Callaway Roundup

Lady Wildcats knock off state-ranked Tuscumbia

New Bloomfield head coach Brett Craighead hopes his Lady Wildcats can maximize the benefits of this signature win.

Junior guard Sydni Bedsworth and junior forward Taylor Howard provided 14 points apiece Thursday night as New Bloomfield handed Tuscumbia - ranked No. 2 in Class 1 - its first loss of the season, 60-51 in a Show-Me Conference encounter.

The Lady Wildcats improved to 8-7 overall and squared their SMC record at 2-2.

"We kind of needed it; we were getting close to a (big win) and we were able to get it done," Craighead said. "I'm pretty proud of the girls. I told them this ought to prove they can compete with anyone."

North Callaway 58

Elsberry 56

KINGDOM CITY - The Ladybirds rallied by outscoring the Lady Indians 20-6 in the fourth quarter to pull out the Eastern Missouri Conference win Thursday night.

North Callaway (12-3, 3-0) trailed 37-28 at halftime and 50-38 to start the fourth quarter. The Ladybirds opened the period on a 6-0 run while holding the Lady Indians scoreless for 4 minutes, 45 seconds. Elsberry hit a basket to up its advantage to 52-44, but a bucket from North Callaway senior guard Jaida Gray - who logged a game-high 17 points - evened the game at 52-all with 2 minutes to go.

The Ladybirds went in front for good when junior guard Elaine Brinker hit both ends of a 1-and-1 for the game's final margin. Brinker scored 16 points despite being surrounded in a box-and-one defense for most of the night. She also handed out seven assists and came up with seven steals.

South Callaway 45

Linn 10

MOKANE - The Lady Bulldogs forced 24 turnovers overall and outscored the Lady Wildcats 22-0 in the second half to breeze to the convincing Show-Me Conference triumph Thursday night.

South Callaway (4-5, 2-2 SMC) carried a 23-10 lead into halftime, before shutting down Linn over the final 16 minutes.

"We played tremendous defense; when we set the tone on defense, we're pretty good, and we definitely did that tonight," Lady Bulldogs head coach Jim Donnelly said. "We encourage the girls to stay in front of the ball and to not give up easy looks.

"We also like to run traps when they're available, and that's where we got them into trouble."

Helias 54

Fulton 49

Sophomore guard Sloane Totta led all players with 21 points as the Lady Hornets bowed to the Lady Crusaders on Thursday night at Roger D. Davis Gymnasium.

After falling behind 15-8 in the first quarter, Fulton began attacking better in the words of head coach TJ Quick. The Lady Hornets outscored Helias 13-9 in the second quarter and trailed by just three at 24-21 at the break. Quick combatted the Lady Crusaders' box-and-1 defense of Totta with double screens to get the ball in the hands of her leading scorer.

The strategy worked as Totta scored all 14 points for Fulton in the third quarter and the Lady Hornets maintained the three-point deficit at 38-35 headed into the final quarter. Fulton went out front 45-44 on a free throw by sophomore forward NaShayla Brandt with 3:30 left, but Helias closed the game on a 10-4 run to secure the win.

"We were just taking careless shots and turning the ball over," Quick said. "We have to learn the situation and know what to do in that situation."

Wrestling

Fulton 51

Mexico 19

MEXICO -The Hornets, ranked No. 6 in Class 2 by MissouriWrestling.com, improved to 16-2 overall and 4-1 in the North Central Missouri Conference after easily handling the rival Bulldogs on Thursday night.

"We were kind of up and down," Fulton head coach Eric Hudson said. "We had some matches where we didn't look very good and then we had some other matches where we looked great.

"It's hard to get a handle on where we are as a team right now because we're dealing with some sickness and injuries, but you're going to have that at this point in the season."

College

Women's basketball

William Woods 72

Hannibal-LaGrange 46

Senior guard Andraquay Quinnine and freshman center Kennedy Volkart both logged 12 points for the Lady Owls as they hammered the Lady Trojans in an American Midwest Conference blowout Thursday night at Anderson Arena.

Westminster 58

Principia 37

The Lady Blue Jays capped off a season-long five-game homestand with a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rout of the Lady Panthers on Thursday night.

Westminster College (8-8, 6-4 SLIAC) scored the game's first eight points, but found its advantage reduced to three when Principia College's Karina Olsen hit a jumper to make it 14-11 with 13 minutes, 12 seconds to play in the first half. The Lady Panthers (2-12, 1-6) wouldn't score again for the next 12:32, while the Lady Blue Jays lengthened their lead behind an 18-0 spurt.

Junior forward Danielle Williams hit a jumper at the 10:09 mark to match Westminster's biggest lead at nine points and a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Tylere Goans gave them a double-digit cushion at 23-11 with 9:08 left. Principia wouldn't score again until just :40 seconds remained when a pair of free throws by Isabella Perea, leaving the Lady Blue Jays with a comfortable 32-13 advantage going into halftime.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.

The victory was the fourth straight for William Woods University (13-5, 6-4 AMC), which moved into fourth place in the conference standings.

The game was tied at 18-all with 7 minutes, 27 seconds left in the first half, before the Lady Owls embarked on a closing 16-0 run to take a 36-18 advantage into the break. William Woods' lead would stretch as wide as 31 points in the second half.