Lady Indians pull minor upset in opening round

By MATT KING / Daily Journal Sports Writer

STE. GENEVIEVE - The Bismarck girls basketball team used tenacity on the boards and strong free-throw shooting to notch the lone upset, based on seeds during the opening round of the MAAA Conference Tournament on Saturday.

The 10th-seeded Lady Indians surged ahead in the final three minutes to overtake No. 7 Valle by a 52-42 margin for their first victory in Ste. Genevieve in more than four years.

Bismarck (7-11) inflicted much of its offensive damage near the basket, while Valle (8-9) kept pace from the perimeter with several timely three-pointers to produce a 40-40 score with 3:30 remaining in the contest.

The Lady Indians took the lead for good on a baseline jumper by Leah Kniess, and closed the contest with an 8-0 run which included six free throws from scoring leader Chelsey Politte.

Valle pulled to within 44-42 after Katie Shuh made an alert steal and completed an excellent transition play with a pinpoint diagonal bounce pass to Katie Jo Bergtholdt. The Lady Warriors missed a possible game-tying shot, and Stephanie Politte answered for Bismarck with a big offensive follow.

Bismarck overcame a rough start and 23 total turnovers by making 20-26 attempts at the charity stripe. Valle shot just four free throws in the game, converting two.

Shuh opened a low-scoring first quarter with a three-pointer which sparked a 9-0 run by the host squad. Bismarck countered with a 10-0 streak to take its first lead early in the second, but Danielle Donze nailed two straight triples to help the Lady Warriors regain the momentum.

Bergtholdt worked hard for a pair of offensive putbacks to farther widen the gap, and Valle carried a 25-18 advantage into halftime.

Stephanie Politte finished a good entry pass to cap a 6-0 spurt which brought the Lady Indians to within one, but Donze burned the Bismarck zone defense with her third triple of the night.

A persistent rebounding effort paid off for the Lady Indians when Stephanie Politte beat the third-quarter buzzer with a pivotal putback for a 34-32 edge.

Carla Stoll banked in a long jumper to tie the game at 38-38 with 5:00 left, but increasing foul trouble against Valle led directly to the Lady Indians' ability to seal the victory at the line.

Chelsey Politte scored 17 points to lead Bismarck. Kniess posted a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Stephanie Politte added 12 points and nine boards. Holly Blunt chipped in nine points.

Donze collected four three-pointers on her way to a team-high 17 points for Valle. Bergtholdt scored eight points and Shuh netted seven.

Bismarck will face No. 2 seed, Fredericktown in the quarterfinals at Mineral Area College on Tuesday. Valle will battle Valley in consolation bracket action on Wednesday.

Bismarck 6 12 16 18 - 52

Valle 9 16 7 10 - 42

SCORING:

Bismarck - C Politte 17, S Politte 12, Kniess 12, Blunt 9, Henson 2.

Valle - Donze 17, Bergtholdt 8, Shuh 7, Stoll 5, Naeger 3, Bruns 2.

3-point FG - Donze 4, Shuh, Naeger.

North County 46, West County 30

STE. GENEVIEVE - The North County Lady Raiders used an intense defensive effort to pull away in the second half for a 46-30 victory over West County to reach the quarterfinals of the MAAA Tournament.

An early start time did nothing to help both struggling offenses in a turnover-filled first half. A large number of missed layups prevented either team from gaining an early advantage.

North County (4-16) built a five-point lead on an offensive putback by Megan Hedgcorth, but Kara Harrison responded with one at the opposite basket in the closing second of the first quarter to trim the margin to 10-9.

The Lady Raiders created some separation before halftime when Carrissa Wood hit follow-up shot and Jamie Bullock connected on a three-pointer. Haley Motley ended a strong first half with a jumper to increase the margin to 28-19.

West County (7-10) quickly saw the game slip away after shooting 0-11 from the floor in the third quarter. Freshman Kassi Hovis opened the period with a triple and added four free throws to extend the North County lead 16.

North County was fortunate that poor free-throw shooting was not a factor in the final outcome. The Lady Raiders made just 7-25 attempts from the stripe during a final stanza which saw each team record seven points.

Motley posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Lady Raiders, who will face top-seeded Farmington on Monday. Harrison had nine points and seven rebounds for West County.

West County 9 10 4 7 - 30

North County 10 18 11 7 - 46

SCORING:

West County - Harrison 9, Rasnick 6, Boen 6, Myers 2, Blair 2, Kelly 2, Appel 2, Roney 1.

North County - Motley 17, Wood 7, Hovis 7, Bullock 5, Hedgcorth 4, Poston 3, Hinch 3.

3-point FG - Rasnick 2, Hovis, Bullock.

Potosi 64, Valley 26

STE. GENEVIEVE - The sixth-seeded Potosi Lady Trojans connected on eight consecutive field goals, including several fast-break layups during a first quarter explosion en route to a 64-26 rout against No. 11 Valley.

Senior Emily Morgan stole the show from the outset by scoring 17 points in the opening period, including a trio of three-pointers. Morgan played sparingly in the second half and finished with a game-high 23 points.

Valley (3-16) grabbed a 4-0 lead on baskets by Chelse Payne and Sarah Kearns, but Potosi responded with a 16-0 run to take control, highlighted by Morgan's shooting spree plus inside baskets from Katherine Fitzwater and Stephanie McGirl.

Potosi (11-10) enjoyed a decisive 20-5 scoring advantage in the second quarter to build a 43-17 lead at halftime. The Lady Vikings only managed to record one point in the third quarter, and finished with 29 turnovers in the game.

The Lady Trojans continued to expand the margin in the fourth quarter with a solid effort from the bench. Senior Kim Garcia converted a three-point play and hit a baseline jumper before Emily Johnston chipped in a tough putback.

Johnston contributed 10 points and McGirl tossed in eight for Potosi, which faces No. 3 Ste. Genevieve in the quarterfinals.

Kearns scored nine points to pace the Lady Vikings.

Valley 12 5 1 8 - 26

Potosi 23 20 10 11 - 64

SCORING:

Valley - Kearns 9, White 4, Payne 4, C Johnston 4, Neier 3, Goggin 2.

Potosi - Morgan 23, E Johnston 10, McGirl 8, Fitzwater 6, Garcia 6, Brown 5, Stewart 4, Chazelle 2.

3-point FG - Morgan 3, Kearns 2.

Central 57, Kingston 17

STE. GENEVIEVE - The Central girls basketball team forced a flurry of turnovers in the first half to cruise past winless Kingston, 57-17 in tournament action.

The Lady Rebels moved the ball inside to Kristen Gunder for back-to-back scores, and Jennifer Dunlap and Michelle Mabery converted two quick steals into layups during the early going to build a sudden 14-2 lead.

Central (12-8) strung together 21 consecutive points while holding the Lady Cougars scoreless in the second quarter to claim a 41-5 halftime lead.

Gunder scored a game-high 16 points in the victory, and Dunlap posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Amber Kennedy chipped in eight points for the Lady Rebels, who meet Arcadia Valley in the next round on Monday.

Danielle Mehrtens and Suzzy Pinson each scored four points for Kingston, and Becky Brown pulled down eight rebounds.

Kingston 5 0 7 5 - 17

Central 20 21 8 8 - 57

SCORING:

Kingston - Mehrtens 4, Pinson 4, Turnbull 3, Brown 2, Hopson 2, M Politte 2.

Central - Gunder 16, Dunlap 12, Kennedy 8, Lawson 6, Mabery 6, Harris 4, Neff 3, Pinson 2.

3-point FG - Pinson, Turnbull.