Gilman City's Girls Had Season to be Proud Of

The Gilman City Hawks finally met their match Tuesday night at the hands of perennial powerhouse Santa Fe, where they lost 53-37. The Chiefs have won 17 or more games for each of the last 13 years. In most of those seasons, they have won 20 or more games. Santa Fe will now face Rock Port, which beat North Andrew 61-40.

At the start of the season, nobody expected the Hawks to have the kind of season that they did. They had lost four key players from last year, they had a new coach in Kaitlyn Eoff, and they had to find a new identity. "I was told when I took this job that we would be rebuilding," she said. 

The first game was not promising; the Hawks were lit up 68-32 by Princeton, who is still in the running after having beaten Brunswick 55-36 Tuesday. They are coached by long-time North Harrison principal, teacher, and coach Mike Schmidli. They had an up and down start; they took third place in the loaded Gallatin Tournament, stacked with schools that are much bigger than they are. But after playing Albany tough before falling, they hit a low note when Baylie Busby and the Northeast Nodaway Bluejays beat them 51-22; the Hawks had beaten the Bluejays the year before in Gilman City.

But it turned out that they were not far away from a breakout. Even in that game, they showed some good things. Khloey Sperry was emerging as one of the top post players in the area, a constant threat to get a double-double, and constantly making hustle plays and crashing the boards. Avery Gregg established herself as one of the better on the ball defenders in the area, holding Busby down despite the lopsided score. 

Forced to play another game on back to back nights against archival Pattonsburg, the Hawks trailed early, but then Alli Burke, who didn't score in the Northeast Nodaway game, came alive and shot the Hawks into a lead they would not relinquish. Tragedy struck the Panthers that game as Katelyn Jones injured her knee and was done for the year, but the Hawks had proven that they had a ton of upside. Burke showed the ability to score in bunches, either breaking down defenses off the dribble or stepping out and lighting it up from long distance. 

From there, the Hawks morphed into one of the top rebounding teams in the area, averaging over 40 a night. They showed what they were capable of as a team; on a day when they were struggling with their shots, they grabbed 60 rebounds and dismantled Hale 49-18 in Trenton. They dismantled Southwest Livingston as well. The question was whether they could put up those kind of numbers against stronger teams; they proved that they could, beating an up and coming North Harrison squad and archrival Tri-County. 

In those games, the rest of the puzzle came together. Shelby Gibson, who had trouble staying on the floor with foul trouble, solved her foul woes and showed she was capable of stuffing the stat line each night. Kelsey Sperry, who didn't go out last year, emerged as a force on the boards with her sister Khloey; they were always neck and neck on the rebounding charts. Colbi Webb showed herself to be a tough defender and she was able to give any of the starters a break. The chemistry was outstanding; the Sperry sisters, Gibson, Burke, and Webb are all cousins, while Avery Gregg is a coach's kid who has a high basketball IQ, doesn't care how many points she scores, and is the ultimate team player. 

They won a rematch against Hale, then took down Mormon Trail. They went to Mercer, always a tough place to play, and won 36-24, and then faced Winston at home.

There were a lot of rivalry aspects in that game as Khloey Sperry and Shealyn Pliley are good friends and travel teammates. Both wanted to show what they were capable of doing. Pliley threw one dart after another down the court to open teammates to keep the Redbirds in the game. The game was 18-17 at the half. But then Gilman City put together their best half of the year up to that point and pulled away, winning 58-25. Khloey Sperry got 30 points that night.

In the first two games of the Gilman City Tournament, the Hawks took down North Nodaway; the Mustangs were well prepared, and built their defense to stop Avery Gregg and Khloey Sperry, but Alli Burke and Shelby Gibson stepped up and the Hawks won 40-15. Pattonsburg came into their game wanting revenge for their loss to the Hawks in December, and the game turned into a brutally physical game, with the Hawk players tired and slumped against the bench after the first quarter. But the Hawks pulled away and prevailed 40-26. In that game, there was a scare as Khloey Sperry crashed her head against the cement portion of the wall, but she was OK. Now, no reasonable coach can accuse her of not using her head. 

A flu outbreak forced the postponement of the Princeton game for the tournament title, so the Hawks turned and faced the rest of their conference schedule. They had to play Grundy County, which was also undefeated in the HDC. Wins against Grundy and East Harrison would secure them the first conference title in 17 years. The Hawks put together their best quarter of the year so far in dropping Grundy County for the count in the first quarter, leading them 11-4. But the Panthers stormed back, taking the lead at one point and tying it at 38. But Kelsey Sperry, who rarely scored for the Hawks, stepped up to the free throw line and hit both free throws to win it. 

The East Harrison squad was next, and they pulled out all the stops to take this one, making it their Homecoming as well as their Senior Night for Cainsville. Karlee Crouse carried the Bobcats in the first half, but in the second, the Hawks slowly started to take control and won 55-45 to clinch the conference title.

The HDC Tournament was next, and the Hawks had to run a gauntlet of teams hell-bent on revenge. First. they built up a big lead against Winston, only to hold off a late rally before winning 47-29 in a sweltering hot gym in Mercer. Kelsey Sperry missed the rematch with Mercer (flu), and the Hawks were in horrific foul trouble against the Cards, trailing by as much as seven at one point. But despite all the foul trouble, the Hawks put on the press in the fourth, hanging 25 on them and pulling out the 46-39 win to set up a rematch with Grundy County.

The Panthers started scoring early and often and they looked like they were going to easily avenge their loss earlier in the season. But then the Hawks started coming back as the Panthers cooled off, and they took control in the second half and went on to win 47-35. The game with Stewartsville/Osborn was supposed to be easy, but the Stewartsville gym is always one of the most hostile environments to play in. Addie Jackson was eating the Panthers alive, but Shelby Gibson kept the Hawks in the game, scoring eight points in the second quarter while Khloey Sperry was battling foul trouble. Finally, Khloey Sperry took over the third quarter and the Hawks moved out in front, leading by as much as eight. Sperry fouled out, but Avery Gregg carried the team on her shoulders from there, and the Hawks had survived a trap game.

The win streak was 17 games at that point. It took a 15 point fourth quarter by Addie Henke to finally end the Hawks' win streak, but they started another one by beating North Harrison 56-29 in the district semifinals. The game with Tri-County was supposed to be close, with the Mustangs peaking at the right time, but Alli Burke lit up the scoreboard in the first half and put the game away. Last year was heartbreak for the Hawks; after beating Pattonsburg twice in the regular season, they fell to them in districts, and Pattonsburg would go on to make it all the way to the quarterfinals. This year, they made sure there would be no doubt.

The new coach, Kaitlyn Eoff, turned out to be the real deal, making all the right moves. Against OSHS, the Wildcards were surrounding Khloey Sperry in the paint, so she lifted her out to the perimeter and had her drive on them in the third quarter. Against Mercer in the HDC Tournament, the Cards had the Hawks on the ropes, so Eoff rolled the dice and put on the press despite everybody being in foul trouble, which worked. Against East Harrison, Karlee Crouse was making use of her height advantage on Avery Gregg, so she put Alli Burke on her, which slowed her down enough for the Hawks to pull away. Against Grundy County, Kinsley Allnutt was torching the Hawks for 13 points in the first half, so she rolled the dice and put Khloey Sperry on her despite her having two fouls; she shut her down and held her to two points the rest of the game. She played for Rick Lin of Gallatin and Jenny Croy of North Central Missouri College, learning a lot from both of them. 

The Santa Fe game was the last game for seniors Shelby Gibson, Kelsey Sperry, and Ryah Crump. All three will be missed. Shelby turned into a valuable scoring threat in the post to make defenses pay for keying Khloey Sperry. Kelsey Sperry was similar to Dennis Rodman, in that she rarely scored, but put up monster rebounding numbers similar to the kind of games Rodman had with the Pistons, Spurs, and Bulls. She played with as much energy as anyone on the team; against Pattonsburg, she grabbed 18 boards in a brutally physical game and then still had enough energy to do a series of cartwheels the full length of the floor as a cheerleader during the cheerleading standoff between North Harrison and Gilman City during the boys game. And there was outstanding chemistry between the two sisters; many of Kelsey's assists came from her feeding Khloey the ball in the post. Riah Crump was one of the nicest players on the team and was always a threat to steal the ball on defense. Colbi Webb was a constant source of encouragement to her teammates, was always ready to be out there when called on, was always strong with the ball, and loved playing defense when she was in there.

The goal for the returning Hawks is not to be satisfied with this year, but to want what Santa Fe has. They have a lot of pieces back. Khloey Sperry, Alli Burke, and Avery Gregg will all return. Pyper Taggart, at six feet tall, could turn into a force in the post over the next two years. Emily and Caitlynn Chalfant have potential as ballhandlers, and anytime two sisters share the floor, it helps with the chemistry. The Hawks also have a promising freshman class coming up, led by Tenley Griffith. Already a force on the softball field, she has shown promise on the basketball court as well; after not picking up a ball since the end of junior high, she won the Elks Hoop Shoot for her age group. She leads a group that only lost three games in basketball, all to Mercer. 

Alli Burke’s Career Night Sparks Lady Hawks to First District Title in 17 Years

Alli Burke had a career night for Gilman City’s girls Saturday and Gilman City won its first district tournament in 17 years, downing Tri-County 61-32 in a game that was much more one-sided than expected. Tri-County and Gilman City are just a few miles apart, and most games between them are rivalry games.

The Hawks had gotten back off the floor after seeing their 17 game winning streak end at the hands of Princeton, beating North Harrison handily in the semifinals to start a new winning streak. But the Mustangs, after playing on their heels in a 46-27 loss to Pattonsburg in December, showed they were one of the most improved teams in the area. They were peaking at the right time and had won five out of their last six, including a 48-42 win over a very physical East Harrison squad, in which they crashed the boards relentlessly to come back and win after trailing for much of the game.

Kelsey Sperry inbounded to Khloey Sperry to start the game, but the Mustangs were trying all they could to get Zoie Williams loose, isolating her against Avery Gregg in the post and trying to spring her loose with her left hand and her spin move. Williams tied it at 2 and 4 for the Mustangs, but then Alli Burke struck for the Hawks, hitting a 3-pointer off a pass from Avery Gregg. Shelby Gibson drove and scored and Kelsey hit Khloey again to make it 11-4 and prompt a timeout. Tri-County was trying to stop Khloey Sperry inside, but that left Burke open from downtown all night long.

The timeout didn’t help as Khloey Sperry went coast to coast to score and then Alli Burke slashed and scored, and then stepped back and hit another 3-pointer to make it 18-6, prompting another Mustang timeout.

Zoie Williams hit a 3-pointer and Tri-County went to their three quarters court trap to try to get the ball back and create some chaos. After hitting a low point in December, they went back to when Coach Slaughter was in charge and they were living and dying by their three quarters court press, yielding them a lot of wins in the process. But the Hawks were ready for it and they kept pulling away as Avery Gregg hit Shelby Gibson inside, added a 3-pointer, and then got a steal and drive to make it 25-9 after one quarter.

Dani Critten hit a free throw for the Mustangs to start the second quarter, but Khloey Sperry scored off a putback as the Hawks started crashing the boards hard. Alli Burke scored off a drive, Shelby Gibson got a steal and aired it out to Avery Gregg, and Shelby Gibson got a putback to make it 33-10.

Lily Turner, one of two promsing freshmen for the Mustangs, got them on the board with a coast to coast move, but Khloey Sperry got a putback and Alli Burke cut inside and scored to make it 37-13. Alexis Neeley knocked down a backdoor shot after the Hawks collapsed to stop Williams, but Khloey Sperry hit a free throw, Ali Burke and Avery Gregg hit 3-pointers, and Khloey Sperry scored off a steal to make it 46-15 before Neeley cut it to 46-17 at the half.

But Tri-County won 17 games for a reason, and it was only a matter of time before their run came. Sure enough, a totally different Mustang team came out to start the second half. Both Sperry sisters got three fouls and the Mustangs were doing a much better job of getting to the rim as Turner scored off a drive and Zoie Williams converted a three point play after going coast to coast to make it 45-22.

Alli Burke’s outburst in the first half opened up the inside, and Khloey Sperry was able to work the inside at will during the next stretch as she scored six and Avery Gregg added a drive as the Hawks rebuilt their lead to 54-22.

But then the foul trouble mounted as Khloey Sperry picked up her fourth foul and the Mustangs started coming back again. With her out, Zoie Williams started finding driving lanes open and scoring to cut the Hawk lead to 54-26. Williams drove and scored to cut it to 54-28 as Khloey had to be careful with four fouls, but an inside shot by Sperry stopped the bleeding and made it 56-28.

Allee Prescott cut inside and scored to make it 56-30, but then Alli Burke got a steal and converted a three point play to make it 59-30 and the Mustangs finally threw in the towel. Pyper Taggart scored from inside down the stretch as the reserves were able to get in on the act.

Khloey Sperry had 21 for the Hawks. Alli Burke had 18, Avery Gregg 17, Shelby Gibson 8, and Pyper Taggart 2.

Khloey Sperry had 3 blocks. Avery Gregg had 2 and Alli Burke had 1.

Kelsey Sperry went beast mode, getting 15 boards. Khloey Sperry had 8, Shelby Gibson 7, Alli Burke 5, Avery Gregg 2, and Pyper Taggart 1.

Avery Gregg had 6 assists. Kelsey Sperry and Shelby Gibson had 5, Khloey Sperry 2, and Alli Burke and Caitlynn Chalfant 1.

Khloey Sperry had 5 tips. Kelsey Sperry and Alli Burke had 3, and Shelby Gibson and Avery Gregg 2.

Shelby Gibson had 5 steals. Kelsey Sperry had 4, Avery Gregg 3, Khloey Sperry 2, and Alli Burke and Pyper Taggart 1.

The win was Gilman City’s 22nd, their most since the 2007-2008 season and the 2005-2006 season, when they also won 22. They were scheduled to play at Santa Fe Tuesday night for sectionals.

 

Editorial -- Bring Back Sectionals to the Civic Arena

We second Chris Roush’s call to bring back sectional basketball to the St. Joseph Civic Arena.

For some reason, MSHSAA, after COVID-19, outsourced the hosting of sectional basketball games to host schools, many of which do not have adequate facilities. So if a tiny school like Gilman City or Grundy County has to host and they don’t have adequate facilities, they have to scramble to find a suitable facility on short notice. Or create a major fire hazard due to overcrowding. Last year, Grundy County had to play a sectional game in Trenton.

Having both boys and girls sectionals in one place, like the Civic Arena, would reduce travel hardships for us. Had both Hawk teams won districts, we would have had nightmares scrambling to go to 2-4 different places with 4-8 hour round trips. Having them both in one location cuts down on travel time. And had Worth County’s boys, say, won the Mound City district, we would have had to choose whether to cover the Tigers or the Hawks, with either decision disappointing a lot of fans.

And having sectionals at the Civic Arena rewards players for their hard work and allows them to play on a much bigger stage than most kids ever will. MSHSAA has the money to do so given that they charge $10 to watch a stream of a post-season game.

Kelsey Sperry has 13 Boards, 9 Assists in Hawk Win; Lani Briggs Scores 12 for Shamrocks

Kelsey Sperry nearly had an unconventional double-double for Gilman City’s girls as she had 13 boards and 9 assists in Gilman City’s 56-29 semifinal win over North Harrison Thursday. Two Hawks did get double-doubles as Khloey Sperry had 20 points and 11 boards and Shelby Gibson had 10 points and 10 boards. Lani Briggs did all she could to keep North Harrison’s season going, scoring 12 points, but big second and third quarters powered the Hawks to their win.

Previously, North Harrison had a 34-41 first round win over Winston to avenge a regular-season loss while Gilman City had a bye. They started off strongly as Ava Rinehart had one of her best quarters of the year in putting up 10 points in the period as the Shamrocks led 12-9 after one. They were playing good defense on Shealyn Pliley, holding her to six points for the game.

But then Rinehart got into foul trouble and the Redbirds started catching up, getting their deficit down to 18-17 at the half.

But once again, Gracie Young sparked the Shamrocks, this time hitting a 3-pointer in the third quarter, and the Shamrocks started rebuilding their lead again, going up 26-20 after three.

The Redbirds have hung with a lot of teams this year and made things interesting at the end, but Gracie Young had 5 points in the fourth quarter and the Shamrocks were able to hold on for the three point win. Winston hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to cut the margin to three.

Ava Rinehart had 12 points for the Shamrocks. Gracie Young and Lani Briggs had 8, and Jaxcynn Hansel and Hali Smith had 3.

The first quarter of the Gilman City game started off well for North Harrison. Alli Burke hit Khloey Sperry backdoor for three to make it 3-0, but then Hali Smith hit Ava Rinehart at the top of the key for three. Then, Ava Rinehart pushed one up the floor, and then Jaxcynn Hansel saved an errant pass to Hali Smith to put the Shamrocks up 5-3.

But then Avery Gregg hit Khloey Sperry inside to tie it up and then Sperry grabbed an offensive board and drew Hali Smith’s second foul, hitting one of two to make it 6-5. Without Smith on the floor, Gilman City started finding a lot of easier looks and the game started to snowball. Khloey Sperry got a third chance putback, then Avery Gregg took on two Shamrock defenders and scored to make it 10-5 after one.

Lani Briggs cut it to 10-7 to start the second, but then Kelsey Sperry started dishing out dimes at will, hitting Alli Burke for three. Khloey Sperry jumped a pass and scored to make it 15-7.

Jaxcynn Hansel did all she could to slow the tide; she scored from inside to make it 15-9. Hansel had 8 blocks for the night and is a candidate to put up the kind of shotblocking numbers that Kinsley Johnson of Pattonsburg did this year. But Shelby Gibson hit Khloey Sperry inside and Avery Gregg hit a 3-pointer to make it 20-9.

Shelby Gibson picked up her third foul fighting with Hali Smith for a board, and Lani Briggs started carrying the Shamrocks on her shoulders, driving at will in the closing minutes of the half to bring her team to within 23-13 at the half.

But like so many other teams, the Shamrocks wilted under the pressure of the constant crashing of the boards by the Hawks. The rebounding margin was only 17-12 in Gilman City’s favor at the half, but the bottom dropped out in the second half, with Gilman City outrebounding the Shamrocks 28-11.

Kelsey Sperry hit Khloey inside and then Shelby Gibson hit Avery Gregg for three to make it 28-13. Jaxcynn Hansel, who has had a good midrange shot for the Shamrocks, stepped back and hit a 3-pointer and Hali Smith followed with a drive to cut it to 31-18, but then the floodgates opened for the Hawks as Avery Gregg drove and scored and then hit a 3-pointer. Shelby Gibson got loose in transition and Alli Burke hit a free throw to make it 39-18.

Ava Rinehart countered with a 3-pointer to make it 39-21. Shelby Gibson scored from inside, only for Lani Briggs to pull up and hit a logo three at the third quarter buzzer, channeling her teammate from last year, Erica Gerken, who hit two crazy triples. That score made it 41-24 after three.

The Shamrocks had a glimmer of hope at the end of three, but the Hawks got a stop on defense and Avery Gregg went coast to coast to start the fourth and added a pair of free throws to push it over 20 again at 45-24. Khloey Sperry followed with a putback to make it 47-24. Lani Briggs did all she could to stop the bleeding, driving at will, getting on the line, and hitting three of six, but the Hawks continued to pull away as Shelby Gibson scored the next five, Alli Burke scored off a drive, and then hit Colbi Webb for a layup at the end.

North Harrison has nowhere to go but up if they can get 10 bodies on the floor next year. They return all seven of their players from this year; the goal is to get three more so that the team can rest players and the starters can scrimmage against five players in practices.

For the Shamrocks, Lani Briggs had 12, Jaxcynn Hansel 7, Ava Rinehart 6, and Hali Smith 4.

Jaxcynn Hansel had 8 blocks.

Gracie Young had 6 boards. Hali Smith, Ava Rinehart, and Stella Rinehart had 4, Jaxcynn Hansel 3, and Addison Milligan 2.

Jaxcynn Hansel had 4 assists. Hali Smith, Ava Rinehart, and Lani Briggs had 2.

Ava Rinehart had 2 tips. Lani Briggs, Addison Milligan, and Stella Rinehart had 1.

Lani Briggs and Ava Rinehart had 2 steals. Jaxcynn Hansel had 1.

For Gilman City, Khloey Sperry had 20, Avery Gregg 17, Shelby Gibson 10, Alli Burke 7, and Colbi Webb 2.

Alli Burke had 2 blocks and Khloey Sperry 1.

Kelsey Sperry had 13 boards. Khloey Sperry had 11, Shelby Gibson 10, Avery Gregg 5, Alli Burke 4, Colbi Webb 1, and Caitlynn Chalfant 1.

Kelsey Sperry had 9 assists. Alli Burke had 5, Avery Gregg 4, Shelby Gibson 3, and Khloey Sperry 2.

Alli Burke had 5 tips. Khloey Sperry had 3, Shelby Gibson 2, and Avery Gregg 2.

Alli Burke and Khloey Sperry had 3 steals and Avery Gregg had 2.

 

Hopkins City Council Addresses $28,688.32 in Delinquent Bills

The Hopkins City Council, at their regular meeting Monday, discussed delinquent bills. The city says there are 48 customers with delinquent bills totaling $28,688.32. The highest is over $3,000, while there are several others that have run charges of over $1,000.

Some have made arrangements to pay the city and are making payments. Water Superintendent Chris Bird said the city should focus on those who were making no effort to pay. Some are on sewer only, so the only solution would be to cap their sewer. “There is no sense messing with them,” he said. He said he would work this summer on disconnections. A possible solution worked out involved sending letters, and then imposing a lien on the property. Once the lien was put on, the residence would be disconnected and a $500 disconnection fee assessed. Service would not be restored until the disconnection fee was paid. The city will draft a letter for council members to review.

One complication was where one person owned the land but someone else owned the trailer.

The city will defend itself against a lawsuit filed against it by former clerks Teddy Phipps and Krystal Bowen, who the council dismissed last year. The city has liability insurance, and the insurance company provides legal representation for the city as part of its policy. The insurance company has retained attorneys to defend the city.

The city has turned in required paperwork to the Missouri State Auditor’s Office and the Missouri DNR.

Alex Dandy of the Northwest Missouri Regional Council of Governments introduced himself to the council. He talked about the revamped COG website and said that they wanted to get back to helping cities develop strategic plans. He talked about some of the services that the council offers.

The council voted to pass a new animal control ordinance. It is a violation if any animal attacks other people or pets.

The city and council members signed off on paperwork to open a bank account for the $500,000 CDBG grant for the fire truck. The first step will be to open the bank account; then, bids will be solicited for the new fire truck for the Fire Department.

The Hopkins CBC will meet on March 10th at 6:30 pm in the basement of the Christian Church. The Hopkins Picnic will be August 7th to 9th this year. The city will be drafting paperwork for that event for a future meeting.