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Sikeston Standard Democrat

Sikeston's Robinson to wrestle at Lindenwood-Belleville (05/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- When looking for a college where he could continue his wrestling career Sikeston senior Kenton Robinson spent a lot of time trying to figure out where he would be most comfortable. After weighing all his options, Robinson decided to join teammate and friend Blake Angle in signing a letter of intent to wrestle at Lindenwood-Belleville University...

Eagles flying high (05/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- It's a win New Madrid County Central needed heading into districts. It was also a loss the Sikeston Bulldogs possibly couldn't afford. The Eagles defeated Sikeston 4-3 Wednesday at VFW Stadium by quieting the Bulldogs' lineup behind the arms of Kyle Harris and Denton Daugherty...

East Prairie drops district tune up to Bloomfield (05/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- In their final tuneup before postseason play starts this weekend, the East Prairie Eagles saw a late three-run rally by the Bloomfield Wildcats seal a 7-5 loss on Wednesday. "Our kids played hard today against a pretty good Bloomfield team," East Prairie head coach Gary Scott said. "We gave ourselves opportunities to score some runs we just couldn't come through with the big hit, especially early."...

Charleston, Scott Central both fall on Wednesday (05/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- The Charleston Bluejays dropped an 11-1 decision to Cape Central Wednesday in five innings. The Bluejays totaled just two hits in the contest scoring their only run in the fifth inning. Vance Toole knocked in three runs and Christian Cavaness plated two for the Tigers...

Tough loss (05/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Graves County took advantage of Sikeston's miscues. The Bulldogs, who have made it an unhealthy habit of giving their opposition extra outs and bases of late, committed four errors which led to three runs Tuesday as Graves Co., Ky., defeated Sikeston, 5-4...

NMCC blanks Portageville 6-0 (05/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Combining for seven innings of one-hit ball on Tuesday, pitchers Josh Reed and Logan Frazier guided New Madrid County Central to a 6-0 win over Portageville on senior night. "It was a good day for the seniors," NMCC head coach Joseph McClarty said. "Great job by Josh and Logan pitching a combined one-hitter. We had great defense behind them and swung the bats well."...

Chaffee ends regular season with 21 wins (05/09/12)
EAST PRAIRIE -- The Chaffee Red Devils ended the regular season with a 21-3 record after downing East Prairie 9-1 on Tuesday. Chaffee got a dominant pitching performance from Cody Payne who tossed a complete game, striking out 14 and allowing just one unearned run...

Rams can't find clutch hits against Poplar Bluff (05/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Coming up with the big hit eluded the Rams. Twice Scott City had the bases loaded and even brought the potential go-ahead run to the plate Monday but the Poplar Bluff Mules escaped each jam to eventually win 5-2 at Scott City High School...

Dexter tops SHS in first round of team district (05/08/12)
DEXTER -- The Sikeston tennis team lost in the first round of team district play to Dexter 6-0 on Monday afternoon. Sikeston dropped all six singles matches and the doubles matches were not necessary to play. Sikeston will be back in action on Saturday when they travel to Potosi to take part in the individual district tournament...

Woodland rolls past Lady Eagles (05/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- In giving up six and four-run rallies in the final two innings on Monday the East Prairie Lady Eagles fell 15-5 to Woodland after five innings via the mercy rule. "Just a little disappointed on that one," East Prairie head coach Steve Stokes said of the game. "We should have played at least a full seven innings. I'm not saying we should have won, but we should have been there to give us a chance to win it at the end of the game."...

On to sectionals (05/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Scott City senior Brandon Shemonia captured three individual titles at the Class 2 District 1 track and field meet Saturday at Cape Central High School. Shemonia won the 800, 1600 and 3200. He also ran on the Rams' victorious 3200 meter relay team to help Scott City finish second in the team standings with 113 points...

Moore, Eagles outlast Chaffee (05/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Friday's pitcher's duel against one of their closest rivals may have been just what the Oran Eagles needed to get out of their recent struggles. Kody Moore and the Eagles, who have been plagued with shoddy defense and a lack of offense of late, out-lasted Chaffee's Alex Davie in nine innings at Harmon Field to beat the Red Devils 2-1...

Sikeston rolls (05/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs have shown to be a powerful offensive team at times this season. Despite struggling on offense the past several games, the Bulldogs broke out of the slump in a big way on Friday afternoon with a 16-6 victory over South Pemiscot in five innings at VFW Stadium...

Crusaders ruin Bluejay streak, 11-2 (05/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Already holding wins over Advance and Scott County Central from earlier in the week, the Charleston Bluejays entered Friday's contest against Saxony Lutheran with a chance for their first three-game winning streak of the season...

Back on track (05/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs got back on the winning track with a 6-2 victory over St. Mary's on Thursday afternoon at VFW Stadium. The Bulldogs, who had been struggling defensively the past few games, snapped out of the funk with several key defensive plays and solid hitting against the Vikings...

Oran gets past NMCC 14-9 (05/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Buoyed by a pair of early three-run rallies, Oran held off a late New Madrid County Central rally on Thursday for a 14-9 win. "We have played some good competition lately and the kids have battled back," Oran head coach Mitch Woods said. "I thought they did a good job."...

Huge second half lifts Jackson over Lady Bulldogs 4-2 (05/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Squandering a 2-0 halftime lead, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs couldn't keep the Jackson Lady Indians down for long. Jackson hit the back of the net four times in the second half, downing the Lady Bulldogs 4-2 Thursday at the Sikeston Sports Complex...

Poplar Bluff slips by SHS netters 5-4 (05/04/12)
SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs tennis team lost a close 5-4 match to Poplar Bluff on Thursday. Sikeston got singles wins from Josh Bill, Brandon Goodwin and Wade Gadberry while the doubles team of Jimmy Hines and Layton Jones also earned a win. "We played our best match of the year," said Sikeston coach Russ Dial. ...

Chaffee wins 20th; NMCC softball ends with 17-1 mark (05/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils won their 20th game of the season Thursday pounding Saxony Lutheran 16-1 in five innings. Alex Crowe picked up the win on the mound going all five innings and striking out three. Leading 2-1 after three innings, Chaffee, who totaled 15 hits, broke the game open with five runs in the fourth and nine more in the fifth...

Tough loss (05/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Despite two home runs by junior Drew Harper, the Sikeston Bulldogs continue to be plagued by defensive miscues as they fell 7-5 to Cape Central on Wednesday afternoon at VFW Stadium. The Bulldogs have now dropped three of its last four games and all three losses can be attributed in large part to shoddy defense, committing a combined 16 errors in the three games...

Charleston outslugs Scott Central in 15-7 win (05/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- With a chance to end their home schedule on a high note the Scott County Central Braves were unable to keep up with a Charleston offense that loaded the bases in five separate innings on Wednesday. After taking the lead with a five-run, second-inning-rally the Bluejays were able to hold on for a 15-7 final that gave Charleston its first back-to-back wins of the season...

Kelly golf's season ends at sectionals (05/03/12)
ST. LOUIS -- Kelly shot a 412 to finish in fifth place at Tapawingo National Golf Club in St. Louis. The Hawks failed to get a golfer through to the state tournament. Derrick Garner just missed the cut with a 21-over-par 93, which placed him 22nd and two shots off going to the state tournament...

Heady play (05/01/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- A heads-up play from Sikeston junior Madison Chaney proved to be the difference on Monday in the Lady Bulldogs' 1-0 win over Poplar Bluff. With the game scoreless in the 60th minute, Chaney took a shot from directly in front of the goal that sailed over Poplar Bluff goalkeeper Courtney Raulston. ...

Scott City boys and Chaffee girls win SEMO South meet (05/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- For the fourth straight year, the Chaffee Lady Devils won the SEMO South conference track meet Monday at East Prairie High School. Chaffee scored 177 points to beat out the remaining seven schools. "We talked about that before the meet and to win four in a row is just a huge accomplishment," Chaffee track coach Travis Caulkins said. "I'm very proud of the girls."...

Dexter girls win SEMO Central (05/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- In edging out Notre Dame by 13 points, the Dexter Lady Bearcats took first place on Monday at the SEMO Central Conference track meet. Dexter finished the contest with a total of 174 points thanks in large part to taking first place in seven of the meet's 17 events. Notre Dame scored 161 points on the evening, good for second place, while Kennett placed third with 68 points...

SHS golfers take second in the SEMO Conference (05/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Sikeston golf team finished second during the SEMO Conference tournament Monday as Kirk Hoggatt led the Bulldogs to a 329 finish. Hoggatt scored a 77, which tied him for second overall. "It was really good to see Kirk get out and have a good day," Sikeston golf coach Andy McGill said. "He's struggled a bit during his last few tournaments and to see him shoot well was a good sign."...

Red Devils Invitational (04/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils track team swept their own meet Thursday during the Chaffee Red Devil Invitational. The boys scored a total of 139 while the girls finished with 133. Through balanced scoring and three first place finishes, the Chaffee boys ended up well ahead of their closest competitor, Charleston, who scored 79.5 points...

Portageville shuts down East Prairie in 8-1 victory (04/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- With the pitching combination of Zac Treece and Jansen Darst holding East Prairie to only two hits on Thursday Portageville was able to take and early lead and hold on for a 8-1 win. "We put the ball in play and that's good to see," Portageville assistant coach Ron Riddle said. "Our bats have started to come alive a bit. Zac Treece gave us five good innings and the defense played well behind him."...

SHS soccer falls at Marion; Jays' baseball snaps losing streak (04/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com MARION, Ill. -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs fell to Marion, Ill., Thursday 3-1. Madison Chaney scored her 14th goal of the season in the loss. Sikeston (5-9) fell behind 2-1 at the half in another windy contest. With the assist from Monica Carter, Chaney punched in the Lady Bulldogs' only goal in the 35th minute...

Scott City routs Woodland 12-0 (04/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Moving to the .500 mark on the season, the Scott City Rams put up a pair of six run rallies to defeat visiting Woodland 12-0 in five innings on Monday. "We put a lot of balls in play, made them make plays and our pitcher threw strikes," Scott City head coach Lance Amick said. "Something we haven't done consistently is throw strikes and make plays in the field. We've been hit or miss with the bats, but consistently we've had eight or nine hits in game...

Chaffee sweep (04/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- The Chaffee track team swept the East Prairie Open Monday clinching a total of 14 first place finishes in both the boys and girls events. The boys scored 133 points which put them well ahead of East Prairie, who was the runner-ups at 108...

Chaffee continues to roll with 13-0 win (04/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PATTON -- The Chaffee Red Devils improved to 16-1 with a 13-0 road win over Meadow Heights on Monday. Chaffee allowed only one hit while pounding out 14 themselves, including six doubles. Jimmy Golden led Chaffee going 3 for 4 at the plate with two doubles. Cody Payne was 2 for 4 with a double while Jared Walker was 2 for 2 with a double...

Oran loses heartbreaker at ND Showcase (04/23/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Oran Eagles baseball team went lost both of their games over the weekend during the Notre Dame Showcase at Notre Dame High School. Oran (11-4) lost the showcase's finale 5-0 to the host, Notre Dame Bulldogs...

Bulldogs fare well at Cape Relays (04/23/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Sikeston Bulldogs track team had a strong showing Saturday during the Cape Relays at Cape Central High School. The boys team finished fifth with an 89 while the girls topped out at third with 114. Cape Central took first with 124 points. Union and Jackson beat out Sikeston on the girls side...

2011-12 Standard Democrat Basketball Players of the Year (04/21/12)
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Harris' post play lifts Lady Bearcats (04/21/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- On a roster filled with scorers and difference makers, Brittany Harris pushes Dexter to another level. The 5-11 junior uses a plethora of moves around the basket and is nearly impossible to slow down. She leads an already potent Lady Bearcats roster as one of the more dominant post-players in the Southeast Missouri region...

Tucker clutch for champion Bluejays (04/21/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Greatness in basketball is usually measured by whose hands are on the ball when the final seconds are ticking away. When the Charleston Bluejays found themselves in crucial situations, Greg Tucker had the ball in his hands...

Kelly Invitational (04/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Derrick Garner led the Kelly Hawks to the first-ever Kelly Invitational title at the Sikeston Bootheel Golf Course Thursday. Garner was the top medalist with a score of 78, while the team took home first place as well with a 356...

Marion blanks Sikeston netters 9-0 (04/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Visiting Marion, Ill., swept the Sikeston Bulldogs 9-0 Thursday at the Sikeston Public Tennis Courts at Sikeston High School. Senior Josh Bill went into a tiebreaker with Marion's number one, Pablo Cuartas, after tying 8-8. Bill fell 7-2 in the tiebreaker...

Portageville ends NMCC winning streak at 54 (04/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PORTAGEVILLE -- The Portageville Lady Bulldogs ended New Madrid County Central's unprecedented 54-game winning streak Thursday beating the Lady Eagles 7-1. Portageville's Jenna Hawkins picked up the win limiting NMCC to just three hits and striking out 11...

Sikeston soccer team blanked at Saxony 2-0 (04/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com JACKSON -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs fell 2-0 to Saxony Lutheran Thursday night at Saxony Lutheran High School. Saxony scored both their goals in the first half. The first came in just the fifth minute from a corner kick, which Sikeston failed to clear...

Dexter girls, Chaffee boys earn wins in Riverbend Invitational (04/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- The 28th Annual Riverbend Invitational track meet saw the Chaffee Red Devils and Dexter Lady Bearcats put up strong showings to win their respective sides of the meet. On the boy's side the Red Devils posted a team score of 88 points to best Caruthersville, who had 85, for the top spot...

Cape Central slips past Kelly in late innings (04/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- A sacrifice fly off the bat of Christian Cavaness was what it took for the Cape Central Tigers to upend the Kelly Hawks Wednesday. With one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, Cavaness lifted a ball into right field which led to Cape Central's 3-2 win...

'Game of inches' (04/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Despite taking an early lead on a three-run home run from Chase Young in the bottom of the first on Wednesday, the Dexter Bearcats couldn't find enough offense late to stay on top of the Poplar Bluff Mules. After watching the Mules rally for runs in both the fifth and sixth frames to take the lead, the Bearcats fell 6-5...

NMCC softball team edges Twin Rivers; SHS boys track team wins meet (04/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- The New Madrid County Central softball team edged past Twin Rivers 7-6 on Wednesday to stay unbeaten on the season. The Lady Eagles scored six runs in the bottom of the fourth for a 7-2 lead and held on to beat the Lady Royals, improving to 11-0 on the season and notching their 54th straight win...

Hot start continues (04/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- With starter Alex Davie providing seven innings of shutout ball, the Chaffee Red Devils continued their hot start to the season on Monday when the Charleston Bluejays came town. Surrendering only two hits while not issuing a walk, Davie struck out 10 Bluejays as the Red Devils picked up their 14th win of the season, 6-0...

Sikeston places 5th at Jackson Invitational (04/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com JACKSON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs golf team finished in fifth place Monday during the Jackson Invitational at Kimbeland Country Club. Evan Deere finished tied for sixth with a score of 78. Kirk Hoggatt and Gabe Wheeler, who each carded an 80, tied for 13th...

All-star extravaganza (04/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Sikeston senior Kil'Ron Coleman picked up Most Valuable Player honors as his team, A+ Medical Equipment, defeated Allen Christian during the Class 3, 4 and 5 game at the BA All-Star game at the Bearcat Event Center in Dexter...

NMCC wins Silver Pool at the Malden Invitational (04/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BERNIE -- Competing in the Silver Pool of the Malden Invitational Tournament on Saturday, the New Madrid County Central Eagles swept a pair of games over Advance and Bernie. Backed by three no-hit innings from starter Kyle Harris, the Eagles opened up their day with a 20-0 win over Advance in four innings...

SHS soccer team places seventh at Fralish Cup (04/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs soccer team won seventh place in the Fralish Cup Saturday defeating Marion, Ill., 1-0. Madison Chaney scored the games only goal with the assist from Monica Carter. Sophomore Annie Ramey, who blocked 18 shots on goal this weekend, picked up the shutout as keeper...

Kelly wins slugfest over Jays 21-11 (04/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Wrapping up the 2012 Go Blue Classic, the Charleston Bluejays fell 21-11 to the Kelly Hawks on Saturday at Hillhouse Park. Trey Watkins and D.J. Adams had three hits each in the contest while Cole Byford, Casey Tatum, Chance Maness, Corey Adams and Ryan Housman contributed two hits apiece...

Twilight Relays (04/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs always try to use their own Sikeston Twilight Relays as a gauge at how well the team is progressing at the midpoint of the track and field season. The Bulldogs boys captured first place medals in seven of the boys events while the girls team won gold medals in five events in the 10-team field on Friday at Sikeston Public Schools Stadium...

Sikeston, Charleston to play for good cause (04/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs and the Charleston Bluejays are hoping their long standing rivalry can draw a big crowd for a good cause. On April 17th, the Sikeston-Charleston baseball game will double as a cancer awareness game to bring forth much-needed attention to breast cancer dubbing their Tuesday meeting 'Rivals for a Cure!'...

NMCC slips by Doniphan then falls to Holcomb (04/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com MALDEN -- Fighting back from a late four-run deficit on Friday, New Madrid County Central pumped out five runs in the seventh inning to beat Doniphan 12-11 in their first game of the Malden Invitational Tournament. "We definitely have no quit in us, that's for sure," Eagles' head coach Joseph McClarty said. "We're just hit and miss right now. On Thursday we play Dexter 1-0 where we played a flawless defensive game and didn't swing the bats very well...

Jays drop slugfest in Classic (04/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- For one of the first times this season, the Charleston Bluejays were effective on offense. A young, inexperienced Bluejays squad pounded out 15 hits and had five players with at least two hits apiece. Although Charleston scratched out some runs, so did Barat Academy...

SHS drops first game of Fralish Cup (04/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs lost their first game of the Fralish Cup Friday to Hyland, Ill., 3-0. The Lady Bulldogs (2-6) went into the half tied 0-0. Hyland, however, posted all three of their goals in the second half...

Pitching duel (04/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Riding a dominant start from Owen Flowers, the Dexter Bearcats picked up their second shutout in-a-row on Thursday against New Madrid County Central. Locked in a pitching a duel with the Eagles' JaShawn McDaniel, Flowers got the benefit of a solo home run from leadoff hitter Daniel Fitts in the third as the Bearcats held on to win 1-0...

Walker's big hit leads Chaffee to win over rival Scott City 5-1 (04/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Chaffee's Jared Walker knew exactly what pitch was coming. With the bases loaded and no outs, Walker got what he was expecting and broke open a pitcher's duel as he pushed across the eventual game-winning runs Thursday helping the Red Devils down their rival, Scott City, 5-1 at Harmon Field in Chaffee...

Risco one-hits Gideon for conference win (04/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com GIDEON -- The Risco Tigers allowed just one hit in a 13-0 win over Gideon in a Tri-County Conference game on Thursday. Matt Cummins earned the win, pitching four innings, allowing just one hit while Chris Pavy finished the game by striking out the side in the fifth...

Hawks soar (04/12/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- Breaking out for 11 runs in the fourth inning on Wednesday, the Kelly Hawks picked up their fifth win of season with a 16-1 rout of Bell City. "It was good for our team," Kelly head coach Josh Eftink said. "We needed a game like this were we came out and did a lot of things well today. Gabe (Felter) had a great game on the mound, throwing a lot of strikes for us. Really up and down the lineup we hit the ball pretty well."...

SHS earns 5-2 road victory (04/12/12)
HARRISBURG, Ill. -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs offense is starting to come around. The Lady Bulldogs defeated Harrisburg, Ill., 5-2 on Wednesday night behind a three-goal effort by Madison Chaney. "We're a very young team and I knew it would take a while for us to find our identity on offense," Sikeston head coach Doyle Noe said. "We're playing with more confidence and I think we took a big step in the right direction today."...

NMCC coach notches 250th victory; Oran no-hits Braves (04/12/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DELTA -- New Madrid County Central softball coach Steve Rogers earned his 250th win as the Lady Eagles defeated Delta 5-0 on the road Wednesday. NMCC (10-0) scored a single run in the second inning before breaking the game open in the top of the sixth, scoring six runs...

Making the most (04/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- The game ended on an outfield assist from Dexter right fielder Logan Northern, but it was won by the Bearcats' ability to make the most of their opportunities. Northern's toss to catcher D.J. Dowdy reached home plate well before a speeding Drew Harper to cut down the Sikeston junior and give a young Bearcats squad a 5-4 upset victory over the Sikeston Bulldogs Monday night in Dexter...

NMCC lets big lead slip away, holds on to defeat Dexter 17-14 (04/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- With their 50-game winning streak on the line, the New Madrid County Central Lady Eagles got a little more excitement than they anticipated when they took on the Dexter Lady Bearcats. Putting in their subs to start the bottom of the fifth with a 16-run lead on Monday, the Lady Eagles watched the Lady Bearcats rally for 13 runs in the frame and close their deficit to four...

Risco routs Southland in five innings (04/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- Risco's Chris Pavy went 4 for 5 with five RBI during Risco's 19-9 rout over visiting Southland on Monday at Risco High School in five innings. Although the Tigers fell behind 8-3 at one point, the Tigers rallied for six runs in the bottom of the second to take the lead for good...

NMCC softball wins own tourney Saturday (04/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- The New Madrid County Central Lady Eagles swept their own invitational tournament Saturday defeating both Delta and Kennett. NMCC (7-0) downed Delta 11-1 in the first game of the day and followed it up with a 10-5 win over Kennett...

Sikeston softball team makes the grade (04/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- One thing anyone can tell from watching a Sikeston Lady Bulldogs softball game is how much time and effort goes into putting a competitive squad on the field. What may not be so evident, however, is the same time and effort that the girls put into their work in the classroom...

Local athletes performing in college (04/07/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Several local athletes have been making an impact on college baseball and softball diamonds this spring. At Southeast Missouri State, Oran's Kody Campbell is a senior first baseman and through 29 games had a .278 average with two doubles, five home runs and 21 RBI. Also playing for SEMO is Scott City's Shae Simmons. The junior pitcher has thrown in seven games with a 1-4 record and 4.15 ERA. In 34 2/3 innings Simmons has walked 22 and struck out 42...

Nicholson opening eyes as freshman (04/07/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com LYNCHBURG, Va. -- It didn't take long for East Prairie graduate Jennifer Nicholson to make a name for herself in the college ranks. The Liberty University freshman recently recorded the longest discus throw at the school since 1992 with a throw of 146-0 at the Coastal Carolina Invitational, good enough for second place...

Angle signs to wrestle in college (04/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- After completing one of the most successful careers in the history of the Sikeston Bulldog wrestling program, senior Blake Angle has decided his time on the mat is not quite finished. In front of family and coaches this past Monday, Angle signed his letter of intent to wrestle at Lindenwood-Belleville University in Belleville, Ill...

Silent bats (04/06/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- For the most part this season, the Sikeston Bulldogs been a consistent hitting baseball team. But the Bulldogs' bats went silent on Thursday at VFW Stadium in a 3-1 loss to Farmington on a cold, windy and wet afternoon...

Kelly takes advantage of Jays' miscues in 14-6 win (04/06/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON --Unable to fight back from an early seven-run deficit on Thursday, the Charleston Bluejays fell 14-6 to the Kelly Hawks. "You have to fight your way out of situations like this," Charleston head coach Michael Minner said. "We kicked some balls early and gave up some easy runs, but overall today was probably the most pleased that I've been...

Charleston boys, Chaffee girls win meet (04/06/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Led by five first place finishes, the Charleston Bluejays boys track and field team won their own meet Thursday at the Charleston Invitational at Charleston High School. The Chaffee Lady Devils took the girls team title with a total of 140 points...

Chaffee rallies past Risco; SCC wins (04/06/12)
CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils used a seventh inning rally to defeat Risco 8-2 on Thursday. Weather forced the game to be moved from Risco, but the Tigers batted as the home team and tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth. However in the top of the seventh, with two outs, the Red Devils exploded for six runs and put the game out of reach...

Early runs help Oran in 10-2 win over Scott City (04/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ORAN -- In scoring five runs in the first inning of Wednesday's contest against Scott City, the Oran Eagles were able to put the visiting Rams in an early hole they couldn't dig out of. Padding their lead in all but the second frame, the Eagles went on to pick up their sixth win of the season, 10-2...

SHS takes second at Farmington Invitational (04/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com FARMINGTON -- Sikeston golfer Evan Deere finished first in the Farmington Invitational Tournament on Wednesday as the Bulldogs placed second as a team at Crown Pointe Golf Course. Deere, a senior, shot a 77 to lead the field...

Eagles soaring (04/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- With his teammates playing flawless defense behind him, New Madrid County Central's Kyle Harris provided the Eagles with five shutout innings to guide the Eagles to their fourth win of the season. Knocking out seven hits while taking advantage of nine Risco errors on Monday, the Eagles won 10-0 in five innings on the mercy rule...

East Prairie thumps Charleston 20-5 (04/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- The East Prairie Lady Eagles took advantage of nearly every opportunity they could. With just eight hits, East Prairie plated 20 runs to win their fifth game of the season defeating the Charleston Lady Bluejays 20-5 in five innings...

Chaffee baseball, NMCC softball each sweep pair (04/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils took two games on Monday, defeating Leopold 7-1 and Delta 20-1. In the first game against Leopold, Chaffee scored two runs in the first inning and that was enough as Alex Davie tossed 5 1/3 innings allowing only one earned run while striking out 12 and walking three. Cody Payne earned the save striking out three in the last 1 2/3 innings...

SHS splits pair in Kentucky; Chaffee wins own tourney (04/02/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com REIDLAND, Ky. -- The Sikeston Bulldogs split their games during the second day of the Reidland Invitational baseball tournament on Saturday. The Bulldogs defeated Heath High School 7-6 and lost 5-0 to Calloway, Ken. Clayton Driskill hit a go-ahead, pinch-hit double in the fifth inning against Heath that held up for the Bulldogs, who had 11 hits in the game, to take the win...

Oran blasts four home runs in 12-2 win over Charleston (03/30/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ORAN -- After the first three games of the regular season, the Oran Eagles still found themselves searching for their first home run of the season. That all changed on Thursday when Kody Moore launched the first of four Oran homers against Charleston as the Eagles went on to win 12-2 in five innings on the mercy-rule...

NMCC and Scott City both claim victories on Thursday (03/30/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- The New Madrid County Central Eagles baseball team improved to 3-0 on the season with a 15-10 win over Kelly. Each team scratched out 12 hits in the game but the Eagles scored in every inning to earn the win...

SHS aced (03/30/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston tennis team was swept by visiting Dexter 9-0 on Thursday. "Dexter just had too much power and accuracy for us today," said Sikeston tennis coach Russ Dial. "They committed very few unforced errors, whereas, we had very few winners. They are a strong team with state-experienced players...

Short work (03/29/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning making short work of their opposing visitor from the east, Carbondale, Ill., 10-0 in five innings. Sikeston starter Drew Harper pitched the five inning shutout...

Dexter stays hot in 13-1 win over Kelly (03/29/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Fresh off their comeback win against Oran the day prior, Dexter kept things rolling on Wednesday when the Kelly Hawks came to town. Pumping out nine runs in the first inning alone, the Bearcats were able to claim their fourth win in their first five games of the season with a 13-1 decision in five innings on the mercy rule...

Sikeston track splits with Cape Central (03/29/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston boys and girls track and field team split with Cape Central in a dual meet on Wednesday afternoon at SPS Stadium. The Sikeston boys defeated Cape Central 93-52 while the girls fell to the Lady Tigers, 71-67...

Chaffee baseball wins, Scott Central falls 9-1 (03/29/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BERNIE -- Chaffee's Alex Crowe earned the win on the mound and provided the Red Devils with a grand slam Wednesday as Chaffee picked up with third win of the season with a 7-2 victory over Bernie. Crowe poked his grand slam in the top of the fourth with the Red Devils down 2-0. Crowe, who pitched five innings, finished 2 for 4 at the plate...

Late rally lifts Kelly over Chaffee, 2-1 (03/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- With their ace, Ian Householder, holding Chaffee to only one run through seven innings of work on Monday, the Kelly Hawks rallied from a late deficit to pick up their second win of the young season, 2-1. "Ian's a guy who if you're going to get him you have to get him early," Kelly head coach Josh Eftink said. ...

Getting by (03/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ORAN -- Just two games in, Oran head coach Mitch Wood can tell his team isn't as sharp as he'd like them to be. The Eagles' run in the Class 2 basketball playoffs may play some part in that, but the Eagles picked up their second win of the season Monday...

Sikeston netters drop match to NDHS (03/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Sikeston Bulldogs tennis team fell to Notre Dame on Monday 6-3. Brandon Goodwin won his singles match against Webb Marshall 8-1 and Layton Jones tied Mason Burdin 8-8 before pulling a 7-1 win in the extra set...

Charleston drops two Saturday in invitational (03/26/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Making up for lost time after getting rained out on Friday, the Charleston Invitational took place on Saturday with four teams taking part in an eight-game schedule. The host Charleston Bluejays bookended the tournament with a pair of losses, starting with a 9-2 decision that went to Meridian, Ill. In the loss, Trey Watkins, Corey Adams, Michael Baugh and Ryan Housman each contributed a hit to the Bluejays cause...

Winning tradition (03/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Very few coaches have accomplished what Danny Farmer has. Especially working in both boys and girls basketball. Charleston's head coach has produced time and time again throughout a nearly 30-year career and he's done it within an area separated by just 23 miles...

Hot seat? (03/23/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- After winning three straight Class 1 state basketball championships, Scott County Central head coach Kenyon Wright may be shown the door. Speculation about his position as basketball coach and athletic director at Scott Central has been suspect over the last few days as rumors about replacing the state champion coach has grown...

NMCC blisters Bloomfield 27-4 (03/23/12)
BLOOMFIELD -- New Madrid County Central improved to 2-0 with a 27-4 road win over Bloomfield on Thursday. After failing to score in the first inning, NMCC blew the game open with 14 runs in the second and added 13 more in the third. Michaela Townsend earned the win, throwing two perfect innings, striking out five. She was relieved by freshman Alexa Garner who pitched the final inning...

First win (03/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- Taking the field just 24 hours after their season-opening, extra-inning loss to Notre Dame, the Sikeston Bulldogs picked up their first win under new head coach Alan Scheeter on Wednesday. Despite the best efforts of Kelly ace Ian Householder, the Bulldogs took advantage of several Hawk miscues in the field to pull out a 7-3 win...

Sikeston easily wins dual meet against NMCC (03/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston boys and girls track and field teams swept a dual meet against New Madrid County Central on Wednesday at Sikeston Public Schools Stadium. Sikeston's boys defeated NMCC 122-22 while the girls posted a 69-32 victory...

Chaffee downs Cape Central for first time since 2001 (03/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils scored seven runs in their final two at-bats and defeated Cape Central for the first time since 2001 on Wednesday. Chaffee trailed 2-0 entering the bottom of the fifth and scored two to tie the game and then added five in the bottom of the sixth to earn a 7-2 win...

Sikeston drops opener 1-0 (03/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- They earned shots on goal, they had the most time of possession and even kept Harrisburg from scoring a goal -- even though they lost 1-0. The only thing the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs couldn't do was find the back of their own net...

STILL THE CHAMPS: Scott County Central wins fourth-straight championship; 16th overall (03/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com COLUMBIA -- Their desire to capture 'Sweet 16' can be summed up with their relentless rebounding efforts under the basket. The Scott County Central Braves defeated the Drexel Bobcats 79-72 on Saturday to win their fourth Class 1 state championship in a row and their 16th overall...

BACK on TOP: Charleston wins 11th state championship and first since 2007 (03/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com COLUMBIA -- Playing against the team that knocked them out of state title contention a year ago, the Charleston Bluejays did not have revenge or payback on their minds. The only thing on their minds was restoring their place as the top Class 3 team in the state...

Lofty goals (03/15/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Banking on their depth and experience, the Sikeston Bulldogs golf team is looking to have one of it's best seasons in recent years. Three-time state qualifier Evan Deere leads a pack of seasoned players as well as a few up and comers as they try to improve as individuals and as a team -- something they struggled with last year...

Jays looking to finish the job (03/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Back in the Show-Me Showdown for the second straight year, the Charleston Bluejays will return to Columbia looking to make up for last year's semifinal letdown that left the Bluejays out of the championship game...

Braves chasing their fourth straight state championship (03/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Not many thought the Scott County Central Braves would be in this position. Especially this soon. After losing their superstar, Otto Porter, as well as a host of experience on the big stage from last years squad, the Braves have debunked many thoughts about them having what it takes to bring home another state championship...

Track preview (03/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Led by a select few, such as seniors Terry Jamison and Betsy Borgsmiller, the Sikeston Bulldogs track team should be top-heavy when it comes to individual performers. As far as the team goes, however, they may not have enough horses to make any noise at the state level...

Scott Central back in semifinals (03/12/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com POPLAR BLUFF -- In surviving a rough first half against Eminence on Saturday, the Scott County Central Braves moved one step closer to their fourth-consecutive state championship. Led by 24 points from senior Lamarcus Steward, the Braves took a three-point lead into the half before holding on for a 65-51 quarterfinal win to book their trip to the Class 1 final four...

Charleston boys basketball team heads back to final four (03/12/12)
Senior Greg Tucker knocked down all 10 of his free throws in the fourth quarter to help guide the Bluejays to a 71-63 win.

Huge second half lifts Hayti over Oran (03/12/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- The Hayti Indians are known for being an athletic team that crashes the boards hard. Combine that aspect with accurate perimeter shooting and it's a combination that proved to be too much for Oran to overcome as Hayti rolled to a 74-48 victory in a Class 2 quarterfinal game at Dexter High School...

Local teams seeking to advance to semifinals (03/09/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com POPLAR BLUFF -- Several local boys teams will be fighting to make it to the state semifinals this weekend in Classes 1, 2 and 3. Here is a breakdown of the games featuring local teams. 2:45 p.m. Saturday, Poplar Bluff High School...

Sikeston's Walker signs with Avila (03/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Avila University offered Ben Walker exactly what he wanted -- a smaller atmosphere, his major and a chance to play football. Walker recently signed his letter of intent to play football for the Avila Eagles making him the third 2012 Sikeston Bulldog lineman to play at the next level...

Oran in quarterfinals for first time since 1969 (03/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PARK HILLS -- Back in the same gym on Wednesday where New Haven ended their season in last year's sectional, Oran booked their first trip to the quarterfinals since 1969. Taking a 11-point lead into the half, the Eagles survived a second half surge by the Crossroads College Prep Current for a 59-54 Class 2 sectional win...

Moving on (03/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com WEST PLAINS -- There's no need to worry about Charleston senior Greg Tucker anymore. He's injury free and ready to lead his explosive Bluejays once again. "I'm 100 percent," Tucker said. "No nagging, no nothing." Tucker, who had dealt with a deep thigh bruise for the last month, poured in a game high 27 points on Wednesday night during Charleston's 74-64 sectional win over Liberty Mountain-View at the West Plains Civic Center in West Plains...

Unbeaten Seymour takes advantage of NMCC jitters 73-39 (03/08/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com WEST PLAINS -- The New Madrid County Central Lady Eagles were in unfamiliar territory and it showed. NMCC came out timid in Wednesday night's Class 3 sectional game against undefeated Seymour and turned the ball over 30 times falling to the Lady Tigers 73-39 at the West Plains Civic Center...

SCC-Risco highlights sectional play (03/06/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Several local teams will be taking part in playoff basketball this week, beginning with sectionals in Class 1 today and Class 2 and 3 Wednesday. Here is a breakdown of the games featuring local teams. 7:45 p.m. Tuesday, Bearcat Event Center (Dexter)...

NMCC girls to take on undefeated Seymour (03/06/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Two local girls teams will be taking part in playoff basketball this week, beginning with sectionals in Class 1 today with Delta and Class 3 Wednesday with New Madrid County Central. Here is a breakdown of the games featuring local teams...

Agony of defeat: SHS comeback falls short against Imagine in Class 4 quarterfinal game (03/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com FARMINGTON -- After completing a perfect 30-0 season last year and capturing the school's first-ever basketball state championship, Sikeston's players had dreams of returning to the final four once again. But those dreams ended in heartbreaking fashion on Saturday night with a 65-64 loss to Imagine College Prep in a Class 4 Quarterfinal game at the Farmington Civic Center...

Offensive struggles: Dexter struggles to find points in quarterfinal loss (03/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com FARMINGTON -- Although Miller Career Academy was late to the party, it's the Dexter Lady Bearcats who are going home early. Dexter struggled against a mighty Miller team that was led by sophomore Zhanesha Dickerson's 21 points on Saturday during the Class 4 quarterfinal losing 51-34...

Three-peat (03/02/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- After the cheering died down, the pictures were taken and the celebration ended, Risco was quickly reminded that their quest wasn't over. Although the Tigers took care of the Gideon Bulldogs 88-72 for their third straight Class 1, District 1 championship on Thursday night, thoughts of the Scott County Central Braves crept into their minds. ...

Hayti hits three at buzzer to end Portageville's season (03/02/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com HAYTI -- Despite the fact that Hunter Turner went into the final seconds of Thursday's Class 2, District 1 semifinals without a field goal, the Hayti Indians entrusted the senior with the most important shot of their season...

Relentless (03/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PARK HILLS -- DeSoto's height was no match for Sikeston's relentlessness. On Wednesday night, not even the likes of Southeast Missouri State University recruits Colin Ferguson and Jared White could slow down the merciless attack of Sikeston who defeated the Dragons 71-59 in the Class 4, Sectional at Mineral Area College in Park Hills...

Harris, Dexter get past Lady Rebels (03/01/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com PARK HILLS -- The Dexter Lady Bearcats have been known all season for having a balanced scoring attack, but for one half in Wednesday night's Class 4 sectional at Mineral Area College, Brittany Harris stole the show. The junior scored 18 first half points and pulled down nine rebounds before the rest of the Lady Bearcats took over in the second half in a 64-49 win over Park Hills Central...

Charleston survives tough test from Caruthersville in semis (03/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- With his team winning so many lopsided games during the regular season, Charleston head coach Danny Farmer entered the Class 3, District 1 Tournament worried his team might have become a little overconfident...

Charleston rolls; NMCC's season ends (02/28/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Despite a strong fourth quarter surge on Monday, fifth-seeded New Madrid County Central couldn't overcome a rough first half against fourth-seeded Caruthersville. Playing the Tigers in the quarterfinals of the Class 3, District 1 Tournament, the Eagles saw their season come to a close with a 66-56 loss...

Without Tucker, Jays still cruise into semifinals (02/28/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Even with leading scorer, Greg Tucker, sitting on the bench in street clothes, the top-seeded Charleston Bluejays had little trouble advancing to the semifinals of the Class 3, District 1 Tournament. While letting Tucker spend a few extra day resting a nagging thigh injury, the Bluejays opened up the quarterfinals on Monday with a 80-40 win over eighth-seeded Twin Rivers...

Eagles fall to Twin Rivers in opening round of tourney (02/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Looking to advance to the quarterfinals of the Class 3, District 1 Tournament, the ninth-seeded East Prairie Eagles fell to the eighth-seeded Twin Rivers Royals 70-48 in Saturday's play-in game. "I felt like tonight everybody wanted to step up and be 'the man' instead of playing as a team," East Prairie head coach Casey Knight said. ...

Charleston and East Prairie girls drop first round games (02/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Unable to rebound from a rough first half, the Charleston Lady Bluejays saw their season come to a close with a 75-56 loss to Doniphan in the opening round of the Class 3, District 1 Tournament on Saturday...

Chaffee boys, girls both advance along with the Oran boys (02/27/12)
GREENVILLE -- Chaffee earned a spot in the semifinals with a 57-42 win over Ellington on Saturday afternoon. Taylor Fodge scored 19 points and Adrienne Eichhorn added 15 for the Lady Devils (6-16), who will face top-seeded Meadow Heights in Monday's 6 p.m. semifinal...

R-E-S-P-E-C-T: SHS earns respect, fourth-straight district title after routing Notre Dame (02/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Despite being the defending state champions, three-time defending district champs and following that up with an impressive regular season run this year, the Sikeston Bulldogs still received the No. 2 seed in the Class 4, District 1 Tournament...

Repeat! Dexter shuts down Notre Dame to claim second-straight title (02/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Dexter kept a tight lid on Notre Dame. They held the Lady Bulldogs to 32 percent shooting, their leading scorer to two points and under 40 points for the fifth time this season. The Lady Bearcats won their second straight Class 4, District 1 title on Friday night shrugging aside the Notre Dame Lady Bulldogs 62-38 at the Sikeston Field House...

Risco ties school record with 22nd win (02/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ZALMA -- The Risco Tigers tied the school's single-season record for wins on Friday night, downing Zalma 98-62. With the win, Risco improves to 22-3, tying the mark set by the 1973-74 team that finished 22-6 under then coach Stan Whitson...

Fight to the end (02/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- After winning in the first round of the Class 4, District 1 tournament with a thrilling come-from-behind victory over Fredericktown on Tuesday, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs were hoping to catch lightning in a bottle once again...

Dexter routs Ste. Gen. 76-32 to reach finals (02/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Dexter sophomore Hannah Noe grabbed the opening tip, took it straight at the goal and laid it in. The rout was on. The top seeded Lady Bearcats rolled over the Ste. Genevieve Hunters on Thursday night 76-32 to reach the championship game of the Class 4, District 1 tournament at the Sikeston Field House...

Oran boys hold off Kelly 75-66 (02/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ORAN -- In their final tuneup before the postseason, the Oran Eagles fought back from an early fourth-deficit on Thursday to hold off the Kelly Hawks for a 75-66 senior night win. "The goal going in is getting a 'W' on senior night," Oran head coach Joe Shoemaker said. "Our seniors have given a lot to the program. They've played hard all four years so I was proud of them and glad we got a win for them tonight."...

Charleston girls end regular season with win (02/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com MARBLE HILL -- The Charleston Lady Bluejays finished their season with a 64-60 comeback win over the Woodland Lady Cardinals on Thursday night at Woodland High School. "We're trying to work things out around some injuries and I think they played really well," Charleston head coach Josh Thompson said. "We got down 10 at the half and then 14 in the third but we pulled it out by hitting our free throws."...

Familiar territory (02/23/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- When the Class 4, District 1 seeds were released and Sikeston came in at No. 2, it might have served as a little motivation for the Bulldog players. On Wednesday in the semifinals of the district, the defending state champion Bulldogs sent out a statement that they are still indeed a force to be reckoned with as they completely dominated third-seeded Perryville, 82-55 at the Field House...

Sikeston's Driskill signs to play football at Avila University (02/23/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- When Sikeston senior Clayton Driskill started looking for a college he wanted the opportunity to play football at a university that offered his major: finance. He found that in Avila University. Driskill, an offensive lineman, recently signed his letter of intent to play for the school located in Kansas City. He chose Avila over Truman State, William Jewel and Missouri State...

Bulldogs' Watson signs to play football at Lincoln University (02/23/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- After a year that placed him as one of Sikeston's all-time rushers, James Watson will be heading to Lincoln University to suit up as a Blue Tiger in Jefferson City. Watson recently signed his letter of intent to play football for Lincoln following a senior season that entailed 1,605 rushing yards -- good enough to place the one-year running back fourth all-time in school history...

District drama (02/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- It took nearly three and a half quarters, but the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs woke up just in time to save their season on Tuesday night. Trailing the entire game, third-seeded Sikeston put together a furious rally in the final four minutes to defeat sixth-seeded Fredericktown 47-46 in heart-pounding Class 4, District 1 action at the Sikeston Field House...

Charleston wins minus two starters; NMCC standout reaches milestone (02/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DONIPHAN -- The Charleston Bluejays won a battle of state-ranked teams with a 83-73 road win over Doniphan on Tuesday. Playing without the services of all-state guard Greg Tucker and fellow senior starter Jamaul Gray, Charleston got 33 points from junior Aaron Cassell while junior Ryan Parham added 20, downing the Dons...

Bloomfield free throw shooting helps sink Kelly (02/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Though Kelly was able to fight back from a slow start on Tuesday to trail by only a point at the half, the Hawks couldn't deny Bloomfield a win on Senior Night. After hanging within a shot into the final minute of play, Kelly watched the Wildcats finish out the game going 7 of 9 from the free throw line to seal a 58-51 win...

Cotner, Rams shine on Senior Night (02/22/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- As determined as he usually is, Zach Cotner took his intent to another level on Tuesday night. The senior walked off his home court for the last time scoring 33 points against Portageville as Cotner and the Scott City Rams won their final regular season game 60-56...

Sikeston's Angle, Dexter's Stevens place sixth (02/21/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com COLUMBIA -- Sikeston's Blake Angle and Dexter's Cody Stevens both ended stellar careers on Saturday finishing sixth in state in their respective classes. Angle, wrestling in the 120-pound division in Class 3, lost in the fourth round wrestleback to Kearney's Seth Brayfield on Saturday. Brayfield, entering the match with a record of 54-4, pinned Angle at 3:38 to send Angle to the fifth place match...

District disappointment (02/21/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Dexter's season slipped away in the fourth quarter. Fredericktown outscored Dexter 16-6 in the final quarter and knocked the fourth seeded Bearcats out of the Class 4, District 1 tournament in the first round on Monday at the Sikeston Field House...

Portageville downs Lady Hawks 63-53 (02/21/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PORTAGEVILLE -- Celebrating senior night on Monday, the Portageville Lady Bulldogs rode a strong first half and 25 points from Taylor McCoy to a 63-53 win over the Kelly Lady Hawks. "We came out with the energy level that we needed and we played good defense," Portageville coach Barry Branscum said. "They had size we don't have, but I thought we did a pretty good job of defending inside...

NMCC runs past South Pemiscot (02/21/12)
STEELE -- The New Madrid County Central girls basketball team improved to 15-8 on the season with an 83-52 road win over South Pemiscot on Monday. Juniors Benesha Childress and Karen McGloson combined for 62 points with Childress marking 32 and McGloson 30. McGloson needs just 17 points to reach 1,000 for her career. Childress reached the 1,000 point mark earlier this season...

Three wrestlers still alive for SHS (02/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com COLUMBIA -- Sikeston's Blake Angle and Kenton Robinson both stayed alive in their hunt for state titles on Thursday, each winning their first round match in the Class 3 state tournament. Angle, wrestling in the 120-pound class, won a 7-4 decision over Demetrius Wilson of Fort Zumwalt North to improve to 43-8 on the season...

Bravettes win (02/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Rebounding from an overtime loss to Kelly earlier in the week, Scott County Central took advantage of a sluggish start by Chaffee on Thursday to post its sixth win of the season. Led by Johniqua Fort's 21 points, while getting 13 from Mikaela Blissett, the Bravettes took a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter before holding on for a 55-49 final...

Lady Hawks continue to blossom; down Delta (02/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- Bridgette Chandler has been one of two seniors that have had to deal with playing with much younger teammates this season. With a roster compiled of mostly freshman, Chandler, as well as fellow senior Karlie Ashcraft, have had to tow the load for the Kelly Lady Hawks, especially early in the season when they lost nine of their first 11 games...

Second half surge lifts Risco over North Pemiscot (02/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CLARKTON -- The Risco Tigers came out strong in the second half and downed North Pemiscot 87-70 in the semifinals of the Tri-County Conference Tournament on Thursday. Risco, who earned their 20th win of the season, will now take on Holcomb in the finals tonight at 7:30 p.m. Risco defeated Holcomb 74-64 on Dec. 2 and lost to the Hornets 72-67 on Jan. 20. Holcomb defeated Gideon 66-59 in the other semifinal...

Risco routs Southland 93-47 (02/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CLARKTON -- Looking for a return trip to the Tri-County Conference Tournament finals, the second-seeded Risco Tigers took their first step on Wednesday with a 93-47 opening round win over the seventh-seeded Southland Rebels...

Sour finish (02/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- After winning five of their last seven games, including their last two, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs were looking to keep their streak alive heading into the Class 4, District 1 tournament next week. Cape Central wouldn't allow it...

Chaffee girls fall to Saxony (02/16/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Chaffee Red Devils were held scoreless in the third quarter and fell to visiting Saxony Lutheran 48-38 on Wednesday. Saxony led 24-21 at halftime but a scoreless frame from Chaffee gave the Lady Crusaders a comfortable 35-21 advantage heading into the fourth...

State bound (02/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- After finishing fourth as team in this year's Class 3, District 1 Tournament, the Sikeston wrestling team will once again be well represented when the state tournament kicks off this Thursday in Columbia. In all, seven Bulldogs will descend on Mizzou Arena with hopes of capturing a state title...

Seven advance (02/13/12)
FARMINGTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs wrestling team will be well represented at the state wrestling tournament this weekend after seven grapplers qualified for the Class 3 tournament. Sikeston finished fourth as a team, compiling 112.5 points. The Bulldogs had four of their five senior wrestlers qualify for the state tournament...

Charleston stays hot and routs Portageville (02/11/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PORTAGEVILLE -- With only a few weeks left in the regular season, the Charleston Bluejays are showing no signs of slowing down. Shooting 64 percent from the floor and led by a game-high 24 points from Greg Tucker, Charleston picked up its 21st straight win on Friday with a 90-43 rout over Portageville...

Wright time (02/11/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com ORAN -- It's been nearly three weeks since Scott County Central head coach Kenyon Wright has paced the sidelines. His Braves made sure Wright was given the proper return on Friday night as they blasted Oran 90-66 at Oran High School...

NMCC falls in OT; Risco tops Hayti (02/11/12)
JACKSON -- The New Madrid County Central Eagles rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit but fell in overtime to the Jackson Indians 54-50 on Friday night. Jackson raced to a 19-6 lead after one quarter and held a 34-25 at the half but NMCC held the Indians to just eight points in both the third and fourth quarter, tying the game at 50-50...

SHS comeback (02/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Sikeston sophomore Mikala Nichols is used to putting up high-arcing shots. She, along with the rest of the Lady Bulldogs, have been practicing over their 6-9 head coach Matt Schonhoff for quite some time. So when a wayward rebound happened to find her, she had no problem putting it back up against Charleston's Kasuela Cooper and E'Neikqua Ewing, who stand at 6-0 and 5-10...

Dexter comes out strong and blows out Cape Central 79-33 (02/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Rebounding from their one-point loss to Notre Dame just two days prior, the Dexter Lady Bearcats put together a monster 32-point first quarter against Cape Central on Thursday before cruising to a 79-33 win. "I thought the girls came out and had a lot of intensity defensively," Dexter coach Chad Allen said. "We definitely made a lot of shots...

Saxony too much for Scott Central girls 51-20 (02/10/12)
JACKSON -- The Saxony Lutheran Lady Crusaders held Scott County Central scoreless in the first quarter and rolled to a 51-20 win at home Thursday night. The Bravettes could only must five first half points and trailed 24-5 at halftime before putting 15 points on the board in the second half...

Signing on (02/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- It took a few seasons to get his shot, but Sikeston senior Connor Hamra made his final year as an offensive lineman for the Bulldogs pay off. Hamra signed a letter of intent to play football for Central Methodist University on Monday after one full year playing on a line that produced record rushing numbers...

DeWitt designated for assignment (02/09/12)
CHICAGO -- The Chicago Cubs designated infielder Blake DeWitt for assignment Monday to make room for infielder Adrian Cardenas, who they claimed off waivers from the Oakland Athletics. DeWitt, who the Cubs acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers in July 2010, batted .265 with 11 doubles, five homers and 26 RBIs in 121 games last season. The 26-year-old has a .260 career batting average with 21 home runs and 134 RBIs in 404 games...

Kelly's Grojean signs with Three Rivers College (02/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- With her stellar four-year career as a Lady Hawk coming to a close this past season, Kelly standout Emily Grojean didn't have to look far when deciding where she wanted to continue her softball career. Joining a long line of Lady Hawks before her, Grojean recently signed a letter of intent to play softball for Three Rivers College starting this fall...

Soaring! (02/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- It's been a season of ups and downs for the New Madrid County Central Eagles. Tuesday night was an 'up.' The Eagles knocked off the visiting Kennett Indians 57-45 in a game most probably didn't peg NMCC to finish on top...

Dexter clinches SCAA title; Risco tames Lions (02/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- The Dexter Bearcats clinched the SCAA regular season title with a perfect 7-0 record after defeating Bell City 94-45 on Tuesday night. Dexter led 26-4 after one quarter and had the game well in hand at halftime with a 54-17 lead. The win was Dexter's 10th in-a-row, which included a SCAA Tournament championship as well...

Jays stay red hot with win over Kelly (02/08/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- To say the Charleston Bluejays have been riding a hot streak is putting it mildly. Since a 58-50 loss to West Memphis, Ark., on Nov. 26 in the Riverbend Classic, Charleston hasn't tasted defeat, winning their 20th-straight game Tuesday night, blasting Kelly 83-34...

Cold shooting woes (02/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs shot 23 percent from the floor and fell to the visiting Jackson Lady Indians 50-25 at the Sikeston Field House on Monday night. Tyangela Gibson led Sikeston with 10 points and four steals while Quesha Howard added eight...

Dexter drops key district contest to Notre Dame (02/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Dexter Lady Bearcats lost a nailbiter to Notre Dame on Monday night as the Lady Bulldogs claimed a one-point victory at Notre Dame High School, 52-51. Dexter's Hannah Noe hit a 3-pointer with 30 seconds remaining to tie the game at 51-51 and after the two teams exchanged turnovers, Notre Dame's Summer Burger was fouled with three seconds left. ...

Charleston runs past Bravettes (02/07/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Led by a pair of 21-point scorers in E'Neikqua Ewing and Kasuela Cooper, the Charleston Lady Bluejays rolled to a 25-point halftime lead on Monday before defeating Scott County Central 81-65. "We turn the ball over a lot," Charleston coach Josh Thompson said. "But, I look at it all the time and most games we have more steals than turnovers...

Lady Rams stay composed (02/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- The Scott City Lady Rams kept their composure when Sikeston put them on the hot seat. Up by as much 14 at one point, the Lady Rams halted a Sikeston comeback in the fourth quarter holding on for a 53-49 win on Thursday at Scott City High School...

Dexter rebounds from loss to end Kelly winning streak (02/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- It didn't take long for Dexter to bounce back from Tuesday's 15-point loss to Meadow Heights. Snapping the Lady Hawks five-game winning streak on Thursday, the Lady Bearcats ran away with a 45-point halftime lead before improving to 15-1 in their last 16 games with an 80-19 final...

P'ville falls in semis of Bootheel Tourney (02/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CARUTHERSVILLE -- The Portageville Bulldogs lost in the semifinals of the Bootheel Conference Tournament to the Kennett Indians 54-43 on Thursday night. Playing for the third time this season with each team holding a win apiece, Portageville led 25-23 at halftime and the game was tied at 37-37 after three quarters before Kennett wore down the Bulldogs in the final frame...

Records set (02/02/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Sikeston's second-place team finish at last weekend's DeSoto Wrestling Tournament came with some important milestones in a pair of Bulldog grapplers' careers. According to Sikeston head coach Seth Harrell, senior Blake Angle set a new career mark of 150 wins at the tournament while junior Cody Middleton set a new record for most pins in a season at 25...

Meadow Heights halts Dexter steak (02/01/12)
davidj@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- To say the Dexter Lady Bearcats basketball team has been dominant the last 14 games is an understatement. Since Dec. 8, the Lady Bearcats have won 14-straight games, winning by an average of 50 points, with their closest game a 26-point win over Kennett in the finals of the Lady Royals Holiday Classic in late December...

Sikeston sweep (02/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Honoring their seniors between meets on Tuesday, the Sikeston wrestling team picked up a pair of wins against New Madrid County Central and Dexter to wrap up the regular season. "We finished 4-0 at home and I think that's critical," Bulldogs' coach Seth Harrell said. "When you have home matches and your home crowd you need to be able to win those. We were able to do that this season."...

Scott Central blows out Kelly; Risco tops North Pemiscot (02/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- The Scott County Central Braves rolled past Kelly 88-44 on the road Tuesday night. Scott Central raced out to a 25-11 lead after one quarter and built a 48-21 lead at the half. Dominique Porter scored 22 to lead the Braves (12-7) while LaMarcus Steward added 19, Antonio Johnson 16 and Larandis Banks 12...

Charleston gets past Jackson (02/01/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- The spark and the intensity they were seeking came just at the right time for the Charleston Bluejays. Up by just one point to the visiting Jackson Indians heading into the fourth quarter, something clicked for Charleston sparking an 11-0 run to crush any hopes of a Jackson upset on Tuesday night...

Lady Hawks soar (01/31/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- It looks as if the inexperience of the Kelly Lady Hawks is starting to fade away. Kelly, who is riding a four game winning streak after Monday, avenged an earlier season loss to the Charleston Lady Bluejays, 67-61...

Scott City overcomes slow start to ground Lady Eagles 54-35 (01/31/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Improving to 8-1 in their last nine games, the Scott City Lady Rams overcame a dismal start against East Prairie on Monday for a 54-35 win. "Just another page in the book of what we've been doing all year," Scott City coach Rickey Keller said. "We come out and play just enough to stay close in the first half...

Sikeston wrestlers place second at weekend tourney (01/31/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DE SOTO -- The Sikeston Bulldogs wrestling team finished second in the De Soto Wrestling Tournament on Saturday. Sikeston came up short in their quest for the title in the 12-team tournament to Hillsboro. "This was our last regular season tournament, it was great that we were able to compete for the team title," said Sikeston coach Seth Harrell. ...

Dexter girls rout Doniphan; Chaffee boys roll into MVC Tourney semifinals (01/31/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DONIPHAN -- The Dexter Lady Bearcats opened up a 49-12 lead at halftime and defeated Doniphan 79-30 on the road Monday night. Dexter jumped on top early, as the Lady Bearcat press put Doniphan in a 28-6 hole after the first quarter and the Donettes were unable to recover. Doniphan was playing without their starting point guard, Megan Hipps...

Coaches v. Cancer Shootout (01/30/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Avenging a 15-point loss to New Madrid County Central earlier this season, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs defeated the Lady Eagles 64-59 on Saturday at the 3rd Annual Coaches vs. Cancer Shootout in Charleston. "That's what we talked about in practice," Schonhoff said of the loss earlier this season. "Thursday, Friday and (Saturday) morning when we had practice we preached that if we play our game we'll be fine...

Jays fly past Kennett (01/28/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Charleston's Greg Tucker was king for the night. Although, he doesn't seem to think so. The senior poured in a game-high 36 points on a night where he was also crowned homecoming king against the visiting Kennett Indians on Friday leading the Bluejays to an 88-74 win...

Bearcats repeat (01/28/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- For the third time in the last four years the Dexter Bearcats have claimed the Stoddard County Activities Association Tournament championship. Taking on the Bernie Mules for the title game for the third straight time on Friday, the defending champion Bearcats were able to pull ahead by 10-points at the half and hold on for a 54-40 final...

SHS rallies to beat Tigers (01/28/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CARUTHERSVILLE -- The Sikeston Bulldogs have had several tough road games this season and they passed another difficult test on Friday, defeating host Caruthersville 79-71. Caruthersville had erased a 17-point first half deficit and taken a one-point lead in the third quarter, but Sikeston stepped up with a big fourth quarter and was able to seal the game at the free throw line...

Risco scores 117; Oran and Kelly fall (01/28/12)
RISCO -- The Risco Tigers put six players in double figures and rolled to a Homecoming win 117-56 over Southland on Friday night. Risco led 32-11 after one quarter and 64-36 at halftime before building a huge 106-46 lead after three quarters. "It was Homecoming so it was good to see us get a big lead early," said Risco coach Brandon Blankenship. "Our intensity was good and we came out with a lot of fire. When we have everybody clicking, we can be pretty tough."...

Dexter rolls into finals of SCAA Tournament (01/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- For the third straight year Dexter and Bernie will square off for the Stoddard County Activities Association Tournament championship. Shortly after the Mules upset Advance 62-54 Thursday evening in the semifinals, the defending champion Dexter Bearcats took to their home floor to set up the rematch with a 71-59 win over the Bloomfield Wildcats...

Shootout tune-up (01/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Coming in to Thursday night's game as a heavy favorite, the Charleston Lady Bluejays needed little time to prove their bias. The Lady Bluejays burst out to a 23-point lead after the first quarter as they cruised past the visiting Malden Lady Wave 70-32 at Charleston High School...

Lady Bobcats get by Chaffee; Scott City and Kelly girls win (01/27/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- The Delta Lady Bobcats got a combined 33 points from junior Machela VanGennip and senior Tori Burton and held off the Chaffee Lady Devils 41-35 on Thursday. Burton scored 18 points and VanGennip had 15 as Delta (8-6) used a 15-4 second quarter to build an 11-point halftime lead 25-14 that they would not relinquish...

SCC hero returns (01/26/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- He became a legend at Scott County Central, broke out as a star at Southern Illinois University and won championships overseas. Now, Marcus Timmons wants to return home. TImmons was honored during the Scott County Central-Notre Dame basketball game on Tuesday night as one of the school's most recognizable figures through his accomplishments on the basketball court...

Hot-shooting SHS routs Jackson (01/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com JACKSON -- When the Sikeston Bulldogs are shooting it well, they are difficult to beat. Just ask the Jackson Indians, who the Bulldogs throttled 85-59 on Tuesday night at Jackson High School in a SEMO Conference game. Sikeston (16-3), winners of seven straight, shot 30-of-57 (53 percent) from the field overall, 8-17 (47 percent) from 3-point range and were 17-18 (94 percent) from the free throw line...

Second half surge (01/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Picking up their 11th win of the season on Tuesday, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs took a nine-point lead into the half against Delta, before running away to a 61-28 final. "The first half we were still jet-lagged from our game last night against Kennett," Sikeston coach Matt Schonhoff said. "We got back late and it showed. The second half we made some adjustments and came out with a better effort...

Scott Central goes cold in fourth, falls to Notre Dame (01/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- It wasn't as lopsided as their previous meeting, but the Scott County Central Braves once again walked off the court looking up at the Notre Dame Bulldogs. A cold-shooting fourth quarter put the Braves in a bind as the Bulldogs abused the charity stripe and pulled away for a 57-47 win...

Risco downs Gideon on Pavy's buzzer beater (01/25/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- The Risco Tigers won a thrilling Tri-County Conference game over Gideon 86-85 on Tuesday night, despite seven points in the last 40 seconds from the Bulldogs' Andy Rinehart. Holding an 83-78 lead with under a minute to play, Rinehart hit a jumper from the wing to cut the lead to 83-80. After a Risco turnover, Gideon hoisted a 3-pointer that was off the mark but grabbed the offensive rebound and kicked to Rinehart who hit a three to tie the game at 83-83...

Opening round blowouts (01/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Taking on eighth-seeded Bell City in the opening round of the Stoddard County Activities Association Tournament on Monday, top-seeded Dexter took a 19-point halftime lead before cruising to a 90-47 win. "I expected us to have a better showing tonight," Bell City coach Nate Wills said. "But you have to give credit to Dexter. They shot the ball lights out tonight. They're very well coached and I thought that they looked pretty tough...

NMCC rebounds with 74-42 win over East Prairie (01/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Following a dreadful 61-50 loss to Class 1 Naylor on Saturday, the New Madrid County Central Lady Eagles bounced back in a big way on Monday taking care of the East Prairie Lady Eagles 74-42. "We definitely came out with more intensity and energy than we did Saturday," NMCC head coach David Crockett said. "That's the way we have to play. We can't decide which nights we're going to play hard. We have to come play hard every night from the start."...

Lady Bluejays drop heartbreaker, Woodland pounces SCC (01/24/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- Cape Central's Apolonia Thomas personally sank the Charleston Lady Bluejays on Monday night at Charleston High School. With just 2.2 seconds left, Thomas, who ended up with eight points, hit a game-winning 3-pointer to defeat the Lady Bluejays 64-61...

SHS places fourth in conference; Robinson wins title (01/23/12)
JACKSON -- The Sikeston wrestling team finished fourth in the 12-team SEMO Conference Wrestling Tournament on Saturday as six Bulldogs came home with medals. "I'd like to congratulate our guys on a great tournament," said Sikeston coach Seth Harrell. ...

Charleston rolls to Superman Classic title (01/23/12)
METROPOLIS - Charleston used a swarming defense and an effective outside shooting game to take control in the second half and defeat Massac County, 74-55, in the championship game of the Superman Classic. The Patriots never seriously challenged after the opening minutes of the second half...

Tough loss (01/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs played the Poplar Bluff Lady Mules nearly point-for-point on Thursday night, with the exception of a three minute stretch at the end of the third quarter. It was that stretch that sealed the Lady Bulldogs' fate, however, as Sikeston dropped a SEMO Conference contest 55-49 to Poplar Bluff...

Scott Central, Scott City to play for title (01/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Scoring a game-high 25-points in the fourth quarter on Thursday, the Scott Central Braves pulled away from the Oran Eagles for a 79-65 win in the Scott-Mississippi Conference tournament semifinals. "Oran had a good plan," Scott Central coach Kenyon Wright said. "They spread us out a little bit and that was fine. We went out there and switched our defense up a little bit (going into the fourth)...

NMCC wins up-and-down game over Charleston (01/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Similar ways of pushing the basketball left for a ping pong style of game between the Charleston Lady Bluejays and the New Madrid County Central Eagles on Thursday night. NMCC won the battle of relentless action, however, defeating visiting Charleston 70-56 at New Madrid County Central High School...

Lady Bearcats score 103 on Portageville; Charleston boys in finals of Superman (01/20/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PORTAGEVILLE -- The Dexter Lady Bearcats improved to 15-2 on the season with a 103-26 thrashing of Portageville on the road Thursday night. Dexter led 22-9 after one quarter and then took control in the second quarter to go ahead 54-18 at the half...

Uncharted waters (01/19/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- If you blink, you may miss it. The small, rural town of Risco may not attract the casual passerby while traveling on US-153 or Highway 62, but if one happens to find themselves virtually out in the middle of nowhere on a Tuesday or Friday night, Risco basketball may give them a reason to stop on by...

SHS bests Knights (01/18/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs used a big second quarter run to get ahead and eventually hold off a tough Farmington Knights squad on Tuesday at the Field House, winning 67-54. It's Sikeston's 10th straight win over Farmington, last losing to the Knights in 2005...

Newcomers spark NMCC in win over Twin Rivers (01/18/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Given that they are relatively new to the New Madrid County Central Eagles, both junior Armondo Thatch and senior Chilis Johnson have one major role to play while coming off the bench -- for now. Both Thatch and Johnson are being filtered in as they progress with the Eagles and serve as a shot of energy after having to sit out the first half of the season...

Oran rolls past Delta and into Scott-Miss semis (01/18/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Advancing to the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament semifinals, fourth-seeded Oran took a 17-point halftime lead over fifth-seeded Delta before rolling to a 65-33 win. "They played pretty well," Eagles head coach Joe Shoemaker said. "Delta's (Greg) Brawley didn't play the second half with the stomach flu it seemed like. So we kind of took advantage of that, without them having their leading scorer...

Lady Bulldogs earn win over district foe, Risco rebounds (01/18/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com PERRYVILLE -- The Sikeston girls basketball team improved to 10-4 on the season with a 67-49 win over district foe Perryville. Sikeston's pressure defense took its toll early, forcing several Perryville turnovers that helped the Lady Bulldogs race out to an 18-8 lead after one quarter...

Top seeds advance: Chaffee holds off Kelly upset attempt (01/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Having beaten Kelly by 43-points just last week, third-seeded Chaffee looked to have drawn a easy matchup in opening up the Scott-Mississippi Conference tournament against the sixth-seeded Hawks on Monday. After going up by as many as 24-points late in the first half, however, the Red Devils found themselves facing a near upset before holding on for a 48-44 win...

Top seeds advance: Scott City rolls to semifinals with 78-39 win (01/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHAFFEE -- Building a 26-point lead by half-time the second-seeded Scott City rolled to 78-39 win over seventh-seeded East Prairie on Monday in the opening round of the Scott-Mississippi Conference tournament. "When you get up in a game like that it's tough to remained focused," Rams head coach Mark Dannenmueller said. "But I thought our kids did a pretty good job of that...

Lady Rams too much for Kelly (01/17/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Taking advantage of a young Kelly squad that couldn't hit from the field, the Scott City Lady Rams bested the visiting Lady Hawks 59-30 on Monday night at Scott City High School. Led in scoring by Alicia Kern's 12 points, Scott City held Kelly's freshman and sophomore dominated roster to an 18 percent shooting average (11 of 61)...

Sikeston wrestlers place seventh in Rockwood Tourney (01/17/12)
ROCKWOOD -- The Sikeston wrestling team saw several players put together good performances in the Rockwood Tournament on Saturday, as the Bulldogs placed seventh in the 11-team event. Senior Blake Angle won the event in the 120 pound division, defeating Nick Solter of Washington 9-1 in the championship...

Jays run past SCC (01/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CHARLESTON -- The Scott County Central Braves knew just what they had to do in order to give themselves a chance at toppling the mighty Charleston Bluejays. They looked up to the challenge of doing just that -- for a half...

Tigers' size too much for NMCC (01/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- The New Madrid County Central Eagles, a team that is searching for consistency, dropped a home game on Friday against SEMO Conference foe Cape Central, 59-47. Cape Central has had its troubles at NMCC's home gymnasium in recent years, but the Tigers' tall front-court tandem of 6-foot-6 T.J. Tisdell and 6-5 sophomore Jamal Cox proved to be too tough to stop for the Eagles...

Crowe's 27 leads Devils past Kelly (01/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com BENTON -- Scheduled to meet in the opening round of the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament next Monday, Chaffee and Kelly got an early look at each other when two teams squared off on Friday night. Behind 27 points from Alex Crowe the Red Devils were able to build a 24-point halftime lead against the Hawks before rolling to a 83-40 win...

Shorthanded Risco rolls; Dexter knocks off rival Bernie (01/14/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- The Risco Tigers remained undefeated on the season, defeating Campbell 82-43 on Friday night. Dressing only five varsity players due to injury and a suspension, Risco jumped out to a 20-12 lead after one quarter and led 47-19 at the half...

Turnovers sink Sikeston against rival Notre DameTurnovers sink Sikeston against rival Notre Dame (01/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Time after time, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs committed turnover after turnover. So many, in fact, they coughed the ball up more times than they put it in the basket. Sikeston was responsible for 43 turnovers against conference and district rival Notre Dame on Thursday night while being handed a 71-42 defeat at Notre Dame High School...

Tourney champs (01/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Defending their Scott-Mississippi Conference title on Thursday, the Scott City Lady Rams rode a dominant performance from senior Katie Hogan to a 56-51 win over Delta. Finishing the night with a game-high 34 points, Hogan shot 14 of 18 from the floor while adding 12 rebounds and six blocked shots to Scott City's cause...

Lady Jays knock off Chaffee for third (01/13/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Led by Sierra Frazier's 19 points, the Charleston Lady Bluejays earned third-place in the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament on Thursday with a 77-43 win over the Chaffee Lady Devils. "Chaffee's a pretty good team," Charleston head coach Josh Thompson said. "They're young. I felt like our biggest advantage was we were a lot more athletic than they were...

Sikeston wrestlers pick up win in Windsor quad meet (01/13/12)
WINDSOR -- The Sikeston wrestling team went 1-2 in three matches on Wednesday night at Windsor. Sikeston defeated Windsor 51-28, but lost to Jackson 62-13 and to Ste. Genevieve in a thriller 38-37. Results were: 106-Jarrett Reisenbichler (J) pin Garrick Madison (S), 5:38...

Wipeout (01/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- It didn't take long for the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs to get it going as they blistered the visiting Caruthersville Lady Tigers 85-29 at the Sikeston Field House on Monday night. The Lady Bulldogs showed just how dominant they can be when their bread and butter -- the full-court press -- is working to the best of its ability...

Sikeston boys basketball team downs unbeaten De Soto (01/10/12)
Just 48 hours after defeating Imagine Prep 69-62, the Bulldogs took down undefeated and state-ranked De Soto 76-73 on Monday night.

Charleston, Chaffee advance to semifinals of Scott-Miss Tourney (01/10/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- Led by Dazique Gillespie's 21 points, third-seeded Charleston took down sixth-seeded Kelly on Monday to earn a trip to the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament semifinals. "We've talked about in the last week that we wanted to make sure we play hard all the time for 32 minutes," Lady Bluejay head coach Josh Thompson. "With six girls we gave it everything we had. We played hard and when we play hard we have really good results."...

Bounce back (01/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Following an emotional home loss to arch rival Charleston on Friday, the Sikeston Bulldogs showed no hangover less than 24 hours later with an impressive 69-62 win over a talented Imagine College Prep team in the 17th Annual Tiger Shootout at Cape Central High School...

Sikeston wrestlers place third in Vianney Invitational (01/09/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com VIANNEY -- The Sikeston Bulldogs finished third during the Vianney Invitational Tournament on Saturday with three Bulldog wrestlers bringing home gold medals. Garrick Madison (106), Cody Middleton (126) and Kenton Robinson (138) placed first in their respective classes...

Back on track (01/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Picking back up after a two week break, the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs got the new year off to a strong start on Wednesday with a 72-21 win over the Kelly Lady Hawks. "We needed to play a lot better game than what we showed at the Twin Rivers Christmas Tournament," Sikeston head coach Matt Schonoff said. "For four quarters I think we did that tonight. Our intensity on the defensive end was excellent...

Hoyas, Porter are getting noticed by national media (01/05/12)
WASHINGTON -- If you believe Georgetown forward Hollis Thompson, he wasn't even aware that the Hoyas climbed to No. 9 in The Associated Press' latest men's basketball poll. He says he doesn't pay attention to the top 25 these days. "Really? What are we?" Thompson asked Tuesday, a day before Georgetown (12-1, 2-0 Big East) hosts No. 20 Marquette (12-2, 1-0). "I don't follow the rankings. Because, you know, two months ago, we weren't ranked at all."...

NMCC falls to ND (01/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The New Madrid County Central wrestling team fell 60-12 to the Notre Dame Bulldogs on Tuesday in a dual meet. NMCC's Bryce Smith and Logan Cagle were the only Eagle wrestlers to post wins for NMCC...

Finals set at Delta New Year's Tournament (01/05/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com DELTA (SMNS) -- Meadow Heights and St. Vincent will meet for the title at the Delta New Year's girls basketball tournament. The Panthers took care of Woodland 55-40, while the Indians dispatched the host Bobcats 42-35 in the other semifinal Wednesday...

NMCC wins overtime thriller 58-56 (01/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com NEW MADRID -- Recently coming off of a surprise win over SEMO Conference foe Notre Dame just a few weeks ago, NMCC has been hit or miss when it comes to performing on the hardwood. The Eagles found their game on Tuesday escaping Blytheville, Ark., 58-56 in overtime at New Madrid County Central High School...

Take down (01/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs wrestling team opened the second half of their season up in a big way on Tuesday, earning a rare win over Poplar Bluff 53-25. "I thought we wrestled great," Sikeston coach Seth Harrell said. "I saw good things from everybody. It was really rewarding and nice to see all of the hard work that has paid off over Christmas break...

Scott City boys, NMCC girls roll on Tuesday (01/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com SCOTT CITY -- The Scott City Rams ended a two-game losing streak by dismantling South Pemiscot 64-26 at home on Tuesday. "It was a total team effort and a lot of guys contributed," Scott City coach Mark Dannenmueller said. "I was real proud of the way our guys responded after losing our last two games to Jackson and Charleston."...

Yates' 31 points lead Bell City over East Prairie 73-66 (01/04/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com EAST PRAIRIE -- Despite missing half of the fourth quarter to injury on Tuesday, Bell City junior Jared Yates did more than enough to help the Cubs overcome an eight-point halftime deficit to East Prairie. Connecting on five 3-pointers in the third quarter alone, Yates finished the night with 22 second half points as Bell City overtook the Eagles late in the fourth and held on for a 73-66 win...

Back on top: Charleston wins first tournament title since 2002 (01/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Friday night's win over the Notre Dame Bulldogs couldn't have been any sweeter. Not only did the Charleston Bluejays best 15 other teams and win the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament, they broke a strand of eight-straight years without hoisting a trophy and added their 16th tournament title to their already overflowing trophy case...

Sikeston repeats as St. Dominic Tourney champs (01/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com O'FALLON -- For the second straight year, the Sikeston Bulldogs are the champions of the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament. The top-seeded Bulldogs broke open a close game at the half and defeated the host school St. Dominic, 64-48 on Friday night...

Sikeston wrestlers finish eighth at Lindbergh Classic (01/03/12)
LINDBERGH -- The Sikeston wrestling team had a strong showing over the holidays, placing eighth in the tough Lindbergh Flyer Holiday Classic last week. The 11-team, two-day event featured some of the largest and most talented programs in the eastern part of the state...

Cape Central inside game too much for Scott Central (01/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Scott County Central Braves could not contend with the size of Cape Central. The Tigers' pounded the ball inside giving their 6-6 senior, T.J. Tisdell, and 6-5 sophomore, Jamal Cox, every opportunity they could to do work around the basket...

Dexter girls pull away from Farmington (01/03/12)
sports@standard-democrat.com FARMINGTON -- The Dexter Lady Bearcats opened the 2012 season by using their inside game to quiet the hometown Farmington Knights in a 72-41 win on Monday. Dexter got double-doubles from both junior Brittany Harris and sophomore Paige Patterson as Dexter jumped to a quick 12-2 lead and lead 21-12 after one quarter...

Top sports stories of 2011 (12/31/11)
Nothing beats being perfect, which is why the 2010-11 Sikeston Bulldogs basketball team stands above all else as the Standard Democrat Sports Department's top story of 2011. The Bulldogs hoisted their first-ever state basketball championship all while continuing an unblemished record of 30-0...

Portageville comes up short in championship (12/30/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Despite several chances to take the lead in the final minute of play, Portageville couldn't deny the Kennett Indians their third-straight Bloomfield Christmas Tournament championship. Down by one in the final minute of play, the Bulldogs watch Kennett dominant the boards on their way to a 55-52 win...

Charleston back in finals (12/30/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- From 1975 to 2002, the Charleston Bluejays dominated the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament unlike any other team, winning a remarkable 15 titles in the 28-year span. However, in recent times the Bluejays have not had as much success in the tournament, failing to reach the final eight straight years...

Notre Dame dismantles Scott Central (12/30/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong for the Scott County Central Braves. Much of Scott Central's woes, however, can be credited to the efforts of the Notre Dame Bulldogs. Notre Dame dismantled the three-time defending Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament champion Braves, 76-39, on Thursday at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau...

Doniphan uses late surge to get past Bearcats (12/30/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Playing in the third place game of the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament, Dexter saw Doniphan grab a late four-point lead before holding on for a 62-55 win. "It seemed like both teams were struggling for energy a little bit at different points in the game," Dexter head coach Rob Nichols said. "I don't know how much is fatigue and what part is just the let down from last night since both of us lost heartbreakers...

NMCC wins seventh at Dyersburg Tourney (12/30/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com DYERSBURG, Tenn. -- The New Madrid County Central Eagles took care of Tipton, Tenn. on Thursday during their seventh-place matchup at the Dyersburg Christmas Tournament, 49-39. CJ Chism led the Eagles with 11 points while Lamonte Nelson and Willie Jimmerson added 10 and nine points also...

Sikeston to defend tourney title (12/29/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com O'FALLON -- In a rematch of last year's championship game in the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament, the Sikeston Bulldogs once again proved to be too quick, too fast and too deep for the bigger Wentzville Holt Indians, winning 87-63 on Wednesday at St. Dominic High School...

Finals set at Twin Rivers (12/29/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- Looking for their first trip to the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament finals since 2008, it would have been easy for Portageville to come into overtime deflated after watching Doniphan erase a four-point deficit in the final 12 seconds of regulation...

NMCC falls short in consolation semifinal game at Dyersburg (12/29/11)
DYERSBURG -- The New Madrid County Central Eagles dropped their second game in the Dyersburg Christmas Tournament on Wednesday, falling 74-48 to Lausanne Collegiate out of Memphis. Lausanne jumped out to a 23-13 lead after one quarter and led 38-30 at the break before pulling away in the second half...

Sluggish SHS gets past Lutheran St. Charles (12/28/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com O'FALLON -- The Sikeston Bulldogs advanced to the semifinal round of the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament on Tuesday with a 70-57 victory over Lutheran-St. Charles. The top-seeded Bulldogs (8-2), who are the defending champions in the tournament, had a tough battle against the No. 8 seeded Cougars for most of the game but they were able to pull away in the second half to achieve the victory...

Charleston holds off resilient Scott City; Scott Central rolls (12/28/11)
sports@standard-democrat.com CAPE GIRARDEAU -- If the Scott City Rams wanted a chance to knock off the top-seeded Charleston Bluejays, they needed to muster a near flawless game to do it. As it would turn out, they almost did. In a somewhat unexpected outing, the Rams gave one of the top teams in the area a big scare on Tuesday during the quarterfinal round of the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament with he Bluejays narrowly escaping, 83-76...

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