Butler women beat Dodge City to set record in conference wins

Butler women beat Dodge City to set record in conference wins

DODGE CITY, Kan. – The Butler women set a program record for most wins in conference play, finishing the regular season with an 81-60 win over Dodge City in United Wireless Arena.

The Grizzlies now advance to the Region VI Playoffs. Butler will host a first-round playoff game, likely taking on Labette (12-18) at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday in the Power Plant.

On Wednesday, Dodge City took advantage of perimeter shooting early as the Conqs made five 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes of the game and led the Grizzlies 22-19 with just under 10 minutes left in the first half.

Butler would get four straight points from Katie Andersen to trigger an 8-0 run that put the Grit lies up 27-22 with six minutes left in the first half. But the Grizzzlies couldn't shake Dodge City and led by just one at the half, 33-32.

In the second half, Jamillah Bonner took over. She scored 14 of Butler's first 17 points in the second half as Butler stretched its lead to 50-40 with 13:09 to play in the game.

The Grizzlies continued to build the lead, with the 21-point margin at the conclusion being the biggest lead of the contest.

Bonner led Butler 21 points, 18 of which came in the second half. Samantha Satterlee scored 17 points and Ashlee Ivy scored 16 points while pulling down a game-high 17 rebounds. Kelli Tolar led Dodge City with 13 points.

The Grizzlies finish the regular season with a 24-6 record, including a 12-4 mark in Jayhawk West Conference play. That sets the program record for most wins in conference. The previous high was 11 conference wins in 2002. Butler had won three conference titles in the early 1990s, but those teams only played 12 conference games each year.

Butler finishes third in the conference standings this year, its best conference finish since the 2007 team finished in third with a 9-7 conference record. The 24 wins are the most since the 2002 team that finished 27-6.