Lady Bulldogs open with win
SIKESTON -- A bruised and battered lineup didn't keep Sikeston's girls basketball team from opening the 2001-2002 season with a convincing victory Monday night.
Joy Daniel scored 14 points and Jamie Medlin followed with 12 as the Lady Bulldogs cruised past Portageville, 43-28.
"I thought we played real well down the stretch," said Sikeston coach Lee Brooks. "We started out a little nervous. This is such a young team, and I was real pleased, even though we only led by two points at halftime."
Sikeston increased its lead to 31-24 heading into the final quarter, then turned up the intensity with a 12-4 run to end the game.
Behind Daniel and Medlin, Mia Welch scored seven points.
"Daniel is just a workhorse," said Brooks. "We're looking for a lot of good things out of her. We brought Welch up, and she loves to play. She's very mobile and I think she's going to add some things to our team, even though she's just a sophomore."
Sikeston players currently fighting through injuries include Summer Ray, Kerri Jones, and Stephanie Clark.
"We've got some good players, but we're still feeling each other out," said Brooks. "We're so young that we don't know who's going to do what on any given night."
Janil Booker led all Portageville scorers with 15 points. Sikeston (1-0) will host Dexter on Thursday at 6 p.m. Wednesday's game against Notre Dame has been pushed back to Jan. 1.
In the junior varsity game, Sikeston defeated Portageville 35-26. Ebony Collins led the charge with seven points, followed by Nyketia Johnson with five. Larry paced Portageville with nine.
Charleston 71, E. Prairie 14
EAST PRAIRIE -- Charleston rolled to a conference win over East Prairie on Monday, 71-14.
Shay Ward scored 22 points and Tyshanta Williams poured in 18 as the Lady Bluejays improved to 2-0 on the season.
"I'm real pleased with the fact that the kids went down, played hard and came away with a conference win," said Charleston coach Beverly Wright. "East Prairie is pretty inexperienced. They tried, but their inexperience came through."
Charleston outscored East Prairie 31-3 in the first quarter and never looked back, putting up 19 points in the second, 14 in the third then seven in the fourth.
Courtney McClendon scored nine points, while standout Missey Whitney scored seven with numerous assists. Dreelle Mathis finished with six.
"Drelle Mathis is our floor leader, and did a good job distributing the basketball," said Wright. "The kids ran the floor well."
Holdiness led all East Prairie scorers with four points. Charleston will host Portageville on Thursday.
Kelly 50, Dexter 34
BENTON -- The Lady Hawks of Kelly overcame an early deficit to beat Dexter on Monday night, 50-34. Bridgett Riley scored 20 points to lead all scorers.
"The girls came out, played hard and played as a team," said Kelly coach Rod McQuerter.
Amy Rose hit three 3-pointers for the Lady Bearcats, finishing with 12 points. Katie Dunlap contributed 11.
Kelly (2-0) will host Chaffee on Thursday.