ROLLA – The Lewis University Flyers just have the Missouri S&T Lady Miners number as it defeated S&T for the sixth straight time and third straight time in the GLVC Tournament 74-71 on Sunday afternoon in Rolla. It's the second straight that the Flyers have traveled down to Rolla to defeat the Lady Miners in the conference tourney.

The game started out as a back and forth affair over the course of the first eight minutes with each side trading baskets. S&T (18-9) had no answer on the defensive end for Jess Reinhart as she scored nine of Lewis's (8-19) first 11 points.

Once Reinhart went to the bench with two fouls then Madeline Kish and Labrenthia Murdock stepped up scoring the next 16 Flyer points as they took a 27-18 lead with 6:51 to play in the opening half.

The lead eventually grew to 10 on a three from Nikki Nellen at the 5:01 mark.

The Lady Miners began to trim away at the lead getting it to 34-28 on a fast break layup by Julie Meyer (Marthasville, Mo./St. Francis Borgia) with 2:14 left in the half. Lewis extended the lead back to nine on the ensuing possession as Alexus Grayer hit a three from the left wing.

S&T cut it to 38-31 on a layup by Senait McLeod (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) with less than a minute to play but Grayer answered with another three pushing the lead back to 10.  Katelyn Heil (Dexter, Mo./Dexter) made it nine point game heading into the break making 1-of-2 at the foul line.

Both sides made 14 field goals in the opening 20 minutes. The difference was the Flyers needed just 28 attempts and hit seven three's while the Lady Miners took 36 shots and made just two three's.

Meyer led S&T with eight points. Kyesha Hall (Dodson, La.) added seven while Hailee Parks (Sullivan, Mo./Sullivan) and Courtney Kemp (Fredricktown, Mo./Fredricktown) dropped home six apiece. Kish and Reinhart combined for 23 of Lewis's 41 points.

The Lady Miners had their opportunities early in the second half as they locked down on the Flyers on the defensive end but couldn't score on the offensive end as they were just 3-of-14 to start the second half.  Lewis eventually built a 66-50 lead with 5:11 to play after four straight points from Kish.

S&T scored nine straight in a span of two minutes pulling within 66-59 getting five of those from Parks and the other four from Hall.  The Flyers pushed the lead back to nine on a pair of free throws by Devon Carbaugh with less than three minutes to play.

Toni Knar (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein) hit a three with 2:42 to play to make it a six point contest. The Lady Miners couldn't get a stop on the defensive end as Hall fouled Reinhart and she made 1-of-2 to make it 69-62 with 2:22 to play.

After a missed layup by Parks, Lewis got the rebound and Jamie Johnson made it 71-62 on a jumper with 1:40 remaining.  Hall made a three on the next possession then picked Johnson's pocket and scored to make it 71-67 with 1:11 to play.

S&T was forced to foul in the final minute and sent Johnson to the line with 0:51 left. She made 1-of-2 extending the lead back to five.  Meyer made it 72-69 on the next possession hitting a jumper in the lane with 0:38 left.

The Lady Miners were again forced to foul sending Johnson back to the line as she hit both free throws extending the lead back to five with 0:22 remaining.  S&T turned it over as Hall had a pass go off her hands into the Lady Miners bench with 0:13 left. The Lady Miners fouled Murdock who missed the front end of a 1-and-1.

Meyer hit a jumper with 0:05 left for the final points of the game.

S&T recorded season-highs in both shots (71) and three-point attempts (27) but made only 28 and eight respectively. It also shot a season-low nine free throws. The Lady Miners were outrebounded by a 40-to-33 margin.

Hall scored a career-high 19 points to lead S&T while Meyer recorded a double-double in her final game as a Lady Miner with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Parks finished with 11 points and nine rebounds. Kemp, also playing her last game in an S&T uniform, had eight points.

Lewis shot 47 percent (24-for-51) from the floor, was 10-of-19 (53 percent) from downtown and 16-for-22 (73 percent) at the charity stripe. Kish, Reinhart and Murdock combined to score 51 of the 74 points.

S&T ends its season at 18-9 overall and finished third in the GLVC's West Division.

Click here for the game's full box score.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The third and fourth grade Dexter Bearcats hit the courts on Saturday afternoon when they competed in the Stoddard County Mayhem tournament. The 'Cats took on fourth grade teams from Kennett and New Madrid in the all-day event.

"We tried to get five teams, but just couldn't get that fifth team," third grade coach Dave Ellinghouse said. "We got Kennett and New Madrid to come up, tried to get Jackson and Charleston, but just couldn't get a fifth team."

"We wanted the third grade boys to play some better teams," he continued. "We thought we might get Jackson's third grade team down here; we saw them play at the Farmington tournament the week before, and knew they were pretty good."

Ellinghouse noted the tournament wouldn't have been possible without the support of Jamie Rowe and the Dexter Parks and Recreation department.

"I talked to Jamie about putting it together, and she said they would be glad to host it," he said. DPR opened up it's newest facility, located next to the Dexter Aquatic Center, for the tournament.

Due to the small field, the tournament was set up with a three-game round robin tournament to determine seeding, followed by a single elimination bracket later in the day. The third grade squad struggled against their older opponents early in the day, but Ellinghouse said it was good for his team to face the tougher competition.

"Kennett had a big kid inside, had a couple quick guards," he said. "Had them within four with about a minute left; went with a small lineup to try to press them and get steals, 'speed' them to death. Wound up with two or three unforced turnovers, and lost by nine."

"We lost to New Madrid by six," Ellinghouse continued. "They had a big kid that scored 10 or 12 points, and we missed 12 free throws, so there's the difference right there. A third grader scoring 10 points is a lot."

The fourth grade 'Cats, coached by Darren Hillis and Steve Wyman, made quick work of both the Kennett and New Madrid teams during round-robin play. The coaches elected to skip the round robin matchup between the two Dexter teams, as the two would immediately rematch in the first round of bracket play.

The fourth grade 'Cats were able to pick up a win over the younger 'Cats and move into the Championship Game. Kennett dispatched New Madrid in the other bracket contest to seal the Championship matchup.

The fourth grade Bearcats cruised to a big win over Kennett in the tournament finals to take home first place.

The Stoddard County Mayhem tournament was the final tournament of the year for the third grade squad, who ended the season with a 14-5-1 record; the 'Cats also averaged a 16 point margin of victory in their wins.

The fourth grade squad finished the year with a 22-2 record; their two losses came against a fifth grade team out of Bernie and a team out of Park Hills, Mo., with only total points deciding the two losses.



Thanks SMT Reader and Bearcat Mom Amy Ellinghouse for the photos!

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Lafayette cut a 14-point halftime deficit to five on three occasions in the final minutes, but the comeback fell short on Saturday as American held on for a 76-69 win in the Patriot League regular-season finale.

Fifth-seeded Lafayette will now play fourth-seeded Holy Cross on Wednesday in the Patriot League Tournament Quarterfinal in Worcester, Mass. The teams split the season series with each team winning on the other's home court. The Crusaders were Lafayette's first-round opponent in the 2011 tournament when Lafayette advanced to the Patriot League championship game.

Ryan Willen had his third double-double of the season and seventh of his career, finishing with 16 points and 13 rebounds. The Leopards outrebounded a Patriot League opponent for the third time this season, 45-31, the team's largest rebound margin of the season. Seth Hinrichs pulled down a career-high eight rebounds to go with Willen's career-best performance.

Lafayette (12-17, 7-7) and American (19-10, 10-4) traded 7-0 runs to open the game with AU taking its first and Lafayette responding. The game was tied 9-9 at the 12:33 mark. The Eagles ripped off a 20-2 run. Tony Wroblicky had five points in the span and Mike Bersch added two three-pointers and Charles Hinkel contributed another as AU led 29-11 with 4:48 left in the opening stanza.

Hinrichs stopped the AU spurt with a drive and dunk. American led by as many as 20 twice in the first half and held a 36-22 advantage at intermission. Lafayette shot 30 percent from the floor in the first half including 1-for-11 from long range.

The Leopards came out of the locker room with renewed intensity, slicing the American lead to 10 (53-43) with 10:39 left on Jim Mower's three-pointer from the top of the arc off a Hinrichs' feed. Mower finished with 10 points as one of three Lafayette players in double figures.

Two minutes later, Bersch put back a missed Hinkle jumper to push the AU lead back to 14. Nick Petkovich followed with a three, and three free throws from Willen moved the deficit to eight (57-49) with 5:49 left.

Troy Brewer (13 points) nailed two crucial three-pointers on consecutive possessions and Daniel Munoz added a layup as American led 65-51 with 4:41 left. Rob Delaney, who finished with 14 points, drained a three-pointer with 1:37 left to put the score at 68-62.

Willen's layup with 1:19 left in the game put the Eagles' advantage at five and again with 37 seconds remaining on two more Willen foul shots. The Leopards pressured the inbounds pass but Blake Jolivette sneaked away down the court to put in a layup that ran the final to 76-69.

Lafayette shot 37 percent for the game and 7-for-28 from three-point land. The Eagles fared better from long distance, converting 10-of-17 (59%) while shooting 47 percent from the floor.

Click here for the game's full box score.

Editor's Note: Alan Flannigan returned to action for the Leopards after missing several games due to concussion symptoms. The freshman saw limited minutes, but took a step in the right direction by getting back on the court.

FULTON - In a game that turned out to have absolutely zero playoff implications, the William Woods University women's basketball team rolled to a 78-65 win over Missouri Baptist and gave head coach Dan Chapla his 100th career win for WWU.

The Owls shot a season-high .609 from the floor and saw three scorers finish with 20 points in the romp, with Ashlee Taylor (Dexter, Mo.) leading the way with 23 points. Megan Aubuchon (Old Monroe, Mo.) also picked up her third double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

The Owls started the game up 2-0, as Aubuchon made both free throws for a technical foul assessed during the pre-game, following up with a bucket off the opening tap to give WWU a quick 4-0 cushion. The Owls continued to push, with Aubuchon and Sharron Andrews (Oakland/Hayward, Calif.) combining to give William Woods a 13-4 lead by the 16:44 mark.

Missouri Baptist responded with a six-point spurt to close to 13-10, but the Owls extended the lead back to nine, with a Destani Stensrud (Exeter, Mo.) bucket off an assist from Blake French (St. Charles, Mo.) putting WWU back on top 26-17 with just under 10 to go.

The Spartans were able to battle back, even taking a 32-33 lead with 3:14 left in the half. With the shot clock winding down, Mandy Kirby was able to draw contact from French as she was hurling up a desperation three, but the MBU junior was able to make all three free throws for the Spartans.

The foul seemed to fire up WWU, as Andrews answered with a wide-open 3-pointer on the next possession, sparking the Owls to a 11-2 run to close out the half.

The Owls started the second half exactly as they started the first, with an Aubuchon bucket in the first 20 seconds. WWU stretched a 43-35 halftime margin to a 57-44 cushion with 16:07 to go in the game.

MBU was able to take advantage of a short cold snap for William Woods, closing to a 66-61 deficit with just over six minutes to play, but a 3-pointer from Katie Scherder (Bowling Green, Mo.) off an Andrews assist took the wind out of the sails for the Spartans.

William Woods pulled away to a 78-63 lead before Chapla made a sweeping substitution with 30 seconds left, allowing his five seniors to take a final regular-season curtain call as the baton was passed to the underclassmen. MBU hit a consolation bucket with 20 seconds to go for the final margin.

In addition to outshooting MBU by nearly 20 percent - .609 to .417 - William Woods dominated the rebounding battle, grabbing 36 boards to just 26 for the Spartans. The Owls also handed out 14 assists on the night, led by six for Andrews, who also joined Aubuchon and Taylor with 20 points. Kirby led the Spartans with 17 points on the night.

With the win, Chapla becomes the fastest head coach to earn 100 wins at William Woods, doing so in his 128th game at the helm and in just his fourth season. He also becomes the first coach since Roger Ternes to record four consecutive 20-win seasons.

The Owls host the first round of the AMC Postseason Tournament on Wednesday night, taking Missouri Baptist at 7 p.m.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

SIKESTON - The old adage "defense wins championships" was proven by the Dexter Lady Bearcats in the Class 4, District 1 Championship game on Friday night. LBB's high-pressure defense dismantled the Notre Dame Lady Bulldogs on the way to a 62-38 victory in a rematch of last year's title game.

LBB head coach Chad Allen was quick to compliment the Bulldogs; the two teams split the regular season series 1-1.

"Notre Dame always puts a good team on the floor; Coach Peters does a good job with them. I thought Notre Dame played extremely well, especially after losing Alison Bradshaw last year," Allen said. "They were focused this year and definitely had a great season."

The most recent contest between Dexter and Notre Dame saw the Lady Bulldogs squeak out a 52-51 victory on their home court. Seniors Summer Burger and Brooke Bohnert combined for 40 points in that game, and Allen noted it as a key in his team's preparation for the title game.

"I thought our girls worked extremely hard these last few weeks preparing for Notre Dame," he said. "We focused on Bohnert and Burger, trying to stop them; they are two great players. The biggest difference, we shot 29 percent from the field last time we played. I thought we gave a much better defensive effort tonight."

"For the most part, I thought we did a really good job offensively tonight," Allen continued. "I thought our girls were really focused this game; they came out and had a great defensive effort tonight."

Paige Patterson had another breakout game for the Lady 'Cats; the sophomore has flown under the radar of All-State junior Brittany Harris for most of the regular season, but has really stepped up her game in the last several weeks. Patterson paced the Lady 'Cats with 18 points, and added nine boards and four blocks in the win.

"Paige had a great game last night, and she turned around and had a really good game tonight, Allen said. "She's stepped up her play, and is getting pretty hard to stop inside there."

The Lady Bulldogs held a one point lead at the 5:15 mark of the first quarter, but the Lady Bearcats were able to put together a 13-6 run to close out the frame with a 17-11 lead.

Notre Dame pulled within two points midway through the second quarter, but it was the closest they would get for the rest of the night. A steal from Erika Cobb set up an 8-0 run to give LBB a 27-17 lead heading into halftime.



A trey by Miranda Fowler was the only spark Notre Dame had in the second half; the Lady Bearcats' press gave the Bulldogs fits early in the third, and forced a 10 second violation at the 3:30 mark. An offensive rebound and putback from Harris brought the score to 42-28 heading into the fourth.

Cobb knocked down a trey in the early fourth quarter to give the 'Cats a 14 point lead. A 10 footer from Harris gave LBB a 20 point lead at 1:45. LBB would run out the clock to take home a 62-38 victory.

"We talked about our defense at half. We wanted to come out with a lot of intensity in the second half and try to wear them down. I thought they did a really good job against [Notre Dame's] press-breaker offense," Allen commented. "We've worked that really hard for the last few weeks, and we took that away in the second half. I know we got at least one 10 second violation, and I think a couple five-second violations in the half-court. They played a great game defensively tonight."

The Lady Bearcats improve to 23-4 on the season with the win.

In District 2, the Park Hills Central Rebels were able to hand North County a 59-54 loss to claim their district title; the Lady 'Cats will meet the Rebels in sectional action on Wednesday (Feb. 29) at Mineral Area College; tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m.