Cold shooting sinks Humboldt girls

POMONA — Humboldt High’s girls stood toe to toe with their hosts from West Franklin Tuesday to open Class 3A substate tournament action.
A Delaney Umholtz 3-pointer pulled the Lady Cubs to within 14-13 late in the second quarter.
But as Humboldt’s offense continued to struggle, West Franklin’s found its stride.
The Falcons responded with an 8-0 run to lead 22-13 by the early moments of the third quarter.
Humboldt never got closer than six the rest of the way in a 49-35 defeat.
The loss ends Humboldt’s season with a 5-15 record.
Lady Cub head coach Sherri Nelson called the defeat a “heartbreaker.”
“The girls had the game, but we just couldn’t get some shots to fall,” Nelson said.
Humboldt was a cool 25 percent from the field.
“Most of those were close shots that we usually make,” Nelson said.
Free throws were a decisive factor. West Franklin hit 11 of 27 charities, while the Lady Cubs were only 5 of 12 in the second half.
West Franklin (10-10) advances to take on second seed Jayhawk-Linn Friday evening in a semifinal round. Top seed Council Grove takes on Wellsville in the other semifinal.
Lakota Wilson’s jumper ended the Falcons’ run in the third period. Makaylah McCall hit a free throw moments later to cut the deficit to 22-16.
But West Franklin scored twice to push its lead into double digits for the first time.
Morgan Morris connected late in the third to cut the deficit to 26-19.
West Franklin opened the fourth period with a 11-2 run to take full control.
Wilson’s 3-point play cut the deficit to 37-24. West Franklin led 42-24 before Umholtz scored inside and Wilson connected twice more to cut the deficit to 43-30.
Madison Keller hit a layup and Tilar Wells drained a 3-pointer for the final points of the night for the Lady Cubs.
“We outplayed them, but just came up short on the scoreboard,” Nelson said. “The kids played hard and almost overcame a cold shooting night.”
Wilson led the way with 17 points, eight rebounds and three stals. Umholtz had five points and four steals. Tilar Wells added five points, five boards and two steals. Keller, Megan Hudlin and and Morris each had two points. McCall and Kayle Riebel scored one point each. Annalise Whitcomb and Cheyenne English added five and four rebounds, respectively.