Broncbusters take down No. 14 Dodge City

Garden City, KS-Greg Franklin delivered a statement win.  

Maya Nieto scored 18 points in 26 minutes off the bench, Ana Ramos Pires tallied 14 points and six rebounds, and Garden City took down No. 14 Dodge City, 55-53 Saturday afternoon at Conestoga Arena. 

The Broncbusters, which improved to 16-12 overall and 11-12 in conference play, kept their hopes alive of hosting a Region VI Tournament game next week, jumping up one spot to No. 6 in the standings with Wednesday's regular-season finale vs. No. 1 Hutchinson looming.  

"I'm so proud of these players," Franklin said afterwards. "You're not going to find a harder working team than this one." 

Antonicia Moultrie grabbed 12 rebounds for the Broncbusters, which snapped Dodge City's five-game winning streak. Sierra Driessen, who was limited to just 21 minutes because of foul trouble, had seven points, four rebounds, four assists, and four steals. 

Tayah Morgan paced Dodge City with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting. 

This game had everything, including some major fireworks in the final couple of minutes.  

Leading by eight with less than five minutes to go, Garden City had a chance to put the game away. But the Conquistadors countered with an 8-2 run, and Atkins' layup with 14 seconds to go, pulled Dodge City to within two, 53-51. The visitors then fouled Sariah Conley, who made 1-of-2 free throws to make it a three-point game. 

Things got even more interesting once Atkins got to the rim to make it a one-point contest with eight seconds to play. Garden City then threw away the ensuing inbounds pass giving Dodge City a chance to win. However, Paris Santacaterina's 3-pointer from the left wing clanged off the back rim. Layla Cameron was whistled for an intentional foul, and Driessen salted the game away at the line, giving Garden City its first victory over a ranked opponent this season.  

It was a rollercoaster ride both ways, considering Garden City had a 15-point lead at the half and was up 34-17 after Ramos Pires turned a Dodge City turnover into an easy layup. Throw in the fact that the Conquistadors went the first six minutes of the second quarter without a single point, and it was incredible to think that the game came down to a missed Santacaterina triple. 

Welcome to the Garden City-Dodge City rival. 

The Broncbusters limited Dodge City to just 36 percent shooting and eight total points over the first 16 minutes of the game. They also forced 21 turnovers.