Big third quarter pushes Cheney to 3A sub-state final

LYONS, Kan. (Catch it Kansas) - The Cheney Lady Cardinals advanced to the 3A Sub-State finals after a 52-41 defeat of the Halstead Lady Dragons Thursday evening at Lyons High School.

Cheney came into the tournament as the number one seed with a 19-2 record. They took on Halstead, the fourth seed at 13-8, in the first semifinal game of the evening.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair with Halstead leading for most of the time.

With less than 30 seconds to go in the second quarter, Cheney took a one-point lead. They successfully defended a shot attempt by Halstead to carry the lead into the locker room for halftime.

“You know what, that’s one of the worst halves we’ve ever played and we’re still winning by one point,” said Cheney Head Coach Sarah McCormick to her team at halftime. “Honestly, all we need to do is win by one. I want to win by more, but let’s at least keep this lead.”

Cheney kept the lead and then some. They came out of the locker room and scored 18 points in the third quarter. On the defensive side, they held Halstead to only 9 points.

In the fourth quarter, Cheney only scored three field goals. The other nine points of their 15 total came from the free-throw line.

Elina Bartlett scored 17 points total to lead all scorers. She made four three-pointers in the game. “Elina has always been a constant for us, but this was by far her best shooting night,” said Coach McCormick.

Campbell Hague added 12 points to the total. Hague went six of eight from the free-throw line.

Dominque Schutte of Halstead scored 14 points including two field goals, two three-pointers, and four of five free throws.

Cheney advances to face Hesston for the second time this season on Saturday evening. The Lady Cardinals defeated the Lady Swathers 42-38 on January 3rd.

“We played Hesston before and it was a battle until the end,” said Coach Sarah McCormick.

Halstead ends their season with a 13-9 record.

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