Article by Chad Clevenger
McPherson, Kan. - It was a special night at Jerry E. Alexander Arena. The Mayors Cup rivalry between the Central Tigers and McPherson Bulldogs has been quite one sided over the past 19 meetings as the McPherson Bulldogs have won the past 19 meetings by an average of 25 points per game. Coach Brad Willems inhertied a program that was looking for something, and he inserted his intensity, attention to detail, and a plan to finally bring the Mayors Cup trophy to a place it's never been, in the Ed Pyle Sports Complex on the Central Christian Campus. Little did he know, that a kid from the city of McPherson, who scorched the Tigers a year ago as a McPherson Bulldog, would be the same person who would lead the Tigers to their 1^st ever victory in the Mayors Cup rivalry, a person with similar intensity, and attention to detail. It was Chloe Clevenger, a 2023 graduate of McPherson High School and very familiar with the lop-sided rivalry. Clevenger did something that Mayor Tom Brown shared with Clevenger after the game, that she is the 1^st player to hoist the Mayors Trophy as a winner from both schools, and it being a McPherson resident made it even more special.
"When I decided to transfer, I decided then and there the trophy was following me. We were not going to lose this game," said Clevenger following a career night where she scored 29 points, and made the game winning steal and free throws with 1.2 seconds on the clock, as the Tigers shocked the Bulldogs 59-58.
A classic game that was primarily led by the Bulldogs. It seemed that any run the Tigers would put together, the Bulldogs would have an immediate answer. The Tigers were able to build a 13-7 lead in the 1^st quarter, but the Tigers were able to have a 9-0 run till 3 seconds remaining in the quarter, when Clevenger hit a 3 pointer in front of the Bulldog bench at the buzzer to tie the game at 16.
The 2^nd quarter saw 6 lead changes and 3 ties, where the teams exchanged blows, as Hallee Winsea answered a McPherson 3 with a 3 of her own, a McPherson bucket answered by a rebound putback by Cristina Laudan tied it up again. Again the Bulldogs score, only to be answered with a Charmayne Marshall 3 to give the Tigers the lead 26-25, a lead the Tigers would not have until the final seconds of the game. The Bulldogs headed into the break with a 32-29 lead.

The 2^nd half started with a Clevenger 3 that tied the game, her 2^nd of 3 game tying 3 pointers. The Bulldogs built a 6 point lead late in the quarter, but a big 15 footer near the end of the quarter by Laudan cut the lead and score at the end of the 3^rd 42-39.

The 4^th quarter opened with a Clevenger lay in, but answered with a Bulldog score, then Clevenger hit a game tying 3 pointer to get the score at 44-44. The Bulldogs went on an 8-0 run and were looking to put the game away, as they led 52-44. Willems called timeout and out of the timeout, and we saw arguably the series of the night, Clevenger stole a McPherson pass and went coast to coast for a layup. Denia Miler stole the inbound pass found Clevenger ready to shoot a 3 and Clevenger hit it, her 6^th of the game, to cut the lead 52-49, and just like that the Tigers were back in the game along with the packed arena. Once again, the Bulldogs answer, but a huge offensive rebound put back by Miler put it back at 3. Another score by McPherson, answered by a Kayla Hall circus reverse shot put the tigers down 1. McPherson answered again, followed by a Hallee Winsea answer, her 15^th points of the game, put the score at 58-57 with only seconds left, and would set the tone for an exciting finish. McPherson inbounding the ball at half court, and the Tiger trap resulted in a steal by Clevenger as she darted down the court full speed trying to get a shot off before the end of regulation. McPherson fouled Clevenger as she was shooting the layup, and Clevenger was at the line with 1.2 seconds remaining. Clevenger hit both shots, nothing but net, and the party started as the Tiger stunned the Bulldogs for the 1^st time in the last 19 tries, 59-58. 
 
Key Stat: Central forced 27 McPherson Turnovers, and created 28 points off those turnovers
 
Tiger Leaders:
Points: Chloe Clevenger (29)
Rebounds: Chloe Clevenger (8)
Assists: Chloe Clevenger, Denia Miler (4)
Steals: Chloe Clevenger (6)
Blocks: Cristina Laudan (1)

Coaches Comment
"It was a great day to be a Tiger! JV fights back and get a big win! Then the Varsity team does the same thing! All I've ever asked of the ladies is for them to compete! And if we do it together, good things will happen! We had a lot of individuals doing great things, but this is all about the team pulling together and growing together. We still have things to work on, but when you have great effort and attitude, it makes it easier! We need to continue to grow and use this as a springboard! I've very proud of out ladies!"
-Coach Willems
 
The Tigers (2-1) will return to Jerry E. Alexander Arena for a homecoming game against Mount Marty University. Tip is scheduled for 3:30pm, and can be seen on the SAC Sports Network.