Freshmen duo reach scoring benchmark

Herb Webster has collected more than 850 victories as a high school basketball coach.

Few had been easier than the last one. Webster’s Kearney girls basketball team had its way in an 80-12 first-round romp of Kansas City East in the Class 4 District 15 tournament Monday, Feb. 22, at Staley.

And the Bulldogs didn’t waste any time getting to it. Kearney (16-10) needed less than four minutes to bolt out to a 20-0 lead.

By the end of the first quarter, all 15 Bulldogs on the bench had entered the game. Kearney owned a 26-0 advantage on the scoreboard and had forced 20 East turnovers. It was 48-0 at the half, and the Bulldogs led 60-0 before East scored its first points of the game.

"We got to play all 15 kids every quarter," Webster said. "I think that’s a nice reward for the girls, to get a chance to play in the district tournament. They all work hard."

Fourteen of those 15 players put their name in the scoring column. Junior Kim Breyfogle and freshman Mackenzie Cook led the way with 12 points apiece, and junior Michaela Brinkley also reached double figures with 10.

Cook scored eight points in the first quarter, pushing her season total over 100. Cassidy Lee (120) and Cook (109) became the first set of freshmen to hit triple digits in points scored in the same season since Maegan Pulse (135) and Amber Maricle (106) accomplished the feat more than a decade ago in the 1998-99 season.

"I wanted a chance to run up and down this floor, shoot on these baskets, and we got to do that tonight," Webster said after the first round win.

Kearney, the No. 3 seed in the tournament, earned the right to face No. 2 Lincoln Prep on Wednesday, Feb. 24, in the semifinals. In the other semifinal, top seed Staley took on No. 4 Excelsior Springs, 66-46 first-round winners against Westport. The championship game is set for 5:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26.