Friends sink Lady 'Jays
BY RYAN RICHTER
Sports writer
Lady Bluejay coach Rusty Allen sounded about as optimistic as a coach could sound after his team dropped a heartbreaker at home Monday night against Friends University Lady Falcons.
"If we'd have won out, we'd have guaranteed ourselves fifth place and there was nothing anybody could have done about it," he said. "The fifth place seed is still in our hands. If we win out, we're going to get it. This game in a way, didn't hurt us in the standings."
The Falcons made that iffy for the Bluejays, sucking the wind out of Tabor's sails with an 8-0 run to end the first half en route to a crushing 51-49 victory.
"That was probably the most disappointing part of the game for me," said the disappointed Allen. "I felt we got lackadaisical on the defensive end.
"That really changed the momentum in the game. The girls are really disappointed with this one."
This loss leaves the Bluejays staggered at 11-15 overall and 7-9 in the KCAC.
One of the toughest things to digest for the Bluejays was letting the lead slip away.
In the opening 14:17 of the first half, the Bluejays pushed their lead as deep as eight points four times.
Becky Jons supplied one of the four eight-point leads, draining two of her team-high 13 points at the 7:29 point which left the Falcons doubled over, 16-8. She finished with a double-double of a game-high 10 rebounds.
Amber McKillip scored all eight of her points in the first half, including the one which gave the Bluejays their largest lead of the game, 26-17, with 2:49 to go.
McKillip furnished Tabor with seven rebounds, helping control the backboards, 37-34.
Then the Bluejays' first half magic seemed to fizzle out.
Six straight points by Friends' Kristin Buchanan and a basket from Stephanie Willig reduced the Bluejays' lead to 26-25 by halftime.
"That was what I talked about at halftime," Allen said. "You can give up one basket based on a mistake defensively, but you can't give up four of them."
On a slump from outside the arc for most of the season, Tabor nearly abandoned its perimeter shooting, resorting to going inside instead.
Still, the Bluejays were a cool 37 percent off 11 for 30 from the floor.
Jons put Tabor on top for the last time, 30-27, with a field goal, then the Bluejays' balloon began to deflate.
Willig sparked a 7-0 run for the Falcons after the Jons-basket and Tabor was underwater for the next 15:00.
Amanda Barkley terrorized the Bluejays.
Saddled with foul trouble, Rachelle Speers guarded Barkley as long as she could.
Despite that, Barkley still stung Tabor for a game-high 14 points including the fifth of a 5-0 run which gave the Falcons their largest lead of the game, 44-37 with 6:19 to play.
Tabor was slowed by foul trouble all the way around. Jons and Speers each finished with four, and Carmen Hein fouled out late.
After going nearly 5:00 without a field goal, Speers drilled a three to pull Tabor to 44-40.
The Bluejays mounted a 5-0 run of their own with a Kathryn Troutt basket and a free throw by Hein before Jons tied the game at 45 with a pair from the line.
Jons got Tabor's head above water for exactly a minute, 47-46, with a bucket with 1:43 left before Allison Rose pushed the Bluejays back under, allowing the Falcons to hang on.
Tabor had several opportunities from the free throw line to build on its late lead.
Averaging a dead last 59 percent at the line in the KCAC, the Bluejays had to look elsewhere for a way back to the top.
Jons still had one more magic trick up her sleeve, again tying the game at 49-49 with a contested basket at the top of the key.
Barkley shot the lights out on Tabor with :05 seconds to go, scoring the game-winning basket.
The pressure is on the Bluejays to win out to get a possible play in round.
It starts today when Tabor travels to North Newton to face the Bethel Lady Threshers at 6 p.m.
Tabor wraps up its regular season Saturday night at home against St. Mary at 5 p.m.
Kansas Wesleyan
The Bluejays picked up their second consecutive win Saturday night at home against the Kansas Wesleyan Lady Coyotes with the help of monster nights from Angela Kroeker and Speers.
Kroeker scored 10 of her 19 points in the first half and Speers finished with a game-high 23 to trounce the Coyotes, 72-53.
Tabor wasn't quick out of the gate, exchanging the lead with KW eight times in the first half.
By halftime, the Coyotes were bearing down, trailing 31-30.
Kroeker drained a three :46 seconds into the second half and it was smooth sailing for Tabor the rest of the way.
Barely in the game, the Coyote hopes of a comeback withered away after Kylee Friesen triggered a 13-0 run which helped Tabor push its lead to 66-43 with 7:25 to go.
For the night, Tabor shot one of its better percentages from the field at 46, hitting 16 of 32 in the second half.
Friends 51, Tabor 49
Friends — 25 26 51
Tabor — 26 23 49
Friends — Jenny Meier 3, Barkley 14, Kristin Buchanan 8, Allison Rose 7, Michelle Karleskint 6, Willig 13, Totals 21-53 2-17 7-15 51.
Tabor — Kroeker 4, Hein 1, Speers 13, Troutt 2, Michelle Rink 6, McKillip 8, Jons 13, Friesen 2, Totals 18-48 1-5 12-20 49.
