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WRESTLING ROUNDUP: Neosho goes 2-0 at JHS; Eagles top Har-Ber; Carthage upends Webb City; Mac County suffers loss

 

 

NEOSHO 63, JOPLIN 3

Neosho’s boys wrestling team earned a 63-3 win over Joplin on Tuesday night at JHS.

At 106 pounds, Neosho’s Tucker Feagens earned an 8-6 decision over Lucas Allen.

Neosho’s Anthony Stotts pinned Gabriel Kabutha at 113 and Victor Elias-Lopez earned a technical fall, 15-0, over Joplin’s Jacob Porter at 120.

At 126, Neosho’s Sebastian Ioanis won by fall over Dylan Houston, Kelton Shaffer earned a tech fall over Andrew Burke at 132, Fisher Butler pinned Freddy Cerrato-Martinez at 138, Hunter Butler defeated Toryn Jones 9-6 at 144 and Lincoln Howard won by fall over Ben Hedrick at 150.

Neosho’s Carter Howard pinned Johnathan Burke at 157, while Chase Kivett earned a tech fall over James Clemens at 165 and Kaymon Rhone earned a 4-3 decision over Ethan Bentz at 175.

At 190, Neosho’s Dayton Kivett won by fall over Gryphon Price.

Joplin’s lone win came at 215 pounds, as Johnny Williams earned a 9-4 decision over Ryan Counts.

At heavyweight, Neosho’s Everson Tomlinson earned an 8-4 decision over Josiah Hazelwood.

 

NEOSHO 64, HAR-BER 15

Neosho also defeated Springdale Har-Ber on Tuesday night at JHS.

Winning their respective matches by fall for the Wildcats were Stotts, Ioanis, Fisher Butler, Hunter Butler, Lincoln Howard, Chase Kivett, Dayton Kivett, Counts and Tomlinson.

Carter Howard earned a major decision, 12-1, at 157.

Har-Ber won by fall at both 120 and 175. At 132, Har-Ber’s Daxton Kline earned a 4-3 decision over Neosho’s Shaffer.

 

JOPLIN 51, SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 30

The Joplin Eagles earned a victory over Springdale Har-Ber in their other dual on Tuesday night.

Winning matches by fall for the Eagles were Kabutha, Burke, Cerrato-Martinez, Clemens, Price, Williams and Hazelwood.

At 144, Joplin’s Jones earned an 8-4 decision over Adrian Onesto-Cervantes.

Joplin’s Allen won by forfeit at 106.

Har-Bar won by either fall or by forfeit at 120, 126, 150, 157 and 175.

 

CARTHAGE 72, WEBB CITY 11

CARTHAGE, Mo. — The Carthage Tigers earned a convincing win over the rival Webb City Cardinals on Tuesday night. 

The Tigers won eight matches by fall.

Winning matches by fall for Carthage were Wyatt Hole (126), Bradyn Tate (138), Dylan Huntley (144), Israel Perez (150), Lenny Teo (165), Saul Alvarado Hernandez (175), Alexander Salas-Marquez (190) and David Recinos (215).

Webb City’s Carson Farmer earned a tech fall, 18-3, at 157 pounds. 

The Tigers won by forfeit at 106, 113, 120 and 132.

The Cardinals won by forfeit at 285.

 

JAY 57, MCDONALD COUNTY 23

ANDERSON, Mo. — McDonald County’s Ayden Ball (144) and Samuel Murphy (215) won their matches by fall, while Alex Bogart won by injury default at 175 and Emmit Houston earned a tech fall, 23-6, at 190.

 

JAY GIRLS 48, MCDONALD COUNTY 18

ANDERSON, Mo. — McDonald County’s Stacy Lopez-Apolinar won by fall over Maddie Rutherford at 155 and teammate Gisel Aragon won by fall over Kyllei Holt at 190.

Mac County’s Alyssa Jackson won by forfeit at 145.

 

WEBB CITY GIRLS 48, CARTHAGE 12

CARTHAGE, Mo. —  At 100 pounds, Webb City’s Hadley White won by fall over Mischa Drackert.

At 110, Carthage’s Maylee Brown won by fall over Madison Kincheloe.

Webb City’s Aspen White pinned Iraida Oxlaj-Barrios at 115.

At 130, Webb City’s Tatum Christensen won by fall over Emmy Hernandez.

Carthage’s Irish Lee won by fall over Kalie Smith at 145, but Webb City’s Layla Espinoza pinned Arianna Medrano at 155.

Webb City won by forfeit at 105, 170, 190 and 235. Carthage won by forfeit at 120.

 

NEOSHO GIRLS 19, JOPLIN 18

Results of this dual were unavailable at time of publication.

HOOPS ROUNDUP: Thomas Jefferson boys, girls beat Everton; Nevada splits with Pittsburg; McAuley squads fall

 

THOMAS JEFFERSON BOYS 66, EVERTON 44

Thomas Jefferson held a double-digit advantage over Everton in the first quarter and kept building on the lead before going on to win comfortably on Tuesday.

The Cavaliers improved to 1-5 with the win.

Thomas Jefferson led 18-6 after the first eight minutes and took a 32-14 lead into the intermission. The Cavaliers held Everton to single digits scoring again in the third quarter, doubling the Tigers up 19-8 to construct an insurmountable lead down the stretch.

Jack Twiss had 23 points, sinking five 3-pointers, to lead Thomas Jefferson, while Jackson Radius had 12 and Kohl Thurman with 10 to give Thomas Jefferson three players in double-figure scoring. Thurman also had 10 rebounds to finish with a double-double. Spencer Long added eight, with Jaxx Wisdom scoring six. 

Thomas Jefferson is at Miami (Amoret) on Friday.

 

THOMAS JEFFERSON GIRLS 68, EVERTON 27

Thomas Jefferson started fast and never looked back in a win over Everton on Tuesday.

The Cavaliers improved to 4-1 with the win.

Thomas Jefferson started the game with momentum, building an 11-point lead after the first eight minutes before taking a 44-11 advantage into the intermission. The Cavaliers never wavered down the stretch.

Gabbi Hiebert led Thomas Jefferson in scoring with 24 points, while Lannah Grigg was right behind with 20 in the win. Sarah Mueller closed with 13 to give TJ three players in double figures. Presley Long added seven. 

Everton’s Oliva Sartin had 16 to lead her team.

Thomas Jefferson is at Miami (Amoret) on Friday.

 

PIERCE CITY BOYS 49, MCAULEY CATHOLIC 22

Pierce City led McAuley Catholic after the first quarter and held the Warriors to single-digit scoring in each of the remaining periods on the way to a win on Tuesday. 

Pierce City led 17-12 after the first eight minutes before taking a 30-14 lead into the intermission and grew the lead out in the second half. 

Quortin Parks had 20 points, with six 3-pointers, to lead Pierce City, while Emmitt Price had 11.

Bradley Wagner led McAuley with seven points, while Alex Bohachick finished with five in the loss. 

McAuley is at Lockwood on Thursday.

 

PIERCE CITY GIRLS 49, MCAULEY 35

Kloee Williamson scored 23 points for McAuley Catholic in Tuesday’s loss to Pierce City.

McAuley (1-4) hosts Lockwood on Thursday.

 

NEVADA GIRLS 55, PITTSBURG 24

PITTSBURG, Kan. — Visiting Nevada took control early in a non-conference matchup against Pittsburg.

The Tigers led 13-4 by the end of the opening frame and then held a 34-13 advantage at halftime.

Nevada held a 41-21 lead by the end of the third quarter en route to victory.

Nevada senior guard Clara Swearingen poured in 29 points and hit six 3-pointers to lead the Tigers (3-2). 

Lucy Swearingen added 16 points and knocked down four treys. Lakyn Applegate added six points on two 3-pointers.

Jacqueline Hall scored 11 points to lead Pittsburg.

Nevada is at Clinton on Thursday.

 

PITTSBURG BOYS 78, NEVADA 36

PITTSBURG, Kan. — Nevada boys basketball coach Shaun Gray called Tuesday’s blowout loss to Pittsburg a good learning experience for his squad.

“Someone said you’re either winning or you’re learning, tonight we are definitely learning,” Gray said. “Learning that we have a long way to go to be the best version of ourselves. This group has tremendous grit and leadership, and I have no doubt we will continue to grow from these tough losses together.” 

Up 20-11 at the end of the first quarter, Pittsburg outscored Nevada 25-5 in the game-changing second quarter. With that, the Dragons held a 45-16 lead at the break.

After a big third period, Pittsburg’s advantage was 73-29.

“Pittsburg is very athletic and did a great job of exposing our biggest deficiencies,” Gray said. “We have to be able to overcome cold shooting nights with improved shot selection, patience on offense, and with a commitment to battle on the glass. Tonight, Pittsburg was relentless running the floor in transition, and not only did we not get back defensively, but we did not communicate. And we took average to below average shots that helped to fuel their transition offense. 

“Additionally, they attacked the glass hard and we did not have five guys working to box out and clear the rebound. If we are going to win the rebounding battle it is going to have to be a whole team effort, 1-5 have to gang rebound together on every shot attempt.”

Pittsburg’s Mason English poured in a game-high 25 points.

“Anytime you face an elite player like Mason English, you have to do all the little things right to give yourself a chance,” Gray said. 

Two others reached double figures for the Dragons, as Nate Mitchell scored 17 and Joseph Hernandez added 10.

Jack Cheaney scored 14 points to lead Nevada, while Kellen Braden added seven.

Nevada meets Webb City at 6:30 on Thursday at the Carthage Invitational.

“We are excited to head to Carthage on Thursday for a fun and tough weekend of competition,” Gray said. 

GIRLS HOOPS: McDonald County shakes off slow start and rallies past Webb City

WEBB CITY, Mo. —  McDonald County rebounded from a slow first quarter and built a double-digit lead over Webb City by the intermission on the way to a 58-49 win over the Cardinals on Tuesday.

Webb City (0-4) forced McDonald County (5-1) into several early turnovers and held a 10-5 advantage heading into the second period before the Mustangs righted the ship behind the strong play of freshman forward Dakota O’Brien to take a 31-18 lead into the half. Mac County pushed the lead up to 19 early in the second half and held the pace throughout the second half until the Cardinals cut it to nine late, which would be the closest Webb City would get to the lead before the final horn.  

“This was a huge win,” McDonald County coach Sean Crane said. “Anytime we can come here and beat Webb City, it’s a big win for our ball club. … I was very impressed after we didn’t play well early, to handle that (adversity) and get back in the groove. ”

GAME ACTION

Webb City led 10-5 heading into the second period before McDonald County found life behind its first-year forward. O’Brien scored eight of her team’s first 10 points of the quarter to put the Mustangs on top 16-15 near the five-minute mark.

“Dakota is a high-energy player for us and does a great job to give us that energy boost,” Crane said. “She does a great job on the boards, too. We did a good job of getting her in spots to where she can be successful, making plays to get her the ball.”

Senior guard Carlee Cooper pulled up near the baseline for a mid-range basket before another inside bucket from O’Brien extended the lead to two possessions, 20-16, with three minutes left in the first half.

Cooper added two more free throws to kick off and added a fast-break score off a turnover for a 24-16 lead in favor of the Mustangs. Another score on the break from sophomore G Carlie Martin was matched by an inside bucket from Webb City freshman Abby Sargent to make the score 27-18.

Mac County closed the first half with an inside bucket from O’Brien and an elbow jumper by sophomore F Jamie Washam to lead 31-18 at the intermission, outscoring the Cardinals 26-8 in the second period.

“We quit turning the ball over,” Crane said when asked the biggest difference in his team’s play between the first and second quarters. “We didn’t run our offense the entire first quarter because we were throwing the ball away constantly. After we quit doing that, I thought we got under control and our defense was good.”

McDonald County scored the first two baskets out of the break on inside looks from Washam and O’Brien to push the lead to 19 and play that pace throughout the third quarter, ultimately taking a 45-30 lead into the fourth quarter after a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Sargent to end the third period. 

The Mustangs held the double-digit advantage for most of the final eight minutes until the Cardinals made a run late to cut the lead to single digits, 56-47, when senior G Malorie Stanley knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing with 1:38 left in regulation.

Nine points would be as close as Webb City would get before the final horn.

“This was a huge road win for us,” Crane said. “We went to Hillcrest early and got off to a bad start in a hostile environment, getting down as much as 14 before battling all the way back to win. I knew we’d been in those situations before. I thought we handled ourselves really well and never really got uncomfortable. We knew Webb was going to try to make a run, but I thought we made a good job of staying under control and executing when they did.”

STATS

McDonald County shot 47.8 percent from the field, while holding Webb City to 25.9 percent shooting in the game. The Mustangs didn’t make a 3-pointer in the win, but did make 14-of-22 free throws. MCHS won the turnover battle 26-24 and outscored WCHS 20-17 on points off turnovers.

Webb City won the rebounding battle 41-36 and outscored McDonald County 15-8 in second-chance points.

O’Brien led all scorers with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting, including seven makes from the free-throw line. She added eight rebounds, an assist, two steals and a block. Washa finished with 12 points, four rebounds and three blocks. Martin closed with nine points, five rebounds and six assists, while Cooper had eight points, on rebounds and an assist.

Sargent led Webb City in scoring with 13 points and 11 rebounds to finish with a double-double. She also had two steals and two assists. Addie Burns added 12 points and five rebounds, while Stanley finished with nine points, four rebounds and two steals. 

UP NEXT

McDonald County (5-1) hosts the Lady Mustang Classic from Dec. 11-13.

“We are doing a good job,” Crane said of his team’s start to the season. “I am very happy with where we are at. The big thing that I like—we are not settling. … We have put a lot of time and effort into putting ourselves in this situation. We kind of knew what we had—maybe other people did not—but we knew what we had coming with the work we’ve put in. We know the opportunity that we have and the big thing is we cannot settle and have to keep getting better because everyone else will, too.”

Webb City (0-4) is at Shiloh Christian on Dec. 8.

BOYS HOOPS: Webb City blitzes Monett in season opener

 

WEBB CITY, Mo. — Ahead of Tuesday night’s season-opener, the Webb City Cardinals had just four days of practice with all of their players available.

It was hard to tell.

Pushing the pace from the start, Webb City held a 20-point lead before the first quarter concluded on the way to a dominant 65-34 non-conference boys basketball victory over Monett inside the Cardinal Dome.

“I was really pleased with our effort tonight,” Webb City coach Jason Horn said. “We wanted to get the pace into a track meet and we were able to do that. Every guy that went into the game was playing at max effort. They played through mistakes, and they made an effort to share the ball. Our guys have really bought in to what we’re trying to do, and I was really pleased.”

The Cardinals once again got off to a late start to the hoops season as far as practice time with everyone, as the school’s football team advanced to the state semifinals.

“It’s not easy when you’re playing into shape,” Horn said. “This is my eighth year here and we’ve built our system up from the grade school level, so they’re used to what we’re doing. It’s more about trying to get enough practice in to fine-tune things. And you’re always nervous for the first game. We had four varsity guys who were consistently in practice. The rest of the guys just came in.”

Displaying a tenacious defense and taking advantage of its overall team speed, Webb City built a comfortable 29-8 lead by the end of the opening quarter.

From the start, the Cardinals were able to get numerous hoops in transition, often converting steals into layups. Five different players scored in the first period, as the hosts showed their depth.

“I think this is the fastest team I’ve had in 20 years of coaching basketball,” Horn said. “There’s some elite speed on the floor and that can make up for our lack of size. And they share the ball. And right now, we need to get runouts because we don’t have our legs under us yet.”

The Cubs scored the first eight points of the second quarter before the Cardinals righted the ship in a big way. Webb City closed the first half on a spirited 22-3 surge to take a commanding 51-19 halftime lead.

Webb City senior guard Barron Duda outscored the visitors by himself in the first half, 22-19.

Webb City’s lead was never in jeopardy in the second half. The Cardinals were up 65-34 entering the fourth quarter.

“Monett struggled tonight and they’re a better team than what they showed,” Horn said. “They have some nice players. We had a good atmosphere and we overwhelmed them early and it snowballed on them. I certainly don’t think it would be like that if we played them again. But that’s a credit to our kids and our student section. Those things work together and it makes it a fun environment to play in.” 

The 6-foot-3 Duda scored 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead the Cardinals. Both were game highs.

“He’s an all-conference type player and I think he’s going to have a big year,” Horn said. “He made plays when he needed to. I’m really happy with his performance.”

Three others reached double figures for the Cardinals, as junior guard Holton Keith scored 13 points, junior guard Eli Pace had 12 and senior guard Omari Jackson added 10. 

“I’m really happy with Omari Jackson,” Horn said. “He’s on four practices and he played with great pace.”

Pace handed out six assists and sophomore Trae Turner had six boards.

The Cardinals had 18 steals in the game, as Pace, Keith and sophomore Gabe Johnson recorded four apiece.

Landyn Brandt scored 11 points to lead the Cubs, while Ian Waterman added seven. 

Webb City takes on Nevada at 6:30 on Thursday night in an opening round contest of the 77th Carthage Invitational. The Webb City-Nevada winner will meet either Raymore-Peculiar or Fort Smith Southside in Friday’s semifinals.

“Nevada’s got a good crew and we know they shoot the ball very well,” Horn said. “Win or lose, you’re looking at a tough game in the next round too. It’s a really good tournament again this year. Carthage has one of the better teams in our area and they may have the best player in our area in Justin Ray. There’s a lot of talent in the tournament. It will be a good one, so we’re excited to see where we’re at.” 

Monett (0-2) will be among the teams competing at this week’s Seneca Invitational.

 

FULL STATS: Webb City HS (webbcitycardinals.com)