Kenny Howell
BEGGS - The Chouteau Ladycats held off a late rally by Hartshorne Friday to move one step closer to the area tournament.
The Lady Miners were able to cut what was once a double-digit lead down to one in the closing minutes, but Chouteau closed with a 9-2 run to win.
Hartshorne had the early advantage, going up 7-2 in the first, but Chouteau came charging back and a Jocelyn Couch buzzer beater put the Ladycats up 11-9 at the end of the quarter.
Part of the reason for the comeback was domination on the boards by the Ladycats. That continued in the second quarter as they built their lead to as big as eight points. At the half, the Chouteau lead was 24-18.
The Ladycats continued to build their lead in the third, going up by 12 and taking a 40-30 lead into the fourth quarter.
A flip switched for the Lady Miners in the fourth. They amped up the pressure and caused several Chouteau turnovers. A three pointer by Hartshorne put the score at 46-45, but Chouteau took control from there on out, going 8-for-9 down the stretch at the free throw line.
Cheyenne Helms led Chouteau with 14 points. L.J. Hochstetler poured in 12 and Reanna Keys had 11. Catterina Browning had 11 rebounds. Tracy Tiger led Hartshorne with 18 points.
Chouteau played Morris Saturday for a spot in the area tournament. See Tuesday’s edition for those results.
Chouteau 55 Hartshorne 47
C - 11 13 16 15 - 55
H - 9 9 12 17 - 47
C - Cheyenne Helms 14, L.J. Hochstetler 12, Reanna Keys 11, Catterina Browning 8, Adrienne Richards 4, Kacie Oberg 3, Jocelyn Couch 2.
This time of year, teams have to dig down deep to come away with a win.
That was definitely what Chouteau had to do Friday in a 53-50 win over Morris. Chouteau lost three starters to fouls and had to use guts and grit to pull out the win.
Chouteau led early, 4-2, but Morris had the advantage at the end of one, 6-5.
The game opened up in the second. Morris started the quarter on a 5-0 run until a Josh Anderson jumper ended it. A Curtis Foreman three-pointer gave Chouteau back the lead, 14-13. At the half, Chouteau led 23-19.
The Wildcats led by as many as nine in the third quarter at 33-24. But Zac Duck picked up his fourth foul, then a technical foul to foul out of the game. Anderson picked up his fourth and had to sit down as well. Morris made a run and cut it down to 36-33 at the end of the third.
Josh Mahan picked up his fourth foul early in the fourth and had to sit down. That meant that some reserves would need to make some big plays, and that is exactly what they did. Jason Couch came up with a steal and a layup to give Chouteau the lead at 47-42. But Morris battled back and tied it up 47-47.
In the mean time, Anderson and Mahan both fouled out to leave Chouteau with just two starters left. One of those starters, Dwight McElroy, came up with a big bucket after the Eagles tied it. McElroy got the ball in the paint, laid it up and was fouled. He added the free throw to make it 50-47.
After a defensive stop, Foreman added a free throw to make it 51-47. Morris big man Hayden Sharp answered with a long three-pointer to cut it to one.
Deon Hilligoss would get fouled with time running down, and the little man came up big with two huge free throws to get the final score of 53-50.
McElroy was the only Wildcat in double figures with 16 points. He also grabbed seven rebounds.
Chouteau played Kellyville Saturday for a spot in the area tournament. See those results in Tuesday’s edition.
Chouteau 53 Morris 50
C - 5 18 13 17 - 53
M - 6 13 14 17 - 50
C - Dwight McElroy 16, Josh Shive 8, Josh Mahan 7, Zac Duck 5, Deon Hilligoss 4, Josh Anderson 4, Jason Couch 4, Curtis Foreman 4, Daniel Johnson 1. M - Wares 15, Sharp 14, Martin 9, Yahola 6, Wahnee 3, Deer 2, McMurtry 1.
