MOKANE - South Callaway junior center DeLaney Horstman scored 12 of her game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter as the state-ranked Lady Bulldogs fought past Russellville in a 49-40 SMC win Thursday night.
South Callaway - ranked 10th in Class 3 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association - improved to 9-1 on the season and 2-0 in the Show-Me Conference. Horstman, who was dogged by foul trouble, and the Lady Bulldogs broke a 30-all tie entering the fourth quarter and outscored the Lady Indians 19-10 over the final 8 minutes.
"The girls dug down and played with the heart we all know they have," South Callaway head coach Darren Humphrey said. "Russellville has a really, really solid team with no seniors.
"They used a really good strategy. They tried to hold the ball in the half-court and control the pace, and get us spread out. We kept in position (defensively) and extended out when we needed to."
Sophomore forward Hailee Potter added 10 points for the Lady Bulldogs and junior guard Paige Clubb finished with nine.
Macie Edwards paced the Lady Indians with 13 points and Lanie Grayson was next with 12.
South Callaway triumphed in the junior varsity contest 15-9 in two quarters. Freshman guard Cassidy Mealy and freshman forward Alaney Miller both scored seven points.
The Lady Bulldogs host their annual South Callaway Tournament next week. South Callaway received the top seed and faces No. 8 North Callaway in first-round play at 6 p.m. Monday in the high school gym.
The Lady Bulldogs rolled past the Ladybirds in a 67-32 victory Tuesday night in Mokane.