The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs raced out to an 18-point lead and never looked Saturday, rolling to a dominating 81-57 victory over host Robinson that clinched the championship of the Lady Maroons Thanksgiving Tournament.
Earlier in the day, St. Anthony beat Fairfield, 54-43. The Lady Bulldogs went 4-0 in the tourney to capture the title.
In the final game, Lucy Fearday pumped in 12 of her 22 points in the first quarter, helping SAHS build a 28-10 advantage after just eight minutes. By halftime, it was a 47-26 margin and it expanded to 70-45 after three quarters.
St. Anthony had four players crack double figures, led by Fearday. Stacie Vonderheide scored 18 points, while Nancy Ruholl added 15 and Addie Nuxoll chipped in 13.
In the first game Saturday morning, the Lady Bulldogs led throughout, but Fairfield stayed within striking distance. SAHS led 19-13 after the first period, 30-24 at intermission and 38-31 heading into the fourth quarter. Fearday scored nine points in the final eight minutes, helping St. Anthony go on a 16-12 surge and clinch the 11-point win.
Fearday finished with a game-high 22 points and Ruholl added 10.
The Lady Bulldogs, now 7-0 on the season, will be back in action Monday night. They will play at home against Okaw Valley.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Before the first quarter ended, the St. Anthony Bulldogs were already in foul trouble.
They had been whistled for nine fouls. Two starters and one reserve were already on the bench – each with two fouls.
That scenario always forces coaches to go to the bench. For Cody Rincker, he had to go to the bench much sooner than he anticipated.
But despite putting players in the game that have limited or no varsity experience whatsoever, they stepped up and produced in a big way Friday night.
Junior Collin Westendorf and sophomores Sam Link, Will Fearday, Ryan Schmidt and Brady Hatton combined to score 17 points and pull down 10 rebounds and play a major role in helping St. Anthony post a 55-48 victory over cross-town rival Effingham in front of a large crowd at the Enlow Center.
It was the last game of “pool play” and set the stage for the final day of the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament.
The Bulldogs, 2-2 in the tourney, will face Highland at 6 p.m. Saturday in the third place game. Effingham, now 0-3, will play Mattoon in the seventh place contest at 3 p.m.
The fifth place game will feature Robinson and Rantoul at 4:30 p.m. and the championship contest will see Teutopolis tangle with Breese Central at 7:30 p.m.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Breese Central has won the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament championship six times since it began in 2003.
The Cougars are not only the defending champs, but are now just one win away from a chance to bring home a seventh championship trophy.
They put themselves in that position Wednesday night by posting a 50-34 victory over the host St. Anthony Bulldogs.
Breese Central will now face Robinson at 3 p.m. Friday. The winner of that contest will play in the championship game Saturday. If Teutopolis defeats Mattoon Friday afternoon, the Shoes will also advance to the final game.
After a pair of free throws by Chase Lewis put the Cougars ahead 4-3 just two minutes into the contest, they never trailed again. The Bulldogs had difficulty scoring against Breese Central’s tenacious man-to-man defense. The Cougars led 12-5 at the end of the opening period.
Brock Fearday kept St. Anthony close in the second quarter. The sophomore hit two jumpers and then drilled a three-pointer at the 4:25 mark to get the Bulldogs within 17-14.
The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs opened play in the Lady Maroons Thanksgiving Tournament in impressive fashion Friday, winning a pair of games in Robinson.
SAHS opened with a 52-33 victory over Mt. Carmel in the morning and followed that up with a 60-46 win over Marshall later that night.
In the opener, the Lady Bulldogs outscored Mt. Carmel 36-14 in the middle two quarters to erase an early two-point deficit and build a 44-24 advantage by the end of the third period.
Nancy Ruholl scored 16 points to lead three St. Anthony players in double figures. Lucy Fearday scored 14 and Stacie Vonderheide added 12.
In the nightcap, St. Anthony led virtually the entire game. The Lady Bulldogs jumped out to a 20-12 lead after the opening eight minutes. It was 33-27 at halftime and 46-37 heading into the fourth quarter.
Ruholl had another big game, pouring in 24 points, with 16 of those coming in the opening half. Fearday added 18 points and did most of her damage in the second half, netting 12 points in the final two periods.
The Lady Bulldogs are now 2-0 in tourney play and 4-0 overall. They will play two more games Saturday – against Fairfield at 10:30 a.m. and then Robinson at 3 p.m.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Yes, the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs won 23 games a year ago – the most in school history.
Yes, they were co-champions of the National Trail Conference during the regular season.
Yes, they won a regional title and battled eventual state runner-up Neoga to the end in the sectional.
And, yes, between Riley Guy and Grace Karolewicz, they lost a scoring output of 28 points a game.
However, the outlook for this season remains high. An honorable mention all-state performer and three others that either started or played a lot of varsity minutes return.
“We’re more battle-tested than we’ve been in the past,” Aaron Rios, who is entering his fourth year as the St. Anthony head coach, said. “We’ve been in some big games. Plus, the girls have been around each other now for three or four years. I like this team and I think we can do very well this season.”
The Lady Bulldogs are off to a 2-0 start and will play four games later this week in the Robinson Thanksgiving Tournament, which is scheduled for Friday and Saturday. They will face Mt. Carmel at 10:30 a.m. Friday and then go up against Marshall later that day at 3 p.m. On Saturday, SAHS will play Fairfield at 10:30 a.m. and Robinson at 3 p.m.
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