MORAN — The third time was the charm for Crest High’s girls Thursday.
After twice falling in hard-fought matchups with rival Marmaton Valley during the regular season, the Lady Lancers turned the tables when it counted most.
Crest emerged from Thursday’s Class 1A-I Substate opener with a 29-23 victory to set up a contest with top-seed Madison/Hamilton next Thursday at Oswego High School. The winner will play either Olpe or Flinthills March 4 for a berth in the Class 1A-I State Tournament.
The loss ends Marmaton Valley’s season with a 12-9 mark.
Both teams were stingy on defense, but Crest found its footing in the second quarter.
The Lady Lancers outscored Marmaton Valley 9-1 in the period to open a 15-7 lead at the break.
Marmaton Valley cut into the lead, paring the gap to 18-12 after three quarters.
The Wildcats came to within four points down the stretch, but foul trouble to leading scorers Janae Granere and Payton Schaff short-circuited hopes for a winning rally.
Conversely, Crest’s McKenna Hammond hit 5 of 8 free throws in the fourth quarter to help the Lady Lancers stay in front.
Freshman Aylee Beckmon led Crest’s scoring with 10 points, followed by Hammond with eight, all coming from the line.
Scharff led the Wildcats with eight points before fouling out late in the contest. Granere fouled out, having scored five. Marmaton Valley’s Braelyn Sutton scored six, all in the fourth quarter to lead the comeback attempt.
Crest (6-9-3-11—29)
FG/3pt FT F TP
H. Beckmon 2 0 3 4
Nilges 0 0 3 0
A. Beckmon 5 0 4 10
Hermreck 2 0 1 4
Boots 0 1 1 1
Hammond 0 8 1 8
Edgerton 1 0 1 2
Totals 10 9 15 29
MV (6-1-5-11—23)
Scharff 3 2 5 8
Lawson 0 0 1 0
Barney 1 0 1 2
T. Sutton 1 0 4 2
B. Sutton 1/1 1 1 6
Granere 2 1 5 5
Totals 8/1 4 17 23
