After a turbulent series of decisive plays, Eric Mitchell reluctantly opted to let the final seconds tick away on a difficult end to an otherwise memorable and wildly successful renascent season.
Platte County senior Reese Pickett looks up at the scoreboard in the closing seconds of a loss to Lincoln Prep in the Class 5 District 8 championship game Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhouse.
Lincoln Prep scored four unanswered in the final minute of a 42-37 victory in the Class 5 District 8 championship game Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhouse, but Platte County’s first-year coach could immediately look past the disappointment and understand the positive takeaways. The Pirates last recorded a postseason win in 2019 before going back-to-back last week to reach a district title game for the first time since 2011.
Ultimately, Platte County came tantalizingly close to the program’s first playoff appearance since winning the 2009 Class 4 state championship. Perhaps most impressively, the Pirates’ wins on an 18-9 ledger were one more than accumulated the past two seasons combined on the tail end of three straight difficult sub-.500 campaigns.
“I told them I’ve coached 28 years, multiple sports, and typically they always end with somebody sad,” Mitchell said. “I’ve been in state championship games; I’ve been in end-of-season games with nothing on the line, and they still hurt. Only one team gets to walk away with their head up by the end of the season, so I wanted them to be proud of where they’re at.
“And for those underclassmen, yeah, they need to be a little bit hungry to get to that next step.”
Platte County forwards Joslyn Hupp and Reese Pickett combined to score 25 points in their final game as part of a four-player senior class that also included reserves Morgan Stewart and Mackenzie Shields. The quartet stuck through the circumstances in the past three seasons to finally experience a memorable run.
Platte County senior Joslyn Hupp goes up for a shot against Lincoln Prep in the Class 5 District 8 title game Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhouse.
Lincoln Prep (17-9) led for nearly the entire fourth quarter but not without surviving tense moments in the closing sequence. The Blue Tigers were up 38-35 with more than 3 minutes to go in regulation and attempted to spread the floor and run clock only to commit a costly turnover with 1:54 on the clock.
Pickett missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession, but an offensive rebound provided a second chance. She ended up with the ball again and stuck a floater in the lane to cut the Pirates’ deficit to one with 1:21 left in regulation.
In the second half, Hupp scored seven of her game-high 13 points in the third quarter, while Pickett had five of Platte County’s seven points in the fourth quarter to finish with 12 points.
“They did a great job there,” Mitchell said. “We knew they had it in them. They’ve each had their moments during the season.”
Out of a timeout, Platte County forced a turnover only to give possession right back on a travel. Pickett then stole an inbounds pass to again set up a potential go-ahead shot.
Instead, Lincoln Prep created back-to-back steals with senior Delilah Pippen (game-high 15 points) turning both into breakaway layups. The first nearly went off the backboard too strong before caroming up off the rim and slipping through the net.
Suddenly down 42-37 and time ticking away, Platte County junior guard Lydia Doole rushed up the court and fired a 3-pointer off the backboard. Lincoln Prep rebounded, and the Pirates opted not to foul with less than 10 seconds left.
Time ran out on the inspiring run and left Platte County’s players to accept the runnerup district plaque — the first piece of hardware for the program in more than a decade.
“We had our opportunities, and we just didn’t execute — and they did,” Mitchell said. “Credit to Lincoln Prep. They made two really nice plays defensively, and that was kind of the difference in the game.”
Platte County sophomore Addy Schlake works through multiple defenders in the Class 5 District 8 championship game against Lincoln Prep on Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhosue.
Platte County entered on a four-game winning streak with each of the four opponents held under 30 points, continuing the establishment of a hard-nosed identity that covered occasional offensive struggles. The Pirates led early twice first at 2-0 on an inside bucket for sophomore center Addy Schlake — an emerging talent who earned late-season starts through her rapid development — and 6-5 on a baseline leaner from Doole, a third-year contributor and their top outside shooter this season.
However, Lincoln Prep countered with three 3-pointers in the first half — one each from sophomore Tamahla Scott (her only bucket), senior Ramyiah Logan (12 points) and junior Rian Rainey (eight points). The Blue Tigers led by as much as six at 18-12 in the first half and went into the break up 21-17.
“They are so good at getting into the paint,” Mitchell said, “and we were going to force them to knock down shots from the perimeter. We weren’t just going to let them hit shots inside. They hit shots but also missed some.”
Platte County hung close thanks to the solid defense but struggled with turnovers (23 total) and outside shooting (1-for-13 on 3s). Doole scored all four of her points in the first half to go with her team-high four assists, while Hupp added six. Pickett’s three-point play near the 2 1/2-minute mark cut the Pirates’ deficit to 18-15.
Coming out of halftime, Hupp scored on each of Platte County’s first three possession to close the gap on what became a 13-3 run. A fourth and final 3 kept Lincoln Prep in front until Pickett and sophomore point guard Haley Barlow scored back-to-back buckets to give the Pirates a 27-25 advantage.
Platte County senior Reese Pickett takes a jump shot against Lincoln Prep in the Class 5 District 8 championship game Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhouse.
The final points of the dominant stretch came when Hupp split two free throws with Schlake rebounding the miss and scoring a putback to make it 30-25 with 3:47 on the clock in the third quarter. Schlake finished with six points and 13 rebounds, while Hupp compiled a double-double with 10 boards.
“That’s kind of been our M.O. most of the season,” Mitchell said. “We try to keep it close and hopefully we can start hitting. And we did in the third quarter. We crawled back in it, and it was a good game at that point.”
Platte County didn’t score again in the third quarter, and Lincoln Prep closed on a 7-0 run. Pippen converted a tough shot while taking a foul on a three-point play that tied it, while senior Ayana Williams came up with a putback to give the Blue Tigers the lead back at 32-30.
“That was tough,” Mitchell said. “That’s just the growth in a program that we’ve got to be tougher in those situations, and we can’t allow a seven-point run at that point. We’ve got to execute or get another stop. Whether it’s offense or defense, we’ve got to be better in those situations.”
Schlake’s final basket off one of three assists for Barlow tied it early in the fourth quarter, and Pickett finally hit Platte County’s first and only 3 at the 4:56 mark to give the Pirates their brief final lead at 35-34.
Lincoln Prep answered with two quick baskets sandwiched around a forced turnover in what ultimately became a game-defining swing that ratcheted up the intensity of the final minutes.
“We gave ourselves a chance. We just didn’t make enough plays,” Mitchell said. “Quite honestly, I thought we were going to execute down one and we were going to be up one and have to get set in our defense. It just didn’t work out.”
Platte County seniors Morgan Stewart and Mackenize Shields in a huddle during the closing minutes of the Class 5 District 8 championship game against Lincoln Prep on Tuesday at Pirate Fieldhouse.
Platte County eventually ended up with multiple chances to tie or take the lead but managed only the final second-chance basket from Pickett. The Pirates were on the precipice of coming back from an eight-win season that ended with an upset loss in the opening round of district play to taking home the championship with many of the same pieces back from a year ago.
Pickett, Hupp and Stewart were four-year contributors for Platte County, while Shields became a key figure on the bench both as a viable option in the game and supporter of her teammates while waiting her turn to see the floor. They combined with Doole and Barlow to form the core of this season’s roster, which received big boosts from the emergent inside play of Schlake, scoring of sophomore starter-turned-impact-reserve Lauren Stone and defensive energy of sophomore Haley Schank and junior Delaney Childers.
The bottom of t-shirts given away to the first 200 Platte County fans that helped packed half of the Pirates’ newly opened home venue read in understated gray letters “BUILDING A WINNING CULTURE.” The coaches and players hope this year’s success leads to much more moving forward and can no doubt acknowledge the progress and achievements of a season that created the right trajectory.
Would Mitchell have taken an offer before the season to play in a district title game with this group in front of an energetic and invested crowd?
“Oh yeah. Of course,” he said. “I even told the girls that they had earned the opportunity to get to this point, and I’m just proud of their efforts to buying into a new coaching staff and some new ideas and just trusting us to get to this point.”
