Archie lived up to its No. 1 seed in the Archie Tournament, taking down No. 8 seeded Knob Noster 52-20 in the first round game held Jan. 23.
It’s a good thing that the Lady Winds roared to a 17-3 advantage at the end of the first quarter, because the Lady Panthers went on a 9-0 run in the beginning of the second quarter to close the gap to 17-12. The Lady Winds finally put some points on the board with just over two minutes left in the first half on a three-pointer from Abby Shipley. Shipley scored another bucket, followed by a three-pointer by Alycia Fisher to give Archie a 25-12 lead at halftime.
“The girls came out and played just great tonight,” Archie head coach Brad Batchelder said. “On both ends of the floor we played hard and played together.”
The Lady Winds came back with a vengeance in the third quarter, outscoring Knob Noster 21-3 to lead 46-15 before the clock rolled in the fourth quarter with Archie still leading the scoring 6-5 to seal the 52-20 victory.
Archie was led in scoring by Shipley with 13 points, followed by Stefani Simms with 11 points and Jordan Schulte with seven points. Fisher had six points, Kaily Kurzweil added five points and Kendyl Thomas netted four points. Samantha Ogden, Briley Anderson and Allison Kusgen added two points apiece.
The Lady Winds, 12-2, took on No. 5 seeded Drexel in the semifinals Jan. 26. A win puts Archie in the championship game at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28.
Shipley earned her 1,000th career point in the game against Miami Jan. 20.
“Abby has not only been an outstanding basketball player, but she is a kid that parents hope their child to be like, which speaks wonders for her family,” Batchelder said. “As I told her, it has been an honor to be on the sideline for every single one of her points and a privilege to coach her.”
Shipley’s accomplishment wasn’t the only exciting thing to happen in Archie that night, as the school unveiled its brand-new gymnasium, a culmination of a year’s worth of construction.
“The dome is the center of the construction project,” Batchelder said. “But what most people don’t realize is the other aspects of our school that have been improved.”
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The Midway Lady Vikings couldn’t find their groove against Drexel in the first round game Jan. 24 of the Archie Tournament. The No. 5 seeded Lady Bobcats ran past the No. 4 seeded Lady Vikings 42-32.
“We did not play well,” Midway head coach Chad Dean said. “We just could not find an offensive rhythm. We continuously tried to make things happen when we should have worked into an offense and let them happen. Hopefully we can fix some of this and come out of this tournament with a couple of wins.”
Midway started out the game with a quick 4-0 lead, but Drexel fought back to take a 10-8 advantage at the end of the first quarter, then pushed their advantage farther to lead 25-19 at halftime.
The Lady Vikings outscored the Lady Bobcats 7-5 in the third quarter to close the gap to 30-26, but Drexel battled back in the fourth quarter to seal the 42-32 victory.
Drexel was led in scoring by Jessi Gunnels with 16 points, followed by Adison Barnhart with 15 points. Lauryn Campbell had seven points and Kayla Kaufman and Jacklynn Williams had two points each.
Cady Wright led the Lady Vikings with 10 points, followed by Kathleen Yoakum with six points. Emily Aksamit, Payton Mincks and Laine Mills had four points each. Jennifer Gorsage had three points and Jodi Rhodes added one point.
The Lady Bobcats, 6-7, took on No. 1 seeded Archie in the semifinals Thursday. A victory ensures a spot in the championship game at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28.
Midway, 8-6, faced No. 8 seeded Knob Noster in the consolation semifinals Wednesday. A win takes them to the fifth place game at 6 p.m. Friday, Jan. 27.
For more photos of the tournament, visit www.demo-mo.com/sports/galleries/.