Bulldogs Crush Patriots after Extended Break

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Eleven inches of snow fired up the Bulldog girls basketball team on Thursday, January 10. An extended winter break gave them the energy they needed to topple the Truman Patriots 64-23.

Ryleigh Van Emmerik scored 14 points on the night, including four 3-point shots.

The Bulldogs came out like a punch in the mouth with a pair of 3-point buckets by Brooke Paalhar and Ryleigh Van Emmerik. Truman’s Reagan Thomas answered back with a 3-point shot, but Paalhar, Van Emmerik and Maggie Lakin went on a 15-0 run to boost the Bulldogs’ lead. The first quarter came to an end quickly after a few points by Truman. The Bulldogs led, 21-9.

There was more of the same in the second quarter from Paalhar, Van Emmerik and Lakin. They ran up the score 36-13 with the help of Mallyrie Schwab-Wetzel, Jocelyn Lincoln, and Kennedi Casey.

“We prepared based on film a lot of 2-3 zone and they ran absolutely zero possessions of 2-3 zone,” said Coach Troy Resler after the game. “The positive is they ran a 3-2 [zone] which just changes our look on offense a little bit, but the concepts of getting paint touches, keeping the ball moving, all the keys we talked about, it's still there no matter what zone they ran.”

One of the keys to the Bulldogs’ offensive success was the constant ball movement and good defense leading to good offense. The Bulldogs were able to get good looks after skip-passes and playing in the zone.

Kearney dominated in the second half with offensive help from Addie Taylor, Morgan Pennington and Addi Smith. Ryleigh Van Emmerik and Kennedi Casey chipped in with big 3-point shots in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter the Bulldogs went on an 8-0 run and the defense held the Patriots to just 2 points in the quarter.

Kearney spread out the scoring: Brooke Paalhar led the Bulldogs with 20 points and Ryleigh Van Emmerik scored 14. Maggie Lakin and Kennedi Casey each made 8 points, Mallyrie Schwab-Wetzel scored 5, Jocelyn Lincoln had 3 and Addie Taylor, Addi Smith and Morgan Pennington each scored two.

This win brings the Bulldog girls’ record to 3-5 on the season.

The Bulldogs are back with boys and girls basketball all next week during the Kearney Classic basketball tournament. KPGZ will broadcast most of the games during the tournament. Watch KPGZ social media pages throughout the week for broadcast times.

KPGZ News – Brian Watts contributed to this story.

Boys Execute First Time Win over Park Hill South

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The Kearney Bulldogs boys basketball team fought their winter break blues with a win over Class 6 Park Hill South Panthers on Friday, Jan. 3. It was an exciting game as the Bulldogs came back from a 7-point deficit to win, 61-53.

The Bulldogs have been 0-7 to this point against the Panthers. Park Hill South beat Kearney by 12 points here at home in 2015.

Tre Smith led the team with 23 points for the Bulldogs.

It was a tale of quarters as the Bulldogs held their own against Park Hill South and won the first quarter, 14-11. In the second quarter, the Panthers started chipping away at the Bulldog lead and late in the quarter went on a 9-0 run.

Park Hill South owned the third quarter, scoring 20 points in the quarter. The Bulldogs came back in the fourth quarter and scored 21 points thanks to Tre Smith's relentless defense on Park Hill South guards as he had multiple runouts late in the fourth quarter.

The Panthers went in and out from zone to man-to-man defense enough times that it confused the Bulldogs for a little bit, but Kearney was able to get some defensive rebounds in that second-half that weren't there in the first half. Aden Sallee, Drew Wilson and Ty Smith did a fantastic job on the defensive glass in the second half and kept Park Hill South from getting second opportunities.

The Bulldogs had an amazing scoring night. Tre Smith led the team with 23 points. Drew Wilson hit his season average and scored 13. Brad Doll made the scorebook with 10 points and was especially effective with big free-throws down the stretch in the fourth quarter. Aden Sallee scored 9 points and Brock Scott, Ty Smith and Carter Brock each made two.

This brings the Bulldogs’ record to 6-3 on the season. Their next home game will be during the Kearney Classic Tournament, January 13-17.

KPGZ News – Brian Watts contributed to this story.

Bulldogs Rack Up Post-Season Football Honors

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Even weeks after their final snap of the 2024 season, Kearney High School’s Football players continue to earn accolades.

The Bulldogs have accumulated an impressive array of honors at every level following their phenomenal 12-1 season. Starting with the most prominent, seven KHS Football players were recently selected for the All-State Class 4 First Team by the Missouri Football Coaches Association:

  • OL Tyrus Smith

  • OL Joe Schranz

  • DL Isaac Beaver

  • DL Mason Beaver

  • LB Theo Grace

  • DB Grant Noland

  • K Jacob Dillon

DISTRICT HONORS

First Team All-District:

  • OL Tyrus Smith

  • OL Joe Schranz

  • DL Isaac Beaver

  • DL Mason Beaver

  • LB Theo Grace

  • DB Grant Noland

  • K Jacob Dillon

Second Team All-District:

  • QB Carter Temple

  • RB Corbin Emmons

  • WR Trent Dostal

  • OL Ace Biddix

  • LB Aiden Arellano

CONFERENCE HONORS

Conference Defensive Player of the Year:

  • Theo Grace

Conference Offensive Player of the Year:

  • Grant Noland

First Team All-Conference:

  • QB Carter Temple

  • RB Corbin Emmons

  • OL Joe Schranz

  • OL Tyrus Smith

  • TE Drew Nelson

  • WR Trent Dostal

  • ATH Grant Noland

  • DL Isaac Beaver

  • DL Mason Beaver

  • DL Clayton Cowan

  • LB Theo Grace

  • LB Aiden Arellano

  • DB Grant Noland

  • DB Trent Dostal

  • K Jacob Dillon

Second Team All-Conference:

  • RB Tristan Williams

  • OL Ace Biddix

  • OL Kalan Bomar

Honorable Mention All-Conference:

  • OL Nyk Belabre

  • WR Hudson Best

  • WR Tre Smith

  • LB Jacob Dillon

  • DB Trent Fritz

KPGZ News –Kearney School District Release