Four quartersLed by junior Anna Deegan, who averages 15 points per game, the Bonner Springs girls are enjoying the finest season in recent memory. Coming off a 15-6 season, the Braves stand 13-0 and are ranked No. 1 in The Star’s small-class poll and No. 3 in Kansas 4A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association behind Holton and McPherson. As Bonner Springs closes in on the Kaw Valley League crown, we asked Deegan to give us a couple of minutes and go four quarters with The Star.
Q. 1. It has been forever and a day since Bonner Springs reached state, so what would that mean to the program? A. “I think the last time the team made state was 1984. It would be amazing to get back obviously. It would mean a lot, not just to me and the team, but especially as a sendoff for the seniors. As a team, it would be a great accomplishment.” Q. 2. You ladies have the advantage of hosting substate this season, so does that mean a state berth is expected? A. “It’s still going to be hard. We can’t expect anything to be handed to us. But definitely, it’s an advantage if our great supporters will come out. I hope they do, and I’m pretty sure they will. It would be awesome to have the whole town in our corner.” Q. 3. Is the pressure to keep that zero in the loss column mounting? A. “That’s a tough question. I’m sure some of us feel there’s a little pressure, but we’re trying to keep a good head on our shoulders. We just have to keep working hard, because we realize that we still have a lot of work to do. There are so many good teams in 4A, so we don’t take any day lightly. We can’t afford to take any day lightly at practice or for a game.” Q. 4. Coach Clay Oakes said the team doesn’t have a lot of zany rituals and actually characterized his Braves as “boring.” Is that fair to say? A. “Actually it is. Just through my freshman and sophomore years, we always had more characters on the team. When we break to get a drink, there would be girls yelling and we’d all be clapping. This year, we clap, but everyone is kind of in their own world. We are kind of boring, but we all have our weird things still. I’m constantly dancing and singing, even at practice. I like to sing Beyoncé (her favorite tune to croon at the moment is “Countdown”). It probably annoys some of the other girls, but Haley (Hoffine) is the way same way. We dance and sing a lot. Together, we are quite obnoxious probably.”By the numbers9 What’s happened to the Winnetonka boys? After starting the season 4-6, the Griffins have rolled off nine straight victories, including a 69-55 victory over William Chrisman on Tuesday. 94.3 Free-throw percentage by Gardner Edgerton’s Kari Devlin in winning the McPherson Mid-America Classic free-throw contest Saturday. She hit 33 of 35 attempts and edged McPherson’s Tanner Hein and Buhler’s Lindy Sasse by one made free throw for the title.1,024 Career points for Lawson senior Kayla Glenn, a four-year starter, who went past the 1,000-point mark last week on the way to fifth place at the Cameron Tournament. Sitting at 987 career points, Glenn, who averages 16 points and three assists, poured in 17 during a 61-26 thumping of Chillicothe in the consolation final. She added 20 more points Tuesday in a 63-36 woodshedding of Trenton, which bumped the Cardinals to 15-3 this season.Game to watch• Lee’s Summit North boys at Truman: The Patriots are far from pushovers, led by Antonio Winn and Zach Large, who can fill it up on any given night. But the Broncos, led by Will Harrington, who signed Wednesday with Pittsburg State for football, are trying to finish the season strong and build off Tuesday’s 10-point win against Rockhurst.• Olathe South boys at SM South: A couple of intriguing subplots mark this Sunflower League battle. SM South, 11-2, is off to one of its best starts in years, but the Raiders’ schedule is backloaded — and the real tests start tonight. SM South senior Dylan Christie and junior Josh Pedersen make up a potent inside duo, but Olathe South sophomore Noah Knight had 26 points on Tuesday in a win over SM North. And, oh yeah, SM South coach Brett McFall graduated from and served as an assistant coach at Olathe South. • Ruskin boys at Blue Springs South: The Eagles proved to be a giantslayer when they took down previously unbeaten Lee’s Summit West in late January. Now they get a crack at Blue Springs South, 17-3, one of the area’s most consistent outfits. Ruskin’s Malcolm Hamilton and Deron Hill both have the ability to go off, but Blue Springs South has had little trouble taking care of business against lesser teams. Consider: the Jaguars’ three losses are against LS West, LS North and Rockhurst. Tod Palmer and Rustin Dodd of The Star contributed to this report.
