WEBB CITY, Mo. — In a thrilling end to the regular season, the Carl Junction girls basketball team completed an undefeated run through the always-tough Central Ozark Conference by holding off Webb City 56-53 on Monday night inside the Cardinal Dome.
Ranked first in Class 5 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association and now 25-1 overall, Carl Junction went 9-0 in the COC, which is regarded as one of the toughest conferences in the state of Missouri.
“It’s a testament to our kids and our coaching staff,” Carl Junction coach Brad Shorter said of securing a COC championship. “All of them have done a great job all year. It all started last summer. We wanted to make a statement this season. This group has been working at it for a few years now, so it feels good to be able to win the conference and to go undefeated in the conference too. It doesn’t happen a lot in the COC. And we are the smallest school in the conference.”
The game was deadlocked with 2:25 to play before the visitors took the lead for good with one final surge. The Bulldogs also came up with one last defensive stop in the final seconds to secure a hard-fought win.
In the end, Carl Junction was the team that got it done in crunch time.
“Tonight’s game was a wake-up call for us,” Shorter said. “We needed one of those. We needed a tough game in a tough environment. Things didn’t go our way a lot of the night, but I’m proud our kids were able to hang on and get the win. They kept playing hard, they kept their poise and good things happened for them in the end.”
It’s safe to say the Cardinals made the Bulldogs earn the victory on Monday night.
“I’m just really proud of them because they battled some adversity and they fought the whole game,” said Webb City assistant coach Brooke Stauffer. “We were right there at the end, so I’m just really proud of them.”
Stauffer, a former Missouri Southern Lion and Neosho Wildcat, handled the head coaching duties in place of Lance Robbins.
“It was a little nerve-racking tonight, but it was also very exciting for me,” Stauffer said of making her head coaching debut. “I’m glad I was able to coach our two seniors on their Senior Night.”
Receiving votes in the Class 5 poll, Webb City now has a record of 15-10. The Cardinals went 5-4 in the conference.
GAME RECAP
Carl Junction played a large part of the first half without the services of senior standout Destiny Buerge, who picked up two early fouls.
Treys from junior guards Mia Robbins and Malorie Stanley and a hoop inside from sophomore center Sami Mancini gave the Cardinals an 8-5 lead at the end of the low-scoring opening frame.
In the second quarter, the Bulldogs put together a 9-0 run, as sophomores Dezi Williams and DeShaye Buerge buried 3-pointers and junior forward Kylie Scott converted a bucket in the lane and made a free throw for a 19-11 lead.
Mancini scored a pair of hoops to keep the hosts within striking distance before CJ senior guard Hali Shorter scored from in close to give the visitors a 21-16 halftime lead.
Webb City started the second half on a 13-8 run and the game was tied at 29.
Carl Junction reeled off 11 straight points to take their biggest lead of the game, as Williams scored inside before senior guard Klohe Burk, Destiny Buerge and Williams all hit treys.
Webb City’s Kirra Long scored just before the third period ended, cutting her team’s deficit to 40-31 entering the final frame.
With a final spirited run, the Cardinals began the fourth quarter on an 18-9 burst to tie it up at 49.
Stanley scored five points early in the fourth period for the Cardinals, while Mancini and Long had baskets. During the same stretch, Carl Junction got two hoops from Scott and another from Destiny Buerge. Webb City’s Robbins made a pair of trifectas before senior guard Izzy Lopez hit a game-tying trey of her own with 2:25 to play.
However, the Bulldogs wouldn’t be denied.
Burk came up huge by drilling a go-ahead corner 3-pointer before Destiny Buerge hit a short pull-up jumper near the foul line after Scott’s offensive rebound.
But Mancini made one free throw and scored in the paint, cutting CJ’s lead to 54-52 with 50 seconds remaining.
Next, Destiny Buerge connected on two key free throws with 26 seconds left for a four-point cushion.
With 19 seconds left, Webb City senior guard Kate Brownfield hit 1-of-2 free throws to make it a three-point game.
The Bulldogs misfired on the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw with nine seconds remaining.
After a timeout, Webb City had one last chance to tie the game. Robbins hoisted up a trey from the right corner, but Carl Junction’s Scott blocked it just before the final horn sounded.
“Webb City hit some big shots and we didn’t do a very good job of getting out to their shooters,” Shorter said. “Destiny getting into foul trouble early didn’t help us out tonight. And Mancini makes things difficult for you with her play inside. But I’m proud of my kids for getting it done. I thought we got some great minutes off the bench tonight. They provided us with some good defense.”
NAMES & NUMBERS
Williams led Carl Junction with 16 points, while Destiny Buerge scored 15 points and Burk and Scott added 10 points apiece.
The Bulldogs made 19-of-46 field goal attempts (41 percent) and made just 11-of-22 free throws.
A 6-5 sophomore forward, Mancini scored a game-high 22 points and also grabbed 12 rebounds while battling foul trouble.
A junior guard, Robbins added 12 points, hitting four 3-pointers. Stanley added eight points and Lopez had six. The Cardinals shot 39 percent (20-of-51 FG).
Webb City recognized Brownfield and Lopez on Senior Night.
“They’re great leaders, they’re great team players and they’re wonderful kids on and off the court,” Stauffer said of the senior tandem.
DISTRICT TOURNEY AWAITS
The Bulldogs not only secured an outright conference title on Monday, they also extended their winning streak to 20.
“I feel like we have some pretty good momentum going into the district tournament,” Shorter said. “We do have a pretty big layoff coming up here, but it will give us a chance to heal up some injuries and work on some things. Hopefully we’ll continue to get better.”
Carl Junction and Webb City could meet again, as the Bulldogs and Cardinals are the top two seeds for the Class 5 District 7 tournament that will be hosted by Webb City.
No. 1 Carl Junction meets No. 8 Ruskin at 5 p.m. on March 2 inside the Cardinal Dome, while No. 2 Webb City takes on No. 7 Belton at the same time in the “boys gym.”
The semifinals are March 4 and the title game is slated for March 7.
“It’s been a great regular season and hopefully we’ll be able to play for a district championship,” Shorter said.
FULL STATS: Webb City HS (webbcitycardinals.com)
