Jan 21, 2022

Hays teams advance in Colby tournament

Posted Jan 21, 2022 12:59 AM

Hays High opened up the Orange and Black Classic in Colby on Thursday afternoon. The boys played the first game of the double header, taking on Liberty High School out of Colorado Springs. The girls followed with a game versus Chanute.

Boys
Liberty (CO) 34 - #6 Hays 63

Hays trailed for just twenty seconds before using a 13-5 run to take control of the game and pull away for a 63-34 victory. The Indians outscored the Liberty Lancers in each of the four quarters while shooting 67% from the field.

Hays led 20-8 after one quarter and 31-13 by halftime.

Highlights

Once Hays pushed their advantage north of twenty points, they never led by less than twenty for the balance of the third and fourth quarters.

Jace Linenberger scored a game high 18 points. 

Coach Alex Hutchins

#6 Hays improves to 9-1 on the year and moves into the semifinals to face the winner of Goodland and Beloit at 4:45 on Friday.

Girls
Chanute 32 - Hays 48

Hays struggled to put the ball through the hoop for the first nine minutes of the game and trailed 12-6 a minute in the second quarter. The Indians finally found the bottom of the net and used a 15-1 run to take a 21-13 advantage with a minute remaining in the first half.

Chanute scored the final two points of the first half trimming the Hays advantage to 21-15 at halftime.

Highlights

The Indians pushed their lead as high as eleven in the third quarter before Chanute trimmed it to 31-24 before the fourth quarter.

Five different players scored in a 10-2 run to open the fourth quarter for Hays, allowing the Indians to pull away for a 48-32 victory.

Coach Len Melvin

Molly Martin led the Indians with 18 points, Carly Lang scored 8 and grabbed a career high 10 rebounds, while Aleyia Ruder secured a career high 16 boards. The Indians out-rebounded the Blue Comets 52-28.

Hays has won three games in a row and now are 6-4  on the year. The Indians are 3-1 in 2022. Chanute falls to 2-6. The Indians play the winner of Goodland/Beloit in the semifinals at 3:00 Friday.