PURDY, Mo. — College Heights went on the road and made quick work of Purdy with a 3-0 sweep on Tuesday.
The Cougars opened with a 25-12 win before moving into a 2-0 advantage with a 25-15 win in the second set. College Heights finished off the sweep with a 25-8 win in the third game.
Addie Lawrence led CHC with 14 kills, 14 aces and 22 service points. Lindsay Griesemer had seven kills, while Maddy Colin had 22 assists. Lauren Ukena added eight digs and 14 points in service.
College Heights hosts Wheaton on Thursday.
SENECA FALLS TO LAMAR IN FOUR SETS
SENECA, Mo. — Seneca and Lamar played to a 1-1 split before the Tigers won the final two games en route to a 25-13, 22-25, 25-17 and 25-20 win over the Indians on Tuesday.
With the loss, Seneca falls to 11-12-2 on the season.
Parker Long had 13 kills, 20 digs and two block assists for Seneca, while Rylee Darnell added 25 assists, four kills and two aces. Ellie Barnes had 11 digs, three kills, an ace, two block assists and a solo block, while Jera Jameson had four kills, two aces and two block assists. Braxton Raulston finished with 12 digs and two block assists.
MCDONALD COUNTY BLASTS WAY PAST PARKVIEW IN DISTRICT OPENER
NEOSHO, Mo. — Top-seeded McDonald County started off Class 4 District 6 play with a bang, erupting for nine runs in each of the first two innings on the way to an 18-0 win over eight-seeded Parkview in three innings on Tuesday.
Nevaeh Dodson earned a three-inning no-hit win, striking out eight for McDonald County.
Isabelle Vergarza took the loss after allowing 18 runs, 16 earned, on seven hits and 11 walks.
After the first two batters reached on a walk, Reagan Myrick brought two runs home with a double to give the Mustangs the early advantage. Carlee Cooper added a bases-loaded, three-run double later in the inning to make the score 8-0 before scoring on an RBI single from Myrick, her second run-scoring hit of the inning.
After collecting five walks and two hit-by-pitches in the first, McDonald County walked four more times in the second. Dodson added a two-run double and Mariana Salas had an RBI single. Myrick added a two-run double as well.
Myrick had three hits, three RBI and three runs scored to lead the Mustangs. Cooper had a hit, three RBI and scored three times.
McDonald County plays the winner of fourth-seeded Neosho and fifth-seeded Branson at 6:30 on Thursday.
REPUBLIC RALLIES FOR 6-4 WIN OVER JOPLIN
NIXA, Mo — Sixth-seeded Joplin scored twice in the top of the fifth to break a 2-2 tie before third-seeded Republic rallied for four runs in the sixth inning on the way to a 6-4 win in the Class 5 District 6 opening round on Tuesday.
With the loss, Joplin ends the season with a 16-14 record.
Mara Lakey earned the win after allowing four runs, two earned, on nine hits, four walks and three strikeouts over seven innings.
Jill McDaniel took the loss after allowing six runs, two earned, on eight hits, three walks and four strikeouts in six innings.
With the game tied at 2-2 in the top of the fifth, Maria Loum came around to score on an error to give Joplin a 3-2 lead. Jadyn Pankow followed with a lineout to right field that brought a run home on the sac fly to push the lead to 4-2.
Republic cut the lead to one in the bottom of the sith when Jenna Belcher doubled home a run on a line drive to left. An RBI fielder’s choice in the next at-bat tied the game at 4-all. Following an error on Joplin and a walk, Emi Essary singled to left to plate a pair of runs to give Republic the 6-4 advantage.
Republic takes on second-seeded Ozark at 6:30 on Wednesday in the district semifinals.
WILLARD BEATS CARL JUNCTION 8-0 TO OPEN DISTRICTS
NEOSHO, Mo. — Seventh-seeded Carl Junction’s season came to an end on Tuesday when the Bulldogs fell 8-0 to second-seeded Willard in the Class 4 District 6 opening round.
The Tigers (22-7) scored two runs in the bottom of the first to take the lead before adding two runs in each the fourth, fifth and sixth innings en route to the win.
Hannah Burks earned the complete-game win after pitching seven scoreless innings, scattering two hits and striking out 16.
Hannah Cole took the loss after allowing eight runs, four earned, on 12 hits, a walk and two strikeouts in six innings of work for Carl Junction (2-24).
Ryley Ritchey homered on the way to three hits, two RBI and a run scored to lead Willard at the plate. Alyson Miller doubled twice and finished with three hits, an RBI and a run scored.
Hannah Cantrell and Madi Olds picked up the only hits for Carl Junction.
Willard takes on the winner of third-seeded Webb City and sixth-seeded Hillcrest at 5 p.m. on Thursday in the district semifinals.
Despite nearly every game being tightly contested, Carl Junction was able to earn a 3-0 sweep of Joplin in a late-season Central Ozark Conference contest inside Kaminsky Gymnasium on Tuesday.
“I thought we struggled tonight,” Carl Junction coach Cheryl Sharples said. “We just looked like we were playing in slow motion and that created a lot of errors for ourselves. Somehow, we found a way to dig deep and figured out how to win.”
The Eagles (12-10-5, 1-6 COC) led for much of the first set before the Bulldogs (19-6, 4-2 COC) rallied late on the way to a 27-25 win. Carl Junction started off with a sizable lead to open the second game before Joplin found its rhythm to take the lead midway through. A huge service run swung the momentum in favor of the Bulldogs, who went on to win 25-18. CJ played in front for most of the third set before the Eagles briefly tied it in the middle stages, but the Bulldogs never gave up the lead en route to a 25-21 win to complete the sweep.
Carl Junction’s Destiny Buerge (33) earns a kill with Joplin’s Logan Bruggeman (8) and Angelina Schramm (2) attempting a block on Tuesday. Photo by Shawn Fowler.
“I think we are playing really good volleyball,” Joplin coach Desiree Felker said. “We play good volleyball through the majority of the games. Now we just have to figure out a way to play well all the way through games. … Once we get that taken care of, we are going to be on the other side of these kinds of games.”
Joplin led 21-17 late in the first set on a kill from Allie Lawrence before CJ’s Kylie Scott earned a kill to force a sideout. Scott served up an ace and followed with a kill to cut the Bulldogs’ deficit to 21-20.
Carl Junction’s Maggie Brown earned a block moments later to tie the set at 22-all. A kill from Joplin’s Angelina Schramm forced a sideout and put the Eagles up one before an attack error and block by Karissa Chase put the Bulldogs back front 25-24. Schramm earned another kill, but Chase matched it with a kill of her own to give CJ a 26-25 lead, with the Bulldogs closing the set out on the next point.
“We have talked about playing with confidence and wanting the ball in their hand,” Felker said when asked what the key to taking the next step in close games is for Joplin. “Right now, we are playing careful at times when we need to be all in.”
Scott boosted Carl Junction to a 6-0 lead to start the second game thanks to a long service run that was highlighted by a kill from Destiny Buerge and Brown. Joplin whittled into the lead with multiple kills from Emma Floyd and Schramm before ultimately taking a 12-10 lead on a block from Logan Bruggeman.
Joplin’s Angelina Schramm earns a tip kill in the Eagles’ loss to Carl Junction on Tuesday in COC action. Photo by Shawn Fowler.
The Eagles pushed the lead to 14-12 on a kill from Lawrence before Scott forced a sideout with a kill and went back to the service line to rip off nine straight points, swinging the momentum permanently in favor over the Bulldogs 22-14. Scott had three aces in the run, with Buerge earning a kill and Logan Jones a block.
“I kind of felt like in the first game, we were all serving a little tentative,” Sharples said. “In the second game, (Kylie) really went after it and got on a nice run. She has a great serve when she is on. She can be really effective and was hitting the spots I was giving her well.”
While Carl Junction played in front for much of the final set, the Bulldogs never held a lead greater than four, which came off a kill from Brown to push the lead to 14-10. The Eagles trimmed the lead to 16-15 on a block from Bruggeman and tied it on an attack error before a sideout followed by an ace from Olivia Vediz put CJ back on top 18-16. Joplin tied the set at 19-all on an ace from Lawrence, but a kill from Scott followed by consecutive kills from Buerge put Carl Junction in front 22-19, with Scott ending the match shortly after with a kill.
Carl Junction’s Kylie Scott earns a kill in the Bulldogs’ win over Joplin on Tuesday. Photo by Shawn Fowler.
“These types of wins absolutely prepare us for the postseason,” Sharples said. “They help give you the confidence to come back when you are down and not let that be the end of your game. The further people push us every night the better it is going to make us in the postseason.
STATS
Buerge led Carl Junction with 17 kills, while Scott had nine kills and five aces. Jones finished with 32 assists, six kills, 14 digs and two blocks. Brown had 13 digs, while Vediz added 10 digs.
Schramm and Floyd led Joplin with seven kills each, with Floyd adding three blocks. Kaya Cooper had 11 assists and eight digs, with Paisley Parker finishing with 20 digs and two aces.
UP NEXT
Carl Junction hosts Branson on Thursday, while Joplin hosts Willard.
BOLIVAR, Mo. — Thomas Jefferson suffered a 5-0 setback to Bolivar in a sectional contest of the Class 1 girls state tennis tournament on Monday.
The Cavaliers finished the season with a dual record of 12-2.
At No. 1 doubles, Bolivar’s Josie Douglas and Sophia Vestal defeated Thomas Jefferson’s Allison Ding and Jeanna Jeyaraj 8-3.
McKinley Hedges and Brynley Waters beat TJ’s Kyla Yang and Emalee Ro 8-2 at No. 2 doubles, while Bolivar’s Emma Geurin and Reagan Hunt topped Jessica Joseph and Warda Morsy 8-1 at No. 3 doubles.
The match ended when Bolivar won two singles matches.
Geurin defeated Joseph 6-2, 6-2 and Waters topped Morsy 6-3, 6-1.
In the other matchup, Helias Catholic defeated Mount Vernon 5-2.
In the quarterfinals, Bolivar defeated Helias 5-0 to advance to the semifinals.
CARL JUNCTION DROPS MATCH IN CLASS 2
In Class 2, Grain Valley defeated Carl Junction 5-0 in a quarterfinal contest.
WEBB CITY, Mo. — With the postseason on the horizon, the Webb City Cardinals appear to be hitting their stride at exactly the right time.
In a solid overall performance, Webb City earned a quick 3-0 victory over Neosho on Tuesday night in a Central Ozark Conference volleyball clash inside the Cardinal Dome.
The Cardinals swept the Wildcats 25-12, 25-19, 25-16.
“We played all right and took care of business,” Webb City coach Rhonda Lawrence said. “We were trying a few fun plays that we can do, but we still have to be mentally tough enough not to play around with teams either. We were hitting good, solid balls, making good decisions and finding the holes. Neosho was scrappy and they played up a lot of balls. But that was good for us to play those long rallies. That can only help us in the long run.”
Coming off a second-place showing at the Willard tourney, and with 3-0 wins on both Monday and Tuesday, the Cardinals (17-11-2) have built some momentum with just two regular season dates remaining before the district tournament arrives on Oct. 23.
“This past weekend went really well,” Lawrence said. “We stepped up and started to play the way I think we can. I think we’re on the way up and that’s what you want right now. You want to be at your peak at the end of the season.”
Webb City’s Makenzie Storm slams a kill at the net against the block of Neosho’s Meredith Baldwin on Tuesday night. Webb City won the match 3-0. Photo by Jessica Greninger.
Showing off their depth at the net, Webb City received kills from five different players.
Junior outside hitter Brenda Lawrence led the Cardinals with 18 kills, while senior outside hitter Kearston Galardo added 12 kills.
Sophomore Aubree Lassiter and junior Kate Brownfield contributed four kills apiece, while senior Kenzie Storm added three kills and two blocks.
Junior setter Kyah Sanborn handed out 39 assists and also recorded nine digs.
Sophomore libero Sophia Crane led Webb City with 16 digs. Other leaders in digs were Galardo (7), Lawrence (6), Brownfield (6) and Storm (5).
Webb City’s Kate Brownfield hits at the net against Neosho on Tuesday night.
The Cardinals also served well in the match, as Galardo had five aces and Crane had four.
Webb City was the first team to 15 and to 20 in all three sets.
After a lopsided opening set, the Wildcats stayed within striking distance throughout the second set, as the visitors pulled within two at 19-17.
But the Cardinals had too much firepower at the net, as late kills from Lawrence and Lassiter and an ace from Crane proved key to finishing off the set.
In the third set, Webb City led 18-8 en route to the win.
Neosho coach Jessica Crow, who is in her first year in charge of the Wildcats, noted she was pleased with her team’s effort.
“We’re just working on building a culture and finding our groove as a team,” Crow said. “We’re very young this season. But that’s exciting. The younger girls are gaining a lot of experience. We’re still tweaking some things and some of the girls are in positions they’ve never played before. A lot of girls have stepped up to the plate. And right now, we’re just hoping to get past the first round of districts this year.”
As Crow noted, Neosho has a very young squad this fall. The Wildcats have just two seniors (Lexi Laney and Rylee Amato) and four juniors (Delaynie Kelly, Capri Williams, Karlee Ellick and Meredith Baldwin) on this year’s roster.
Crow previously coached in Arkansas before taking over the reins of the Neosho program. She said the transition has been a smooth one.
“It’s been great and everyone has been supportive,” Crow said.
DISTRICT SEEDS
Webb City is the No. 2 seed for the Class 4 District 12 tournament. The Cardinals meet No. 3 Nevada at 2:30 on Oct. 23 at Carl Junction.
Neosho is the fifth seed in the Class 5 District 12 tourney. The Wildcats take on fourth-seeded Raymore-Peculiar at 6 on Oct. 21 at Joplin.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Both teams return to conference action on Thursday, as Webb City hosts Republic and Neosho hosts a talented Nixa squad.
Neosho’s Karlee Ellick is pictured during Tuesday’s match with Webb City. Photos by Jessica Greninger.
Webb City’s Aubree Lassiter records a kill at the net over Neosho’s Meredith Baldwin on Tuesday night inside the Cardinal Dome. Photo by Jessica Greninger.
Webb City’s Brenda Lawrence hits over the Neosho block on Tuesday night. Photo by Jessica Greninger.
Carl Junction’s boys and girls cross country teams both captured team championships at the Diamond Invitational on Tuesday.
The Carl Junction boys had 15 points, with Diamond (61) and Liberal (64) taking second and third.
The Bulldogs had five runners finish in the top 10.
Carl Junction’s Collin Emmert took first in 16:20, while Thomas Jefferson’s Kip Atteberry was the runner-up in 17:06.
Carl Junction’s duo of Jack Lawson and Brock Feken were third and fourth, respectively, while Aurora Christian’s Edward Clark took fifth.
Rounding out the top 10 were Sarcoxie’s Dugan Pogue, Aurora Christian’s Diego Zapata, Marionville’s Gabe Whitman and Carl Junction’s Luke Battagler and Caleb Graham.
Diamond’s top finisher was Wesley Roughton, who finished 16th.
Also competing for Thomas Jefferson were Jack Goodhue (31st), Eann Espinoza (35th), Sheraz Anis (37th) and Jasper Abelis (38th).
On the girls side, Carl Junction (10) and Thomas Jefferson (33) were the only two full teams.
Carl Junction runners finished first through fifth.
Hannah Franks was the medalist in 21:10, with Alexis Carpenter, Sadie Burchett, Ally Montez and Delaney Harris rounding out the top five.
The rest of the top 10 featured Thomas Jefferson’s Sarah Mueller, Liberal’s Abby Barton, Carl Junction’s duo of Bailey Feken and Riley Briggs and Pierce City’s Lauren Blackburn.
Carl Junction’s Klohe Burk was 11th and Thomas Jefferson’s Macie Shiffered took 12th.
Also competing for the Cavaliers were Mia Grubbs (19th) and Julianne Wachtel (23rd).
The Thomas Jefferson Cavaliers earned a 3-0 (25-9, 25-12, 25-11) win over Bronaugh on Tuesday night.
Thomas Jefferson’s Nico Carlson had nine kills and two blocks, while Alexis Stamps had seven kills and Lannah Grigg had seven kills and two aces.
Mary Nguyen contributed four aces and three kills, while Mayson Solum had 12 assists and four aces.
On Monday, Liberal defeated Thomas Jefferson 3-1 (25-27, 25-22, 25-17, 25-5).
For the Cavaliers, Carlson had nine kills, Solum contributed nine digs and seven assists and Nguyen had seven assists. Yasmina Mokhtar had 12 digs and Grigg chipped in six kills and three blocks.
Thomas Jefferson (12-13-3) travels to Golden City on Thursday.
