Bulldogs, Lady Bulldogs avoid elimination with opening-round wins
The Schulter varsity basketball program suffered a pair of double-digit setbacks this past Saturday evening at Braggs High School.
The double-digit losses came in the finals of the Class B, Area II, District 5 tournament with the Lady Bulldogs falling to the Midway Lady Chargers by a 60-32 margin, while the Bulldogs were on the losing end of an 88-44 outcome to the ninth-ranked and host Braggs Wildcats.
The Schulter squads were guaranteed a spot in this week’s Class B regional tournament with opening- round wins at the 4-team district tournament field. The Schulter ladies began postseason play last Thursday with a 68-32 victory over the Hanna Lady Dragons, while the Schulter gentlemen avoided elimination this past Friday with a 61-44 victory over the Midway Chargers.
Both Schulter cage squads will begin regional tournament play this Thursday against Fort Towson in the consolation quarterfinals in Kiowa. The Lady Bulldogs will square off against the Lady Tigers in elimination game Thursday at 1 p.m., followed by the Bulldogs taking on the Tigers at 2:30 p.m.
Wins on Thursday will put the Schulter squads into Friday’s regional consolation semfiinals in Stringtown at 1 and 2:30 p.m., respectively, while losses to Fort Towson will close out the Schulter cagers’ 2023-2024 campaigns.
Below are summaries of the Schulter varsity basketball program at last week’s Class B, Area II, District 5 tournament at Braggs High School.
— First Round Girls Bracket
Schulter 68, Hanna 32
The Lady Bulldogs came out of the opening frame with a narrow 15-12 advantage, then outscored their foes 17-11 in the second quarter for a 9-point halftime lead – 32-23. The Schulter ladies took the final two frames by margins of 15-2 and 21-7, respectively, to put the finishing touches on the 68-32, opening-round, victory.
Macee Henderson led all scorers with a gamehigh 28 points, followed by Payton Campbell with 16 and Alyssa Evans with 11. Other Lady Bulldog offensive contributors against Hanna were Caidence Campbell with six, Lexi Hurt three, and Jenna Henderson and Makalah Hawkins two each.
— Boys Bracket
Schulter 61, Midway 44
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 16-7 lead after the first eight minutes of action, then went into the intermission with a narrow 2-point advantage – 27-25 – after Midway took the second quarter by an 18-11 margin. Midway cut the Schulter lead in half, 40-39, heading into the final frame after a 14-13 advantage in the third period. The Bulldogs thwarted the rally attempt with a 21-5 margin in the final frame, walking away with the 61-44 decision.
Schulter was led by Bradyn Brown with a teambest 20 points. Vincent Bess and Zalyn Vinyard also found their way into double figures in the opening-round with 17 and 14 points, respectively. The remaining scoring for the Bulldogs in the win came on five points by Isaiah Bauer, three points by Kenta Carder, and two points by Kris Thompson.
— Championship Girls Bracket
Midway 60, Schulter 32
The Lady Bulldogs trailed 19-9 after one and 27-14 at halftime. Midway took the third period by a 25-5 margin to extend its lead to 52-19 with eight minutes remaining in regulation. The Schulter ladies were unable to overcome the huge deficit in the final stanza, outscoring the Lady Chargers 13-8 in the frame to suffer the 60-32 defeat.
Macee Henderson all Schulter scorers in the title game loss with a team-best 15 points. Other Lady Bulldog scorers against Midway were Payton Campbell with eight, Caidence Campbell five, and Lexi Hurt four.
— Boys Bracket
Braggs 88, Schulter 44
The Bulldogs fell into a 16-9 deficit after the first eight minutes, then went into the halftime break down by 14 (40-26) after being outscored 24-17 in the second period. The Schulter gentlemen were unable to overcome the double-digit deficit in the second half, being outscored by a combined 48-18 to wind up on the losing end of an 88-44 decision.
The top offensive contributor for the Bulldogs in the title game was Vincent Bess with 16, followed by Bradyn Brown with 12 and Zalyn Vinyard 10. Kenta Carder rounded out the Schulter scoring against Braggs with six points.
— Class B District Tournament First Round Girls Bracket
Schulter 68, Hanna 32
Hanna: 12 – 11 – 2 – 7 (32) Schulter: 15 – 17 – 15 – 21 (68) Schulter Scoring: Macee Henderson 28, Payton Campbell 16, Alyssa Evans 11, Caidence Campbell 6, Lexi Hurt 3, Jenna Henderson 2, Makalah Hawkins 2.
— Boys Bracket
Schulter 61, Midway 44
Midway: 7 – 18 – 14 – 5 (44) Schulter: 16 – 11 – 13 – 21 (61) Schulter Scoring: Bradyn Brown 20, Vincent Bess 17, Zalyn Vinyard 14, Isaiah Bauer 5, Kenta Carder 3, Kris Thompson 2.
— Championship Girls Bracket
Midway 60, Schulter 32
Schulter: 9 – 5 – 5 – 13 (32) Midway: 19 – 8 – 25 – 8 (60) Schulter Scoring: Macee Henderson 15, Payton Campbell 8, Caidence Campbell 5, Lexi Hurt 4.
— Boys Bracket
Braggs 88, Schulter 44
Schulter: 9 – 17 – 13 – 5 (44) Braggs: 16 – 24 – 23 – 25 (88) Schulter Scoring: Vincent Bess 16, Bradyn Brown 12, Zalyn Vinyard 10, Kenta Carder 6.
