High School Sports

HOLCOMB - When the Holcomb Hornets relaunched its high school girls basketball program four years ago its first-year varsity players suffered a few growing pains. "This current group of seniors were freshmen when they launched the program at the high school level,” current Holcomb girls basketball coach Alexa Stockton said. ...

ESSEX, Mo. — Cinderella’s slipper didn't fit for the Scott County Central boys' basketball team on Thursday night. After defeating the No. 4 and No. 1 seeds in back-to-back games, the Braves couldn't find enough firepower late as they fell to second-seeded Gideon 61-55 in the Class 1, District 1 Tournament championship game at Richland High School...

The state-ranked Campbell Camels varsity boys basketball squad reached a new milestone Thursday night. No. 1 seeded Campbell won each of the final three quarters by single digits after losing the first quarter by two as it outlasted the No. 2 seeded Bernie Mules 55-41 to claim its first district title in school history...

VAN BUREN — Laura Gore’s 3-pointer at the end of the first half put the Ellington Whippets up eight, but feeling like it was a lot more. “We had to calm them down in the locker room and let them know, ‘hey you still got another half to play, it’s not over by any means,” Ellington coach David Burrows said...

ADVANCE — The Advance boys basketball team dialed up the defensive pressure in the second half and earned a spot in the championship game of the MSHSAA Class 2 District 3 Tournament. The second-seeded Hornets outscored third-seeded St. Vincent 32-25 in the second half to win the semifinal round matchup 64-57 Thursday night at Advance High School...

VAN BUREN — Haden Barnes and the Van Buren Bulldogs started hot Thursday night to build a lead in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 2 championship game. But the shots didn’t keep falling for the Bulldogs, who managed just four second-quarter points. Alton surged ahead before halftime and scored nine straight in the third quarter to leave behind the host and win 52-37...

PARK HILLS, Mo. — The Poplar Bluff Mules boys basketball team went cold at arguably the worst time of the game against Park Hills Central. Poplar Bluff did not score for nearly 4 1/2 minutes in the fourth quarter as the Rebels rallied for a 66-62 win here Thursday night. It was the Mules’ first time on the court after a winter-weather layoff of nearly three weeks...

Woodland girls head basketball coach Paul Lynch can attest just how the game of basketball can be a "tale of two halves". The Cardinal's first half of the year started fairly dismal, as they carried a 3-5 record into the Christmas break. From that point on, they went 11-3, winning nine games in a row, and have now found themselves raising the district championship trophy, as they defeated Scott City Thursday, 66-48, behind four players scoring in double figures...

BLOOMFIELD, Mo – To put Charleston’s decade-plus of district dominance into perspective, the last time the Bluejays didn’t come home with a championship, several players on their current squad weren’t old enough to enroll in kindergarten. Even in this year of uncertainty, Charleston showed in no uncertain terms Thursday night that they’re still the team to beat...

BROSELEY - Twin Rivers is back in the state playoffs for the first time since 2016. After six lead changes in the first quarter, the Royals went ahead for good to beat Thayer 51-37 in the MSHSAA Class 3 District 1 championship game. "It's really awesome just knowing we all came together as one and finally did it. It's so overwhelming," said Twin Rivers senior Jaylynn Williams after cutting down a piece of her home court net. "Lots of time in the gym, lots and lots of time in the gym."...

When Sikeston and New Madrid County Central met in early December, the result didn’t favor the Bulldogs. Fast forward two months and the struggles continued, as Sikeston couldn’t withstand a quicker and more athletic Eagles’ group. The Bulldogs led 6-2 in the early stages of the game, but an 18-0 NMCC run proved to be the early dagger, as the Eagles would cruise after that, defeating Sikeston by 37 points, 79-42, to end the regular season undefeated. ...

PORTAGEVILLE - Winning close games is a forte of the Portageville Bulldogs varsity boys basketball program. Portageville entered the Class 3 state playoffs with a 5-2 record in games decided by five points or less. The Bulldogs added another nail-biter victory to its resume Wednesday night. No. 2 seeded Portageville edged the No. 6 seeded Caruthersville Tigers 39-36 in a Class 3, District 1semifinal at Portageville High School...

The St. Louis Cardinal pitchers and catchers reported to spring training on February 12 with the full squad required to arrive five days later. But unlike many teams, most position players for the Cardinals were already in Jupiter.

The Woodland girls basketball team has really put together a nice winning streak of winning since mid-January, going 7-0 in that stretch. They continued that streak Wednesday with a semifinal win against Charleston, ending the Blue Jays season with a 70-37 shellacking...

POPLAR BLUFF — After taking the lead early in the second quarter, Poplar Bluff went scoreless for 8 1/2 minutes Wednesday night and managed just five second-half points. Kennett forced 27 turnovers and gave up as many shots defensively to beat the Mules 41-23 at the Senior High Gym...

SIKESTON — Ritenour head coach Kyle Wagner will be taking over the Sikeston football program, according to a press release from Sikeston R-6. Wagner was hired July 1, 2020, as the head coach at Ritenour, but the Huskies did not compete in the fall due to COVID-19...

The reality for Notre Dame senior swimmer Drew Barber is that he swims the shortest distance held in his meets.

Something clearly happened to Saxony Lutheran when the calendar turned to the month of February. The last time Crusaders lost a game it was at home to Scott City on Jan. 28. Since then, they have been on a winning streak and extended it to five after upsetting the Rams on Tuesday 43-41, to avenge their last loss and advance to the Class 3 District 2 championship game...

CAPE GIRARDEAU — Notre Dame’s fast start proved insurmountable for the Dexter Bearcats, but they didn’t go down without a fight. The Bulldogs shot out to a 27-10 lead after one quarter and held off a furious comeback by Dexter in the fourth for a 66-62 victory Tuesday night at Notre Dame Regional High School...

CAMPBELL - It took a late rally but the Campbell Camels varsity boys basketball squad found a way to keep its hopes of securing its first district title in school history alive Tuesday night. The No. 1 seeded Campbell Camels overcame a 64-57 deficit in the final five minutes of regulation to beat the No. 4 seeded South Pemiscot Bulldogs 78-68 in a Class 2, District 1 semifinal at Campbell High School...

A year of uncommon adversity came to end for Scott City after falling narrowly to Saxony Lutheran 43-41 on Tuesday in the semifinal round of the Class 3, District 2 tournament at Scott City. Senior Camden Conner led the Rams with 19 points. Senior Ethan Pennington had 11 points. Junior Kaleb Karrenbrock added nine points and senior Nicolas Hillman scored the remaining two points for Scott City...

CAPE GIRARDEAU — The Notre Dame Bulldogs came out firing from outside, controlled the boards, created some turnovers and rolled to a 60-30 homecoming win over Dexter. The Bulldogs shot 50% from beyond the arc in the first half and orchestrated a 12-0 first-quarter run to take control of the SEMO Conference girls basketball game Tuesday night at Notre Dame Regional High School...

NEELYVILLE — Natalie Akers and her Neelyville teammates turned up the pressure in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 2 semifinal Tuesday night. Akers had six steals, fellow senior Makenzie Davis had four more while Payton Reinbott and Lexus Hagood each had a pair as the Tigers picked off Naylor 64-47 to reach the district final...

St. Vincent avoided the first round upset as they took down sixth seeded Puxico at home Tuesday in the Class 2, District 3 quarterfinals, 62-47. Puxico brought the fight, staying right with the home Indians, as St. Vincent could never shake Puxico for good...

CHARLESTON, Mo. — They’re back again. For the 13th-consecutive year, the Charleston boys’ basketball team has a chance to win a district championship after defeating East Prairie in the Class 3 District 2 semifinals 83-49 Tuesday night at Charleston High School...

ELLSINORE - The East Carter offense had some difficulty at times breaking down Thayer's 2-3 zone. Other times, the Redbirds swished spot-up 3s. But needing one last stop, Thayer tipped a pass for a steal with under 10 seconds left in the game that sealed a 48-47 win in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 2 semifinals Tuesday at Ellsinore...

DEXTER — The third quarter belonged to the Dexter boys basketball team … again. The Bearcats used a 15-0 run to take control in third quarter and beat Kennett 63-44 Monday night in a SEMO Conference matchup at the Bearcat Event Center. Kennett knows first-hand about the Bearcats’ prowess in the third quarter...

BENTON, Mo. — Heading into Monday night’s contest against Kelly, Sikeston junior Karris Allen only needed five points to achieve a milestone. With 1:24 left in the first quarter, Allen rebounded her own missed shot and took it right back up to put the Lady Bulldogs ahead 13-12. That shot marked the 1,000th point of the junior's career...

DEXTER- Junior Julianna Rivera made history recently as the first Dexter athlete to win a district championship and earn a trip to state in girls wrestling. She credits the exploits of three senior members of last year’s boys wrestling team — Wyatt Parker, Drew Soule and Travis Waldner, whom she calls the “Three Amigos” — with inspiring her to take up the sport...

The Hayti Indians and Holcomb Hornets varsity girls basketball teams are set to collide for a third time after both teams collected semifinals victories in the Class 2, District 1 Tournament Monday night. No. 1 seeded Hayti cruised past No. 4 seeded South Pemiscot 76-6 in its semifinal Monday...

NEW MADRID, Mo – After nearly a week out of action, the undefeated New Madrid County Central Eagles showed little signs of rust Monday against visiting Jackson. Having already handed the Indians a 12-point loss earlier this season, NMCC rode a dominant fourth quarter to a 72-46 final that earned the Eagles the outright regular season SEMO Conference championship...

The first quarter proved to be the difference in Monday’s Class 3, District 1 boys basketball quarterfinal between the No. 4 seeded Senath-Hornersville Lions and the No. 5 seeded Twin Rivers Royals. After playing Twin Rivers to 6-6 stalemate during the first four minutes of play, Senath-Hornersville scored 15 unanswered points to move ahead 21-6 and continued to lead 21-8 at the end of the first quarter...

Kaitlyn Waller scored 18 points to lead Jackson to a 61-25 win over Dexter on Monday at Jackson. “She’s really worked hard on becoming a better shooter, and that has helped her a lot,” Jackson head coach Tyler Abernathy said. “She’s always been super aggressive attacking the basket and now if you close out short on her and take the drive away, she shot the ball really well.” You really have to play her straight up right now and that’s advantage her.”...

Kennett trailed for much of the game Monday, as the Indians hosted a 9-13 Saxony Lutheran squad, looking desperately for a road victory. But a 20 to eight, fourth quarter-point margin helped the home team sustain the comeback, defeating the Crusaders, 46-45...

By BRIAN ROSENER Sports Editor VAN BUREN — A freshman who wasn’t even on the varsity roster until late January had two of the bigger plays Monday night for Van Buren. Holden Hills sank a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 75 seconds remaining and forced a jump ball to seal the Bulldogs’ 55-54 win over Ellington in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 2 semifinal...

Even during a weird season like this one, Southeast Missouri State could not have a better senior night than what transpired on Saturday at the Show Me Center. The Redhawks fried the Colonels of Eastern Kentucky 94-72, punctuated by senior forward Evan Morrison, who knocked a corner 3-pointer for the last basket of the game...

ST. PETERS — The Cape Central girl’s swim team didn’t have an individual champion at Saturday’s MSHSAA Class 1 Swimming and Diving State Finals at the St. Peters Rec-Plex.

Behind a stellar game from senior Camden Conner, Scott City advanced to the semifinal round in the Class 3, District 2 tournament, knocking off Bloomfield Monday, 82-40. Conner poured in a game-high 26 points, 13 of which coming in the first quarter...

HAYTI - The Class 2, District 1 boys basketball tournament got underway Saturday as the host Hayti Indians found itself with an intriguing first round matchup against the Clarkton Reindeer. These two teams faced off earlier in the season, a semifinal matchup in the Gideon Bulldog Classic, in which Hayti narrowly won 68-62...

Two weeks after winning Dexter’s first district championship in girls wrestling, junior Julianna Rivera earned a trip to the state tournament. Rivera finished second in the 143-pound weight class at the sectional meet Saturday at St. Clair. The top three finishers in each division advanced to the MSHSAA Girls Wrestling Championships on March 9 at Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence...

Jackson junior forward Nick Wasilewski didn't allow a 13 day layoff to let "floor rust" get the better of him, as he played sensational basketball Friday, leading his Indians past Charleston, 62-45. Wasilewski scored a game-high and personal season-high 26 points, including eight points scored in the second quarter, and with help from fellow big-man Clayton Ernst, dominated a thinner and smaller Charleston team...

SCOTT CITY — Six years ago, Scott City High School boy’s basketball coach Mark Dannenmueller reacted to a postseason loss to Charleston by strengthening the Rams’ schedule the following season to an insane degree.

Notre Dame, Jackson, Dexter and Poplar Bluff will have the opportunity to do something this year that they weren’t able to the year before. Send a girl to the state tournament. A total of 13 wrestlers from the Southeast Missouri area will converge at St. Clair for the Sectional 1 Tournament on Saturday. Only the top-3 finishers will advance to the state tournament...

DEXTER, Mo. — After a 15-day pause due to weather conditions, the Oran girls’ basketball team returned to the hardwood on Saturday afternoon. Wasting little time to get out to a sizable advantage, the Eagles opened the game on a 10-0 run — one of three runs to begin each of the first three quarters — in its 45-35 win over Dexter at the Bearcat Event Center...

DEERING - Even with conditioning potentially being more of a factor than normal due to an extended layoff Scott County Central Braves coach Tim Carlisle wanted to avoid a half-court game against the Delta C-7 Chargers. “We don’t slow the ball down very well,” Carlisle said. ...

DEXTER — Dexter stepped up defensively in the fourth quarter and made 6 of 7 free throws late to rally past the Charleston Blue Jays in a SEMO Conference boys basketball game Saturday at the Bearcat Event Center. The Bearcats trailed by as many as 10 points in the second quarter before pulling away in the fourth for a 76-65 victory...

ADVANCE — The Advance Hornets appeared primed and ready to compete for the MSHSAA Class 2 District 3 championship next week. Despite not playing a game in 10 days, Advance’s boys basketball team dominated the Delta Bobcats on Friday night at Advance High School...

The Scott City girls basketball team wrapped up their regular season with a victory over St. Vincent Friday by the score of 66-56, ending their season record at 8-11. Junior guard Kaicie Daigger led the Rams in the scoring column, netting 18 points...

St. Vincent outlasted Scott City Friday, winning 62-61 in triple overtime, in what was their last regular season contest before districts start. The Indians jumped ahead early, taking a 26-12 lead into halftime. But the Rams came storming back, outscoring St. Vincent 29-15 in the final two periods, to send the game into OT...

If you want to beat Ellington, you either need to be a state-ranked team, or at least play like one on that particular night. “We play a tough schedule, and that’s what we want to do with these girls because we know what they’re capable of. We want to prepare them for the end of the season,” Ellington coach David Burrows said...