For just the third time in school history, the Eureka Lady Tornadoes competed in the State Championship Tournament on Wednesday, March 6 at the United Wireless Arena in Dodge City. In the opening round, Eureka faced the second seeded Pittsburg Colgan Panthers after drawing the seventh seed in the tournament. Although the Tornadoes had an excellent first half, they couldn’t recover from runs made by the Panthers in the third quarter. Eureka lost 50-66, capping off their 19-5 season.
To start the game, Colgan went on a 6-0 run against the Tornadoes, giving them the first lead of the game. Sophomore Britta Mongeau stole the ball and kicked it to freshman Elle Coulter. Coulter converted the fastbreak into two and was able to draw the foul. Coulter didn’t make the free-throw, but sophomore Brenna Rucker displayed her hustle after fighting for the rebound and giving Eureka the ball on the baseline. Colgan secured another 2 points after finishing a layup. In transition, Mongeau received the ball in the corner, but was fouled on the shot. At the line, Mongeau drained 2 out of the 3 free throws. The Panthers responded with multiple baskets of their own, extending their lead. Down 4-14, junior Laynie Winfrey wove through traffic and slipped the ball to sophomore Alaina Westerman to get a bucket for Eureka. The size advantage of Colgan in the post spot continued to cause Eureka problems. The first quarter ended 8-16, Eureka trailing.
Eureka got some momentum back in the second quarter, generating offense from Rucker, Mongeau, and Coulter. Their hard work allowed Eureka to outscore their opponent 18-7 in the second. Mongeau kicked off the quarter with back-to-back steals. The second one resulted in two points for the Tornadoes, after junior Kimber Ptacek finished the layup. The basket started a 7-0 run for the Tornadoes, with a corner trifecta from Rucker and another transition bucket from Coulter. Eureka’s offensive efforts forced a Colgan timeout. The Panthers finally added to their score after a defensive foul by the Tornadoes put them on the free-throw line. That didn’t stop Eureka from orchestrating another 6-0 run. Coulter drove into the packed lane and scored the bucket while being fouled. Sinking the freethrow, Coulter completed the three-point play. Mongeau was the other contributor to the run after she drained a shot from behind the arc. Colgan was quick to match the basket with a three-pointer of their own. Eureka secured the 26-21 lead with a baseline shot by Rucker and another triple by Mongeau. Just before the end of the second quarter, Colgan snuck in a 5-0 run, knotting up the score 26-26 after the first half of play.
Out of the half, Colgan managed multiple runs on Eureka. The Tornadoes tried to find their rhythm again offensively, but they were unable to stop the Panthers on the defensive end. The third quarter finished 33-51. Eureka battled hard in the final quarter of play. With outstanding defensive hustle from numerous Tornadoes and multiple attempts to shorten the gap offensively, Eureka forced Colgan to work for their win. Sophomore Madelyn Miller made an appearance in the fourth quarter. In high-low fashion, Westerman was able to find Miller at the basket for 2. The final buzzer sounded a 50-66 score, Eureka’s fifth loss of the season. Despite the early ending, Eureka has a lot to be proud of. The team accumulated their seventh consecutive league title, finished their season having never lost a game on their home court, and capped off a season with the school’s third trip to the State Tournament.
The Lady Tornadoes finished off the 2023-2024 season with a 19-5 record. Three of their five losses came from 2A and 3A state tournament qualifiers, two of which made it to the final round of the tournament (Wichita Independent as 2A state champs and Hesston as 3A state runner-ups) and the other lost in the semifinal round (Pittsburg Colgan). For seven uninterrupted seasons, the Lady Tornadoes have remained undefeated on their home court. They completed another year undefeated in TVL and were named TVL champions, the seventh consecutive time since 2017. Eureka has established themselves as a powerhouse in girl’s basketball and can look forward to next season, returning 100% of their scorers from this year’s roster.
Stats and Scoring Leaders: POINTS: Rucker 18, Coulter 16, Mongeau 8, Winfrey 5 and Ptacek, Westerman, and Miller 2.
REBOUNDS: Rucker 12, Ptacek 5, Mongeau 3 and Coulter and Winfrey 2. ASSISTS: Winfrey 6, Rucker 3 and Ptacek 2. STEALS: Mongeau 3 and Coulter 2.
