By LIONEL TIPTON
ROSALIA, Kansas – Second-seeded Flinthills and No. 7 Canton-Galva sputtered through a sloppy first half Saturday night, with each team committing 12 turnovers and combining for 32 total points.
But the pace picked up in the second-half, and the Mustangs rode a 15-9 third quarter and 30-point second half to a 47-41 victory in a Class 1A-Division I sub-state semifinal game at Flinthills.
The third-quarter outburst was critical, Mustangs coach Daniel Scribner said.
“We talked about at halftime – we had a two-point lead (17-15) at half – and we said we didn’t play our best basketball by any means in the first half and we still have the lead,” he said.
“But when you hit the playoffs, the intensity is going to crank up in the second half, and we needed to pick up our intensity to match theirs. And then, all of a sudden, both teams went to playing defense real aggressively toward each other.
“So, when that happens, you’ve got to go ‘north and south.’ You’ve got to attack fire with fire. So then, the pace increased a whole lot.”
Senior post Paige Corter made sure her senior season would have at least one more game, scoring 12 of her game-high 20 points in the second half. She was honored after the game with fellow seniors Tagen Carney and Emily Scribner.
“They’re not just great players; they’re really, really good people,” Daniel Scribner said. “The chemistry that they’ve been able to bring … not only that, but they’ve never not had each other’s back. It has never been ‘As long as I get mine, I don’t care if you get yours.’ It’s always been as a team – ‘We want to win.’ And that’s hard to find, especially for the extended amount of time (together).
“So, that’s been great.”
Corter, who will play basketball at Cowley next year, hit two of Flinthills’ four three-pointers and was a consistent force inside.
“She’s always been a really good scorer for us,” Scribner said. “It is a nice balance that we know Paige is going to score, but we have three other guards (where) we have confidence with the ball in their hands.
“We can use that combination to get the ball where it needs to go in our offense.”
The Flinthills victory denied the Eagles (11-10) a chance to play for the sub-state title on their home floor. Canton-Galva is the host school for this sub-state and will be the site of Friday’s final, when the Mustangs (15-5) will face No. 6 Colony-Crest (12-7) for a berth in the state tournament March 12-15 in Dodge City. The Lancers advanced to the sub-state final by ousting third-seeded Olpe (13-8), 36-34.
As glossy as the 15-5 mark is, it could have been even better, Daniel Scribner said.
“We dropped a couple of games early in the season when the illness hit us and we had an injury,” he said. “We had three starters down (and) we dropped a couple that maybe we shouldn’t have.
“We’ve had a good season – we really have – and hopefully there’s more to come.”
It wasn’t coincidental that the increase in scoring in the second half was aided by both teams committing fewer turnovers. After the dozen committed by each team in the opening half, Canton-Galva and Flinthills had just six and five, respectively, in the second half, many coming in the fourth quarter.
As she has been throughout her Flinthills career, Corter was the Mustangs’ key offensive force. She scored seven third-quarter points, and fellow senior Emily Scribner and junior Brylee Heimgartner chipped in four points each during the period, giving Flinthills a 32-24 advantage going into the final quarter.
Canton-Galva didn’t go away, however, but the Mustangs were able to erase Canton-Galva’s 22-19 lead and take the lead for good, 24-22, on a Corter three-pointer from the left baseline with 5:15 to play in the quarter.
Flinthills then held the Eagles to just two points in the rest of the period. The Mustangs’ lead reached 10 points with 4:15 left in the game, 41-31. Canton-Galva never got closer than five points the rest of the way.
“We just needed a confidence boost and we did it, just kept goingand didn’t give up,” Corter said.
The Eagles forced Flinthills to keep scoring to maintain its advantage. Canton-Galva junior Trinity Espinoza tried to keep pace with Corter, scoring 10 second-half points and finishing with a team-high 17. She scored eight points in the final quarter after getting just two in the third period.
“We talked about different ways we were going to (try to) stop her,” Daniel Scribner said. “She can shoot from the outside, she can drive to the hole (and) she can finish around the basket strong.
“We were really going to try to take away the outside shot early – which we did – but she can post up hard, and if we didn’t have help (on defense), she could hurt us.”
Canton-Galva didn’t play like a seventh seed. The Eagles scrapped all night and gave Flinthills all it could handle. They started the second half on a 7-4 run before Corter’s pivotal three-pointer, then were outscored 8-2 the rest of the period.
Corter surpassed the 1,000-point mark earlier this season, joining boys junior guard Jake Hunter as Mustangs to reach that milestone this season. She also eclipsed the 500-rebound mark as well this year.
“Paige has worked hard; she’s always loved basketball,” Daniel Scribner said. “(Having a boy and a girl reach 1,000 points) is a unique situation; you don’t have that often at any level. It’s a ‘positive’ to see that we are getting some kids developed, and not just ‘run-of-the-mill’ kids. We’re getting some kids that are upper level of basketball.”
Going to Cowley means that she will be coming back to the area at least once a season when the Tigers play at Butler, giving friends and family another chance to watch her play.
That Corter’s play should catch the eye of longtime Cowley coach Todd Clark is a feather in Flinthills’ cap. She may well have her own rooting section at the Butler Power Plant when the Tigers come in to face the Grizzlies.
“It’s going to be awesome,” Corter said.
Scribner said, “The community will support her. When she comes to play at Butler, there will be a lot of this little town go watch her. They’ll cheer on Cowley more for that night because Paige is there, than they would Butler. She deserves to play at the next level, and we’re wishing her the best.
“When somebody’s driven, and they have some natural ability and try to get everything they can out of it, that next level is certainly not impossible.”
But Corter also said she plans to come back for Flinthills games as well next season. Saturday’s game was a good way to close her time in the Mustangs’ gym, she said.
Corter said her fondest memories of playing at Flinthills will be ones of the team and its togetherness.
“I’ve never had a time where we have given up on each other or gotten mad at each other on the court,” she said. “And that’s why we’ve always been successful.
“We never give up. We’re just like a family, and that’s something that I love. I’m always going to remember that.”
Flinthills girls 47, Canton-Galva 41
Canton-Galva 5 10 9 17 – 41
Flinthills 8 9 15 15 – 47
CANTON-GALVA – E. Hoppes 2 3-4 7, Espinoza 7 (1) 2-6 17, Malia Hoppes 3 (2) 0-0 8, Hawkinson 2 (1) 2-4 7, McMannis 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 (4) 7-14 41.
FLINTHILLS – Bohnen 1 2-2 4, E. Scribner 3 (1) 0-0 7, A. Scribner 0 3-6 3, Carney 2 (1) 1-4 6, Corter 7 (2) 4-7 20, Cabugo 0 1-2 1, Heimgartner 3 0-0 6. Totals 16 (4) 11-21 47.
