On paper, stopping Hutchinson Central Christian is simple – frazzle Jamie Patrick.
Executing the plan is another matter. Patrick’s array of speed, size and instincts make her an inside-outside weapon few can contain.
Yet on Saturday, Berean Academy accomplished the seemingly impossible.
“Everybody knows that when you play them, that she’s the one you have to stop,” said Kristin Wiebe, Berean head coach. “We thought that if we could get Patrick to give it up – we weren’t necessarily trying to pressure her – but if we could get Jamie to give it up and put some pressure on the other players, that might be successful for us.”
The strategy paid off, as Central Christian (9-3) shot 33 percent from the floor in a 47-33 loss to Berean (13-0) in the championship game of the Eli J. Walter Tournament at Berean.
Patrick picked up a double-double with 10 points and 14 boards, but the Warriors made her a volume scorer. Patrick shot 3-of-14 from the field.
In contrast, Berean’s up-tempo ball movement and inside game frustrated the Cougar defense. Berean shot a tick over 50 percent from the floor, led by 18 points from Mallory Zuercher.
“I’ve been working on being more aggressive in my play, because that’s what coach has been telling me to do,” Zuercher said. “It wasn’t really the game plan, but that’s just how it happened.”
An array of presses and traps flustered Central Christian early. The Cougars turned the ball over four times in their first seven possessions, and Berean capitalized for an 11-4 lead. From that point, Central Christian never got closer than three points.
A 10-2 run late in the third and into the fourth gave Berean a 42-27 advantage. The cushion was more than enough to stave off any Central Christian rally.
“These bigger schools are more mature, they’re bigger, they’re taller, they’re faster, and they’re more athletic,” said Erin Patrick, Central Christian head coach. “That becomes a problem. We won this tournament last year in the same circumstances.
“We just didn’t finish those shots early.”
Micaela Ensz added 10 points for the Cougar offense. Along with Zuercher’s output, Libby Witte added 11 points for Berean.
Senior Kayla Wilgers scored only four points for the Warriors, but her crisp passing and tenacious defense were key to the victory. Wilgers picked off four passes.
“Usually Wilgers is a big scorer for us,” Wiebe said. “They were locked up pretty tight on her. She did what she needed to do tonight. She distributed the ball and she took care of the ball.”
Wilgers, Witte and Zuercher were all named to the all-tournament team.
“We have a lot of fast girls on the team that are really athletic. That’s how we work well together,” Zuercher said. “We’re playing better as a team lately.”
Patrick was also named to the all-tournament squad.
In the third-place matchup, Word of Life fended off Wichita Trinity 46-36. Douglass defeated Burrton to claim fifth place, and Goessel knocked off Bluestem to salvage seventh place.
