The Sabetha Lady Jays hit U.S. Highway 36 to open their 2025-26 basketball season, falling 31-37 in a competitive matchup against the Marysville Bulldogs. The night also marked the debut of Sabetha native and first-year head coach Rachelle Wertenberger, who brought plenty of energy into her coaching opener.

Sabetha’s starting five featured senior Kiera Keim, and juniors Sophia Haverkamp, Paxton Michael, Sydney Schubarth and Macey Drahota. With a mix of veterans and new faces, the Lady Jays found themselves in an early hole as Marysville jumped out to an 8-1 lead.

Sabetha quickly answered. Haverkamp broke down the defense off the dribble and kicked out to Michael, who drilled her first three of the season. Moments later, senior Chloe Detweiler duplicated the look — drive, collapse, kick — and Michael buried another triple from deep, cutting the deficit to 7-8 with three minutes remaining in the opening quarter.

Keim gave Sabetha its first lead of the season with a smooth spin move into a running jumper, putting the Jays up 10-8. However, Marysville responded with a big run, capitalizing on second-chance opportunities to close the half on a 13-3 burst. The Bulldogs led 23-15 at the break.

Halftime, however, flipped a switch.

“Going into halftime, we felt like we could give more energy,” Keim said. “After the talk at halftime, we came out playing much harder, and I think that shows a lot about our toughness as a team.”

That toughness showed immediately. Making her Sabetha debut, post player Sydney Schubarth went to work. Haverkamp and Keim both fed her on the block for back-to-back buckets, trimming the lead to 19-23. On the next possession, with the Bulldog defense collapsing on her, Schubarth kicked out to a wide-open Keim, who splashed a three to pull Sabetha within one.

The momentum kept rolling. Drahota sparked the defensive effort with a crafty steal in the backcourt and found Schubarth, who used a slick shot fake to score at the rim. Moments later, Drahota and Schubarth connected again — this time with textbook pick-and-roll execution. Schubarth finished through contact and completed the three-point play, electrifying the Sabetha sideline and marking a standout third quarter for the junior post.

Despite the Lady Jays’ explosive surge, the fourth quarter proved cold offensively. Outside of another Michael three-pointer, Sabetha couldn’t find the bottom of the net. Still, their defense was stout, holding Marysville to just nine second-half points — an impressive mark for an opening game.

“I was really proud of how hard our girls competed from start to finish,” Coach Wertenberger said. “Their effort set a solid foundation for what we can build on moving forward.”

Schubarth finished with a double-double — 10 points and 12 rebounds — including 9 points in her dominant third quarter. Michael added 14 points, knocking down four of her six attempts from deep.

“This game confirmed that we’re a team built on grit, togetherness and heart,” Wertenberger said. “At the same time, it highlighted a few areas we’re excited to sharpen — taking care of the ball, improving defensive rotations and being more consistent in offensive execution.”

The Lady Jays took on the Effingham Tigers on Tuesday, Dec. 9, for their home opener. These results were not available at The Herald’s press time. Then, the Lady Jays will head to Rock Creek on Friday, Dec. 12.