LIBERTY Mo. — The Nevada Tigers are partying like it’s 1998.
Tuesday night’s 49-37 sectional-round victory over the St. Michael the Archangel Guardians lifted the Nevada girls’ program to its first sectional championship since its last benchmark season 25 years ago.
The MSHSAA Class 4 sectional triumph propels Nevada (22-6) to Saturday’s quarterfinal clash with Benton (25-3). Tip-off is slated for noon at State Fair Community College in Sedalia.
“It does not seem real,” said elated Nevada coach Blake Howarth. “This is so awesome and I am so proud of our girls. I’m sure in a few hours when we come down off this Cloud Nine, it’s going to feel very surreal, and it will set in that we’re sectional champs.”
Nevada coach Blake Howarth talks to his Tigers during Tuesday’s sectional contest at William Jewell College. Photo by Matt Resnick.
Nevada’s firepower on the perimeter overwhelmed the Guardians in the early going, with lightning-quick guards Clara Swearingen and Maddy Majors getting into the lane at-will.
Forward Lakyn Applegate’s 3-ball from the right wing swelled Nevada’s advantage to 13-0 midway through the opening frame. After opening the contest with eight consecutive misses, the Guardians began to thaw out offensively. An extended 12-0 run trimmed the Guardians’ deficit to 13-12.
Nevada followed with a 7-0 spurt, capped by Kara Phillips’ 3 from the right corner. The Tigers also received 3-point contributions from Majors and Katie Johnson during the quarter.
Nevada’s 24-17 halftime advantage quickly evaporated in the third. St. Michael senior guard Sophia Rocarro poured in 10 of the Guardians’ 12 points in the frame. Leading 30-27, Nevada closed out the third quarter with a flurry, as senior forward Abbey Heathman began to impose her will.
After knocking down a 3-pointer late in the third, Heathman scored on a bruising post move early in the fourth. After a dominant stretch of play from Heathman on both ends of the floor, Majors took over as the hot hand — scoring the next six points to put Nevada on top 42-31 with 2:15 remaining in regulation. From there, the Tigers coasted to the convincing victory.
While the Tigers led wire-to-wire, the Guardians were able to climb back into the game on several occasions.
“We got sloppy at times, and I challenged the girls,” Howarth said. “They did a great job of stepping up and responding to that challenge.”
Despite a superb game plan, Howarth deflected all credit to his players.
“This is the girls buying into what we are doing,” Howarth said. “The things that we game plan for and the time that they’re putting in at the gym.”
Howarth said that his squad puts in so much extra practice time that he’s forced to kick them out on occasion.
“This is really where it’s paying off,” he said. “I’m so blessed to have this group and to have girls playing at this high of level. We took care of the basketball and played together as a group tonight.”
The Guardians made a concerted effort in the second half to slow Swearingen on the perimeter.
“Any time Clara had the ball they were sending two girls to get it out of her hands,” Howarth noted.
Howarth was pleased with the way in which Swearingen and Majors facilitated for their teammates in the second half.
“They were creating for their teammates and that’s the unselfishness that we’ve been preaching,” Howarth said.
With the clear size advantage, the Tigers looked to get the ball into Heathman in the low post as often as possible.
“We needed to go inside to Abbey and we were able to do that,” Howarth said.
With the Guardians closing the gap in third, Howarth briefly subbed out Heathman for a pep talk. Heathman finished with a game-high 15 points and 10 rebounds.
“I told her that we needed her to dominate inside, look to score, and finish through contact,” Howarth said. “She’s turned into a really good basketball player that can score inside and out.”
Now in his third year guiding the program, Howarth said that Majors’ game has evolved over the years.
“How she’s playing right now in her senior year is how I’ve envisioned it all along,” he said, as Majors chipped in 14 points and five assists. “Maddy has been consistently good for the entire season — not just here or there.”
Howarth said that sophomore guard Caylee Holcomb’s smothering defensive effort was integral to the victory.
“Caylee is the smallest girl on the floor but is a very scrappy defender,” he said.
“It feels great to go out and get the win. It hasn’t been done in a while at NHS,” Heathman said. “Play as a team, run the floor, and rebound.”
As for Majors, she said that it finally dawned on her that her quickness might be her most valuable commodity on the court.
“With it being my senior year, it took me long enough to figure out I was pretty quick,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve been utilizing that weapon pretty well the past few games.”
Majors added that St. Michael was a familiar foe, as the Tigers defeated them in December. Majors said that her outside shooting proved to be a zone-buster against the Guardians’ 1-3-1 zone.
“When I started driving, that also opened a bunch of passing lanes,” she recounted.
Like Howarth, Swearingen was also on ‘Cloud Nine’ after the signature victory.
“We’ve worked so hard this season and are all just super-excited right now,” she said.
Heathman echoed those sentiments.
“It’s really great to get the win. It hasn’t been done in a while here,” she said.
When they last reached this point, former longtime Tigers coach Brent Bartlett was in his first year with the program.
“You really have to enjoy these moments because you never know if you’ll get back,” Bartlett said. “That’s what I’ve told Blake — to just enjoy the ride.”
Nevada’s girls basketball team celebrates their sectional win with the school’s cheerleaders and students on Tuesday night in Liberty, Mo. Nevada advanced to the quarterfinal round of the state tournament. Photo by Matt Resnick.
WEBB CITY, Mo. — In more ways than one, the number eight is suddenly quite meaningful for the Carl Junction High School girls basketball team.
For starters, top-seeded Carl Junction captured the program’s eighth straight district championship by beating second-seeded Webb City 67-42 on Tuesday night in the title game of the Class 5 District 7 tournament inside a packed Cardinal Dome.
The number eight is significant for another reason, as the Bulldogs are now one of the final eight teams still playing in Class 5.
“It feels good to keep the streak going,” Carl Junction coach Brad Shorter said. “Our kids believed. I thought we did a good job of limiting their opportunities. They usually got one shot and that was it. It’s all about rebounding and defense. When we do those two things well, we’re pretty tough to beat.”
Carl Junction’s seniors have contributed to four straight district titles.
“This is very exciting,” Carl Junction senior guard Destiny Buerge said moments after scoring 36 points. “We’ve won four district championships in the four years I’ve been playing high school basketball. It’s the best. It means a lot to keep the streak going. It shows how much work we’ve put in.”
The district title streak started in 2016.
“Those first district championships started a long time ago and I got to be a part of those on the bench,” Carl Junction senior guard Hali Shorter said. “We used to be little kids in the stands, so to be a part of this now means a lot to us. We wanted to keep the tradition going.”
After building an 11-point lead by intermission, the Bulldogs scored the first 11 points of the third period to put the game away.
“That was huge for us,” Coach Shorter said of the third quarter surge. “I think that proved to be the difference in the game.”
Carl Junction senior guards Klohe Burk (2) and Hali Shorter (15) look to trap Webb City’s Kirra Long during Tuesday’s district title game inside the Cardinal Dome. Photo by Derek Livingston.
NAMES & NUMBERS
Ranked first in Class 5 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association, Carl Junction improved to 28-1 with a 23rd straight victory.
Buerge made 12-of-24 field goal attempts and 10-of-14 free throws to finish with a game-high 36 points. Buerge, a Pittsburg State recruit, also compiled 12 rebounds and four assists.
Senior guard Klohe Burk had 12 points, making a trio of 3-pointers to go with three steals.
Junior forward Kylie Scott scored seven points and handed out four assists, while freshman Jadyn Howard had five points, sophomore Dezi Williams added four points and Hali Shorter contributed three points, two assists and two steals.
“I thought Jadyn Howard and Anna Burch did a great job off the bench with Kylie (Scott) got into a little foul trouble,” Coach Shorter noted. “They played huge for us. Obviously, Destiny and Klohe were tough for us. They did some great things.”
The Bulldogs shot 41 percent (24-of-58), including 6-of-21 from 3-point range (29 percent). Carl Junction went just 13-of-27 at the charity stripe.
Carl Junction senior guard Hali Shorter knocks down a 3-pointer against Webb City’s Izzy Lopez during Tuesday’s Class 5 District 7 title game. Photo by Derek Livingston.
Carl Junction’s suffocating zone defense limited the Cardinals to 35 percent shooting (17-of-49). Webb City made just 5-of-25 attempts from beyond the arc (20 percent). The Cardinals also left quite a few points out there by going 3-for-11 at the foul line.
Webb City had 18 turnovers to Carl Junction’s seven.
Webb City’s game plan was no secret, as the Cardinals looked to work inside-out by pounding the ball inside to 6-foot-5 sophomore center Sami Mancini for hoops in the paint or kick-outs to the team’s perimeter shooters.
Mancini finished with 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting to go along with 19 rebounds. But no one else for Webb City scored more than six points.
“She’s such a presence inside and she’s going to get her points,” Coach Shorter said of Mancini. “She’s a great player. I thought we did a good job on her when we were at full-strength.”
After Mancini’s 23 points, junior point guard Mia Robbins scored six, junior guard Malorie Stanley and sophomore guard Kirra Long each scored five and senior guard Izzy Lopez had three.
Senior guard Kate Brownfield handed out five assists and grabbed four boards.
Webb City concludes the season with a record of 18-11. The 18 wins are the most for the program since 2014.
Brownfield and Lopez played their final game for the Cardinals, who were attempting to win a district title for the first time since 2014.
“I’m proud of our girls and I’m proud of the progress we made this year,” Webb City coach Lance Robbins said. “I think our program is headed in the right direction. We’ve raised the bar. We’re going to miss our two seniors. Kate and Izzy did a great job and they’re great leaders. I’m confident our team will work hard to get better and hopefully we’ll find ourselves playing for a district title next year.”
GAME RECAP
When these two teams met at the end of the regular season, Carl Junction held on late for a three-point win. There was no suspense in the final minutes this time around.
Faced with a win or go home scenario, and playing in an electric environment, Carl Junction led 15-8 at the end of the first quarter.
Webb City senior guard Izzy Lopez handles the ball against the pressure of Carl Junction’s Klohe Burk on Tuesday night. Carl Junction won the game 67-42.
The Bulldogs extended their lead to 28-15 after treys from Shorter, Buerge and Burk and a hoop inside from Howard.
The Cardinals trimmed their deficit to eight after two hoops in the paint from Mancini and another from Stanley.
Led by Buerge’s 16 first half points, Carl Junction held a 32-21 lead at halftime.
After the break, the Bulldogs put together their game-changing 11-0 run to pull away for good. A 3-pointer from the top of the key from Burk capped the spurt and made it 43-21.
Webb City responded with nine straight points, but the tourney hosts trailed 47-30 entering the fourth quarter.
Free throws from Scott and Buerge, followed by a layup from Buerge after a Webb City turnover gave CJ a comfortable 52-32 lead with six minutes to play.
Webb City’s only lead of the night came at 2-0.
“We didn’t get off to a very good start offensively,” Coach Robbins said. “Defensively, we missed some assignments early in the game and that gave them some open looks that they knocked down. I thought Carl Junction was playing with more confidence than we were early in the game. We were able to keep it close in the first half, but Destiny kind of took over in the third quarter. We didn’t have an answer for her. Carl Junction is a good basketball team, and when Destiny is playing like that, and their role players can shoot it like they did tonight, they’re tough to beat.”
Carl Junction’s Dezi Williams and Webb City’s Mia Robbins are pictured during Tuesday’s district championship game inside the Cardinal Dome. Photos by Derek Livingston.
PACKED DOME
Webb City’s Cardinal Dome was packed on Tuesday night, making for a great atmosphere for the district title game.
“It was a fantastic environment for the girls,” Coach Robbins said. “It was a packed house and that’s great for girls basketball in Southwest Missouri.”
“It was an awesome atmosphere tonight,” Hali Shorter said. “I’ll remember this atmosphere for a long time. It was awesome.”
“It might have been the best environment we’ve played in,” Buerge said. “That might have been the best student section we’ve ever had. I’m glad they showed up for this game.”
“It was great in here tonight,” Coach Shorter added. “It was two teams getting after each other.”
ELITE EIGHT
Carl Junction advances to the quarterfinals of the Class 5 state tournament and will play District 8 champion Lincoln College Prep (17-9) at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday at State Fair Community College in Sedalia.
“We’re starting to figure some things out and we want to peak at the right time,” Coach Shorter said. “We hope that’s coming at some point.”
“We have to keep pushing game by game,” Buerge added. “We just have to keep working hard in the gym.”
DISTRICT TITLE STREAK
Since falling to McDonald County in the district title game in 2015, Carl Junction’s girls basketball program has now won eight consecutive district championships.
Below is a look back at Carl Junction’s title streak.
Carl Junction’s recent district championships
2016 — Carl Junction 52, Carthage 46
2017 — Carl Junction 57, Cassville 26
2018 — Carl Junction 51, Webb City 37
2019 — Carl Junction 42, Webb City 14
2020 — Carl Junction 72, Webb City 32
2021 — Carl Junction 55, Webb City 52
2022 — Carl Junction 65, Willard 60
2023 — Carl Junction 67, Webb City 42
Carl Junction senior guard Destiny Buerge looks to score in the lane against the Webb City Cardinals, including Sami Mancini. Buerge scored 36 points in her team’s 67-42 victory. All photos by Derek Livingston/SoMo Sports.
Webb City sophomore center Sami Mancini puts up a shot in the lane against Carl Junction’s Kylie Scott and Dezi Williams.
Destiny Buerge scores inside against Webb City on Tuesday night inside the packed Cardinal Dome.
Carl Junction senior Destiny Buerge, with her fellow seniors Allie Wrestler, Klohe Burk and Hali Shorter behind her, accepts the district title plaque from Webb City High School Assistant Principal Jeff Wilkie on Tuesday night.
The Carl Junction Bulldogs pose with the district championship plaque on Tuesday night. It’s Carl Junction’s eighth straight district championship. Photos by Derek Livingston.
