Eagles Fight Hard on Senior Night in Loss to Cardinals; Win First District Match Against Blue Springs

by John Unrein

The Eagles opened senior night on Friday, February 22nd with a spirited effort. Pressure off the full court press and determined drives to the middle of the floor resulted in a 15-14 lead for Grain Valley by the end of the first quarter. Senior Guard Kevin Gutierrez and Junior Forward Josh Kilpatrick led the early scoring for the Eagles.

Grain Valley Head Boys Basketball Coach Andy Herbert was confident in what his team was capable of doing on the evening. “We started the game how I thought we would. We were excited and played aggressive. Cole (Keller) then got in foul trouble and they got a couple of run outs on us and that sunk us with them outscoring us the rest of the way. One lapse in concentration against a good team like Raytown South can be the difference.” The Eagles went into halftime down 21- 32, and the second and third quarters witnessed Raytown South Junior Mark Cann explode offensively. Cann led all scorers for both teams on the evening with 24 points. He consistently hit three pointers from behind the arc to widen the Cardinals lead.

Keller tried to help his team match scoring under the basket. Seven of Keller’s ten points came in the 3 rd quarter. However, turnovers and missed baskets close to the goal hurt Grain Valley’s comeback efforts.

“Mark Cann for Raytown South was something. He played tremendous. He hit both open and guarded shots and is a load. Our team is full of competitors, and this is a game we thought we would win. We have been playing really well, and they came out and slugged us, and we didn’t respond the way we wanted to. It will be interesting to see how we respond to this and if we drag it into next week or learn from it,” Herbert said.

The Eagles cleared their bench with seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter so that the seniors could be on the floor together for their final home game during the regular season. This was followed by Kevin Gutierrez being summoned to the bench with 4 minutes left in the game.

The student body responded with a standing ovation and Gutierrez received hugs from the coaching staff as senior night wound down.

“I’m glad our seniors got to play. I wish it was under different circumstances. They’ve put in four long years in this program. Basketball is a grueling season. You’re guaranteed 26 games. Everything our senior class has done, they’ve earned. A great group of unselfish kids who come to work hard every single day. I’m proud of them,” Herbert said.

The Eagles came back strong to beat Blue Springs in the first round of district play on February 23rd, advancing to take on Blue Springs South on Thursday, February 28th at 5:30pm.

Keller with the post pivot and finish. Photo credit: Valley News staff

Senior Guard Kevin Gutierrez with the breakaway drive to the basket. Photo credit: John Overstreet

Junior Guard Caden Matlon guards the ball against a Blue Springs defender to keep possession for his team. Photo credit: John Overstreet

The Lady Eagles ended their season February 26th in a hard fought loss to No. 1 seed Blue Springs South Jaguars in District play. Pictured: GVHS Senior Kendra Sibert (left), Sophomore Sydney Williams (far right). Photo credit: John Overstreet

The GVHS Royal Talon Dance Team placed 5th at the State Competition in St. Louis on Saturday, February 23rd.