BUFFS ROUNDUP: Monday, February 10, 2020
BASKETBALL
BOYS
It had been just a little more than two months since the season opener for the Garden City Buffaloes boys basketball team.
They had opened the 2019-20 campaign on the road at Guymon, Okla., with a nearly new lineup, and the result was a tough 41-35 loss to the Tigers.
The second time around, celebrating Homecoming festivities as well, the Buffs turned the tables on the Tigers, claiming a 46-35 triumph to win their second straight game of the week and pull their season record to .500 at 7-7.
With a depleted lineup that saw the Buffs missing regulars Tae Rosales, Isaiah Reyes, Aaron Guevara and Trey Nuzum due to injuries and illness. Still, coach Jacy Holloway’s team put together a strong defensive effort to capture the win.
The teams were tied at 11 after one quarter and then the Buffs got a little separation with a 13-7 advantage in the second period to take a 24-18 lead into the locker room at intermission. An 11-8 third-quarter edge extended the lead to 35-26 and it was an 11-9 Garden City margin in the final eight minutes to put the game away.
Eight different players made it into the scoring column, led by sophomore Luke Tolbert’s 13 points (a pair of 3-point baskets included). Freshman Caleb Wiese added 10 points to the winning cause.
The current week will be a busy one for the Buffs as they travel to Hugoton on Tuesday, Feb. 11, to face the Eagles in a non-league battle. Thursday, Feb. 13, they will host Ulysses in a make-up game postponed a couple of weeks ago due to inclement weather. The Thursday game is boys only, with game times tentatively set for about 7-7:30 p.m. for the varsity at The Garden.
On Friday, the Buffs will hit the road again to Great Bend to begin the final round-robin schedule of Western Athletic Conference games to cap off the regular season.
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Guymon (2-12) 11 7 8 9 — 35
Garden City (7-7) 11 13 11 11 — 46
Garden City (46) — Williams 1 4-6 6, Metzen 2 0-0 4, Flores 1 2-2 5, Tolbert 5 1-2 13, C. Reyes 0 2-2 2, Wiese 2 6-12 10, Tanner 1 2-4 4, Underwood 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 17-28 46.
3-point goals: 3 (Flores 1, Tolbert 2).
GIRLS
After falling behind by double-digits in the first quarter, the Garden City Lady Buffaloes rallied to take an 8-point lead in the third quarter, only to see the advantage disappear by the end of regulation, with the score tied at 46-all with the Guymon, Okla., Lady Tigers.
Overtime proved to be disappointing and heartbreaking as the Lady Buffs were outscored 6-4 by the visitors to fall 52-50 in the 3-minute extra period.
The loss, the third in a row for the team, dropped the Lady Buffs to 8-7 overall for the season.
Guymon stormed out to a 16-4 lead by the end of the first quarter, but then the Lady Buffs caught fire, scoring 22 points in the second stanza to trim the deficit to just one point, 27-26, at halftime. A 14-10 third-quarter edge provided the home team with a 40-37 margin heading to the final quarter. Guymon managed a 9-6 edge in the closing minutes to knot the score at 46 to send the game to OT.
Amaya Gallegos tallied 10 points to lead the scoring for the Lady Buffs, who eight different players crack the scoring column.
The Lady Buffs travel to Hugoton on Tuesday, Feb. 11, for a non-league game with the Lady Eagles. Then, they will be on the road on Friday, Feb. 14, to take on the Great Bend Lady Panthers in a Western Athletic Conference contest.
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Guymon, Okla. (11-7) 16 11 10 9 6 — 52
Garden City (8-7) 4 22 14 6 4 — 50
Garden City (50) — Beasley 3 2-2 9, Calzonetti 2 2-2 7, Franco 2 0-0 6, Gallegos 4 0-0 10, Flores 0 0-2 0, Simmons 0 1-2 1, Meng 1 2-2 4, Turner 4 0-1 8, Rodriguez 2 0-0 5.
3-point goals: 7 (Beasley 1, Calzonetti 1, Franco 2, Gallegos 2, Rodriguez 1).
BOYS SWIMMING
As the regular season moves into its final few weeks, the Garden City Buffaloes’ boys swimming team continues to display strong showings at meet-after-meet.
Their latest effort was Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Manhattan Invitational, where the Buffs placed fourth in the standings with 259 points to finish behind McPherson (375), Manhattan (342) and Topeka-Seaman (283). There were 15 teams competing.
Two of the Buffs’ relay teams placed second for the top finishes of the day. The 200-yard medley relay team of Kobe Otero, Lane Durst, Connor Cupp and Esai Morales clocked a time of 1:49.93 while the 200-yard freestyle relay team of Morales, Otero, Cupp and Jeremiah Bunce had a time of 1:36.24 for its runner-up finish.
In the 200-yard individual medley (4 strokes), Cupp placed third with a time of 2:11.21 and Bunce took second in the 50-yard freestyle with a swift time of 23.60 seconds. Devin Chappel garnered a bronze medal third-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:31.87.
Morales finished fifth in the 100-yard backstroke in 1:01.99 and Cupp took third in the 100-yard breaststroke with a clocking of 1:07.18.
According to coach Brian Watkins, Cupp’s time was a state consideration time in the 200-yard individual medley and Otero’s time in the 200-yard freestyle was also a state consideration time.
Next up for the Buffs will be the Western Athletic Conference championship on Thursday, Feb. 13, which the Buffs will host. The meet begins at 4 p.m. at the Garden City Family YMCA Pool.
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at Manhattan
Team Scores: 1. McPherson, 375; 2. Manhattan, 342; 3. Topeka-Seaman, 283; 4. Garden City, 259; 5. Salina South, 242; 6. Topeka-Washburn Rural, 210; 7. Salina Central, 150; 8. Great Bend, 114; 9. Topeka High, 108; 10. DeSoto, 74; 11. Junction City, 61; 12. Shawnee Heights, 44; 13. Emporia, 20; 14. Garden City-Brown, 4; 15. Manhattan B, 2.
Individuals: 200y medley relay-2. (Otero, Durst, Cupp, Morales), 1:49.93; 200y IM-3. Cupp, 2:11.21; 50y freestyle-2. Bunce, 23.60; 500y freestyle-3. Chappel, 5:31.87; 200y freestyle relay-2. Morales, Otero, Cupp, Bunce), 1:36.24; 100y backstroke-5. Morales, 1:01.99; 100y breaststroke-3. Cupp, 1:07.18.
Garden City High School 