By Amanda Perkins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Skyline’s season was never supposed to end in the Final Four.
Many thought this was to be a rebuilding year for the Lady Tigers, but instead, they turned the season into a run no one expected.
Their season won’t end in a championship after Wednesday night’s 69-46 loss to the Principia Panthers in the Class 3 Show-Me Showdown at Mizzou Arena, but this gritty group has nonetheless made their mark in history.
“I’ve had a lot of really good groups, but I don’t know if I’ve had a group make this much progress in a single season,” said Skyline head coach Kevin Cheek. “This is year 27 and I think as a group, this has been a very trying group, but once they figured it out, about mid-January, I think they kind of looked at each other and said, ‘Hey, we can probably pull this off.’”
The Lady Tigers got off to a strong start against Principia, and junior guard Shelby Redd led the charge with half of the team’s 14 points in the quarter. Freshman McKaylyn Sanders connected from downtown, and senior Jenna Hunt and sophomore Breanna Johnson each added a bucket to help Skyline pull ahead by three before the end of the first.
Skyline held that lead by one point, 18-17, with 4:54 left in the second quarter. Principia closed the final minutes on a 15-2 run to lead 32-20 at the half, and Skyline never recovered.
This is the third straight title game for Principia, who played Skyline for a Class 2 state title just two years ago and lost to Fair Grove last season.
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“Obviously, and we knew this going in, we were going to have to have some things go right today,” said Coach Cheek. “Principia is probably top three, four, or five in the state. We didn’t win…but in the locker room, I told these kids we can’t let it take away from what we got done. We graduated a big group of kids last year, and Shelby had started some, Jenna had started a game or two, but for the most part, our entire starting lineup was not new kids, but inexperienced kids. We came a long way this winter and we ran into a team today that probably match-up wise was as hard as anybody for us to defend.”
“I thought our kids battled well,” he added. “Overall, you’re disappointed for a moment, but you can’t let today’s game cloud where we started and where we’re going to finish.”
The Panthers gave credit to Skyline for their defensive pressure and beating them down the floor out of the gate.
“The Redd sisters are so good,” said Principia head coach Josh Spuhl, “and they’re young, they’re going to just keep getting better, and that was our focus. One of them got us a little bit.”
Shelby Redd credited the team’s success this season to their bond and effort. “The relationship I have with these girls is just so great to have and we just get along so well…it has just been really, really fun. Principia is a really good team and it didn’t go the way we wanted it to, but we’ve gotten this far. There’s been so many people like, ‘Well, what are we gonna do this year?’ Well, we’re here, again…it just takes teamwork and hard work.”
Jenna Hunt, who played on a torn ACL, MCL, and meniscus, added, “My dad likes to say that our ‘rebuilding year’ is 4-6 weeks and then a state tournament. Like Shelby said, we’re all super proud of our girls. I think this is the group that means the most to me.”
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“This is the 15th time I’ve done this and it doesn’t get any less exciting,” said Coach Cheek of the state playoffs. And he knows the program’s future is bright. “We are going to walk three good seniors out the door after tomorrow, but the biggest part of us is still fairly young,” he said. “The group that has watched previous teams make deep runs has learned what it takes to get there. Their message to each other has been simple: stop playing like there’s something to lose and start playing like there’s something to prove. It’s a mindset that has quickly become their motto.”
If anything, the experience around the program has helped shape the mindset of this year’s team. Unlike last year, when expectations came from the outside, this group has created its own pressure, and its own identity.
As for Jenna, as she and her fellow seniors play their final high school game tomorrow, they have plenty to show for their time spent with their team.
“Skyline basketball has given me most everything I could possibly need,” she said. “It’s given me a family…so many communication skills, so many skills I can take away from this. We have a great community, so I just take away my family.”
Scoring:
Shelby Redd, 25; Jenna Hunt, 6; McKaylyn Sanders, 5; Breanna Johnson, 3; Sage Redd, 2; Payton Meade, 2; Cara King, 2; Holly Hahs, 1.
