HUMBOLDT — Perhaps the sting will subside as Humboldt High’s Lady Cubs process their now-completed 2015-16 campaign, which ended much sooner than they wanted.
But for now, a sparkling 14-7 record did little to mask the disappointment apparent on the players’ faces as they emerged from the locker room after a 49-46 loss to Perry-Lecompton in the first round of the Class 3A substate playoffs.
Humboldt entered the game as the second seed, and looked to have wrested control from the pesky seventh-seeded Kaws (6-14) late in the third quarter.
But Perry-Lecompton wasn’t interested in traveling more than 100 miles to go down without a fight. The Kaws, held to 25 points in the first three quarters, exploded for 24 in the fourth quarter.
The Lady Cubs put forth a valiant comeback attempt down the stretch, but their final salvo — a desperation Tilar Wells 3-point attempt — was off the mark as the buzzer sounded.
The fateful lulls, Humboldt head coach Aubrey Jones said, came about from a lack of aggression and precision, particularly early in the contest.
“We didn’t value the ball early,” she said. “We didn’t take care of it.”
That changed midway through the third quarter, when the Lady Cub defense triggered a 13-2 run to lead 27-18.
“But we let up from there, and it cost us,” Jones said.
The Kaws responded quickly. Abbigayle Folks scored, followed by Katelynn Wampler. A Humboldt turnover then led to Folks’ buzzer-beating 3-pointer, cutting Humboldt’s lead to 27-25 at the end of the third.
Perry-Lecompton continued its run early in the fourth, before Humboldt’s Annalise Whitcomb connected to knot the score at 31-31. Folks delivered again from long range. Her 3-pointer with 5:45 left put Perry-Lecompton up for good, 34-31, and started a 9-3 Kaw run.
Makaylah McCall almost single-handedly kept the Lady Cubs within striking distance. She hit a jumper with 3:42 left, scoring Humboldt’s next nine points. Her three-point play cut the gap to 45-43 with 1:36 remaining.
Both teams came up empty on their next two possessions. Perry-Lecompton combined to go 0-for-4 from the line, while Humboldt lost the ball on a steal on its first attempt to tie the score. McCall then came up just short on a jumper from the lane.
Samantha Mallonee hit a pair of charities to extend Perry-Lecompton’s lead to 47-43 with 29.1 seconds left. Annalise Whitcomb scored inside and hit a subsequent free throw to pull Humboldt within one, 47-46, with 14.5 seconds remaining.
But the Kaws were able to melt much of the rest of the clock when Lexia Jamison held onto the ball at midcourt. McCall hesitated at first before committing her fifth foul.
