Claire Ginter vs. Garden Plain.

By Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — In what is sure to be one of the earliest starts in Wellington basketball history, both basketball teams brought out their new-look basketball teams. The results were mixed. The Wellington girls won 48-33, while the boys lost 66-51, both by 15-point margins. The overall feeling from Tuesday night was that both teams are a work in progress.

For the girls, Wellington continued its winning ways, but there will be a learning curve. The Crusaders did not have a running clock in the fourth quarter, and at one point, their lead was whittled down to nine midway through the final quarter – seven if the Owl girl didn’t miss her layup. But Wellington’s leading scorer Dru Zea drilled a 3-pointer at the 3-minute mark, and the Lady Dukes outscored Garden Plain 9-3 down the stretch to win the season opener.

“It’s a brand new season, and the girls have new roles, and Garden Plain muddied up the game a little bit,” said Eric Adams, Wellington head girls basketball coach. “I didn’t like how they cut into our lead, but the girls responded. Now we need to go back to work and get better.”

Three things were going against the Lady Dukes on Tuesday:

•Garden Plain is good – predicted to win the Central Plains League.

•Wellington senior player Kylan Gregory did not play. Adams said it was more precautionary, and she is expected to play next Tuesday against Hutchinson Catholic.

•This game occurred just one practice after Thanksgiving, and nine practices in. Adams said a lot of offensive and defensive stuff has not been implemented yet.

Cruz Cornejo v. Garden Plain

Also, it was the first game without all-staters Valerie Norwood and Britt Zeka.

Zeka finished the game with 19 points while Lyndi Barton had 12. The Crusaders didn’t particularly shoot the ball well, going 17-0f-50.

The Crusaders opened with an 11-2 lead as Barton scored 8 points right off the bat. It was 14-9 at the end of the first quarter. The Crusaders built a double-digit lead on a Cruz Cornejo 3-pointer and a Viv Wright deuce on simultaneous possessions. It was 28-15 at the half.

The Crusaders eventually built a 21-point advantage midway through the third and appeared on their way to running clock territory when they hit a cold streak and saw the Owls go on a 14-2 run to narrow the margin to nine.

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Jackson Curry v. Garden Plain

In the boys’ game, Wellington fans saw a team that was dramatically different-looking from the previous one. With 93 percent of its scoring gone from the previous season, Wellington head boys basketball coach Joe Newman had this to say after the game:

“We did a lot of good things and a lot of bad things. With any group the questions that always need answered are ‘Who are we? And how do we win?’ This group is looking for an identity and it’s going to take some time to find it and build that chemistry.”

Wellington got off to a good start, leading 12-9 late in the first quarter. But Garden Plain went on a 16-point run to take a 25-12 lead midway through the second. The Crusaders narrowed the margin to five and trailed 29-24 at the half. They played even ball through the third quarter, trailing 41-36.

A Milo Elder deuce made it 44-40 with 6:28 to play, but Cooper Eck, who led the game with 20 points, nailed a 3-pointer, and the Owls raced ahead for good.

Cooper Hatfield v. Garden Plain

Junior Cole Zeka had a huge varsity debut, getting 19 points. He was an impressive 6-of-12 from the field and 5-of-6 at the free-throw line. Cooper Hatfield had 12, and Kingston Scott scored 10.

Other Garden Plain scorers were Eli Eck with 19 and Brant Long with 15.

The full boys’ stats can be found here: Wellington-Garden Plain stats 12-3-25

The Crusaders will now host Hutchinson Trinity Catholic on Tuesday to open the Cheney Tournament.