CARTHAGE, Mo. — Carthage set the tone in the first quarter on the way to a 62-43 win over Webb City to wrap up the Lady Tigers Invitational on Saturday.
The Tigers (3-1) took second place as the hosts, finishing 2-1 with wins over Lamar and Webb City and a loss to Kickapoo.
“Our kids are really motivated, seem dedicated and look like they are really enjoying playing basketball,” Carthage coach Scott Moore said. “We are playing a really fun and exciting brand of basketball. Our fans are getting into the game and the students are coming out on a Saturday. I like the fact it is starting to grow some interest from our fanbase as well.”
Carthage started the game on a 9-0 run to take the early momentum in the game. Sophomore Kianna Yates scored the first three baskets of the contest, with the final coming off a steal and a score on the break, before Hailey Fullerton knocked down her first 3-pointer of the game in transition.
Senior Jaydee Duda got Webb City (0-3) on the board with a mid-range pullup jumper at the 5:21 mark, but that would be the only Cardinals’ score of the opening eight minutes.
“We struggled a little bit early in the game,” Webb City coach Lance Robbins said. “Today was the first day we kind of had some of our other kids come back and play. It was an adjustment for us in the first quarter. “
The Tigers finished the first quarter on a 16-0 run to lead 25-2, ultimately building an insurmountable advantage. Fullerton converted an and-one opportunity after drawing a foul while scoring in the paint to kick off the run. Yates made two charities, assisted on a Katie Crowe layup on the break and added two more free throws to push the lead to 18-2. Fullerton added her second 3-ball of the opening quarter, and Presley Probert scored off a steal in the backcourt. Sophie Shannon closed the run with an offensive rebound and a putback score.
“Our pressure gets after people and my kids make really smart decisions,” Moore said of his Tigers’ first-quarter performance. “We are trying to really take teams out of their flow so even if they break our press they are not in setting up half court plays.”
While it was an uphill battle for the Cardinals after the first eight minutes, Robbins was pleased with the way his girls adjusted after the first period of play. Webb City began to find its footing offensively, outsourcing Carthage 20-19 in the second quarter, but still trailed 44-22 at the intermission. Duda and Raven Vaughn paced Webb City with seven points in the second quarter, while Sierra Kimbrough had six. The Cardinals made 9-of-11 free throws.
“In the second quarter, we did a better job of settling in, running our offense and moving the ball better,” Robbins said. “Once we made one or two shots, we got a little more confidence. We were just able to play our game. After the first quarter, I think we won by five in the second, third and fourth quarters. We just needed to come out and play better to start the game.”
The defense for Webb City strengthened out of the locker room, holding Carthage to five points total in the period, with Fullerton accounting for all of them. The Cardinals closed the third on a 10-0 run to trim the deficit to 49-34. Josie Spikereit, Kate Brownfield and Kylie Jennings had 2-point field goals, while Kimbrough converted from the perimeter.
“We showed a lot of fight,” Robbins said. “That is what we talked about at halftime. … We needed to defend (better) and just keep trying to chip away offensively. I thought we did a pretty god of that in the second half. … There are some things that we can build on from the way that we finished the game.
“Anytime you have some adversity, you find out kind of what you are made of. … That goes back to your senior leadership. Our seniors have high expectations for this year. They know things didn’t start out well that first quarter. We got after them a little bit and they stepped up. They did a good job of providing us with the leadership and energy for us to compete during those last three quarters.”
Webb City scored the first two baskets of the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 11, 49-38, but that was as close as the Cardinals would get. Carthage answered with five straight points to make the score 54-38 near the midway point and Fullerton pushed the lead to 17, 59-42, shortly after with her sixth make from 3-point range in the game with less than three minutes to play.
“Webb City is a good team, and we knew they had a couple kids who hadn’t been playing,” Moore said. “We knew it would take them a little bit to get into a flow, but we knew they would. Once they (made a run), I loved that we handled the adversity of them making a comeback and immediately responded. … That shows our kids are maturing and they can handle that pressure.”
Fullerton finished with a game-high 25 points, while Yates closed with 21. Lauren Wilson had five and Brinna Ream scored four.
Duda led Webb City with 12 points, while Kimbrough was right behind with 11. Vaughn finished with nine. Jennings scored five and Brownfield finished with four.
UP NEXT
Carthage takes on McDonald County at 5:30 p.m. in the Lady Eagle Classic on Dec. 9.
Webb City hosts Lamar at 6 p.m. on Dec. 8.
KICKAPOO DEFEATS MILLER TO TAKE FIRST PLACE
Kickapoo limited Miller to six first-half points on the way to a 62-27 win to take first place in the Lady Tigers Invitational.
Indya Green led the way for the Chiefs with a game-high 22 points. Rachel Senn and Bella Fontleroy each scored 12, while Kaya Goldsby added eight.
Kaylee Helton led Miller with 10 points, while Claudia Hadlock added seven.
