WICHITA – Teegan Vietti took the court for the Class 5A girls state tournament quarterfinals with some extra motivation Friday at Koch Arena.
And top-seeded Andover paid the price for it.
“I did not play super good the other day,” Vietti, a St. James Academy junior, said after she went scoreless in the Thunder’s first-round victory over Maize South. I think I was in my own head. I was glad that we won so I could cover it back up.”
Vietti “covered it back up” with nine early points in a first-quarter ambush that propelled St. James to a 61-44 victory over Andover. The Thunder dominated the team that finished atop the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association’s 5A rankings from start to finish to earn their first appearance in a state championship game.
St. James will play Hays, a 66-41 winner over Shawnee Heights, in Saturday’s final.
Vietti, a 5-foot-8 guard, hit a baseline 3-pointer just over a minute into the game, opening the floodgates for St. James to build a 17-2 lead six minutes into the game. Vietti’s teammates quickly joined in, and the Thunder had Andover on its heels.
St. James senior Elle Robinson goes in for a layup during the Thunder's 61-44 victory over Andover on Friday.
“I definitely think it surprised them, for sure,” said Vietti, one of four Thunder players who finished in double figures with 12 points. “It surprised me, too.
“But I knew from watching film that I was going to be able to get into the driving lanes and I think everybody knew it.”
Andover, which held De Soto to 30 points in its quarterfinal victory, found itself struggling to unlock its offense. While St. James shot 67% from the field in the first half, the Trojans connected on just 6 of 26 shots.
When St. James freshman Stella Sacks buried a 3-pointer off a well-executed offensive set in the closing seconds of the first half, the Thunder had a 38-15 lead that left Andover supporters in stunned silence.
“It was really good offensively for us, but that’s kind of who we expect to be defensively,” St. James coach Justin Snell said. “We know that they’re really dynamic, but to hold them to 15 points in the first half was just great execution.”
Juniors Grier Hand and Bella Bouddhara scored 18 and 15 points respectively for Andover. But Hand was 6 of 20 from the field and Bouddhara hits just 5 of 15 shots. Junior Emme Albright drew the primary assignment of guarding Bouddhara, the Trojans’ leading scorer at 19.5 points per game.
The Thunder’s defense also rattled Andover into 14 turnovers that led to 22 points.
“The ability that we had to get out in transition really helped a lot,” Snell said. “It gave us a lot of confidence, and then we were able to hit some shots. We knew there were going to be some driving lanes, and the girls did an excellent job of doing that, so that really helped us as well.”
The Thunder’s tall tandem of 6-foot senior Elle Robinson and 6-1 sophomore Ireland Sullivan also played key roles. Robinson led St. James with 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting, while she and Sullivan also blocked two shots.
Andover, which fell to 24-2, went on an 11-0 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters. But after Brynn Eilert’s basket made it 51-37, St. James scored the next five points for what was essentially the knockout punch.
Sacks added 11 points and Albright had 10 for St. James, which improved to 22-5.
“Across the whole board, I felt like we showed our identity and kept our composure,” Vietti said. “Even though we were the underdogs, I don’t think we let those things get to us.”
Hays sophomore Jenna Schmeidler passes around Shawnee Heights' Lauryn Brees during Friday's Class 5A semifinal.
HAYS 66, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 41 – Jenna Schmeidler and her Hays teammates quickly established Friday that 31 years was long enough of a wait to play in another state championship game.
Schmeidler, a sophomore point guard, put on a dazzling display with a career-high 33 points, nine rebounds and six assists as the Indians cooled off a Shawnee Heights team that had won 21 of its last 22 games.
Hays, which improved to 25-1, advanced to the 5A final for the first time since 1995, when it lost to Bishop Miege.
“Our community, our Hays support has been so great this year,” Schmeidler said after she and her teammates sang the alma mater with their student section. “Just being able to share this with them was so awesome.”
Schmeidler gave them plenty to cheer about, hitting 13 of 19 shots, including 7 of 12 3-pointers. She used some of them to vault Hays to a 16-3 lead against the Thunderbirds, who were playing without forward Pearmella Carter. Carter injured an ankle in Shawnee Heights’ quarterfinal victory over Basehor-Linwood.
“When you see one go in, the goal looks so big,” the 5-foot-7 Schmeidler said. “I just kept letting it fly. My coaches trusted me, my teammates trusted me and I just knocked down that shot. It was very fun.”
Hays players cheer on reserves during final moments of their 66-41 victory over Shawnee Heights.
Schmeidler did a lot of other things, facilitating for teammates as the Indians built a 33-13 halftime lead. Seniors Zoe Winter scored 12 points and Molly Buckles added nine.
Shawnee Heights, which fell to 22-5, got 21 points from Samantha Baum and 11 from KK Emmot. But the T-Birds made just 1 of 17 shots from 3-point range, and their deficit grew to as many as 28 points in the third quarter.
The Indians, whose lone loss was to Class 3A finalist Silver Lake, extended their winning streak to 19 games. Friday’s performance left Schmeidler eager to see what’s next.
“Our regular season has prepared us so much for this next game,” she said. “We just can’t wait to get going. They’re tough and they have some great players, but we believe we should be in this game. We’re going to give it our all.”
CLASS 5A GIRLS SEMIFINALS
ST. JAMES ACADEMY 61, ANDOVER 44
St. James Academy … 19 … 19 … 13 … 10 … – … 61
Andover … 7 … 8 … 13 … 16 … – … 44
St. James Academy (22-5) – Albright 4-7 2-3 10, Sacks 4-7 1-4 11, Vietti 4-6 3-4 12, Robinson 6-7 4-6 16, Sullivan 2-5 1-4 6, Irsik 0-2 1-2 1, Rueger 2-3 1-2 5, Gansen 0-0 0-0 0, Simmons 0-0 0-0 0, Riordan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-37 13-25 61.
Andover (24-2) – Bouddhara 5-15 1-2 15, Sullivan 2-9 1-1 5, Siegrist 0-0 0-0 0, Eilert 1-4 2-2 4, Hand 6-20 4-4 18, Pierce 0-1 0-0 0, Robert 1-3 0-0 2, Davis 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-52 8-9 44.
3-point goals – St. James Academy 4-10 (Sacks 2-3, Vietti 1-2, Sullivan 1-2, Irsik 0-1, Albright 0-2); Andover 6-24 (Bouddhara 4-11, Hand 2-10, Pierce 0-1, Sullivan 0-2). Rebounds – St. James Academy 33 (Robinson 11); Andover 25 (Hand 7). Assists – St. James Academy 12 (Robinson 4); Andover 5 (Hand 2). Turnovers – St. James Academy 18, Andover 14. Total fouls – St. James Academy 16, Andover 21. Fouled out – Andover: Robert.
HAYS 66, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 41
Shawnee Heights … 7 … 6 … 11 … 17 … – … 41
Hays … 18 … 15 … 16 … 17 … – … 66
Shawnee Heights (22-5) – Emmot 4-11 3-5 11, McGlory 0-5 1-2 1, Schmidt 0-1 0-0 0, Baum 9-12 2-2 21, Vega 2-11 0-0 4, Brees 0-0 0-0 0, Au. Hamilton 1-1 0-0 2, Karlyle 0-1 0-0 0, Al. Hamilton 0-0 0-0 0, Pierce 0-0 0-0 0, Johnson 0-1 2-2 2. Totals 16-43 8-11 41.
Hays (25-1) – Schmeidler 13-19 7-12 33, Humphrey 2-2 0-0 5, Newell 0-0 0-0 0, Buckles 4-8 1-1 9, Winter 5-13 2-2 12, Rupp 1-3 0-0 3, Armbruster 1-8 0-0 2, Turner 0-4 0-0 0, Labarge 0-1 1-2 1, Cunningham 0-0 0-0 0, Harrington 0-0 1-2 1, Koerner 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-58 5-7 66.
3-point goals – Shawnee Heights 1-17 (Baum 1-3, Johnson 0-1, Emmot 0-4, Vega 0-4, McGlory 0-5); Hays 9-25 (Schmeidler 7-12, Humphrey 1-1, Rupp 1-2, Turner 0-4, Armbruster 0-6). Rebounds – Shawnee Heights 22 (McGlory 4); Hays 40 (Schmeidler 9). Assists – Shawnee Heights 5 (Vega 2); Hays 16 (Schmeidler 6). Turnovers – Shawnee Heights 11, Hays 9. Total fouls – Shawnee Heights 10, Hays 12. Fouled out – None.