By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
The Abilene boys’ basketball team battled to the final buzzer but ultimately fell at the hands of the defending state champs in a 53-41 quarterfinal with Hugoton.
Despite the bittersweet ending, this was another stellar campaign for the Cowboys, coming to a close at 19-4.
On the other side, the Eagles (21-2) will advance to the 4A semifinals to face the Atchison Phoenix (21-2).
Abilene was in this game until the closing minutes, where a big run allowed the Eagles to pull away down the stretch.
“I was proud of the way we competed,” Abilene head coach Erik Graefe said. “We cut it down to one point late but just couldn’t make shots. Credit Hugotons defense, that’s a really good team.”
Neither team was great from the outside, but the Cowboys struggled to find their stroke beyond the arc, connecting on just four of their 26 attempts.
As he had all season, Brax Fisher led the way for Abilene with 13 points as the only Cowboy in double figures while Hugoton got 16 from DaSean Lewis and Izeyah Harris, and 12 more from Jay Acosta.
This loss should not in any way, take away from what Abilene accomplished this season, as the Cowboys fought tooth and nail to secure home-court for sub-state and punched a third ticket to the state tournament in four years.
“This is a remarkable group,” Graefe said. “Every game we played down the stretch felt like a playoff game to secure home court and these guys answered the bell every single night to make that happen. We want to be one of those teams that’s there every year and eventually something has to break but it’ll be all the more sweeter when it does.”
The Cowboys will have to say goodbye to a senior class that has helped to revive Abilene athletics to its former glory as Brax Fisher, Stocton Timbrook, Zach Miller, and Keaton Hargrave all approach graduation.
“There’s no way to quantify what those seniors have meant to me and to us and it’s not just basketball, it’s our whole program,” Graefe said. “Those guys are leaders, they made us relevant in football again, and they’ve done the same in baseball and track. They’re unbelievable kids and watching how heartbroken they are is the worst part but we’ve been successful because they’ve led us.”
Despite losing a majority of their starters, Abilene will have much to look forward to next season, with a strong group of returners looking to take up the mantle in 2024-25.
“I always feel optimistic,” he said. “We essentially had eight starters this year and four of them were underclassmen. When we put in those three guys every quarter the energy would ramp up and I really look forward to what they do next year.”