Maybe a fast, nearly perfect start wasn’t the best way for Air Academy to open up its Class 4A quarterfinal basketball game against Evergreen, the defending girls’ state champions.

“I think everyone just got a little angry,” said Cougars senior point guard Kristen Schreiber, who scored 13 points and helped rally No. 6 Evergreen (24-2) to a 50-36 win over the No. 3 Kadets (24-2) Friday at Air Academy. “We’ve had a lot of games like this where we start out slow because of nerves. We know not to get frazzled, because if you get frazzled, it’ll just get worse.”

Claudia Dillon led all scorers with 14 points, as Evergreen recovered from an early 7-0 hole, then took control with an 8-0 run to start the second half to advance to the 4A semifinals for the third straight season. Prior to the Cougars’ state run a year ago, they fell in the title game in 2016.

“You can see why they won state last year,” said Air Academy forward Mary Parchinski, one of two Kadets seniors. “They’re very talented with amazing shooters and post players. I think they caught on to what we were doing. They knew how to stop us.”

Air Academy, which saw its 21-game winning streak halted, seemed to have momentum going into halftime after Annie Louthan’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the right wing cut the Cougars lead to 22-21.

It didn’t carry over. A scoring drought that lasted nearly half of the third quarter put the Kadets down 30-21, and they didn’t get closer than five points the rest of the way.

Liza Louthan led the Kadets with 13 points, the only Air Academy player in double figures.

Evergreen, which trailed by as many as eight points early, cut the deficit to 15-10 by the end of the first quarter, then used an 8-0 run – highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers from Hannah Kennedy – to take their first lead at 18-17 with 4:22 left before halftime.

The Cougars never trailed again.

“When the game started, we were super excited and came out with a lot of energy,” Air Academy senior Katlyn Blacksten said. “Everything was going for us, and we got the jump on them real fast. They came out stronger and applied a lot of pressure. We just came up short this game.”

Air Academy was making its longest playoff journey since winning it all in 2012.

“We have a lot of girls coming back, and our program is in an upswing,” Kadets coach Phil Roiko said. “We’re going to get better. Whenever you play a game like this, it helps you gain experience. Even though it hurts, you have to go through this to see what it takes.”

Maybe a fast, nearly perfect start wasn’t the best way for Air Academy to open up its Class 4A quarterfinal basketball game against Evergreen, the defending girls’ state champions.

“I think everyone just got a little angry,” said Cougars senior point guard Kristen Schreiber, who scored 13 points and helped rally No. 6 Evergreen (24-2) to a 50-36 win over the No. 3 Kadets (24-2) Friday at Air Academy. “We’ve had a lot of games like this where we start out slow because of nerves. We know not to get frazzled, because if you get frazzled, it’ll just get worse.”

Claudia Dillon led all scorers with 14 points, as Evergreen recovered from an early 7-0 hole, then took control with an 8-0 run to start the second half to advance to the 4A semifinals for the third straight season. Prior to the Cougars’ state run a year ago, they fell in the title game in 2016.

“You can see why they won state last year,” said Air Academy forward Mary Parchinski, one of two Kadets seniors. “They’re very talented with amazing shooters and post players. I think they caught on to what we were doing. They knew how to stop us.”

Air Academy, which saw its 21-game winning streak halted, seemed to have momentum going into halftime after Annie Louthan’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the right wing cut the Cougars lead to 22-21.

It didn’t carry over. A scoring drought that lasted nearly half of the third quarter put the Kadets down 30-21, and they didn’t get closer than five points the rest of the way.

Liza Louthan led the Kadets with 13 points, the only Air Academy player in double figures.

Evergreen, which trailed by as many as eight points early, cut the deficit to 15-10 by the end of the first quarter, then used an 8-0 run – highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers from Hannah Kennedy – to take their first lead at 18-17 with 4:22 left before halftime.

The Cougars never trailed again.

“When the game started, we were super excited and came out with a lot of energy,” Air Academy senior Katlyn Blacksten said. “Everything was going for us, and we got the jump on them real fast. They came out stronger and applied a lot of pressure. We just came up short this game.”

Air Academy was making its longest playoff journey since winning it all in 2012.

“We have a lot of girls coming back, and our program is in an upswing,” Kadets coach Phil Roiko said. “We’re going to get better. Whenever you play a game like this, it helps you gain experience. Even though it hurts, you have to go through this to see what it takes.”