Tigers showcase freshmen in win over Mustangs
JON DYKSTRA/THE FORUM
Worth County junior Kristen Tracy plays defense Monday in Stanberry against North Nodaway.
STANBERRY, Mo. — A fast start on Monday in the first round of the Stanberry Invitational allowed Worth County the opportunity to get their entire roster involved in a 49-22 win over North Nodaway.
“We just came out wanting to set the tone for the tournament,” Worth County coach April Healy said. “We wanted to play fast.”
The Tigers, seeded second in the Stanberry Invitational, have a unique roster this season where they returned their entire 6-person rotation from last season. They added two freshmen to the mix with Kennedy Murphy and Kynlee Steele.
“I think that we played well,” Worth County senior Rylee Ruckman said. “It was a game where we could get everyone in and everyone got a lot of playing time.
“It has been a lot of fun and it’s been fun to see them grow. Every day, they get better. Every game, they get better. It is just a lot of fun.”
The Tigers hit the ground running with a 6-0 start to the season and they leaned on their veteran core. Worth County hit adversity after that start with three losses, but have now responded with 4-straight wins and the freshmen have earned more reps as the season has gone on.
“It is definitely better to be getting in time and working hard,” Murphy said. “(We are) definitely improving when we get just for a few minutes even. I am really proud when we get in there and try to work hard.”
Against North Nodaway, Worth County jumped out to a 14-0 lead behind a balanced onslaught with four points for both Kristen Tracy and Audrey Runde, and two each for Keira Hardy, Ruckman and Kambree Briner.
North Nodaway junior point guard Lily Blane quelled momentum briefly with back-to-back 3-pointers. The Mustangs played without senior Lacy Riley, who was out sick, but Blane stepped up with 14 points including four 3-pointers.
“One thing that Lily has really gained this year is her confidence, especially when teams bring pressure,” North Nodaway coach Sami Jackson said. “And they are going to bring pressure on her day in and day out.”
Worth County came back with a 9-0 run of its own as Steele and Murphy checked into the game during the second quarter to play defense alongside the veterans. Tracy hit back-to-back shots to stretch the lead to 27-8 before Mustang freshman Zoey Phillips scored to make it 27-10 at halftime.
“They’ve been very welcoming and they are just a very fun group of girls to work with,” Murphy said of the playing next to the veterans. “I just really enjoy playing with them.”
The second half allowed more time for Healy to try out different lineup combinations. A pair of Ruckman 3-pointers sandwiched Murphy’s first score of the night to push the lead to 40-12.
North Nodaway fought back with another Phillips basket and a Blane 3-pointer. Blane hit her fourth 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter and make it 41-20.
The Tiger freshmen each scored during a 6-0 run as Worth County finished up the 49-22 victory. The four points is the most in a game this season for Murphy.
Ruckman had 13 points while Tracy had 12. Runde added nine while Briner had six, Murphy had four, Hardy had three and Steele had two.
“I thought we did a good job of sharing the ball in the zone,” Healy said. “We know what looks to look for, and they did a good job of attacking it.”
In addition to Blane’s game-high 14 points, Jackie Wray and Phillips each had four points.
“With eight girls in general, when you miss one no matter who it is, you are never going to seamlessly fill that role,” Jackson said. “I think that tonight we learned how much Lacy does for us. A lot of that is communication and hustle. I think that we took a few hits to the gut before we started to step up and fill that role.”
North Nodaway will play North Andrew in the consolation semifinals on Wednesday (results were not available as of press time) while Worth County will play Stanberry on Thursday. Stanberry beat North Andrew 45-37 on Monday.
Worth County 36, Stanberry 35
The Tigers won a thriller last Friday over Stanberry 36-35.
Audrey Runde led Worth County with 10 points while Megan Tracy had nine and Kambree Briner had eight. Kristen Tracy had five points and Rylee Ruckman had four.
DeKalb 41, North Nodaway 23
Last Friday, the Mustangs fell 41-23 to DeKalb on the road.
Freshman Zoey Phillips had eight points to lead the Mustangs while Eliza Clements and Lacy Riley each had five. Lily Blane had four points and Jackie Wray had one.
DeKalb was led by 17 points for Camry Hanshaw and 15 for Grace Downing.
