Chargers secure share of second straight Tri-Valley League crown
CHERRYVALE — Overcoming a 14-point deficit in the second half, the Cherryvale Chargers girl upset the top-ranked Class 2A school in Kansas, Eureka, 45-37, to earn a share of their second straight Tri-Valley League title on Thursday night.
“Someone asked me before the game if I was nervous, and I wasn’t,” Cherryvale head coach Kelsey Overacker said. “These kids wanted it tonight. They busted their butts. They were freaking awesome.”
Eureka spent the first half keeping the Chargers cold from the field and went into the break ahead, 20-9. A 3-pointer from Eureka to open the third period swelled the advantage to 23-9.
That’s when Miah Smith, a sophomore guard, took command of the offense.
Eureka dedicated its resources to limiting Harmony John, the Chargers’ leading scorer, to six points. Smith ended with a team-high 14 points, including a pair of game-icing 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.
“After we had a few big stops, we knew we needed a change,” Smith said. “I knew I had to step up.”
Smith also spent the night running point guard duties in a game where both teams pressed throughout.
“She was handling their pressure all night,” Overacker said. “The adversity she handled tonight was crazy for a sophomore. How she plays at her size is unreal.”
The other momentum swing came when Brenna Rucker, an NCAA Division I signee to Lindenwood, fouled out in the final period.
“She’s hands down one of the best players in the area,” Overacker said. “We wanted to take her away, just like they wanted to take Harmony (John) away. I told the kids in the locker room that we have more weapons. We saw that tonight.”
Moments later, Cherryvale’s three-level defender, Kynlee Greif, fouled out. Eureka, trailing by as much as 12, quickly trimmed the deficit to four.
“That was huge,” Overacker said. “You see the emotion she plays with. She plays so hard and wants to make plays so badly. It hurt a little bit. But with our kids, it was next-manup. That’s how we played.”
Cherryvale’s press bothered Eureka for much of the night as the Shelly Hoyt-coached squad appeared sped up.
“Everybody is selfless and they’re bought into our press,” Overacker said. “Our kids work so well together. They cover where they’re supposed to. We recover in a lot of ways because of how hard they go. This is a group effort.”
Cherryvale shared the league crown with Eureka and Neodesha last year, but the final league game between Cherryvale and Eureka was snowed out. This year’s title got to the finish line.
“I enjoy being able to play with these girls,” Smith said. “It’s a lot of fun getting another title. I enjoy having a coach like Coach Overacker. She pushes us hard to get us to where we want to be.”
Thursday’s thrilling win punctuated the Chargers’ regular season.
“I hope this prepares us for what’s next,” Overacker said. “Having a game like this against a coach like that is huge. We haven’t beaten them since I’ve been here. I wrote that on the board. It’s been a long time. We were overdue for one.”
Up next
Sitting at 17-6 overall, sixth-seeded Cherryvale will host No. 11 Galena on Friday in the first round of the Class 3A Sub-State. The winner will face the winner of Burlington- Prairie View.
“We won’t change a whole lot,” Overacker said. “They got the weekend off. Our kids like to shoot the ball a lot, so we’ll keep our legs under us. This is the best time of year and I’m excited. But I’m happy. It’s still unreal.”
