WICHITA, Kan. — No. 2 seed Pretty Prairie survived a defensive battle Wednesday afternoon, edging No. 7 seed Hodgeman County 39-35 in the Class 1A Division I girls state quarterfinals at the Garvey Center on the Friends University campus.
With the win, Pretty Prairie improved to 23-2 and advanced to Friday’s state semifinals at United Wireless Arena in Dodge City. The Bulldogs will face the winner of Wednesday night’s quarterfinal between No. 3 Wabaunsee and No. 6 South Gray, which is scheduled for 8 p.m. in Salina. Friday’s semifinal is set for 7:30 p.m.
Pretty Prairie led 15-13 at halftime and extended its advantage to 26-22 entering the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs pushed their lead to as many as eight points in the final period before holding off a late Hodgeman County rally.
Ava Goering and Lauren Detter each scored 10 points to lead Pretty Prairie. Brennan Schrag added seven points, while Kayleigh Vogl chipped in six points, 13 rebounds and eight blocked shots in a standout defensive performance.
Pretty Prairie shot 40 percent from the field and got 17 bench points, while also recording eight blocked shots as a team.
Hodgeman County, which finished its season 20-7, struggled offensively most of the afternoon, shooting 19.6 percent from the field (11 of 56). Aidan Lonnberg and Taylor Bamberger each scored seven points to lead the Longhorns, while Kylee Reece added five and Caitlin Channel scored four.
The Longhorns cut the deficit to four in the closing seconds on Lonnberg’s 3-pointer, but Pretty Prairie was able to close it out and secure its spot in the semifinals.