Wellington head coach Eric Adams in a state tournament game in Salina in 2025. 

Commentary by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — With the retirement of Wellington head girls basketball coach Eric Adams, I’m not sure we are going to go through a sports era at Wellington High School quite like that one.

The other day I was thinking back on Adams’ 302 game, 13-year career, and asked myself this question: What was his most memorable games? I can safely say, other than Keith Finley and Coni Adams, I probably have seen more of those 302 games than anyone.

I kept thinking about it, and, of course, decided to make a list – because that is what I do, make lists.

This one was difficult because I knew I would ultimately forget a barn-burning game that was a matter of life and death at the time. But then, I thought, that’s the point. This list is about memorable games. If I forgot a game, then it isn’t that memorable, right?

So here’s one of my silly lists of the “top five most memorable games in the Eric Adams era.” Mind you, I’m not saying the top five best games, or the top five most important games. We are talking about “memorable.” Let’s count this down, Casey Kasem style.

Wellington girls win the Haven Tournament in 2016.

5. Wellington vs. Goddard, Haven Tournament Championship, 2016. 

I’m a sucker for unique cultural sporting events. Tom Brady returning to New England as a Tampa Bay Buccaneer, L.A. Laker LeBron James playing with his son, Bronny (although it was staged), Buchanan brothers Brian and Jeff coaching against one another when Wellington and Andale played in boys basketball.

I dig that kind of stuff.

Kevin Hackerott.

Wellington was battling for a midseason tournament championship in Haven against Class 5A power Goddard, which had assembled the best basketball talent up to that point. This was the year Wellington had Gracie Mitchell, Lauryn Snipes, Tayland French, Avery Rusk and others.

I don’t remember much about the game itself (see here). In fact, if Goddard was coached by anyone else, the game wouldn’t even graze my top 20. But this game featured former Wellington head girls basketball coach Kevin Hackerott against current coach Adams. Hackerott had coached Wellington for five seasons, four of those coaching Eric’s daughter, Erianne, including Wellington’s first trip to state her senior year.

Wellington would win that game 47-41. The Crusaders got up 13-0 in the first quarter and held on to dear life in the end. Mitchell scored 14, and if I remember right, Hackerott put a double-team on her. Wellington would go on to win third place in the Class 4A state tournament on a Snipes buzzer-beater. I don’t remember what Hackerott’s team did that year. He would eventually go on to become an assistant coach for the University of Texas – Rio Grande.

Wellington girls hoist the regional championship in 2017.

4. Wellington vs. Rose Hill, Regional Championship, 2017.

There was a time when Wellington and Rose Hill were annually battling it out for the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League championships – and they were titanic matchups when they met on the hardwood.

I think Rose Hill cost Wellington more than a couple of league banners on the wall over the years. And the rivalry was at its apex during the 2016-17 season. This was the season in which Mitchell had graduated, but Wellington still had its core intact from its third-place team the year before.

The Rockets had won two of three during the regular season and destroyed Wellington in Rose Hill like two weeks earlier. Rose Hill was a top-five team with a 19-3 record.

This Regional Championship game, for pure excitement, took fans through the wringer. Neither team could shake the other. Snipes and Shayland French had four fouls going into the fourth. What I remember most about that game was Avery Rusk driving in for a layup with two minutes to play, putting Wellington up by four, only for Adams to call a timeout before her drive, negating the layup.

In the final second, the Rose Hill girl would miss a 3-pointer buzzer beater, keeping the game from going into overtime, and Wellington would win 38-35 – in what was deemed an upset.

The next week, Wellington would battle Bishop Miege for the first time at the state tournament, which would become the annual pimple on the Crusaders’ backside.

Val Norwood had 24 points in the losing cause for Wellington vs. Hays in 2025.

3. Wellington vs. Hays, Colby Tournament semifinals, 2025.

This was the best game nobody saw. I think I joined about 15 parents there to witness this classic in mid-January.

Wellington has been traveling to the far northwest corner of Kansas to play its midseason basketball games over the past three years. I have been unable to go two out of the three years because of bad weather.

Thankfully, the year I did get to go, I saw a gem of a game between Wellington and Hays in 2025. Both teams were ranked No. 1 in Class 5A and 4A. The bracketeers making up this tournament have annually pitted Wellington and Hays on one side of the bracket so host Colby can play in the championship on the other side.

When the two met, neither team had played a close game. Wellington took an early lead and maintained it throughout the first half, taking as big a lead as 13 points. But Hays came back in the fourth and then took an eight-point lead with like two minutes to play. But Val Norwood, who was sensational in her four years at Wellington, was able to create a couple of steals and layups, and got the Crusaders to overtime.

That was the first time the newly implemented 35-second clock became a major factor for Wellington in high school basketball. It forced Hays to take a bad shot while leading by one, giving Wellington an opportunity to score and win.

In the end, Hays would win 74-72. Hays would go on and lose to Kansas City Aquinas in the first round of the Class 5A Tournament. Wellington would go on to do other things that year.

Wellington head girls basketball coach Eric Adams holds up state runner-up trophy.

2. Wellington vs. Bishop Miege, State Championship Game, 2024.

Before this game, there was no proof Wellington could ever play with Bishop Miege.

This private school in Kansas City, which I can safely say is the most hated school in Kansas, had Wellington’s number. But then again, it had everyone’s number. Miege had defeated Wellington in four state tournaments — all of them in miserable fashion. It was on its way to a sixth straight state championship.

Here was what was so significant about this game. The fifth meeting was completely different from the previous four, in that the Crusaders not only played with Miege from start to finish but also afterward thought they could have won.

Wellington led throughout. Norwood, in her junior year, was on fire, scoring 33 points. Miege opened with a 15-7 lead, but Wellington came back with eight consecutive points. The Crusaders then would maintain a lead from the second quarter until the final five minutes, leading 55-53 with 5:07 to play.

The Stags then took over, outscoring Wellington 22-9 down the stretch to win 75-64.

Wellington left that day in Salina with a state runner-up trophy and every single girl returning for another year of high school basketball.

The stage was set…

1 – Wellington vs. Bishop Miege, State Championship Game, 2025. 

Well, duh. Did you think I was going to rank Wellington at El Dorado in 2025 as the No. 1 most memorable game of the Adams era?

Wellington brought a rocking crowd for the state championship game at the Tony Pizza Center. NFHS announcer Mark Ewing told the statewide online audience that “the gym was packed because Wellington brought the whole town.”

The Crusaders didn’t play particularly well in the first two state tournament games vs. Andale and Buhler. But this season was weird in that every game felt like a preseason contest leading up to this mammoth game. Wellington had to climb this Bishop Miege mountain.

And boy did it ever. Wellington led from start to finish, even though at any given moment the Stags were about to take over and ruin everything. The Stags tied the game at 37-all with 6:45 to play, and deja vu had swept the crowd. But Britt Zeka stepped up with a 3-pointer. Norwood would hit a lay-up thereafter and then secure the win with two free throws with four seconds to play.

Wellington would win 53-48.

And we had a victory parade a couple of weeks later.

Kind of a nice cherry to the Eric Adams era.

———

Lyndi Barton had 14 points for Wellington, 10 of them in the second half vs. Concordia. 

Post thoughts. There were a few games I couldn’t get on the list – including three this season.

I didn’t include the Wellington-McPherson overtime game in 2024 in the state tournament semifinals. How that game got left off the list was testimony to what kind of run Wellington has had over the past 13 years.

I also didn’t include the Wamego game in January, which was so good. I also didn’t include the Topeka Hayden semifinal loss which illustrated how close this team was to winning a second consecutive state championship.

The one I almost included was the Wellington-Concordia first-round state game, which nearly put me in the hospital for cardiac failure. But I didn’t want to put it in because, truth be told, it was the worst first half of basketball the Wellington girls played in years, only to overcome it with one of the best second halves.

And then there was this first-round McPherson Tournament game with Valley Center that was simply incredible. But I can’t even remember what year that was.

As far as the regular season went, nothing stands out. And Wellington has won so many. Routine sometimes makes you forget.

Anyway, Eric. Thanks for the memories. What a run it has been.