By Matt Turer — mturer@ky3.com
@MattTurer
Marionville, Mo. — Four different Purdy Eagles scored double-digit points. Not one of them was leading scorer Layne Skyles. Didn’t matter.
Purdy left Marionville on Saturday as Lady Comet Classic champions after its 66-49 win over top-seed Spokane. If it looked like Purdy was playing like it had something to prove, it did.
“Sometimes we get off the bus slow but today we came out and knew we had to go get it. They were seeded No. 1 in this tournament. We were No. 2. So we had to prove a point,” Purdy senior Sami House said. “We knew we were better than them. We just had to come out and prove it.”
CLICK HERE FOR PURDY VS. SPOKANE PHOTOS
Two-seed Purdy (14-1) beat top-seed Spokane (15-3), 3-seed Ash Grove and 7-seed Pleasant Hope on its way to the tournament title, winning by an average of 18.3 points.
“I feel like it was kind of a slap in the face when they seeded us No. 2,” Skiles said.
Skyles, averaging a team-high 19.6 points per game, was limited to nine points Saturday, drawing frequent double teams. That gave Purdy a chance to show off its depth. Four Eagles scored at least 10 points, led by House’s 17. Devyn Callahan contributed 14 points, Zoe Brown tallied 13 and Rion Boyd scored 10.
“Knowing the gameplan we put into place, we knew Layne was going to draw two or three girls all night. We challenged the rest of our team to step up, and I thought they answered the call,” Purdy head coach Eli Ernst said.
Purdy raced out to a 6-0 lead and led 35-24 at the half. Meghan Robertson drew Spokane within 9-7 midway through the first quarter. The Lady Owls grabbed a brief first-quarter lead that lasted just one possession.
Spokane limited Skiles to just four first-half points and connected on five first-half threes but still couldn’t manage to close in on Purdy.
The Eagles outscored Spokane 14-6 in the third quarter, entering the fourth quarter up 19.
“We didn’t get the defensive answer initially but it all worked out in time,” Ernst said. “It’s just a testament to how hard the kids worked. We broke down their defense the best we could. It’s hard to simulate what they do.”
The loss snapped a six-game win streak for Spokane. The 65 points Purdy scored are the most given up by Doug Hepler’s team all season, with the second-highest coming in a 55-39 loss to Glendale in the Pink & White Tournament.
“I really didn’t feel like we did a good job defending,” Hepler said. “We let them shoot 68 percent from the floor and that’s not going to beat anybody. When you play against good teams, you’ve got to be able to defend against more than one player.”
Callahan scored nine of Purdy’s 18 first-quarter points. The Cassville transfer got Purdy off to a fast start after Brown found a cutting Callahan for an easy layup on the game’s first possession.
“I’ve never been in a winning season in anything, so this means a lot to me,” Callahan said.
Purdy has won 10 straight games since falling 61-58 to Class 1 No. 1 Walnut Grove, the only blemish on the Lady Eagles’ season thus far.
“This is a big win for our program,” Ernst said. “Coach Hepler’s record speaks for itself with what he does down there at Spokane. It’s big for our program and big for our team in the moment. Going forward, we want to build off it.”
FINAL: Purdy 65, Spokane 49
Purdy 18 17 14 16- 65
Spokane 13 11 6 19- 49
Purdy- Sami House 17, Devyn Callahan 14, Zoe Brown 13, Rion Boyd 10, Layne Skiles 9, Hallie Henderson 2
Spokane- Casey Wallace 16, Meghan Robertson 10, Rachelle McMurray 8, Taylor Riott 7, Kaylee Armitage 3, Zabryna Hodges 2, Paige Tate 2, Micayla McClure 1
