When a pair of Lady Pirates received injuries and didn’t return to the court, the short-handed Platte County girls’ basketball team (8-15) was unable to keep its season alive as Van Horn (9-15) won 36-34 in the opening round of the Class 5 District 8 Tournament on Feb. 26.
Platte County freshman Haley Barlow, above, and junior Joslyn Hupp both went down with injuries in the Lady Pirates 36-34 loss to Van Horn in the opening round of the Class 5 District 8 Tournament at Platte County High School on Feb. 26.
Platte County junior Joslynn Hupp – who was the Pirates’ leading scorer throughout the year– and freshman Haley Barlow both left the postseason contest with injuries, causing the Pirates to go deep into their rotation. In a less than ideal time to have to rely on players who aren’t used to playing in tight games, Platte County had a tough stretch in the second and third quarters to prevent it from advancing to the next round of districts.
Platte County led 8-4 early before a pair of Van Horn treys put the Falcons up by two, until a Amaira Peterson shot from behind the arc gave the Pirates an 11-10 margin after the opening frame. Hupp rolled her ankle in the first few minutes of the second quarter on a missed layup attempt and Platte County only had two made baskets in the first four minutes of the period.
Lauren Stone converted on a shot from downtown at the end of the opening half to put Platte County over Van Horn 18-17 at the break before the Pirates went on a second half scoring drought – without a single point until a Kiersten Robbins free throw with 1:23 left in the third period – while the Falcons regained the lead and extended it to nine. Lydia Doole made a 3-pointer and Reese Pickett drew a foul with less than one second left in the third quarter when Van Horn led 31-24 with one period to play.
In the fourth quarter Morgan Stewart sank a trey to bring the game within six points and Van Horn’s leading scorer was called for her fourth foul on the next possession, giving the Pirates their chance to make a late run. Platte County cut it to 33-29, but Van Horn scored a layup with 55 seconds left to push the lead to two possessions.
The Pirates called a timeout and immediately responded with a 3-pointer from Peterson before Doole ended up with a steal and layup with 35 seconds left as Platte County trailed 35-34. The Falcons added one free throw and the Pirates called a pair of timeouts with 1.6 seconds left.
Robbins’ potential game-winning shot from behind the arc was no good and No. 5 seeded Van Horn pulled off the two-point upset win over the No. 4 seed. Robbins led the Pirates’ offense with nine points in the district contest.
For the past two years, Robbins and Peterson have been in the starting lineups so Platte County will have to replace two of its top five players next season. The Pirates matched their win total from last season and finished in fifth place in the Kansas City Suburban Conference Blue Division.