The Salina Sacred Heart Knights knocked off No. 1 seed Ellinwood 43-34 to claim the first Kansas Class 2A state basketball title in program history Saturday afternoon at William Allen White Auditorium in Emporia.
Salina Sacred Heart, which defeated Moundridge 69-56 in the semifinals, finished the season with a 25-4 record. Ellinwood, which defeated Eureka 50-47 in the semifinals, posted a 27-2 record.
Ellinwood led 10-8 after one quarter nut the Knights went on a 14-9 run to take a 22-19 halftime lead. Sacred Heart outscored Ellinwood 10-6 in the third quarter and 11-9 in the fourth quarter.
Adelyn Lee led the Knights with 15 points and Skylar Douglas added 10 points. Emerson Lee scored 9 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Nicole Richards grabbed 10 boards.
Ellinwood’s Julia Schlessiger posted a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Mette Maxwell added 7 points and 8 rebounds. Brynn Widener had 4 steals and Eleanor Joiner grabbed 5 rebounds.
