CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — The Carl Junction Bulldogs didn’t get off to a particularly strong start on Thursday night, as the hosts managed just one field goal in the opening frame.
But it’s not how you begin, it’s how you finish.
Carl Junction shook off the slow start and did more than enough to earn a 44-31 win over Springdale (Ark.) in a non-conference girls basketball contest.
After the sluggish first quarter, Carl Junction outscored Springdale 41-27 the rest of the way.
“It was a very slow start,” Carl Junction coach Brad Shorter said. “We just didn’t come out with the energy we needed to have. We talked about that at halftime and we challenged the kids. We had much better energy in the second half. But we’ve got to get going right from the get-go and not wait.”
Sophomore guard Destiny Buerge scored 21 points to lead Carl Junction. Buerge scored 13 of her 21 points in the second half and hit a pair of treys.
Junior guard Jessa Hylton added 11 points for Carl Junction, while freshman Kylie Scott had seven. Also for CJ, Hali Shorter scored three points and Hannah Lee had two.
Nevaeh Griffin scored 13 points for Springdale and Mary Hawkins added 10. These two programs have met for several years now in an interstate clash.
“Their kids play hard and they play smart,” Shorter said of Springdale. “We’ve had this contest the last four or five years. It’s always a good contest because both teams play hard.”
Buerge’s 3-pointer just before the buzzer accounted for Carl Junction’s lone hoop of the first quarter, and Springdale had a 4-3 advantage.
The hosts picked it up in the second quarter, often turning Springdale’s turnovers into hoops in transition.
The visitors led 9-5 when Carl Junction used a 10-2 run in the second quarter to take the lead for good.
Hylton’s steal and layup gave the hosts a 19-15 halftime advantage.
“A lot of the lack of energy caused us to keep the ball on one side of the floor,” Shorter said. “We didn’t move the ball very well. Late in the first half, we started to move it a little bit. We were able to get a few transition points and those were important. I feel like we’re scoring too much from our defense and not enough from our offense.”
Carl Junction closed the third quarter on a 10-2 surge, as Buerge and Hali Shorter both hit 3-pointers, while Buerge contributed a pair of free throws and a runner in the lane to give the host Bulldogs a 29-19 lead heading into the final frame.
Early in the fourth quarter, Hylton drained a trey and Buerge scored on a drive through the lane, pushing Carl Junction’s lead to 34-19.
It was a lead the hosts would never relinquish.
Carl Junction improved to 6-2. The team’s lone losses have come to Nixa and Mount Vernon in tournament championship games.
“I think we’re getting better,” Shorter said. “We’re young. We’re seeing a variety of teams and different styles of play and how to adapt to that.”
Carl Junction was scheduled to play at Monett on Monday, but the game has been rescheduled for Jan. 25.
