Hillsboro hoops seasons end in sub-state finals

ORIGINALLY WRITTEN DR
That the state-ranked Hesston girls defeated Hillsboro in the finals of the Class 3A sub-state tournament was disappointing but not surprising, considering the Swathers came in at 19-3 for the season against the 15-7 Trojans.



The Hillsboro girls needed a near-perfect game to pull the upset, but ended up having a tough shooting night from the floor. Hesston prevailed, 63-41.



Senior starters Emily Ratzlaff and Amy Duerksen led the Trojans in scoring with 11 and 9 points, respectively.



That the 16-6 Swather boys defeated the 20-1 Trojan boys after two unsuccessful attempts earlier in the season was a bit more surprising and doubly disappointing.



The Trojans came out flat and found themselves training 15-7 after one quarter and 27-17 at halftime. A 7-0 run by Hesston in the first two minutes of the third quarter put the Trojans down by 17 at 34-17. Then Hillsboro erupted in explosive style, outscoring Hesston 17-2 to pull within two points with 2:36 left in the quarter.



Hesston regrouped and never let the Trojans tie or lead the game. The Swathers led 39-36 after three quarters. Hillsboro got to within two points a couple of times midway into the fourth quarter and had opportunities to catch or pass Hesston down the stretch but could not cash them in.



Senior Daniel Deckert ended his HHS career with a team-high 14 points. Kyle Kroeker add 11, Eric Weinbrenner 9 and Derek Hamm 8 as the Trojans finish an outstanding season at 21-2.

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