SPRINGFIELD — Incarnate Word Academy defeated Rock Bridge girls basketball for a sixth consecutive state championship and a 100th straight win.
The Red Knights were victorious in the MSHSAA Class 6 title game, besting Rock Bridge 57-30 on Saturday at Great Southern Bank Arena.
Incarnate Word put the pressure on right away with a full-court press on Rock Bridge in the first minute of the game. The Bruins remained composed in the first quarter despite the pressure.
Bruins guard Mari Miller, who scored 12 points on the night, led the scoring for Rock Bridge. Miller did not shy away from driving to the basket, even with Incarnate Word’s height advantage.
Miller’s offensive aggression paid off, converting 6 of 9 from the free-throw line. Despite her efforts, Rock Bridge could not get into a rhythm offensively.
Incarnate Word’s constant defensive pressure helped force 15 turnovers. This allowed the Red Knights to take command and go on an 8-0 run in the second quarter and a 14-0 run in the third quarter.
Two forwards for Incarnate Word, Natalie Potts and Kaylynn Janes, both shot 53.8% from the floor as they led their team to the title. Potts scored 17 points on the night, and Janes scored a career-high 19. Janes, a junior, converted 5 of 6 from beyond the arc.
“Honestly, I was kind of surprised that they were sagging off of her (Janes), because I see how well she can shoot,” Incarnate Word coach Dan Rolfes said.
What really helped Incarnate Word come away with a victory was shutting down 6-foot-2 Rock Bridge center Jayda Porter. Porter had a hard time getting off high-percentage shots as Incarnate Word continued to pressure her, limiting her to just four points on the game.
“(The Rock Bridge) offense runs to her,” Incarnate Word senior Brooke Coffey said, “so we needed to lock her down to stop their offense from moving, so I feel like we did that well.”
Potts, a 6-2 senior, led the effort in the paint for the Red Knights as the Bruins struggled to contain her. Potts achieved both 1,000 career rebounds and 1,000 career points this weekend.
“It’s a great feeling,” Potts said “It’s definitely been a journey, and I’ve been happy to be a part of it.”
Despite coming up short of a state title, Rock Bridge made a formidable postseason run to even have a shot at the title.
“Everyone wants to talk about the 2-3 start (to the season), ... we had eight losses all year,” Rock Bridge coach Jill Nagel said. “Five of those teams are state champions, two of those are third-place teams.”
Overall, it was a bittersweet experience for the Bruins in Springfield.
“We were really happy yesterday when we won (the) semifinals,” Rock Bridge senior Bella Corrado said. “We’re still proud of what we did, how far we’ve come. But it’s kind of sad because we’ve all been together since middle school.”
Despite losing three seniors in Corrado, Addison Hopkins and Katherine Sievers, the Bruins are still hopeful for the future.
“We have a lot of people returning, we have a lot of experience that is leaving,” Nagel said. “We’re going to work hard, obviously, next year, but that’s why we’ve enjoyed this journey — nothing’s given.”
A hard-fought effort earns the Jays third place
Jefferson City boys basketball and Pembroke Hill were evenly matched, going head-to-head for third place in the Class 5 MSHSAA Show-Me Showdown at Great Southern Bank Arena.
The Jays were able to come out on top with a hard-fought effort in the fourth quarter to secure a third-place finish by defeating Pembroke Hill 79-76.
“We knew it was going to be an up-tempo game,” Jefferson City coach Josh Buffington said. “Kids are very resilient. They can fight through adversity.”
Jefferson City’s zone defense was mostly able to contain the Raiders’ offense, but neither team was able to pull away. Small, yet costly, mistakes allowed the Raiders to maintain a lead over the Jays for most of the game.
Jefferson City had 13 turnovers, allowing Pembroke Hill to go on a 5-0 run in the second quarter and a 7-0 run to start the third quarter. But the Jays quickly erased a double-digit deficit in the first half to obtain a two-point lead going into halftime.
In the semifinal, Buffington said his team gave up too many second chances. This struggle continued against Pembroke Hill ‚ the Jays gave up 19 offensive rebounds to the Raiders.
Despite these shortcomings, the Jays extended their lead over Pembroke Hill in the fourth quarter, when they led by as many as 12 points.
This lead quickly shortened as the fourth quarter continued. The Raiders’ offense was propelled by Darin Conley, Mavrick Hawkins and Devin Conley. The three scored 20, 19 and 13 points, respectively.
The Raiders’ offense started off strong, shooting 53.1% in the first half. They couldn’t keep the momentum going as Pembroke Hill shot 33.1% from the floor in the second half. It was a shootout between the two teams, and the Jays were able to win the battle.
Sophomore Jordan Martin and senior Steven Samuels were the driving offensive forces that secured Jefferson City’s win. Martin scored 34 points while Samuels scored 24.
It was the final game of Samuels’ high school career, and he hit the 1,000-point mark in his final game.
“I mean, I didn’t even know until just now,” Samuels said. “But it feels good though. ... This is one of the goals that I had in my high school career, ... it just feels good.”
After a loss in the semifinals, the Jays ended their season on a high note.
”This feels way better to know you have the satisfaction of ending a season on a win,” Jefferson City senior Cole Heller said. ... “We fought for it and we got it.”