By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

With 5:54 to play in the game, things were looking good for the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs.

Stacie Vonderheide hit a jumper and Lucy Fearday added another bucket to open the final quarter. Those points capped an 11-1 run that began in the third period and gave the Lady Bulldogs an eight-point lead. At that point, the momentum was clearly on the side of the team in the white uniforms.

St. Anthony even had the ball with a chance to expand that lead, but the first of six turnovers started to turn the tide. Over the final six minutes, the Lady Bulldogs made just one more shot, faltered at the free throw line and turned the ball over too many times.

And the Neoga Lady Indians took full advantage.

A three-pointer by Trista Moore started a 19-4 run that culminated in a 48-42 victory Friday night in the championship game of the Class 1A Tuscola Sectional.

It was a game St. Anthony coaches, players and fans will describe as “one that got away.”

“We had every opportunity to win this game tonight,” St. Anthony coach Aaron Rios said. “My hat’s off to Neoga. They are a good ballclub that beat us twice this year. But we just didn’t perform in the fourth quarter. We beat ourselves.”

After Fearday’s bucket put the Lady Bulldogs up 38-30, Moore’s shot from behind the arc started the impressive closing surge by Neoga. Sydney Richards then scored after grabbing a rebound, Sydney Hackman converted an SAHS turnover into a pair of free throws and Richards turned yet another St. Anthony miscue into a three-pointer that capped a 10-0 run and put the Lady Indians on top, 40-38, with 2:09 left.

Neoga didn’t trail again.

The Lady Bulldogs made just 1-of-10 shots from the floor in the final six minutes and converted only 2-of-6 free throws. The Lady Indians, on the other hand, went 8-for-8 from the foul line in the final 1:54 to secure the win.

“We had all the momentum early in that fourth quarter,” Rios noted. “But we had some key turnovers -- mistakes we hadn’t been making in the postseason – and we didn’t make our free throws. You have to be able to execute at the end of a game; especially a game like this.”

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By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs continue to prove people wrong.

Not many thought they would beat Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City in the regional championship.

Even fewer gave them much of a chance to knock off Tri-County in the sectional opener.

But when the Class 1 Tuscola Sectional championship game is played Thursday night, the Lady Bulldogs will be on the floor.

They earned a berth in the sectional final by posting a 53-45 win Tuesday night over Tri-County. St. Anthony will now face fellow National Trail Conference member Neoga for a right to advance to the Wayne City Super-Sectional.

“This was a great win for us,” said SAHS coach Aaron Rios. “I’m excited for our girls and elated for our program. This was an amazing night.”

With 4:26 to play, the Lady Bulldogs and Lady Titans were tied 40-40. But from that point on, Riley Guy, Grace Karolewicz and the St. Anthony defense dominated.

Guy, who knocked down three shots from behind the arc in the opening quarter but hadn’t scored since, drilled a three at the 3:21 mark to put the Lady Bulldogs ahead to stay. Consecutive turnovers by Tri-County resulted in baskets by both Karolewicz and Guy to extend the lead to 47-41 with 1:34 still remaining.

Josie Armstrong hit a jumper and Bella Dudley made a pair of foul shots to keep Tri-County within striking distance, but three free throws by Karolewicz and two by Guy in the final 19 seconds secured the victory and a chance to play again.

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The St. Anthony Bulldogs used a strong second half to pull away and post a 60-41 victory over Christ Our Rock Lutheran Wednesday in a semifinal game of the Class 1A Patoka Regional.

The Bulldogs will now face Carlyle for the regional championship Friday night. The Indians defeated Nokomis 53-50 in the second semifinal Wednesday.

The Silver Stallions kept it close in the first half.

Kyle Stewart and Craig Croy both scored six points, helping St. Anthony take a 14-8 lead after the opening eight minutes. Christ Our Rock then knocked down three shots from behind the arc to close to within 21-18 at intermission.

But the Bulldogs started to build a bigger margin in the third quarter. Stewart made a three and scored seven points, as the Bulldogs outscored the Silver Stallions 17-6 to take a 38-24 advantage into the final period.

Croy connected on a pair of threes and scored eight points, as SAHS closed the game on a 22-17 surge to secure the win and earn a berth in the championship game.

Croy finished with a game-high 20 points and Stewart added 17 to pace the scoring attack.

Christ Our Rock finished their season at 21-9.

The win was the sixth straight for the Bulldogs, who improved to 20-12 overall. Carlyle will enter the regional final with a 17-15 overall mark.

Tipoff Friday will be at 7 p.m.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

When a No. 2 seed plays a No. 16 seed, the games are generally not close.

That was the case Saturday night.

The St. Anthony Bulldogs opened postseason play at home with a 71-52 win over Mulberry Grove and the Class 1A Patoka Regional contest was not nearly as close as that final score would indicate.

The SAHS starters only played about 60 percent of the game due to the large lead. The hosts led by as many as 30 points in the second half.

But this is the postseason. It doesn’t matter how much a team wins by. It’s survive and advance.

“My message to the guys before the game was to come out, set the tone and dictate things,” said St. Anthony coach Cody Rincker.

For the most part, that’s exactly what the Bulldogs did.

Craig Croy scored the first seven points of the game and the outcome was never in doubt. The senior forward tallied 11 points in the first eight minutes and freshman Brock Fearday drilled a couple three-pointers and had eight points, helping St. Anthony jump to a 23-8 lead.

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