The Lady Panthers overwhelmed the Garden City Buffaloes in an anticipated match between the two. The girls took a quick eight point lead in the first quarter and later outscored the Buffaloes in the third quarter 42-13.
“I feel like we came out strong, and this moment is really big for use because we’ve been looking forward to it all season and nobody thought that we would be here because our team is so young,” senior Kallie Rickords said.
The Panthers secured the sub-state victory with a final score of 74-33, making it their 11th straight. Hard work, dedication and chemistry between its players was a key factor in getting to this point.
“It means everything to me, I’ve been here all four years and we’ve won sub-state each time. It’s still a big deal and means everything. It’s even bigger to our younger girls who gave their everything to get here,” senior Maliyah Lansang said.
Panthers were led by junior Macayla Askew, who had a game-high of 18 points. Behind her, freshman Sarai Graham hit five threes and scored 17 points while sophomore Aysia Fox hit 7 of the 9 shots and scored 16 points. This young team shows talent and a bright future with their close relations.
“Our freshman just kept shooting their shots and everyone was scoring as well as shooting for each other on the bench. There was a lot of good energy out here and we need to carry it on,” junior Macayla Askew said.
The girls will go on to play at Charles Koch Arena on March 13.