Tiger girls set up Friday showdown

PITTSBURG -- Fort Scott High's girls will be playing for first place in the Southeast Kansas League Friday night when Labette County comes to the FSHS gymnasium.

The Tigers rolled by Pittsburg, 57-33, here Tuesday night while Labette County stunned SEK co-leader Chanute, 68-53, at Altamont. The Blue Comets, ranked No. 6 in Class 4A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, and Grizzlies were tied for the lead coming into the night with Fort Scott in third place.

The Grizzlies, with a game in hand, stand atop the SEK for the moment with a 6-1 league record, 8-5 overall while Fort Scott moves into second place at 5-1, 9-5. Chanute dropped to 5-2, 12-3 after losing for the first time since Brianne Lawrence beat the buzzer to give the Tigers a 37-35 win over the Comets at the FSHS gym on Jan. 8. Three days later, Chanute won at home against Labette County, 46-40.

The Tigers lost to Labette County at Altamont, 44-42, in overtime on Dec. 7 to fall to 0-4 on the season. They've won nine of 10 games since then.

Pittsburg (3-3, 8-5) scored the first 4 points of the game. But Katren Rienbolt hit a 3-pointer for the Tigers and Sidney Maycumber scored back-to-back baskets to put Fort Scott ahead 7-4.

The Purple Dragons tied the score twice more. But the Tigers went on a 9-0 run which included 3-pointers from Maddi Allen and Ashley Cook, to take the lead for good, 18-9 with 53 seconds left in the first quarter.

Rienbolt and Cook hit consecutive threes to make it 27-14 with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the second. However, Fort Scott didn't score again the rest of the half and relied on its defense, which limited Pittsburg to a field goal by Ashley Willis with 10 seconds left.

The Tigers scored the first 11 points of the second half to make it 38-16. Katy Short's 3-pointer with 1:05 to go was Pittsburg's first field goal of the half and just its second in a 13 1/2-minute stretch going back to the first half.

Fort Scott's lead was 45-20 after three periods. Pittsburg scored the first 6 points of the fourth quarter but then managed only one more field goal -- 7 total points -- the rest of the game.

Cook finished with 14 points to lead Fort Scott while Maycumber added 12, Rienbolt 11 and Brianne Lawrence 10. Pittsburg had no one in double figures as Alaura Short led with 8 points.

Fort Scott made 6 of 13 three-point attempts.

FORT SCOTT: Tourtillott 0 1-2 1, Shoemaker 0 0-0 0, Allen 2 0-1 5, Sh.Maycumber 1 0-0 2, Rienbolt 4 1-2 11, Hasenplaugh 1 0-0 2, Cook 5 1-1 14, Si.Maycumber 6 0-12 12, Barbour 0 0-0 0, Lawrence 2 6-8 10, Lattimer 0 0-1 0. TOTALS: 21-50 9-16 57.

PITTSBURG: Beitzinger 0 1-2 1, Vogel 0 0-1 0, Elliott 2 2-4 6, Pichler 0 2-2 2, Willis 3 0-0 6, Bollinger 0 0-1 0, K.Short 2 2-3 7, A.Short 3 2-2 8, Maxwell 1 1-2 3, Davis 0 0-0 0, Curtis 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 11-42 10-17 33.

Pittsburg....................... 10 6 4 13 -- 33

Three-point field goals: Fort Scott 6-13 (Cook 2, Rienbolt 2, Allen), Pittsburg 1-12 (K.Short).

Total fouls: Fort Scott 16, Pittsburg 13. Fouled out: None. Technical foul: Pittsburg bench (player was not in scorebook).