Cassondra Boston had just made another running bank shot and White Auditorium was roaring.
Emporia State was winning a battle of top 10 teams and a battle for first place in the MIAA against rival Washburn. Life was good for the Lady Hornets.
Then Ida Edwards jumped in the air trying to block a shot, fell awkwardly to the floor and the season-best crowd of 4,243 hushed. Edwards moaned in pain, and her teammates started wondering what life would be like without their star senior forward.
“I thought it was her knee,” Allie Renberg said, “so I was kind of freaking out.”
Finally, Edwards stood up, walked off the floor and flashed a smile toward her bench. She was OK — just cramps — and with an 85-78 win and their star healthy, the Lady Hornets (14-2, 8-1) are in the driver’s seat nearing the midway point of the MIAA season.
ESU coach Brandon Schneider made his players believe that Saturday’s game was a must-have. With a Washburn win, the Lady Hornets would have trailed by a half-game in the standings. Plus, they had already dropped a conference game at home to Southwest Baptist and their next three games and six of their next eight are on the road.
“Regardless of who the opponent is, we really need to do a better job of protecting our home floor,” Schneider said. “There’s always a chance that we’re going to play these guys more than twice, and when you do have the opportunity to play them on your home floor, it’s nice to work to take advantage of that one.”
They took advantage early with a 13-0 run that turned a four-point deficit midway through the first half into a nine-point lead.
“I think that run just gave us a lot of momentum,” Boston said. “We came out and we were down and finally we made a run, and I think it just gave us a lot of confidence. And we did it by attacking the paint, getting the ball inside and being aggressive and driving to the hoop.”
The Lady Hornets’ defense also played a key part during the run. The Lady Blues went 8 minutes, 8 seconds without a field goal, and they shot only 26.7 percent in the first half.
“I think there were some stretches where defensively we were really good,” Schneider said. “And then obviously there’s some times where we’d like to play a little bit better. You’ve got to consider the quality of the opponent you’re playing. They’ve got some girls who are really hard to guard.”
Emporia State figured that out in the second half when Janice Bright helped Washburn wake up offensively. Bright scored 24 of her career-high 31 points in the second half, and she went 16-for-16 at the free throw line.
“Well, we didn’t want Bright to get 31,” Schneider said. “She’s a heck of a player and I do think we have to credit our players for making her work really hard to get it. She’s so strong for a perimeter player. I thought she did a nice job of getting to the free throw line and then when she did, she capitalized. They had some players really make some big plays at important times, and I thought we did as well.”
Every time the Lady Blues looked as if they were about to make a run, Edwards, Renberg or Boston made sure it never got too close.
When Washburn cut the lead to single digits for the first time in the second half, Renberg spun on the block and whipped a pass past the hip of a WU defender to Edwards for a layup. And then when Bright made two free throws to cut the lead to six — the closest it had been since the first half — Boston made two free throws to give Emporia State a 78-70 lead with 1:01 left.
Boston made 11-of-13 free throws, and the Lady Hornets made 32-of-36.
“We needed every one of them, because obviously they shoot 82 percent from the line,” Schneider said.
Boston led the Lady Hornets with 24 points; Edwards had her seventh double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Renberg came off the bench to score 10 points and grab six rebounds.
“I was really proud of Cassondra and Ida, but I thought Renberg had a hell of a game. Played good defensively, was really strong on the glass, had a couple key finishes and then made a great pass to Ida at a crucial time,” Schneider said. “Allie’s been playing really well, and it’s nice to see her come on like that at an important time of the year.”
It’s also nice to be in first place entering the second half of the conference season. Without Edwards, it could have been a rough second half for the Lady Hornets, but she returned to the game and did not show any signs that she’s about to slow down. But just to make sure, Renberg gave her some sound advice.
“She just needs to eat more bananas,” Renberg said, “and drink more water.”
Saturday at White Auditorium
Washburn 26 52 — 78
Emporia State 36 49 — 85
WASHBURN (14-3, 7-3 MIAA)
Bright 7-18 15-15 31, Rodriguez 6-15 3-5 15, Graham 4-11 4-6 12, Mainz 1-2 3-4 5, Tailele 1-3 2-2 5, Silovsky 2-2 0-0 4, Gregory 1-4 0-0 2, Ulsaker 1-2 0-1 2, Brown 1-8 0-0 2, Schultz 0-0 0-0 0, Meek 0-0 0-0 0, Mullen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-65 27-33 78.
EMPORIA STATE (14-2, 8-1)
Boston 6-17 11-13 24, Edwards 7-16 0-0 14, Renberg 4-7 2-2 10, Lenard 1-7 7-8 9, Volkens 2-3 3-3 7, Corker 1-3 4-4 7, Miller 2-3 3-4 7, Leiker 2-5 2-2 7, Augustyn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-61 32-36 85.
3-point goals — Washburn 3-13 (Bright 2-6, Tailele 1-3, Mainz 0-1, Gregory 0-2, Brown 0-1), Emporia State 3-11 (Leiker 1-3, Corker 1-1, Boston 1-5, Lenard 0-2). Fouled out — Washburn: Bright, Tailele, Mainz; Emporia State: None. Rebounds — Washburn 39 (Bright 7), Emporia State 41 (Edwards 12). Assists — Washburn 10 (Mainz 4), Emporia State 13 (Boston, Corker 3). Total fouls — Washburn 28, Emporia State 25. Att. — 4,243.