Despite not much going right for the Barton Community College women's basketball team Saturday afternoon in Colby, the Cougars scrapped throughout before falling short 57-51 at Colby Community College.
The Cougars drop to 10-9 on the season while staying in third of the Jayhawk West at 5-4 with Colby climbing into the fifth spot at 4-5 and 13-5 overall. The loss snapped Barton's four game win streak on the year while also putting a halt to twelve straight wins over Colby including victors of six straight at the Community Building
A pair of home games are next on Barton's schedule with Northwest Kansas Technical College slated for Wednesday followed by nationally ranked Seward County Community College looming on Saturday. Tip-off for each contest at the Barton Gym is 5:30 p.m.
Colby had stretches of six and seven straight in the opening quarter, the first gaining early separation before consecutive three-pointers from Richelle Turney and Rexford native KayCee Miller tied it at ten. The Trojans then took the next seven before D'Shonda Hunt's bucket prior to the quarter buzzer drew Barton within 17-12.
Another Hunt bucket and Turney's then-ninth point of the game pulled Barton to within one to open the second frame but couldn't get the go-ahead points on the ensuing possession as Colby then drained a three-pointer in taking the next five points to surge ahead, knocking down their second three minutes later increasing the gap to 27-19. Four more points would dot the scoreboard in the final four minutes with Turney's eleventh point being countered by a pair of Colby free throws for a 29-21 lead to the halftime break.
Barton drew within two late in the third quarter behind an 8-0 run to close out the frame, extending the spurt into the final frame. Turney's first points of the second half followed by a pair of Hannah Valentine free throws concluded the Lady Cougars' fourteen straight for a 40-36 lead with 8:37 remaining.
Another Turney triple pushed the margin out further with a pair of Hunt charity tosses giving Barton its largest lead of seven at 45-38 with about seven minutes left.
The Cougars hit a scoring drought for the next three minutes with Valentine's fifth three pointer of the season putting an end to Colby's 10-0 run in tying it up at 48 each at the four minute mark.
Colby rattled off the next four to surge ahead with 2:33 remaining but the Cougars would need to make their comeback without point guard Vanessa Oduah in whistled for her fifth foul as the ensuing free throws putting the Trojans up 52-48.
Barton had two chances to tie the game in the next minute on a Valentine steal setting up Turney's long access pass for a Kolby Davis layup with 1:27 but a pair of missed free throws on the possession prior left Barton two points short. The Cougar defense was nearly rock solid down the stretch for Colby's next pair of possessions until a pair of late shot clock lapses resulted in a slicing layup through traffic and an unwanted foul helped the Trojans putting the game away.
A number of season lows dotted the box score a meager 27.9% shooting with just seventeen made field goals leading to their lowest scoring output. On the flip side of the scoresheet, Barton improved on the free giveaways with a season low six turnovers while defensively holding Colby to a season third lowest 30.9%.
Turney was the lone player in double figures for the Cougars scoring seventeen points as Valentine the nearest with eight points as Davis and Hunt finished with seven.
Nyrobi Pillers led three Trojans in double-digits with seventeen with Kiara Knight and Aerihna Afoa contributing fourteen and eleven respectively.