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The Yorktown Kitty Kats wrapped up their run at the Schulenburg Tournament, going 1-3 and picking up a win over Schulenburg before falling to Shiner St. Paul, Bay Area Christian, and Industrial.
The Kitty Kats faced a familiar opponent in a rematch against the Shiner St. Paul Lady Cardinals, ultimately falling 36–47 Saturday, Dec. 6.
Yorktown opened the game strong, striking first with an under-the-basket score by Gracie Stehling. The junior standout delivered a dominant performance on both ends of the court, finishing with a game-high 21 points and an impressive 19 rebounds.
The Kats held a narrow 10–9 lead after the first quarter. Claire Person added a basket off an assist from Palyn Koopmann, while Stehling accounted for the remaining points.
The second quarter, however, proved costly. The Cardinals outscored Yorktown 11–3, holding the Kats to a single three-pointer by Koopmann with 1:30 left in the half. Yorktown entered the break trailing 13–21.
The Kats regained their offensive rhythm in the second half but were unable to erase the early deficit. Stehling knocked down two quick baskets to start the third, one off a feed from Koopmann, and Trinity Flores drained a three to cut the score to 20–28. Person grabbed a steal soon after, though the Kats couldn’t convert on the possession. Stehling later added points at the freethrow line, but the quarter closed with the Cardinals extending their lead to 21– 30.
In the fourth, Koopmann assisted Flores on her second three of the game, bringing the score to 24–35. Stehling followed with a put-back and another shortrange bucket with 6:42 remaining. Cayleigh Goode’s steal set up yet another Stehling basket, narrowing the gap to 30– 37, but Shiner St. Paul answered quickly, ending the quarter ahead 30–39.
Stehling struck again with a drive to the basket early in the final stretch, and Rylie Krueger added a score off a Paige De-Leon assist. DeLeon then went coast-tocoast with under a minute to play, pulling Yorktown within 34–43. Stehling added a late put-back to make it 36–45, but the Cardinals closed the game with one final basket, sealing the 36–47 loss for the Kitty Kats.
Yorktown Game Stats: Gracie Stehling: 21 points, 19 rebounds Trinity Flores: 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal Palyn Koopmann: 3 assists, 3 points, 1 rebound Claire Person: 2 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal Rylie Krueger: 2 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist Paige DeLeon: 2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists Cayleigh Goode: 1 steal, 1 rebound
