By Rick Peck
Special To McDonald County Press
The McDonald County eighth-grade girls basketball team capped off a perfect 14-0 season by winning the Big 8 Conference tournament with a 48-32 win over Monett on Dec. 17 at Anderson Middle School.
McDonald County led just 12-9 at the end of the first quarter and 23-20 at halftime before outscoring Monett 14-7 in the third quarter to take a 37-27 lead into the fourth period.
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The Lady Mustangs were led by Ragan Wilson with 15 points and Rita Santillan with 13. Rounding out the scoring for McDonald County were Jaylie Sanny with eight points, Mylea Schlessman with six, Emily Thornton four and Grace Poland two.
McDonald County advanced to the championship game with a 32-4 win over Lamar Dec. 15 in the semifinals. Wilson scored 17 points and Santillan added 11 while Schlessman and Addy Mick had two each for the Lady Mustangs.
Seventh Grade
After upsetting Mount Vernon in the semifinals, the McDonald County seventh-grade girls couldn't do the same in the championship game, dropping a 47-32 decision Dec. 15 to Aurora to settle for second place in the Big 8 Conference tournament in Mount Vernon.
Aurora jumped out to an 18-10 lead at the end of the first quarter and stretched the margin to 32-17 before entering the fourth period with a 39-24 lead.
Jersey Wolfenbarger scored 19 points to lead McDonald County. Rounding out the scoring were Kristin Penn with eight points and Laney Wilson and Katie Kester with two each.
McDonald County finishes its season with a 10-4 record.
McDonald County avenged an earlier season loss with a 27-22 win over Mount Vernon on Dec. 14 in the semifinals. The Lady Mustangs led 9-3 at the end of the first quarter and 15-12 at halftime before taking a 21-14 advantage into the final period.
Wolfenbarger scored 20 of the Lady Mustangs 27 points while Caitlyn Barton added five points and Laney Wilson two to round out the scoring for McDonald County.
Sports on 12/24/2015