MOUNT VERNON BOYS 73, MCAULEY CATHOLIC 49
DIAMOND, Mo. — Mount Vernon built a slim margin by the intermission before pulling away down the stretch for a win over McAuley Catholic in the third-place game of the Gem City Classic hosted by Diamond High School on Saturday.
“I was really proud of our effort tonight,” McAuley coach Tony Witt said. “We didn’t back down all night. We did a good job of closing out on shooters but they shot the ball extremely well. Tip of the cap to Mount Vernon.”
Mount Vernon’s Jarrett Zerby knocked down four 3-pointers in the first quarter to help the Mountaineers to a five-point lead by the start of the second period. The Mountaineers led 31-27 at halftime before outscoring the Warriors 20-11 in the third quarter and 21-10 in the fourth.
Zerby finished with seven 3-pointers and 25 points, while Hunter Conway had 17 points and Hunter Dawson finished with 12 for the Mountaineers.
Connor Taffner had 17 points to lead McAuley in scoring. Bradley Wagner finished with 12 points, while Alex Bohachick had 10 points.
McAuley (2-2) hosts Pierce City on Tuesday.
SARCOXIE GIRLS 51, COLLEGE HEIGHTS 42
DIAMOND, Mo. — Sarcoxie held a two-point lead heading into the final eight minutes of play before the Bears outscored College Heights by seven down the stretch to earn the win in the third-place game of the Gem City Classic on Saturday.
“Despite the loss, I found a lot of encouragement from my own team’s performance tonight,” CHC coach John Blankenship said after the loss. “We faced some challenges, such as having two key players on the bench due to foul trouble during most of the second quarter. Additionally, we had too many turnovers and struggled with our shooting. However, we remained competitive and were in the game until the late stages of the fourth quarter. We can fix the areas we are struggling in such as ball control and rebounding.”
Libby Fanning led the way for College Heights with a double-double, scoring 15 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Ava Lett finished in double figures with 11 points, while Maddy Colin added seven points and seven boards.
CHC is on the road with a matchup against Crane on Monday.
SUNRISE CHRISTIAN GIRLS 53, CARTHAGE 38
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Sunrise Christian captured fifth place by beating the hosts at the Lady Tigers Invitational on Saturday inside the Carthage High School gymnasium.
A close first half ended with Sunrise Christian up 22-19.
Leading 35-27 at the end of the third period, Sunrise Christian outscored Carthage 18-11 in the fourth quarter to seal the win.
Junior guard Lauren Choate scored a game-high 25 points and made four 3-pointers to lead Carthage. Choate was named to the all-tournament team.
Junior forward Lexa Youngblood added seven points and classmate Maggie Boyd scored six for the Tigers (1-2).
Sandra Hracka scored 17 points to lead Sunrise Christian, while Marija Sikic added 16.
In the tourney’s championship game, El Dorado Springs beat Rolla 48-42 and Bentonville defeated Fort Smith Southside 57-50 for third place.
Carthage will be among the teams competing at next week’s Joplin Lady Eagle Classic. Carthage meets Blue Valley North at 6:30 on Thursday in an opening-round contest.
OLATHE EAST GIRLS 56, WEBB CITY 38
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Webb City suffered a 56-38 setback to Olathe East in the seventh-place game of the Lady Tigers Invitational on Saturday at Carthage High School.
Olathe East held an 11-4 advantage at the end of the first quarter and Webb City trailed 27-19 at halftime.
The Hawks won the third period 19-10, and with that, Webb City’s deficit was 17 at the end of the third period, 46-29.
The final frame was nearly even, as Webb City outscored Olathe East 10-9, but the Cardinals were unable to overcome the deficit.
Junior guard Kirra Long led the Cardinals with 11 points and senior guard Malorie Stanley scored eight points and hit two 3-pointers. Long was named to the all-tourney team.
Freshman forward Adalyn Maxwell scored six points and classmate Whitlee Keith added four points. Abby Sargent, Addie Burns and Jenna Shultz scored three points apiece for the Cardinals.
Three players scored in double figures for Olathe East, as Corrine Cole led the way with 17 points, while Braylee Rogers added 16 and Katie LaFever had 10.
Webb City (0-3) will host McDonald County (3-1) at 6 p.m. on Tuesday inside the Cardinal Dome.
Valle Catholic’s Rylan Fallert hauled in a 37-yard touchdown pass from Grant Fallert at the 10:45 mark of the first period to give the Warriors an early 7-0 advantage.
