Broncbusters drop conference opener to Barton

Garden City, KS-The Broncbusters' recent struggles continued Wednesday night. 

Acorionna Lard posted a double-double with 14 points and 13 assists, Brennan Kirchoff and Jenny Womsi combined for 30 points, and Barton cruised to a 79-65 victory over Garden City at Conestoga Arena. It was the Broncbusters third straight defeat, dropping them to 4-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play. 

"We came out to fight," Head Coach, Antwain Scales said afterwards. "We just ran out of gas, especially without having our bench involved. 

Playing without starters Jae'Mya Lyons and Jersey Mayfield, Garden City struggled to find any continuity on offense. They shot just 43 percent from the field and were 4-of-15 from downtown. They were also outscored 48-30 in the paint. 

"We were shorthanded, and we tried to see if we could weather the storm," Scales mentioned.

And truth be told, Broncbusters wasted a great start.

After Garden City jumped out to a 10-2 lead, Barton responded with a 16-5 blitz to end the opening quarter. Once the Broncbusters regained the advantage following Cayanna Stanley's layup, the Cougars again closed the period strong, utilizing a 19-5 run to build a 41-28 advantage once Alissa Heskamp beat Taya Davis off the dribble for a layup. Barton led, 41-34 at the break. 

"Out kids fought as best we could considering the circumstances," Scales added. "But no disrespect to Barton because they are a very good team."

The Broncbusters made their run in the third, pulling to within four when Keyhana Turner found Ariyah Brooks underneath for a layup. But Garden City failed to score the rest of the quarter and were down six going to the fourth. 

"I am very proud of our effort tonight," Scales said. 

Morgan Meyers drilled an open 3-pointer, and Womsi and Grace John made back-to-back layups to give the Cougars a 13-point advantage with five minutes to go. They built it to as many as 17 in the final period, outscoring the Broncbusters 23-15 over the final 10 minutes. 

"Tonight is a great example of what I am looking for from this team," Scales said. 

Meyers scored 13 points in 33 minutes for Barton, which shot 51 percent from the floor and 5-of-11 on 3's. Womsi chipped in 15 points and 10 boards, and Kirchoff tallied 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting. 

Carter was spectacular again, scoring a game-high 32 points in 39 minutes for Garden City, which lost it's third straight game after a 4-0 start. Keyhana Turner had 10 points and six boards.