Eagles Girls defeat Truman Tuesday night

2/27/2025

by Bill Althaus, Grain Valley News

Randy Draper's seamless substitution, his ability to get the best out of his talented crew and the way the verteran coach keeps his Eagles motivated are all key factors to one of the best seasons in Grain Valley girls basketball history.

The Eagles had four players in double figures, nine players who scored at least one basket and the displayed the type of stingy defense that takes the life out of an opponent as the Eagles defeated Truman 76-30 Tuesday night on the Patriots home court.

"I'm not at all surprised by our game tonight," Draper said, after his 12-0 team clinched another conference championship and improved its overall record to a sparkling 22-1.

"We had the best practice we've had all season yesterday, and we came out and got the job done tonight."

He said his Eagles turned in the finest single-quarter performance of the season with a 33-6 advantage in the third quarter when Bella Bollinger scored seven of her team-high 16 points, Aspen Reed added nine of her 15 points and Addy Seyfert connected from downtown on three 3-pointers. She also finished with 15 points.

"I don't believe you can play a perfect quarter or a perfect game of basketball," Draper added, "but that third quarter was about as close to perfection as you can come. When we had the great practice on Monday, everyone had something to do with it.

"And everyone had something to do with tonight's win."

The Eagles got off to a 20-8 lead in the first quarter and never looked back.

"The best thing about the way we're winning is that everyone is contributing," Bollinger said. "And I'm so happy to play a role in our success. It took a while for me to find my shot, but now I feel confident shooting from anywhere on the court."

Madison Rust, who finished with 11 points, is again surpassing her own high standards, as she has been battling an illness for the past three weeks.

"I've been on the team two years, and tonight we clinch another conference championship," Rust said. "This is the time of year you want to be playing your best basketball, and that's what we're doing. We're in a tough district in Columbia, Mo., and we expect to play Columbia Rock Bridge and Columbia Hickman, along with schools from down here (in Eastern Jackson County).

"We have some great practices lately and those have lead to big wins. I'm feeling so much better and I am really excited to finish our regular season this week and then head to Columbia next week."

The Eagles led 39-14 at halftime, and used the monster third quarter to take a 72-20 lead into the mercy rule fourth quarter.

"One of the best things about this season has been the chemistry among the girls on our team," Rust added. "All we care about is winning. When (the starters) are on the bench cheering for our teammates, we have almost as much fun as we do playing."