Senior night sparks Lady Spartans over Chapel Field

Florida - First there were a few tears, then there were a lot of cheers. Last Tuesday night was the Seward Lady Spartan basketball team’s final home game of the season. Seven senior players and family members exchanged hugs and flowers at midcourt before the non-league game with Chapel Field. Those hugs were congratulatory ones after the game as Florida prevailed, 51-43. Four of those seniors, Angela Flores, Selin Tekin, Kylie Burnside and Melissa Oliphant were starters. Casey Heller and Janice Harter had quality minutes off the bench, and Theres Space remains on the injured list. Watching those mid-court ceremonies patiently were the visiting Chapel Field Lions, undefeated champions of Division VI. They came prepared to put a damper on the festivities and did an excellent job. After the first quarter Florida led 11-6, the last three Florida points coming on sophomore Brooke Burnsides’ three-pointer just before the buzzer. Sparked by Kathleen Folkl’s five points and solid work underneath, the Lady Spartans were able to hold on to a 23-21 lead at the half. And this time it was senior Kylie Burnside who drained a three-pointer with 20 seconds left. Midway of the third quarter Florida only led by two, 27-25, and a rather unhappy coach Joe DiMattina was not full of praise during a hastily-called time out. Maybe the talk worked; two minutes later Florida pushed the lead to 33-25. Kylie Burnside hit another three as did freshman Vivien Greiser. Folkl notched seven points and got rebounding help from Tekin and Courtney Howell. The Lions kept scrapping and narrowed the lead to 44-41 with 1:18 left in the last quarter. Burnside swished her third three-pointer with one minute left, and the Lady Spartans eased to that 51-43 win. Folkl ended with a game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds, and Tekin grabbed 10 rebounds. Kylie Burnside notched 11, including those three 3’s, and Greiser had eight. Oliphant contributed six, Brooke Burnside four and Flores three. It was a good workout for both teams as they go their separate ways to the Section 9 Tournament, Chapel Field in Class D, and the Spartans in Class C.