KARNS CITY — Just four games into the season, Shanel Preston lay on the Karns City basketball court, clutching her knee.

The injury was severe enough to wipe out what was a promising sophomore season for the guard and left a huge hole in the young Gremlins’ starting lineup.

“It’s kind of funny,” said Karns City girls basketball coach Dave Kerschbaumer. “We got younger when we lost a sophomore.”

A freshman, LeAnn Gibson, took her spot on the floor. Surrounding her were two sophomores, one junior and one senior. The first players off the bench were two sophomores and another freshman.

Karns City stumbled a bit after Preston was lost, losing two of the next four to fall to 5-3.

In a strange way, though, the injury forced the young Gremlins to grow up — and quickly.

Karns City is cruising into the District 9 Class AA playoffs on a six-game winning streak. The Gremlins have won 10 of their last 13 games and will host a first-round postseason game next week.

“Shanel was our bread and butter. If the girls were confused or didn’t know what was going on, they just threw it to her and said, ‘Make something happen,’” Kerschbaumer said. “It took them about a week to get over the shock of not having her out there. They knew they needed to get better.”

The fact that they did get better is what makes Kerschbaumer more proud than the 15 wins — which equals the Gremlins’ victory total in the previous three seasons combined.

“They just stepped up,” Kerschbaumer said. “And they grew up.”

For the lone senior on the roster, Leah McGuire, this season has been a breath of fresh air.

McGuire had never known what it was like to be on a consistent winner. She had never experienced big games late in the season like the one the Gremlins pulled out by a bucket against rival Moniteau Wednesday night.

And she had never had to prepare for a postseason before.

“It’s been a long career for me, but this is definitely the highlight,” McGuire said. “Once we were actually going into the playoffs, I was so happy. I’ve been through some hard years at Karns City.”

McGuire is two years older than all of her teammates except for junior Emily Schumacher.

That has put McGuire in a unique position.

“I definitely took a leadership role,” McGuire said. “I enjoy every single one of them. They all work so hard.”

Not many outside of Karns City expected the Gremlins to make the playoffs this season, even with a healthy Preston in the lineup.

McGuire wasn’t one of them.

“Of course I knew it from the beginning of the season (that the Gremlins would make the playoffs),” McGuire said. “We went to a bunch of camps this summer and played a lot of basketball. I could see everything fall together.”

What has made Karns City so formidable this season is its defense, which has given up a mere 35.7 points per game, and its balance on offense.

Six players have had at least one double-digit scoring game for the Gremlins and three — sophomores Emily LoPresti and Annie Hegedus and Gibson — are averaging more than 10 points per contest.

Preston was averaging 13 points per game before her injury.

McGuire, though, may be one of the most important players on the team.

“She’s been kind of an afterthought,” Kerschbaumer said. “But she’s been our glue.”

McGuire said Karns City isn’t satisfied with its regular-season resurgence. The Gremlins, she said, aren’t settling for just a playoff berth.

“Oh, no,” she said. “We’re going for everything.”