Concordia Girls Basketball Ends Season with Sub-State Tournament Loss to Clearwater

The Concordia High School Girls Basketball team concluded the 2023-2024 season on Friday, March 1st, falling to the Clearwater Indians in their 2024 Kansas State High School Activities Association Class 4A - West sub-state tournament championship game, 45-33.  Concordia ends its year at 13-9 overall.

Clearwater, qualifying for the state tournament for the first time since 2013, had five players score in the first quarter and used a 10-0 run to lead 15-12 headed to the second frame.  The Indians led by as many as nine points in the first-half after forcing the Panthers into committing ten turnovers, which led to seven points off turnovers.  Clearwater held a 26-19 advantage at the intermission.  Concordia was held to two made field-goals in the third quarter, at one point enduring a scoring drought of 5 minutes and 28 seconds, and trailed by double-digits at 37-27 entering the fourth.  The Panthers were never able to cut into Clearwater's lead down the stretch, suffering their second postseason loss to the Indians in the last three seasons.

The Panthers' 33 total points scored was their third lowest offensive output of the season, a disappointing setback after they had averaged 45.3 points per game during the month of February.  For the game, Concordia shot 11-of-43 (25.6 percent) from the field, including just 3-of-18 (16.7 percent) from behind the arc.  Clearwater, meanwhile, ended up 17-of-39 (43.5 percent) from the floor, 6-of-17 (35.3 percent) from long-range, and 11-of-22 (50 percent) from the foul line.

The Panthers were led in the loss by Sophomore Charlize Cash who scored 15 points, 9 of which came in the second-half.  Cash also had 6 rebounds and 4 steals -- finishing the season with 90 total steals, an average of 4.1 steals per game -- and was named our Nex-Tech Wireless MVP of the Game.

Junior Taylor McDaniel scored 10 points, all of it in the first-half.  McDaniel was 4-of-6 from the field and had 6 rebounds and 2 steals.

Senior Carlie Carlgren ended with 5 points and 7 rebounds, receiving our H&R Block of the Game.

Sophomore Rylie Jessup connected on her team-best 33rd made three of the year and ended the game with 3 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists.

The Panthers conclude the year with its first winning season since 2016-2017, including winning a share of the 2024 North Central Kansas League title.