Thursday, February 20, 2025 # 2 Kanab vs. # 10 Grand - Quarterfinal game
Kanab finished their regular season 23-2 overall, and an impressive 11-1 in region play, earning them the title of Region champions, while Grand went 6-4 in region play, finishing as the third place finisher and earning them the # 10 RPI seed into the state tourney.
Left to right, photos by Jeremy Houston:
Savannah Bateman puts up a three contested by Draper APA’s Aaliyah Baldwin in the state consolation game.
Emiliee Gilberg (# 11) drives the lane and lays one in against South Sevier during the State Semi Final game.
Freshman Kaycee Castagno drives baseline against South Sevier’s Sydnee Patterson during the state semi-final game.
# 10 Taylor Janes gets the entry pass into # 24 Rylee Little during the state Quarterfinal game against Grand County.
The two team’s routes to the Quarterfinals consisted of Kanab getting a BYE the first round then knocking off # 18 San Juan at home (74- 28) in the second round, with Grand beating # 23 Merit Prep at home in the first round (88-31), then traveling to take on # 7 Intermountain Christian and taking the second round game 49-32.
The two teams faced off at the Sevier Valley Center for the 2A State Quarterfinal game. While Grand played hard, it ultimately came down to them simply being outmatched. The Lady Cowboys were prepared and played with discipline and teamwork as they outscored and outplayed the Red Devils 61-21.
The Lady Cowboys went deep in the bench, contributing to the team shooting 41 percent from the floor, 38 percent from the three, 88 percent from the free throw line and collected 42 rebounds on the night.
Savannah Bateman - 17 points (all in the first half), nine rebounds
Rylee Little - 14 points, six rebounds
Taylor Janes - six points, five assists, 11 rebounds
Sidney Dayea - eight points, seven assists
Kaycee Castagno - seven points, four rebounds
Haven Syrett - four points
Taylin Kelly - three points
Carsyn Cutler - two points
Friday, February 21, 2025 # 2 Kanab vs. # 3 South Sevier - Semifinal game
With both teams belonging to Region 18, this would be the third time Kanab and South Sevier faced off for their rubber match. Kanab beat South Sevier on the road early in the regular season, beating the Rams on their home floor 49-41, but the Rams brought the heat when they came to Kanab for the rematch and ended up beating the Lady Cowboys 59-55.
South Sevier had a tougher matchup on their road to the Semifinal game, edging out the Beaver Beavers 41-32 in the quarterfinal, but looked very tough and disciplined in the process. As # 2 Kanab and # 3 South Sevier faced off for the Semi-final, the stage was set to be an intense game where the winner moved on to the Ship and the loser had to settle for playing Draper APA in the third/fourth place game.
The game was intense from start to finish, with some interesting moments involving the shot clock, six players on the court, and some intense battles under the basket. South Sevier jumped out to a 17-8 lead in the first quarter and extended their lead to 25-13 by the half. The Lady Cowboys had some adjustments to make and work to do, and made a valiant effort in the second half, outscoring the Rams 9-6 in the third, but ultimately unable to find an answer for the Rams. The final score of 45-33 sent the Rams to the Championship game against the North Summit Braves and our Lady Cowboys to the consolation game to battle the Draper APA Eagles for the third place spot.
Saturday, February 22, 2025 # 2 Kanab vs. # 4 Draper APA
The Kanab Cowboys and the Draper APA Eagles had already met once this season. Kanab beat Draper 55- 48 in the championship game of the Thanksgiving Classic held in Kanab back in early December.
Kanab came out and took control of the game and dominated the game the whole way through. Draper APA’s Aaliya “La La” Baldwin and Samantha Kartchner tried to rally their team to find an answer for Kanab, but the Lady Cowboys had too many weapons in their arsenal both offensively and defensively. The Eagles were held scoreless in the fourth quarter as the Lady Cowboys continued dominate defensively, even getting their bench in on the action and show that the future is truly bright for this great Kanab Girls Basketball program.
Kanab shot 42 percent from the floor in their last game of the season, 32 percent from the three and 78 percent from the free throw line and won the rebound battle by a landslide, outbounding the Eagles 45 to 16.
Junior sensation Rylee Little owned the paint and everything in the upper real estate around it on the night. Little not only nabbed 19 points, but 18 rebounds as well, ending her 2025 season with another double double. She also managed three assists and two blocks proving that she really is the whole package.
Senior Savannah Bateman did what Savannah Bateman does and netted five threes on her way to her 17 points as well as collecting seven rebounds for her team. Bateman’s three-point prowess has become synonymous with Lady Cowboy basketball over the past several years and she is leaving some big shoes to fill as she ends her high school career.
Junior Sidney Dayea not only had seven points and two rebounds but was one of the main reasons that Kanab was able to hold one of the leading point scorers in 2A, Aaliya Baldwin to a mere three points for the whole game. Whenever there was an offensive threat on an opposing team this season, it was Sidney who shut them down. Her defense was called upon by the Lady Cowboys first out of the gate and they would not have had such a successful season without her.
Haven Syrett managed a matching set of five points and five rebounds for her team to cap off the season, and credit should be given to the Senior for her role at the guard line. Haven stepped into a role that is tough to fill and gave it her all, all season long. She may not have been the leading scorer or assist maker, but she did what was asked to the best of her ability every single game.
Similar to Syrett, was Emilie Gilberg. The Senior did what was asked of her to the best of her ability all season long, coming up with some big shots, driving the lane well and being called to defend some leading scorers in some tough games. Her quickness proved to be a valuable weapon for the Lady Cowboys not only on the night, where she nabbed three points and four rebounds, but during the entire season.
Taylor Janes only managed two points and three rebounds for the last game of her career, but we can all agree that was an anomaly for the Senior. Janes has been a spark plug for this team since the first time she stepped on the court as a Freshman. Janes brings an energy to the court that is contagious. When her team is down, it is Taylor that is able to drive the lane and either draw the foul or find a way to get the bucket.
The two Freshman that contributed points in Kanab’s last game of the season were Kaycee Castagno and Carsyn Cutler. Castagno netted three points and hauled in four rebounds while Cutler threw down a pair of points and assists, nabbing two of each. Castagno has been the sixth man off the bench for the Lady Cowboys for the latter part of the year and it’s been fun to watch her gain some confidence in both her shooting and her overall play. Her defense is solid and at almost 6’, you wouldn’t expect her to be as proficient handling the ball as she is. Cutler has stepped up into the guard role several times in varsity games this season and continues to get better each time she sets foot on the court. We can’t wait to see what these young ladies, along with the rest of their teammates, do in the upcoming years.
While the season didn’t finish the way the Lady Cowboys had hoped, the standard that they have raised Kanab Basketball too over the past several years is astounding. They had a target on their backs the whole season and one could argue for the past several years, yet they performed with discipline and grace every single game.
Well done ladies, you have made us all proud to be Cowboys.
