The Chillicothe Lady Hornets faced a major test on Friday in the final of the Grain Valley Tournament against Ray-Pec. The 16-1 Lady Hornets were looking for their 2nd Grain Valley Tournament title in the last three years, this time with the Class 6 Ray-Pec Panthers and Murray St recruit Sophie Terry standing in their way.
The Lady Hornets struggled with the Panthers physicality in the early going, unable to generate much offense in the first half. After trailing 14-10 at the end of the first quarter, Chillicothe made a push to tie the game up at 14 apiece, but Ray-Pec answered right back. Chillicothe turned the ball over far too often in the first half, committing 11 turnovers, and the Panthers were able to get out on the break on several occasions. Chillicothe made a conscious effort to slow down Ray-Pec’s star player Sophie Terry, but the D1 signee made some big plays early on with a deep three, some terrific passing and battled her way to the free throw line to lead the way in scoring in the first half with 9 points.
Lyla Beetsma showcased her abilities offensively to keep Chillicothe in the game early, scoring 8 first half points, and a team high 17 for the game. Beetsma reached a career milestone of 1,000 points for CHS with a field goal in the third quarter, a tremendous accomplishment that was recognized by the Chillicothe fan base and the entire crowd at Grain Valley.
After drawing level at 14-14, Ray-Pec went on a 14-1 run to close out the first half, preventing Chillicothe from converting any attempts from the field in the final six and a half minutes of the half.
Entering the 2nd half, Ray-Pec’s Samaiya Johnson hit a three to push the Panthers lead out to 31-15. Chillicothe stepped up their level of play, clawing back into the fight from there. Lexy Smith connected on a three from way downtown to close out the 3rd quarter and drew Chillicothe to within a dozen at 43-31.
In the 4th quarter Chillicothe was able to get within single digits behind the performances from Beetsma, Smith and Lydia Bonderer who all scored in double figures. Lexy Smith drained two more threes in the 4th quarter and Chillicothe put pressure on Ray-Pec, whittling the Panthers advantage down to six. Johnson and Terry ultimately proved to be too much for Chillicothe, Samaiya Johnson scored 17 2nd half points and a game high 23, while Sophie Terry added 15 in the championship game including going 10/10 at the free throw line. The Ray-Pec Panthers held on for a 53-47 victory.
Chillicothe drops to 16-2 on the season with the runner-up performance at the competitive Grain Valley Tournament. Lyla Beetsma and Lydia Bonderer were named to the all-tournament team following the final buzzer. Chillicothe will host Versailles on Wednesday.
Chillicothe 10 15 31 47
Ray-Pec 14 28 43 53
Individual scoring:
Chillicothe – Beetsma 17, Smith 15, Bonderer 11, Emerson Staton 4
Ray-Pec – Johnson 23, Terry 15, Ayana Hayes 6, Moriah Tucker 4, Arianna DeGondea 3, Jazlynn Thomas 2