ANDERSON, Mo. — Looking anything but rusty after a long layoff, the Carl Junction girls basketball team was clicking on all cylinders from the start.
In a 2021 debut to remember, the Bulldogs rode a 26-0 run in the first half to a commanding 60-24 non-conference victory over McDonald County on Monday night.
“The Christmas break was good for us,” Bulldogs coach Brad Shorter said. “We got a lot of work in. We were able to clean up some things over the break and I think it showed tonight. The kids were hungry when they came out tonight. Our kids came out and played hard.”
Sophomore guard Destiny Buerge scored 19 points to lead the Bulldogs, who improved to 7-2. Buerge scored 13 points in the opening frame.
Junior Jessa Hylton added 15 points for Carl Junction, while sophomore Hali Shorter and freshman Kylie Scott contributed nine points apiece. Hylton hit three 3-pointers, while Shorter hit two treys and Scott buried one. Senior Hannah Lee scored six points and junior Ellie Lawson rounded out the scoring with two points.
Senior Kristen Penn led the Mustangs (3-7) with nine points, while junior Adasyn Leach added seven.
Carl Junction hadn’t played in more than two weeks, but it was hard to tell.
The Bulldogs put together a game-changing 26-0 surge that spanned the majority of the first quarter and the beginning of the second period to take control. By then, Carl Junction held a comfortable 28-3 advantage.
The hosts finally stopped the spurt, but Hylton, Hali Shorter and Scott all hit treys late in the first half and the Bulldogs were up 42-14 at halftime.
While the Mustangs struggled offensively against Carl Junction’s zone defense, the Bulldogs created offense from their defense or simply picked apart McDonald County’s halfcourt defense.
“We made the extra pass quite a few times tonight,” Shorter said. “That gave us some really clean looks. And Destiny and Jessa are a great tandem up top. They were able to get a lot of steals and run-outs at the top of our zone, and that always helps our offense. I thought we just played good team basketball.”
Penn scored seven points early in the third quarter for the Mustangs, but the Bulldogs closed the period on a 10-3 burst to take a 56-24 lead.
With that, there was a running clock in the final frame.
Carl Junction hosts Glendale on Thursday night in another non-conference clash.
KATIE SCOTT RECOGNIZED AGAIN
Former Carl Junction standout Katie Scott, now a freshman at Grand Canyon, has been named the Western Athletic Conference’s women’s basketball player of the week for the third consecutive time.
Scott scored 28 points and grabbed seven rebounds and three steals this past Sunday in a 106-55 win over Park. Scott has scored 20 or more points in six of her team’s nine games and is leading the WAC in scoring with 20.7 points per game.
