Thunder upend Panthers, 67-30

SENECA — The Concordia High School Panthers' season came to an end with a 67-30 loss to second-seeded Nemaha Central in the opening round of the Class 3A sub-state tournament on Monday night.
Leading 31-19 at halftime, Nemaha Central opened the second half with a 13-0 run to make it a 44-19 game.
Concordia could get no closer than 20 points over the final quarter and a half, and finished up the season 6-15.
“I felt like every week we were progressing, working on different skills,” Concordia coach Trey Kuhlman said of the season. “We told them after the game it is not just November to end of February, early March. You have got to put time in in the spring, you have got to put time in in the summer. But like I said, I felt like each week we were progressing, and that is how it has got to be for us. There are no more excuses for anyone and we have got some big shoes to fill. So we have got to have girls step up even bigger than they did this year.”
Nemaha Central (19-2) advances to the sub-state semifinals and will play Hiawatha at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Marysville.
Sixth-seeded Hiawatha (13-8) upset third-seeded Minneapolis 45-35 on Monday night.
Top-seeded Atchinson County (20-1) downed eighth-seeded Marysville 40-29 in the first round of the tournament.
Fourth-seeded Riley County slipped past fifth-seeded Sabetha, 26-24.
Atchinson County will play Riley County (13-7) in the other semifinal on Thursday.
The championship game is scheduled for Saturday night with the winner advancing to the 3A state tournament in Hutchinson.
Concordia fell behind Nemaha Central 12-3 to start the game, but hung around throughout the first half.
It was a 17-5 Nemaha Central lead when Kinsleigh Bethune hit a three-point shot for the Panthers to make it 17-8.
Cali Honeyman got a steal and layup in the final seconds of the first quarter to give the Thunder a 19-8 advantage.
Charlize Cash made two free throws and then knocked down a three-point shot to pull Concordia within six points, 19-13, with 1:30 gone by in the second period.
Addy Holthaus, who led Nemaha Central with 19 points, scored the next five to start a 9-2 spurt that gave the Thunder their biggest lead to that point, 28-15.
Two free throws by Cash and a short baseline jumper by Carlie Carlgren left Concordia trailing just 28-19.
Nemaha Central got a three-point play by Cali Dalinghaus, and led 31-19 at halftime.
“I thought in the second quarter we were getting stops and offensively we were finally capitalizing. I thought we had some good flow going in the quarter,” Kuhlman said.
Pounding the ball inside, the Thunder blew the game open by scoring the first 13 points of the second half to stretch its lead to 44-19.
Nemaha Central scored 12 of those points in the paint.
Holthaus tossed in nine points during that stretch and Ella Larkin scored the other four.
Larkin finished with 17 points.
“We just didn't come out the second half like we should, and against good teams like that, well-coached teams, it is difficult to stay in the game if you don't capitalize.”
After going five minutes in the third quarter without scoring, the Panthers got a free throw by Cash and baskets by Cianna DeLeon and Carlgren to make it a 44-24 game.
Elli Rusche connected on three three-point shots during an 11-3 Nemaha Central spurt.
The Thunder took a 55-27 lead into the final period and outscored Concordia 12-3.
Cash led the Panthers with eight points.
Hattie Blackwood made a pair of threes and scored six points for the Panthers.