Panthers' girls basketball program claims its first district title

CHAFFEE -- Seniors Chelsey Kight and Ashley Doublin know the history of the Meadow Heights girls basketball program because they've been part of it since its inception four years ago.

Kight and Doublin started on the inaugural team that collected two wins, so Thursday's Class 2 District 3 girls basketball championship was all the sweeter.

"It's a very good accomplishment so far and I couldn't ask for anything more," Kight said.

The Panthers, who fell in the district title game the last two years, got over the hump with a 57-26 victory over Oran.

Meadow Heights advanced to the sectional round Wednesday at 7:45 p.m. at Park Hill Central High School.

Mitch Nanney, who has coached the Meadow Heights girls since the program started, said he isn't surprised by the program's early success.

"Their work ethic is unbelievable," he said about his players. "They just bring it every day. Our practice is like a war, to be honest."

While the two Panthers seniors could appreciate the steps the program has taken over the last four years, they can thank a freshman for playing a large role in the team's success Thursday.

Whitney Welker posted a double-double, scoring a game-high 30 points and pulling down 23 rebounds. Kight said the team adjusted to the freshman's ability to lead it in scoring during the summer.

"I thought it would be weird, but then I played with her over the summer on a traveling team and I got used to it," Kight said. "Now she doesn't seem like a freshman during the game. She acts like a freshman any other time."

Kight pointed to Welker's work ethic during practice as the reason for her success on the court.

"She's always the first one out on the court," Kight said. "She's always shooting. When we're stretching, she'll stretch for maybe 10 seconds then she'll go and shoot free throws and shoot around. She shoots more than anyone on the team."

The Eagles (11-12) had no answer for Kight, who did a nice job of drawing contact on her drives to the basket. She attempted four tradition three-point plays, and converted two.

"I just kind of tell myself that whenever I go in there that I'm not the best free-throw shooter," Welker said. "So if I can just go in there and draw contact and make it, then I can worry about free throws later."

Nanney admitted he had a pre-game discussion with Welker about drawing contact.

"She has a lot of instincts for the game," Nanney said. "We talked about it a lot. She's not always played the game that way. At the beginning of the game, we had a brief 3-second conversation. If it's really going to be physical, step up to the game. Then she answered the bell."

The Panthers (20-6) managed to open a 16-point lead at halftime in part because of Oran's frigid shooting. The Eagles hit 21 percent (6 of 28) of their shots from the field in the first half. Things only got worse in the second half, as they shot 16 percent after halftime (3 of 19).

"That's the worst we've shot all year," Oran coach Adam Friga said. "Some of it is their defense, but we're not that bad of a shooting team either. It just wouldn't go in the hole tonight."

The Panthers went on a 10-2 run to start the second quarter and a 6-0 run to start the third quarter. The game went to a running clock with just under 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

"We know that we can go pretty much all the way," Kight said. "We can't be cocky and we've got to try hard, so there's no way you can be satisfied with just this."

@z_agate_HSbasketball_linescore:Oran7892--26

Meadow Hts.1714188--57

@z_agate_no tab_no indnt_bld ld:ORAN (26) -- Amanda Williams 8, Cheyanne King 10, Abbey Anderson 2, Kirstie Mangels 4, Claire Seyer 2. FG 9, FT 8-16, F 16. (3-pointers: None. Fouled out: None)

MEADOW HEIGHTS (57) -- Heather Dietiker 6, Whitney Welker 30, Gina Cureton 4, Jillian Mills 2, Brooke Sander 2, Hattie Cook 4, Chelsey Kight 9. FG 23, FT 10-19, F 14. (3-pointers: Dietiker 1. Fouled out: None)