GIRARD — Eating their first loss of the season, the Chanute Blue Comets girls fell on the road to the Girard Trojans, 65-33, on Tuesday night.
“It may have been the first time all year where it looked like we had underclassmen out there versus their upperclassmen,” Chanute head coach Dustin Fox said. “You can tell they’ve been in big moments. We got sped up and struggled to put the ball in the basket. We struggled to defend and let it get away from us.”
Chanute’s offense converted 20.8% of its shots, including an icy 1-of-15 attempts behind the arc.
“The environment was the biggest thing,” Fox said. “That’s the first hostile road environment we’ve seen this year. And Girard was very physical. They’re bigger and stronger. We didn’t respond as well to that as well as we will down the road.”
Girard shot 51.3% from the field and hit 22 free throws to Chanute’s 10.
“They definitely have a size advantage but we did a pretty good job of contesting shots at the perimeter,” Fox said. “There were times we’d triple-team in the post and they’d still score on us. Averee (Hicks) got in foul trouble and we had to play really small for large chunks of the game. That’s a bad matchup against that team.”
Maddie Coester led Girard with 16 points while Erika Boatman had 15 and Marli Sisney chipped in 14.
Sarah Uhner paced the Blue Comets with eight points while Addison Kett added seven.
The loss dipped Chanute’s record to 4-1 overall. “They’re disappointed and know they can play better,” Fox said. “But they had a great practice on Wednesday. They weren’t feeling sorry for themselves. We know there will be some growth moments with the young roster we have. We’re not going to get stuck on any one loss being a failure. It’s just a stepping stone to greater things.”
Up next
An early Christmas present awaits SEK League fans as Chanute hits the road to face SEK League-favorite Fort Scott. The Blue Comets have turned into a dark horse candidate themselves, giving Friday’s league opener some high stakes for December.
“It’s early, so I don’t know if the stakes feel that high,” Fox said. “It’s all about growth for this group. We have the ability to go in and compete. We have the ability to get the win. But we’re going to have to play well. Fort Scott is the favorite for a reason. They’ve got a great coach and some great players. It’s tough to play at their place. I’m confident our girls will be up for the challenge.”
