EMPORIA — Sacred Heart waited 17 years to return to the state tournament. Now the Knights are one win away from their first state championship. 

Sacred Heart used a dominant second quarter and a barrage of 3-pointers to knock off defending champion Moundridge 69-56 in the Class 2A state semifinals Thursday at White Auditorium. 

With the victory, the Knights (24-4) advance to Saturday’s championship game where they will face Ellinwood for the school’s first state title. 

“It is every coach’s dream to play for a state championship. It is every player’s dream,” Sacred Heart coach Carl Hines said. “That locker room is pretty jubilant and I am ecstatic. I am blessed and so happy for the girls. They have given me so many great memories already and they are going to give me more.” 

Sacred Heart’s run to the finals has come against two of the state’s top programs. The Knights opened the tournament earlier in the week by defeating St. Mary’s Colgan, a team led by one of the state’s top scorers in Jakayla Davis, before knocking off the defending champions in the semifinals. 

Confidence has been building with each game. 

“They are tough and full of confidence and have a lot of poise,” Hines said. “We pride ourselves in going about things the right way and it is a lot of hard work. When you are willing to put in that hard work, it makes you tougher mentally and that allows you to get tougher physically. That is a tough, resilient team.” 
 

Early on, however, it didn’t look like Sacred Heart would control the game. 

Moundridge (24-3) jumped out to a 16-11 lead after the first quarter as the Wildcats found success offensively against the Knights’ defense. 

Hines called a timeout to try and get his team back on track. 

“We came out early and lost our philosophy early on the defensive end,” Hines said. “I told the girls that we weren’t doing anything that we wanted to do in the halfcourt. We fixed some things and made life a little harder for them. We just calmed down and stayed in our system and don’t go do your own thing.” 

The adjustment flipped the game completely. 

Sacred Heart outscored Moundridge 26-6 in the second quarter to seize control, fueled by the hot shooting of junior guard Adelyn Lee. Lee knocked down five 3-pointers in the first half as the Knights’ offense suddenly caught fire. 

“It is like the Michael Jordan adage, if you see one go in, there is a good chance five or six of them are going to go,” Hines said. “That’s the type of shooter Adelyn is. The same goes with Skylar.” 

Lee finished with a game-high 27 points, while Skylar Douglas added 23 as the duo combined for 10 of Sacred Heart’s 12 3-pointers. 
 

“I was just feeling it today and don’t know how to describe it,” Lee said. “I just really wanted this win and have been working so hard to get this opportunity.” 

Sacred Heart carried a 37-22 lead into halftime and never let the Wildcats get closer than single digits the rest of the way. 

While the shooting grabbed the spotlight, the Knights’ defense was just as important. Sacred Heart forced 14 turnovers and made life difficult for Moundridge’s scorers throughout the night, with Emerson Lee drawing one of the toughest defensive assignments while also contributing eight points and a team-high seven assists. 

“Our team played amazing,” Adelyn Lee said. “When one player was being guarded, we had the other ones hitting shots and everyone was moving. We played awesome defense and every person on our team did their job really well.” 

For Moundridge, Hailey Hecox led the Wildcats with 16 points, while Brooke Unruh added 11. 

Sacred Heart continued to knock down shots in the second half, finishing 12 of 24 from beyond the arc and 19 of 22 from the free-throw line to keep the defending champions at bay. 

Now the Knights are one win from making program history. 

“It is also a nice feeling that 2A is going to have a different champion,” Hines said. 

And after nearly two decades away from the state tournament, Sacred Heart isn’t ready for the run to end. 

“It is a big confidence boost for us knowing that we beat two really good teams to get here,” Lee said. “Both of those programs have been to state a lot and Sacred Heart has never made it this far. It is amazing to be here.” 

 

ELLINWOOD 50, EUREKA 47 — Ellinwood is one win away from making history. 

The Eagles used timely 3-point shooting and several clutch plays down the stretch to secure their first trip to the Class 2A state championship, holding off Eureka for a 50-47 victory in Thursday’s semifinal at White Auditorium. 

After a slow and tentative first half from both teams, the offense finally opened up after the break — and Ellinwood’s shooters were ready. 

Sophomore Mette Maxwell sparked the surge. The Eagles opened the second half on an 8-1 run as Maxwell knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to push Ellinwood ahead 25-18. Maxwell, the daughter of Eagles coach Greg Maxwell, drilled three 3-pointers in the third quarter as Ellinwood began to find its rhythm. 

“I would like to think it was good defense in that first half, but in reality we might have been a little tight,” Greg Maxwell said. “Then in the second half, both teams just started hitting shots. Those are two really good teams and really good players on the court.” 

Eureka refused to go away. 

The Tornadoes rallied late in the third quarter and trimmed the Eagles’ lead to 35-33 heading into the fourth. Eureka briefly grabbed the advantage early in the final period when Britta Mongeau buried a 3-pointer to put the Tornadoes up 36-35. 

Ellinwood answered immediately. 

Avery Panning knocked down a 3-pointer from the corner to put the Eagles back on top, 38-36. After Eureka tied the game at 39, Ellinwood responded with a decisive 7-0 run. Eleanor Joiner scored inside before Maxwell struck again from beyond the arc to give the Eagles breathing room. 

 

“We talk all the time about mental and physical toughness,” Greg Maxwell said. “When your moment comes you need to make a play and every one of our kids made a play. That really made the difference.” 

Eureka’s comeback hopes took a major hit with 2:22 remaining when star guard Brenna Rucker fouled out. Rucker, who finished with 16 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, had been a constant presence for the Tornadoes throughout the night. 

“When Rucker went out, you knew they were going to have players that would make plays and they did,” Greg Maxwell said. “But when you lose someone with that talent and the way she controls the court, that was a big loss for them.” 

Ellinwood capitalized at the free-throw line in the closing moments. Julia Schlessinger converted key free throws to extend the lead to 49-44 with just 14 seconds left. 

Eureka made one final push when Arabella Shephard connected on a 3-pointer with 10 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to two. Brynn Widener added a free throw to push the lead back to three, and the Tornadoes’ final attempt at the buzzer fell short. 

“It doesn’t feel real right now and I still can’t believe it,” said Mette Maxwell, who finished with a game-high 17 points and five 3-pointers. “Even when we were winning by three, I was still really nervous and we needed to finish this game. Once we won, it was just a big relief.” 

 

Maxwell said Ellinwood gained confidence once it adjusted defensively after the early stages of the game. 

“The first quarter we just didn’t really know much about the team and (Rucker) and what her impact was going to be like,” she said. “Once we figured some stuff out, we were able to slow her down and get confidence.” 

Ellinwood leaned heavily on its perimeter shooting, hitting nine 3-pointers in the game. Brynn Widener added 11 points while Joiner and Ella Batchman scored eight each. Schlessinger also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds as the Eagles controlled the glass 37-29. 

For Greg Maxwell, the win adds another chapter to an already remarkable school year. He coached Ellinwood’s volleyball team to an undefeated state championship in the fall and now has the Eagles’ basketball team on the doorstep of another title. 

Early in the season, however, the team’s expectations were more modest. 

“Early in the year our goal was to get to state,” Maxwell said. “Then about a month into the season our coaching staff were talking to each other and we decided we were going to be cheating these girls if that was our only goal. We knew we were better than just a qualifying team.” 

The belief continued to grow throughout the season. 

“We connected to that volleyball mentality,” Maxwell said. “These girls believe that they are champions and they never doubt.” 

Now, Ellinwood (27-1) will have the chance to prove it on the biggest stage. 

The Eagles advance to Saturday’s Class 2A state championship game where they will face Sacred Heart — with a chance to bring home another title to Ellinwood. 

“At this point, we believe we can win it all,” Maxwell said. “There is going to be another great team on the other end and we have the utmost respect for them. We’ll just have to see how we match up.” 
 

CLASS 2A GIRLS STATE SEMIFINALS 

ELLINWOOD 50, EUREKA 47 

Ellinwood… 7 … 10 … 18 … 15 … -- … 50 
Eureka… 8 … 7 … 18 … 14 … -- … 47 

Eureka (23-3) – Rucker 5-15 5-8 16, Mason 0-0 0-0 0, Mongeau 5-10 0-0 13, Shephard 1-3 0-0 3, Perrier 0-0 1-1 1, Coulter 6-8 0-1 14, Guillaume 0-2 0-0 0, Lindamood 0-2 0-0 0, Koop 0-0 0-0 0, Westerman 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 17-41 6-10 47. 

Ellinwood (27-1) – Widdner 0-2 0-0 0, Maxwell 6-13 0-0 17, Widener 4-12 3-4 11, Schlessiger 0-5 2-4 2, Batchman 3-7 0-3 8, Joiner 3-6 1-2 8, Jacobs 0-0 0-0 0, Ritchie 0-2 0-0 0, A. Stickney 0-0 0-0 0, R. Stickney 0-2 0-0 0, Wirtz 0-0 1-1 1, Panning 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 17-51 7-14 50. 

3-point goals – Ellinwood 9-22 (Maxwell 5-11, Batchman 2-4, Joiner 1-2, Panning 1-2, Widener 0-2, R. Stickney 0-1); Eureka 7-22 (Mongeau 3-8, Coulter 2-3, Rucker 1-5, Shephard 1-3, Lindamood 0-2, Guillaume 0-1). Rebounds – Ellinwood 37 (Schlessiger 11, Widener 9); Eureka 29 (Rucker 13). Assists – Ellinwood 10 (Maxwell 2, Widener 2); Eureka 6 (Rucker 2, Coulter 2). Turnovers – Ellinwood 14, Eureka 19. Total fouls – Ellinwood 9, Eureka 14. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – None. 

SACRED HEART 69, MOUNDRIDGE 56 

Sacred Heart… 11… 26 … 13 … 19 … -- … 69 
Moundridge… 16… 6… 15 … 19 … -- … 56 

Moundridge (24-3) – Patrick 2-7 0-0 5, Unruh 5-8 1-1 11, H. Hecox 3-4 0-0 6, Ht. Hecox 6-13 1-3 16, Kaminkow 3-4 1-2 7, A. Patrick 0-0 0-0 0, Wilson 0-0 0-0 0, Stos 1-4 1-2 3, Conkling 1-7 5-6 8. Totals 21-47 9-14 56.  

Sacred Heart (24-4) – A. Lee 6-11 10-10 27, Douglas 8-17 2-2 23, Richards 2-3 0-0 6, Sharpton 1-1 1-2 3, E. Lee 1-8 6-8 8, Bechard 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 19-42 19-22 69.  

3-point goals – Sacred Heart 12-24 (A. Lee 5-7, Douglas 5-10, Richards 2-3, E. Lee 0-4); Moundridge 5-20 (Ht. Hecox 3-6, Patrick 1-6, Conkling 1-5, Unruh 0-2, H. Hecox 0-1). Rebounds – Sacred Heart 24 (Richards 7); Moundridge 29 (Kaminkow 7, Ha. Hecox 7). Assists – Sacred Heart 15 (E. Lee 7); Moundridge 10 (H. Hecox 4). Turnovers – Sacred Heart 8, Moundridge 14. Total fouls – Sacred Heart 13, Moundridge 23. Fouled out – None.