Uniontown boys beat Chetopa; girls fall in OT

Uniontown senior Cole Schafer works the offense during a Three Rivers League game at Chetopa Tuesday night. The Eagles defeated the Green Hornets, 57-50, to break a three-game losing streak. (Sean Frye/Parsons Sun)

CHETOPA -- Despite two fourth quarter surges from Chetopa, Uniontown's boys controlled the nature of Tuesday night's Three Rivers League contest here Tuesday night from start to finish, leaving Chetopa with a 57-50 victory.

Uniontown's girls held a 33-26 lead after three periods but fell in overtime to the Green Hornets, 51-44.

David Bradbury led the Eagles (2-3 TRL, 6-9 overall) with 17 points, while Bryar Underwood connected on four shots behind the 3-point line to help lead the Green Hornets (2-3, 4-9) with 14 points.

The Eagles broke a three-game losing streak.

"We played well at times tonight," Uniontown head coach Jeremy Neville said. "We gave a lot of effort, and we executed things really well. But when we'd get up 10 or 12, and we'd have the mentality to where we could coast. We have to get more consistent."

The Eagles set the tone of the game early, as an aggressive half court defense led Chetopa to turnover struggles throughout the night.

In the second quarter, with Uniontown having maintained a small lead, a trey by Underwood with four minutes to play in the half tied the game at 19-19.

However, the Eagles responded with a 6-2 run to end the half and take a 25-21 lead over Chetopa into the locker room.

The Eagles took the momentum at the end of the first half right into the second half of play, starting the third quarter with an 11-1 run to extend the lead.

The Green Hornets refused to go quietly on their home floor, though, and a 7-2 run punctuated by a layup from Cole Swanwick with 15 seconds left in the quarter put them within striking distance.

However, a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Cale Coyan dampened the late run and gave Uniontown a 41-33 lead heading to the final quarter.

Chetopa made another run at the Eagles to start the fourth, opening with a 6-0 run to pull within two points.

That was as close as the Hornets got the rest of the game, though. The Eagles outscored the Hornets 16-11 the rest of the way and iced the game with free throws in the waning moments.

Girls: Chetopa 51, Uniontown 44, OT

With just four seconds on the clock, Uniontown (1-4, 3-12) was leading 40-38. Chetopa's Cambri Conard threw a Hail Mary towards the basket, which found the arms of Emily Johnson, who converted an uncontested, game-tying layup with less than a second remaining.

"I did not see it until he handed (Conard) the ball," Uniontown head coach Dustin Miller said. "I said let them catch it going to the backcourt, just not in the front court. We didn't have the right matchup down there, and they just threw a Hail Mary to her."

The Hornets (1-4, 6-7) pulled away in overtime after trailing most of the game -- scoring the first 5 points and outscoring Uniontown 11-4 in the extra period to win 51-44.

"I was pretty confident (about the last play of regulation)," Chetopa head coach Jaunc Bradshaw, a former men's assistant at Fort Scott Community College, said. "I knew I could get it into her and she'd have at least a chance to score."

The first half belonged to Uniontown, which took a 10-6 lead through the first quarter and went to the locker room at halftime with a 21-17 advantage. Shalina Harper, who finished with a game-high 24 points for the Lady Eagles, connected on three of her five 3-pointers in the first half to set the tone.

In the third quarter, Uniontown looked to bury the Hornets. A 10-4 run to start the quarter gave the Eagles a double-digit lead, 31-21, midway through the period. A late layup by Conard, who was fouled and hit the accompanying foul shot, brought the deficit down to 7 however, as Uniontown led 33-26 with one quarter to play.

Conard, who scored 18 points for Chetopa, took over for the Lady Hornets in the final eight minutes. She scored the first 6 points of the quarter to pull Chetopa within one point of Uniontown.

After Conard got the ball rolling, Johnson, who scored 20 points to lead the Lady Hornets, took the baton and connected on two straight layups to cap off a 10-0 run to start the quarter for Chetopa. That run gave the Hornets a 36-33.

The Eagles responded with a 7-2 run down the stretch, coming mostly on foul shots, to put the pressure back on Chetopa.

Despite the loss, Miller still praised the effort of his girls.

"I knew it was going to be a pretty good dogfight tonight," Miller said. "We're still making some fundamental mistakes and turning the ball over. But the girls always give really good effort. They really bought in."

Uniontown's teams will be on the road again Friday night as they go to Moran to take on Marmaton Valley in a league doubleheader.

GIRLS

UNIONTOWN: Hampton 2 0-0 4, Rockhold 0 0-0 0, Harper 7 5-7 24, Shinn 4 4-5 12, Bertea 0 0-0 0, Goodridge 0 0-2 0, Wilkinson 2 0-1 4, Smith 0 0-4 0. TOTALS: 15 9-19 44.

CHETOPA: Clayborn 1 0-1 3, Johnson 10 0-0 20, Mercer 1 1-2 3, Kepner 0 1-2 1, Mayfield 2 1-2 6, Conard 4 9-15 18, Whetstone 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 18 12-22 51.

Chetopa.. 6 11 9 14 11 -- 51

Three-point field goals: Uniontown 5 (Harper 5), Chetopa 3 (Clayborn, Mayfield, Conard).

Total fouls: Uniontown 19, Chetopa 18. Fouled out: Shinn.

BOYS

UNIONTOWN: Schafer 0 2-2 2, Bradbury 5 5-6 17, O'Brien 0 2-4 2, Coyan 4 0-2 10, Kuns 2 2-2 6, George 0 0-0 0, Fry 0 0-0 0, Elder 2 0-0 4, Allen 2 0-0 4, Sutterby 4 4-4 12. TOTALS: 19 15-20 57.

CHETOPA: Johnson 2 2-5 7, Moses 0 0-0 0, Carter 3 3-5 9, Underwood 4 2-4 14, Swanwick 5 0-0 10, Kabrey 0 0-0 0, Cloud 5 0-0 10. TOTALS: 19 7-14 50.

Chetopa........ 12 9 12 17 -- 50

Three-point field goals: Uniontown 4 (Bradbury 2, Coyan 2), Chetopa 5 (Underwood 4, Johnson)

Total fouls: Uniontown 17, Chetopa 19. Fouled out: Moses.