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Charleston knocks off Delta to stay undefeated
Lady Bluejays jump out to big lead and hold on in the second half
CHARLESTON -- Thursday night's match up of two of the top girls basketball teams in Southeast Missouri provided plenty of excitement. Host Charleston was able to defeat the visiting Delta Lady Bearcats 62-52.
Both teams had high hopes before the opening tip off as the Lady Bluejays remained undefeated while Delta had only lost one.
However, Charleston (5-0) came out on fire in the first quarter and shocked the historically prominent Lady Bobcats (4-2) as the Lady Bluejays outscored Delta 19-6 in the first period.
"I don't think they (Delta) expected us to come out with as much intensity as we did," Charleston head coach Michael Minner said after Thursday's game. "I think it kind of shocked them."
The Lady Bluejays were able to maintain their advantage in the second quarter as Charleston took a 30-16 lead to the halftime locker room.
The Lady Bobcats did all they could to mount a second half charge, but clutch play from Tariah Simpson and the rest of the Lady Bluejays shut the door. Simpson finished the game with 16 points, 12 of them in the second half.
Minner noted after the game how pleased he was with Simpson and all his players in general.
"She (Tariah Simpson) has really worked hard to get to this point. She did a wonderful job for us down the stretch. Really, everyone did," Minner said.
Leading scorers in the contest were Jerquanda Sherrell (17) for Charleston and Jodi Menz (13) for Delta.
One of the biggest factors contributing to the Lady Bluejays victory was their ability to control the rebounds in Thursday's contest. Charleston out rebounded the Lady Bobcats 51-18.
Delta head coach Mark Verticchio felt that the Lady Bluejays athleticism and ability to rebound proved to be decisive.
"Their (Charleston's) quickness absolutely killed us,' Verticchio said. "Their quickness and their rebounding. You have to give them (Charleston) a lot of credit, they did a good job in both areas. They played good defense that caused us to take shots that we didn't make. Our girls played hard though."
Minner agreed that rebounding was key.
"We rebounded so well tonight," he said. "Our kids are in great shape and you can tell. They have been working so hard and that showed tonight."
Minner was very pleased with his girl's teamwork Thursday night, noting that everyone contributed in some way.
"That stuff (rebounds, assists, steals) shows up in our stat book," he said. "We don't care who throws it in the hole. Whatever it takes is what we strive for. We played great as a team tonight. Our rebounding has improved tremendously since last year."
Although his squad is 5-0, Minner said he and his girls are focused on consistent improvement.
"We hope to continue to get better," he said. "We are not so concerned with wins and losses right now. We just hope to continue to improve all the way until districts."
The Lady Bluejays travel to the Twin Rivers Christmas Tournament next week, where play will begin on Tuesday.