ANDERSON, Mo. — For the third time in as many weeks, the Carl Junction Bulldogs will play for a tournament championship.
Ignited by fast starts to both the first and third quarters, Carl Junction rolled to a 68-44 victory over Springdale (Arkansas) on Tuesday night in the semifinals of the Lady Mustang Classic at McDonald County High School.
Carl Junction will meet Bentonville West in the tourney title game at 8 p.m. on Wednesday.
It’s the third tourney championship game of the young season for Carl Junction. The Bulldogs won their own CJ Classic two weeks ago and were the runner-up at last week’s Taco Bell Tournament of Champions in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Ranked fourth in Class 5 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association, Carl Junction improved to 7-1 on the season.
Just two weeks ago, Carl Junction edged Springdale 62-58 in the semifinals of the CJ Classic. The rematch was all CJ. Simply put, the Bulldogs dominated for most of the night.
Carl Junction raced out to an 18-5 lead by the end of the first period, with senior guard Destiny Buerge scoring nine in the frame.
Springdale started the second quarter on an 11-2 surge, with many of those points coming on hoops in transition.
But Carl Junction weathered the storm and closed the first half on a 13-4 spurt for a 33-20 halftime advantage.
During the late run, Kylie Scott scored six points, Klohe Burk converted an old-fashioned 3-point play and Dezi Williams and Jadyn Howard both scored baskets in the paint.
After the break, Carl Junction began the third period on a 17-0 run to blow the game open.
Buerge scored 14 points in the third period to Springdale’s nine, and Brad Shorter’s Bulldogs held a comfortable 56-29 lead by the end of the third quarter.
Carl Junction owned a 64-34 cushion in the final frame, and both coaches got their reserves plenty of time on the court late in the game.
A Pittsburg State signee, Buerge scored 25 points to lead CJ.
Scott added 14 points, while Williams had 11, Burk scored seven and Anna Burch contributed six.
Kaiya McCoy scored 13 for Springdale and Jakayla Bunch added 11.
In the other semifinal, Bentonville West beat Fort Smith Southside 56-53.
In Tuesday’s consolation semifinals, Farmington edged Gentry 60-59 and Webb City beat McDonald County 38-35.
See a related story on the Webb City-McDonald County game.
Lady Mustang Classic
Tuesday’s scores
Farmington 60, Gentry 59
Webb City 38, McDonald County 35
Carl Junction 68, Springdale 44
Bentonville West 56, Fort Smith Southside 53
Wednesday’s schedule
Seventh place: McDonald County vs. Gentry, 3 p.m.
Fifth place: Farmington vs. Webb City, 5
Third place: Springdale vs. Southside, 6:30
Title game: Carl Junction vs. Bentonville West, 8
