Trey Kuhlman Picks Up First Win at Concordia, Lady Panthers Take Down Abilene 42-28

Concordia High School Girls Basketball Coach Trey Kuhlman recorded his first win as the head coach for Concordia on Friday, December 16th.  Kuhlman's Panthers took down Abilene at home in North Central Kansas League play, 42-28.  This marks Kuhlman's first win as a varsity head coach.

Both the Panthers and the Cowgirls came into the contest looking to get in the win column for the first time this season.

The two teams were tied at 12 at the end of the first quarter.  Concordia Junior Hattie Blackwood connected on two three-pointers in the first period, but Abilene was able to get two outside baskets of their own from Junior Guard Zoey Debenham.

Concordia opened the second frame on a 7-1 run to grab a six point lead with two minutes remaining in the first half.  Blackwood added another trey in the second period while the Panthers shot 8-of-15 (53.4%) from the field in the first half to lead 21-16 at the intermission.

Coming out of the locker room, the Panthers went on an 8-2 run to grab its first double-digit lead of the night, capped off by a three-point basket by Freshman Guard Rylie Jessup.  Abilene followed suit with a 7-2 run of their own to end the third quarter, trimming Concordia's lead down to 31-25 heading to the final eight minutes of play.

The Cowgirls struggled to find a spark in the fourth quarter as Concordia's defense limited Abilene to just three points in the final stanza.  Concordia hit timely free throws down the stretch, making 9-of-14 (64.3%) from the foul line in the final period, to secure their first win of the year.

Seven Panthers scored in the contest, led by Blackwood's 11 points.  Hattie was named our Nex-Tech Wireless MVP of the Game.

Jessup and Sophomore Taylor McDaniel each finished with 7 points.  Senior Cianna DeLeon added 6 points, 9 rebounds and 2 steals.  Senior Hanna Acree, recipient of our H&R Block of the Game, posted 5 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals.  Freshman Charlize Cash ended up with 4 points and 10 rebounds, while Junior Erinae Flesher had 2 points.

The victory moves Concordia to 1-4 overall and 1-1 in NCKL action.

Abilene, who falls to 0-5 overall and 0-1 in league play, was led by Claira Dannefer's 11 points.  Debenham added 10.

Up next, the Lady Panthers will conclude the pre-Christmas portion of their schedule when they travel to Clay Center to face the Clay Center Tigers in North Central Kansas League play on Tuesday, December 20th at 6 pm.  Clay Center had its three-game winning streak snapped in a 59-28 loss to undefeated Wamego on Friday night.

Live coverage of Tuesday's game can be heard on 1390 KNCK, 98.3 FM and NCKToday.com

Listen to audio highlights from Concordia's 42-28 home win over Abilene: