BY JASON PEAKE
With the season on the line, Brad Shorter pleaded with his Carl Junction Bulldogs to finish strong.
It's safe to say the Bulldogs did just that.
Top-seeded Carl Junction held second- seeded Webb City scoreless in the fourth quarter, and the Bulldogs earned a convincing 42-14 victory over the Cardinals in the championship game of the Class 4 District 12 girls basketball tournament on Friday night inside the Cardinal Dome.
Clinging to a nine-point lead after the third period, the Bulldogs outscored the Cardinals 19-0 in the final frame to turn a close one into a rout.
It's Carl Junction's fourth straight district crown.
"This is a great win for our kids and I'm very proud of them," said Shorter, who led the Bulldogs to a state runner-up finish last year after a fourth-place finish in '17. "One of the things we talked about was what can we do to increase our lead (late in the game). We had to play better defense, and we did that."
To junior standout Katie Scott, prior experience played a key role in her squad's strong finish against the upset-minded Cardinals. Simply put, the Bulldogs had been there before.
"Nothing is ever assured, but we knew this was our game if we played how we can," said Scott, a Missouri State recruit. "We've been here before and we've matured a lot as a team this season."
Webb City coach Lance Robbins noted his team simply had too many empty possessions against Carl Junction's patented 2-3 zone defense.
"We didn't do a good job of attacking their zone," Robbins said. "You have to give them credit. They're a very good basketball team and they're well-coached. Their zone is hard to attack. They're long and athletic."
Carl Junction (18-9) advances to the sectional round of the state tournament, where they'll meet the District 11 champion at 7:45 Tuesday night at Nixa High School.
Despite being the focal point of Webb City's physical defense, Scott scored 15 points to lead the Bulldogs, converting four field goals and 7-of-8 free throws.
Carl Junction junior backcourt mates Dani Wrensch and Shila Winder added 11 points apiece. Winder led the Bulldogs with 10 rebounds, while Wrensch knocked down three treys.
"Katie was solid as ever, Shila had some great rebounds and Dani hit some big shots," Shorter said.
Webb City senior guard Madeline Hayes scored 10 points to lead the Cardinals, while classmates Ali Vanzant and Abby Brownfield contributed seven and six rebounds, respectively in their final outing.
"Our three seniors did a terrific job all year long," Robbins said. "They provided us with great leadership."
Webb City's game plan was clear from the start — deny Scott the ball and make someone else beat them.
The Cardinals, who were looking for the program's first district crown since 2014, scored the first five points of the game, while the Bulldogs missed their first five field goal attempts before Wrensch buried a 3-pointer, trimming the deficit to two at the end of the opening frame.
"Defensively, I thought we were doing a good job early in the game," Robbins said. "We got to a point where we weren't getting rebounds and that killed us."
Carl Junction started the second quarter on a 9-2 run, with all but two of the points coming at the charity stripe.
Webb City's Jaydee Duda and Scott traded hoops in the lane and the Bulldogs held a 14-9 lead at the end of a physical, low-scoring first half.
"Webb City had a great game plan coming in," Shorter said. "They were trying to frustrate us, but we eventually had a decent lead by halftime."
An old-fashioned threepoint play by Hayes cut Webb City's deficit to four in the third period, but Carl Junction received a hoop in the paint from Kenzee Shanks before a buzzer-beating trey from Wrensch gave the Bulldogs a 23-14 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Wrensch then buried a corner trey early in the fourth period to jumpstart her squad's final burst.
"This one was tough," Shorter said. "Webb City's a quality team and to stretch it out like we did at the end was impressive for our kids. We feel like our experience benefited us down the stretch."
The Bulldogs are now back in the sectional round once again.
"To come out with this kind of win is a huge boost for us going forward," Scott said.
Joplin Globe 03/02/2019 (Used by permission)