Springs to try and take the lead. 

Bonner Springs cut the Louisburg lead to 16-13, but junior Ashlyn Kuhlman knocked in a 3-pointer with 3:40 left in the first half to make it a 19-13 game. 

It would be one of four 3-pointers for Kuhlman as she scored a team-high 15 points and also pulled down a team-best eight rebounds.

“A three is awesome cause it gives us a little edge and allows us to set up our defense,” Lane said. “(Ashlyn) had a great shooting night and I thought the whole team did a good job going to the basket at opportune times. We will work on finishing and I think we will only get better.”

Late in the second quarter, Bonner Springs once again cut the lead to two, but Kuhlman hit a runner in the lane to push the lead back out to four. 

The Lady Cats took a 24-21 lead into halftime, but widened the lead again. Junior Sami Lane hit a 3-pointer to start the third quarter to push the lead to six.

Louisburg’s defense also followed suit as Shylar Whiting drew a charge and Sabra Brueggen pulled down an offensive rebound and scored to make it an eight point lead.

Rebounds were a big factor for the Lady Cats as they out-rebounded the Braves 46-33 and pulled down 18 offensive rebounds that led to 11 second chance points.

The Lady Cats also changed up defenses throughout the game to try and slow the Braves down. Louisburg implemented three or four defenses to give Bonner Springs some different looks.

“Bonner was super physical and I thought the girls did a great job matching that,” coach Lane said. “I also think we gave it back to them a little bit. For us, I think switching defense on them so many times, and the girls being able to execute that, is what got us that win. (Bonner) seemed a little confused when we switched and it took them awhile to get stuff set up. I think the girls did a great job being able to switch back and forth and play any defense we threw at them.”

Kuhlman hit a 3-pointer late in the third to put Louisburg up 32-21 and the Lady Cats took an 8-point lead into the final frame.

Bonner Springs cut the Louisburg lead to one with 5 minutes and 30 seconds left in the game, but Kuhlman hit a 3-pointer after an offensive rebound by Brueggen.

Whiting then hit a runner to make it a 6-point game with 2:10 left and the Lady Cats were able to hang on for the win. 

“I think the girls playing more confident is what allowed us to hold off Bonner Springs on their runs,” Lane said. “I told the girls not to play scared and to play to win. Even when we were ahead, we were going to the basket. We had a huge third quarter and I really think that go us going.”

Brueggen finished second on the team in scoring with six points and seven rebounds. Junior Addy Stohs also had a big night on the glass with seven rebounds, while Jillian Asher had a team-high three steals.

Louisburg will try and make it two wins in a row Tuesday when it hosts rival Paola. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

LOU 10 14 10 6 — 40

BON 5 16 5 9 — 35

LOUISBURG (2-11): Ashlyn Kuhlman 5-19 1-2 15; Sabra Brueggen 1-4 4-4 6; McKenna Lohse 0-1 4-6 4; Morgan Latham 2-4 0-0 4; Shylar Whiting 2-6 0-0 4; Sami Lane 1-3 1-2 4; Zyleigh Melton 1-2 0-0 2; Jillian Asher 0-6 1-2 1. Totals: 12-50 11-16 40. 3-point field goals: 5, (Kuhlman 4, Lane)

Lady Cats fall to No. 2 Wamego on the road

WAMEGO — Louisburg had a big challenge in front it last Tuesday as the Lady Cats traveled to No. 2 Wamego.

Despite an even first quarter, Wamego pulled away for a 63-24 victory. The game was tied at 9-all after the first quarter, but Wamego outscored Louisburg 23-3 in the second quarter to pull away.

Wamego point guard Lexi Hecht was a handful for the Lady Cats as she scored a game-high 26 points and also had seven assists and six steals.

Louisburg junior Shylar Whiting led the Lady Cats in scoring with a game-high eight points to go along with four rebounds. Sophomore McKenna Lohse also pull down four rebounds in the loss.

LOU 9 3 7 5 — 24

WAM 9 23 22 9 — 63

LOUISBURG: Shylar Whiting 2-5 3-5 8; Morgan Latham 2-5 1-2 5; Sami Lane 1-1 0-0 3; Maddie Yoder 0-1 3-4 3; Ashlyn Kuhlman 0-6 2-2 2; Zyleigh Melton 0-2 2-2 2; McKenna Lohse 0-3 1-2 1. Totals: 5-28 12-17 24. 3-point field goals: 2, (Lane, Whiting)

Louisburg senior Brady Hickey drives to the basket Friday during the final game of the Louisburg Invitational.

Louisburg had already suffered an overtime heartbreaker in the first game of its home tournament, but unfortunately for the Wildcats, the hurt continued Friday.

Against Girard in the final game of the Louisburg Invitational, the Trojans knocked in the game-winner with three seconds left and handed Louisburg a 58-56 double overtime setback.

Two close overtime losses ended up being the difference between winning the tournament and finishing 0-2 for the Wildcats.

Despite the loss, Louisburg showed a lot of positives, including battling back from a nine-point deficit in the second half.

“I thought we did a lot of good things against a good team,” Louisburg coach Ben Doll said. “It was a good matchup for us and they are a decent team. The fact was we had chances to win in regulation and both overtimes showed we were doing some positive things. We just couldn’t get it done defensively when we needed to.

Louisburg junior Luke Schultz went 1 of 2 from the free-throw line to tie the game at 56-all with 35 seconds left in the second overtime, but the Trojans had one final chance and held for the last shot.

Girard’s Scott Moore got a pass from Aiden Troike right underneath the basket with just seconds left on the clock to record the game-winner.

The Wildcats (4-6) found themselves down 33-24 early in the third quarter, but engineered a way to battle back. Louisburg went on a 10-0 run that eventually gave them a 34-33 lead.

Louisburg senior Nathan Parker was the spark for the Wildcats offensively as he started the run with a 3-pointer and fellow senior Luke Hill followed with one of his own.

Junior Conlee Hovey and senior Brady Hickey followed with back-to-back buckets to compete the run.

“We did a better job of getting some good shots that were in rhythm and we took care of the ball better,” Doll said. “There was a stretch in the first half where it was turnover city. We didn’t have good ball security. Our defense was decent, but it was very good to battle back and not roll over.”

The game remained close and the Wildcats took a 48-46 lead late in the fourth quarter on a back door from pass Parker than found an open Hickey for a layup.

Troike then tied it for Girard with 45 seconds left and Louisburg had an opportunity to win the game in regulation but the Wildcats couldn’t convert.

In the first overtime, Parker opened with a 3-pointer, and after a Girard rebound and put back, Parker knocked in another three to take a 54-50 lead with 2:49 left.

On the Trojans’ next possession, they converted a 3-point play and the game was eventually tied again at 54-all. The Wildcats had one last opportunity as Hickey recorded a steal and a breakaway but his floater was just offline at the buzzer.

Parker provided a bulk of the offense for the Wildcats as he scored a game-high 23 points, including four 3-pointers. Louisburg knocked in eight 3-pointers a team.

“He is a scorer, and since coming back from break he has been up and down,” Doll said. “He has been focused on good shot selection and was good on Friday. He does a good job of getting other guys involved as well. When Nate is on and does well, that is better for the rest of us.”

Hill and Hickey were second on the team in scoring with eight points each, while Hovey led the Wildcats with five rebounds. Junior Gavin Lohse had a team-high three steals, including one that led to a breakaway dunk to begin the third quarter.

Louisburg will try and get back on the winning track Wednesday as the Wildcats travel to Wamego. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 6 16 15 11 6 2 — 56

GIR 11 16 13 8 6 4 — 58

LOUISBURG (4-6): Nathan Parker 8-19 3-3 23; Luke Hill 3-8 0-0 8; Brady Hickey 3-6 1-2 8; Luke Schultz 1-3 3-6 6; Gavin Lohse 2-3 0-0 4; Conlee Hofe 2-3 0-0 4; Myles Vohs 1-3 0-0 2; Brock Vohs 0-2 1-2 1. Totals: 20-47 8-13 56. 3-point field goals: 8, (Parker 4, Hill 2, Hickey, Schultz)