One of two undefeated streaks had to end Tuesday night. Iola High’s Fillies had not lost a game at home this season. Labette County High’s Grizzlies were undefeated, 6-0, in Southeast Kansas League play.
It was senior night for the Fillies. Their five seniors — Toni Taylor, Maggie Wilson, Kayla Callahan, Carly Mulsow, Kirstin McGuffin — started the game.
Add two juniors — Kelsey Larson and Kendra Taiclet — along the way and it was the recipe for an undefeated regular season at home for the Fillies. Iola weathered several runs by visiting Labette County, but in the end the Fillies posted a 40-35 victory.
“It was a big win but that’s how we’re playing right now — big,” said Becky Carlson, Fillies’ head coach, who watched her team win its fifth game in a row.
The Fillies started SEK play 0-2 but rattled off five straight wins to earn a tie with Independence at 5-2 for second place in the league. Iola finishes regular season and SEK action at Independence Thursday. Labette County is 6-1 atop the SEK standings.
“Monday’s game was an emotional win (over Chanute) and to come back and play with this type of energy tonight was hard but the girls had the energy to get the win,” Carlson said.
Carlson pointed to defense as the catalyst. She said the Fillies played well in the zone defense even though Labette County got some of the long rebounds off failed outside shots.
“Defensively, in the second half I felt we stopped everything they came at us with. When we went to man-to-man in the fourth quarter, they weren’t sure what to do with it,” Carlson said.
“Labette plays a tough, man-and-man defense itself and we got a little hurried at times, then settled down against it.”
And it doesn’t hurt when your team shoots 63 percent, 17 of 27, from the field.
Labette County opened with a 4-0 lead before Iola outscored the Grizzlies 14-1 the rest of the first period.
Taylor hit a jump shot then McGuffin hit back-to-back baskets to give Iola the lead.
Larson and Taiclet, who normally start, came off the bench with 3:25 left. Callahan had two baskets, Taiclet scored and Mulsow’s jumper at the 54-second mark put Iola up 14-5. Chelsea Nalley had all five points for the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies made a 12-5 run in the second quarter. Morgan Workman hit two three-pointers, including one that put her team ahead 17-16 with 2:34 left in the period.
Taylor, with an LCHS player in her face, connected from beyond the arc with 12 seconds left. Iola went to the locker room, leading 19-17.
In a back-and-forth third quarter, Iola took the lead for good when Mulsow rattled in a three-pointer with 3:33 left. Mulsow connected on a jumper then Callahan scored five straight points.
Workman nailed a three, stole the basketball and sank one of two free throws to make it 33-28 heading into the fourth quarter.
Shelbie Foister scored five points in a 7-2 run by the Grizzlies to tie the game at 35-35 with 4:14 left in the game. That’s when Iola switched to its man-to-man defense.
At the 2:53 mark, Taiclet watched as her three-point shot circled inside the rim several times before dropping through. Neither team scored again until Taiclet sank one of two free throws with just under a minute to play.
Larson hit the front end of a one-and-one with 25 seconds on the clock. The Fillies finished the game with the basketball as time ran off.
Callahan paced the Fillies with 15 points, five rebounds and three steals. Mulsow had three steals and Taiclet had five assists.
Workman scored 10 points for LCHS and Nalley had nine points.
Labette County won the junior varsity game 39-14 as Emily Ware and Emma Sigg each had four points for Iola. Labette County also won the freshman game 42-5.
Iola (14-5-14-7—40) (FG/3-pt): Larson 0-1-2-1, Taiclet 1/1-1-1-6, Taylor 1/1-0-1-5, Wilson 0-0-1-0, Callahan 7-1-2-15, Mulsow 2/1-0-1-7, McGuffin 3-0-1-6. TOTALS: 14/3-3-9-40.
Labette County (5-12-11-7—35) (FG/3-pt): Workman 0/3-1-3-10, Smith 0/1-2-3-5, Ford 3-0-2-6, Nalley 4-1-1-9, Foister 1/1-0-2-5. TOTALS: 8/5-4-11-35.
Fillies upend Grizzlies
