​Slaughter reaches another milestone in Grain Valley 81-47 rout of Bears

by Michael Smith
 
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     Grain Valley senior Grace Slaughter didn’t even know about it when it happened.
     Early in the fourth period, she was fouled on a layup that went in and she went to the free-throw line for an and-one attempt.
     She missed the free throw but got her own rebound and made a putback layup. Head coach Randy Draper called a timeout and the Eagles cheerleaders displayed a banner with the number 2,500 on it.
     The senior accomplished the incredible feat of scoring her 2,500th point during a 81-47 rout of William Chrisman in the regular-season finale at home.
     “I remember getting 2,000 awhile back,” Slaughter said. “It was super neat. I was surprised Draper left (the starters) in. He usually lets some other girls get some minutes and get a feel for the game.”
     “I didn’t know about it. Once the girls started celebrating I was thinking, ‘What’s going on?’”
     Her teammate, sophomore Camryn Kelly, didn’t know Slaughter was close to the milestone before the game either.
     “I think we had heard rumors about it, but we didn’t know until she was four points away, so it was exciting,” Kelly said.
     Added Draper: “We didn’t discuss it with the team before the game because we just have to play. Grace scores a lot when we just play (like normal). I was really happy with our offense.”
     Grain Valley, now on an 11-game winning streak, used a full court press to fluster Chrisman. It scored 10 points on the fast break and forced eight turnovers to jump out to a 34-10 lead at the end of the first period.
     Slaughter scored 12 points in the quarter and throughout the game scored points on layups using both her left and right hand.
     “I really enjoy going up on the left side,” Slaughter said. “I guess you can say I am ambidextrous. I write with my left hand but I shoot threes with my right.
     “I broke my right collarbone in sixth grade. I had six weeks of just shooting with my left hand, so I was able to work on that for a while.”
     The Eagles (21-4) went to a halfcourt defense the rest of the way and extended the lead to 49-23 going into halftime and cruised into the fourth period with a 70-39 lead. While Slaughter exploded for a big game, she got some help from her teammates.
     Sophomore guard Camryn Kelly had one of her best games of the season as she was in double figures with 10 points, which included a pair of 3-pointers off the bench.
     “The past couple of games, I haven’t shot the best,” Kelly said. “When important players like Annabelle (Totta) and Finley (LaForge) aren’t scoring, it’s important for me to score. It’s a secret weapon that we have so many people that can shoot.”
     Totta chipped in with nine points and Meghan Knust brought energy off the bench with five points and five steals.
     “She is so scrapy,” Slaughter said of Knust. “She is the sixth man on the bench and brings a burst of energy. She’s a great all-around player.”
     The Eagles now head into the Class 6 District 7 Tournament as the No. 2 seed and they will take on Fort Osage on March 2. They may have the toughest district in the state as three teams aside from the No. 5-ranked Eagles are ranked in the top 10 of the Missouri High School Basketball Coaches Association poll, including Columbia Rock Bridge, Columbia Battle and Columbia Hickman.
     “All those teams are really good, but so are we,” Draper said. “It will be great. We have eight days, It wasn’t that long ago when we had 10 days off and we haven’t been beat since. So we’ll take the eight days and use them wisely.”

Grain Valley senior Grace Slaughter goes up for a layup during a 81-47 win against William Chrisman. She scored her 2,500th career point in the game as she put in a game-high 35 points. Photo credit: Michael Smith

Grain Valley senior Ella Clyman drives to the basket with William Chris man's Mele Taula defending her. Photo credit: Michael Smith​

​Grain Valley junior McKenah Sears drives to the basket. Photo credit: Michael Smith