The Webb City High School softball team went 3-1 at the Warrensburg Tournament over the weekend.
The Cardinals won three straight games to open the event before dropping an 8-5 decision to Sherwood in the finale.
Webb City is now 19-2.
SHERWOOD 8, WEBB CITY 5
The game was tied at four after three innings, but Sherwood plated two runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth. The Cardinals got a run back in the fifth, but would not score again.
Haidyn Berry went 2-for-3 with two RBI for Webb City, while Kaylyn Gilbert had one RBI. Peyton Hawkins and Emma Welch had one hit apiece.
Berry took the loss in the circle after allowing eight earned runs.
Sherwood is the defending Class 2 state champion. Sherwood’s Mac Morgan, the reigning Gatorade Missouri Softball Player of the Year, hit two home runs and also earned the pitching victory, striking out six and allowing three earned runs.
Sherwood also handed McDonald County its first loss of the season at the event, as the Marksmen won 10-0. The Mustangs are now 16-1.
WEBB CITY 22, BELTON 3
The Cardinals erupted for 26 hits.
Hannah Wells went 5-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. Welch, Lydia Lortz and Ripley Shanks had four hits apiece.
Welch drove in five runs, Berry had four RBI. Wells, Welch and Berry all homered.
Berry’s 13th homer of the season tied Nicole Hudson’s single-season school record.
Berry and Lortz both pitched.
WEBB CITY 10, HARRISONVILLE 0
Berry’s grand slam was a highlight of the victory.
Lamar had three hits, while Bri Batson drove in two runs. Hawkins, Gilbert and Lortz all had two hits apiece.
Lortz was the winning pitcher. She gave up just four hits.
WEBB CITY 9, CENTRALIA 1
Welch drove in three runs on two doubles, while Hawkins and Lamar contributed two hits apiece.
Berry earned the win, allowing just one run on seven hits.
GRANBY, Mo. — Carthage’s boys and Webb City’s girls topped the team standings at the East Newton Cross Country Invitational on Saturday.
BOYS
Carthage had six runners finish in the top 18 and the Tigers finished with 56 points.
Carthage’s Mariques Strickland placed sixth with a time of 16:35, while the Tigers’ pack of Malcolm Robertson, Miguel Solano, Richard Contreras and Coltyn Herrera finished 11th through 14th and Joseph Wyrick was 18th.
Webb City finished second in the team standings with 84 points, with East Newton (122), Neosho (132) and Lamar (133) rounding out the top five teams.
Spokane’s Sam Shuman took first in 16:01, while New Covenant’s Tanner Talley finished second (16:15) and Neosho’s Kaden Cole placed third (16:22). Lamar’s Joe Kremp was fourth (16:30), with Parkview’s Connor Ayres fifth (16:34).
Webb City’s Roman Borboa placed seventh, with East Newton’s Kelton Sorrell eighth and Lamar’s Ethan Pittsenbarger 10th.
Webb City’s Dustin Brockmiller and Samuel Winesburg finished 15th and 16th, respectively, while teammate Owen Weller was 21st.
McAuley Catholic also competed at the event. Thomas Black finished 55th.
GIRLS
Webb City finished with 40 points, while Aurora (86) and Neosho (90) were second and third, respectively, in the team standings.
The Cardinals had seven runners in the top 26.
Halley Philpot was seventh (20:49), while Abi Street took 13th (21:22) and Riley Hawkins finished 14th (21:25). Izzy Lopez and Mileah Metcalf finished 20th and 21st, Velissia Perez was 24th and Alanna Bundy took 26th.
Lamar’s Kiersten Potter took first in 19:27, with Republic’s Mihane Nambara (19:34) second and Summit Prep’s Alexis Workman (19:47) third. Mount Vernon’s Rilee Simons and Aurora’s Aubrey Boatwright were fourth and fifth, respectively.
East Newton’s Ellie Hicks placed 10th and Aurora’s Kaci Singer was 11th. Neosho’s Riley Kemna finished 15th, while Carthage’s Kimberly Hernandez was 17th. Kendall Ramsey of McAuley finished 55th.
East Newton Cross Country Invitational
Boys team standings: Carthage 56, Webb City 84, East Newton 122, Neosho 132, Lamar 133, Branson 138, Spokane 150, New Covenant 171, Republic 234, Parkview 288, McDonald County 325, Reeds Spring 328, McAuley Catholic 343, Wheaton 368, Aurora 416. Girls team standings: Webb City 40, Aurora 86, Neosho 90, Carthage 100, Branson 111, East Newton 138, Parkview 143, Sarcoxie 228.
CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — The Carl Junction Bulldogs had plenty of extra motivation ahead of Saturday’s prep volleyball showdown with the Webb City Cardinals.
“They got us three times last year,” Bulldogs coach Cheryl Sharples said. “Mentally, that was in our head.”
In fact, the Bulldogs could only watch a year ago when the rival Cardinals celebrated with the CJ Classic’s championship plaque.
The tourney hosts made sure history didn’t repeat itself.
Finishing strong with an inspired effort, Carl Junction earned a 2-1 (22-25, 25-20, 25-16) come-from-behind victory over Webb City in the championship match of the annual invitational named in honor of Dr. Jeffrey Knutzen.
It’s the first CJ Classic title for the Bulldogs in three seasons.
“Webb got us in this match last year, so we got a little payback,” Sharples said. “I think we had a really solid day of volleyball. We took care of business in every game. I thought we played a little tight in the first set against Webb City. When we stopped and refocused on the process of the game, we were able to do what we wanted to do.”
Webb City coach Rhonda Lawrence noted the championship match was a hard-fought and well-played affair.
“We’re pretty evenly-matched,” Lawrence said. “The kids know each other well. They’ve played against each other for years. Obviously the rivalry from last year is big, so I’m sure that gives them a good boost. We had opportunities, but sometimes it just doesn’t work out.”
For the tournament, Carl Junction senior standout Salma Lewis slammed 53 kills. A Drury recruit, Lewis recently set Carl Junction’s career kills mark. Junior outside hitter Jessa Hylton added 42 kills, while senior middle hitter Jillian Kennedy had 16 kills. Sophomore setter Logan Jones handed out 91 assists.
“We had several kids that had great days,” Sharples said. “I thought Salma and Jessa both took really great swings. Logan Jones did a great job of getting us 1-on-1 and making our hitters successful. And our middles (Jillian Kennedy and Maggie Brown) were very active and Des (Destiny Buerge) took some good swings on the right side. Our passers put us in system and let us play the game.”
Senior outside hitter Maddy Peeples led Webb City with 51 kills, 39 digs and four aces on the day. Sophomore outside hitter Brenda Lawrence compiled 32 kills, seven aces and four blocks. Also for the Cardinals, Anna Hettinger handed out 67 assists, while Avery Westhoven had 40 assists and 25 digs.
Sophomore outside hitter Kyah Sanborn had 37 digs and seven aces, while senior libero Sage Crane recorded 62 digs. Kearston Galardo had 20 kills, 14 blocks and 10 aces, while Makenzie Storm contributed 22 kills and 11 blocks. Galardo and Storm are both junior middle blockers.
“Maddy carries us in every match and I thought Brenda stepped up and did a lot of good things,” Coach Lawrence said. “Kenzie Storm’s blocking and presence at the net has been huge all season. She just keeps getting better. She’s already had more blocks herself that our leading blocker last year. Sage and Kyah made some huge digs.”
In the first set, the Cardinals led 19-11 after a Peeples kill, but the Bulldogs came charging back, pulling within two at 24-22 after a kill from Lewis. But Peeples recorded a kill on the next play to give the Cardinals the opening set.
The Bulldogs grabbed the momentum from the start of the second set. Carl Junction stormed out to an 11-3 advantage, with Lewis and Hylton leading the attack at the net. The Cardinals trimmed their deficit to four late in the set, but the Bulldogs finished it off with a kill from Hylton.
“We started building momentum towards the end of the first set,” Sharples said. “We minimized some errors, stayed aggressive and passed a little better in the second and third sets.”
The deciding and intense third set was back and forth early, and the score was tied at 12. Carl Junction then rattled off six straight points to take control for good. An ace by Jones and a kill from Hylton helped the Bulldogs seal the deal.
“It was serving,” Sharples said of the difference in the third set. “We served them out of system and kind of got them frustrated. We stayed real aggressive. We wanted to control the net and make them out-swing us at the net.”
“We played a little smarter in the first set,” Lawrence said. “In the second set, we butt-puckered a little bit. We didn’t play like we should have. In the third set, we came out a lot more smart. But they’re a tough team and they do a lot of good things. We made a run of about five unforced errors and you can’t do that against a good team. That was like five points in a row where we killed ourselves. You can’t give away five points.”
In the semifinals, Carl Junction beat Aurora 2-0 (25-10, 25-14) and Webb City topped Joplin 2-1 (23-25, 25-14, 25-15).
Webb City earned wins earlier in the day against Carthage, Aurora, Carl Junction’s junior varsity and Pittsburg.
“We lost one game all day, so that’s a good day and you have to be proud of that,” Lawrence said. “We had a lot of great performances, but you hate to lose the championship. But I want our girls to have a competitive spirit and to not like to get second place.”
The Bulldogs also picked up wins over West Plains, Joplin, Carthage’s junior varsity and Carl Junction’s JV.
And this year, the Bulldogs were the team celebrating with the championship plaque.
“Hopefully this gives us some confidence going forward,” Sharples said. “That’s what we hope. We hope to build momentum and keep it going.”
Notes: West Plains defeated McDonald County in the Silver Bracket championship. Neosho went 6-2 on the day.
Dr. Jeffrey Knutzen CJ Classic
Carl Junction results
Carl Junction 22-25-25, Webb City 25-20-16 (Championship match)
Carl Junction 25-25, Aurora 10-14
Carl Junction 25-25, West Plains 19-21
Carl Junction 25-25, Joplin 18-19
Carl Junction 25-25, Carthage JV 15-10
Carl Junction def. Carl Junction JV (score unavailable)
Webb City results
Carl Junction 22-25-25, Webb City 25-20-16 (Championship match)
Webb City 23-25-25, Joplin 25-14-15
Webb City 25-23-25, Carthage 12-25-20
Webb City 25-25, Aurora 19-16
Webb City 25-25, Carl Junction JV 19-11
Webb City 25-25, Pittsburg 15-12
Carl Junction’s Salma Lewis hits a kill at the net against Webb City. Photo by Peter Edwards.Carl Junction’s Logan Jones and Jillian Kennedy block at the net against Webb City’s Maddy Peeples. Photo by Peter Edwards.The Carl Junction Bulldogs pose after winning the CJ Classic on Saturday. Photo by Peter Edwards.
After starting at 8:30 a.m. Saturday morning, Joplin wrapped its day around 5 p.m. one round short of the championship game in the CJ Classic tournament after falling in three sets to Webb City in the semifinal round.
Though it wasn’t the finish the Eagles wanted, coach Staci Saunders was certainly proud of the way her team performed.
“I am very pleased with our girls,” Saunders said. “We lost Kacy (Coss), our big middle, first thing after she got hit in the head. So, to be able to adjust and play well after that, I felt like they did a really good job.”
Joplin opened the tournament with a 25-18, 25-19 loss to host Carl Junction in the Black Pool. From there, the Eagles bounced back with a pair of pool-play wins, defeating West Plains in three sets (25-16, 17-25, 15-9) before beating Carthage JV in straight sets (25-14, 25-23) to earn a spot in the Gold Championship Bracket.
“CJ just has so many weapons,” Saunders said. “For us to be able to compete with them, I felt like that just set the tone for the rest of the day. I think we got the job done and did what we needed to do in our next two matches.”
Joplin faced off with Neosho in the first round of bracket play, earning a 25-20, 25-19 straight-set victory. It was against the Wildcats that Coach Saunders felt her team turned the corner.
“Neosho is much improved this year, and I just feel like they are doing a fantastic job,” Saunders said. “I feel like we are very similar teams. I was very pleased with how well our girls played against Neosho. Our blocking was there, and we hit with a purpose. We just rallied around each other as a team.”
After the victory against the Wildcats, Joplin found itself in a semifinal matchup with Webb City, who fell in the three-set championship match against Carl Junction. The Eagles opened the match with a 25-23 win in the first set before the Cardinals rallied to win the second and third sets (25-14, 25-15) to end Joplin’s day.
“I thought after that first game we really put ourselves in a good position,” Saunders said. “I felt like we played lights out. But, against Webb, you have to play error free, and we had too many errors in that second game. In the third game, we started off well, but I think we just had too many errors.
“But, I can’t hang my head at all for my girls. I think they really played with everything that beats in their chest. These girls love to play volleyball and they give 110 percent every time. I am really proud of them. I told them afterwards they are winners in my book.”
Both of Joplin’s losses came to local Central Ozark Conference rivals in Carl Junction and Webb City. While the Eagles didn’t win, there are still several valuable lessons to be learned when playing strong conference opponents Joplin will likely see again down the road.
“We have to improve our blocking and be able to read when our block is not there and where to play on defense,” Saunders said. “(Carl Junction’s) Salma Lewis, Jessa Hylton and (Webb City’s) Maddy Peeples are special players. We just have to learn how to stop them and make adjustments. I also feel like we have to get better at receiving serve and being able to have three options every single time.”
Aubrey Ritter led Joplin with 32 kills, 47 digs and 17 service points in the tournament. Addison Saunders had a team-high 43 assists to go along with 21 digs, 15 kills and 15 service points. Kaylie Anderson had a team-high 50 digs, while Baileigh Riley had 37 assists, 20 digs and 24 service points. Allie Lawrence finished with 21 kills, 23 digs and 17 service points, with Angelina Schramm tallying 18 kills and 21 service points.
“Aubrey Ritter had a fantastic day today,” Saunders said. “You can always count on her. She is so consistent. She is a go-to player on the team. She passes, she can hit and she is a very smart, mentally-tough player.
“Angelina Schramm did a great job being the heart of our team today. You can tell she just has fun playing volleyball. She gets everybody else up. Kaylie did a really good job as our (libero), and I thought our setters, Baileigh and Addison, did a good job delivering the ball.”
Joplin finished the CJ Classic with a 3-2 record, moving their overall record to 11-6 on the season.
“You have to be mentally tough to play in a tournament like this,” Saunders said. “You have to be in good shape, and you have to be in good condition. Those teams at the end are usually the ones continually taking that extra step. … We are in the middle of our season. All of these teams are banged up, we’re banged up. I cannot tell you how proud I am of our girls for playing through the injuries, aches and pains. Our girls play for each other, and we rallied around each other as a team today.”
