PERRYVILLE BOYS JOIN LADY PIRATES IN DISTRICT FINALS

PARK HILLS -- Perryville's Pirates followed their girls basketball team into the district finals with a solid defensive effort against the Arcadia Valley Tigers Thursday.

Scott Kassel poured in 23 points to lead the Pirates (26-2) into the championship game against top-seeded North County. On Wednesday, the Lady Pirates advanced to the finals where they will meet top-seeded Fredericktown. Both Perryville teams are seeded second in the tourney.

"We had the tempo of the game going our way and we took advantage of our size," Pirates coach Rick Francis said. "We didn't shoot our free throws very well but our defense did a good job in the second half."

Bruce Weinkein scored 12 points and added 12 rebounds to help Kassel inside. Perryville shot over 50 percent in both halves, building a 28-20 lead at halftime and never allowing the Tigers to gain ground.

Although Perryville will be facing a North County team that handed the Pirates one of only two losses on the year, Francis said his squad is ready for the championship matchup.

"This will be the first time our seniors will have a chance to play in a district championship game," Francis said. "We're looking forward to it and we're hoping a big crowd of supporters will be there for both Perryville teams."

The boys final will follow the girls title game starting at 6 p.m.

Class 3A, District 1

CHARLESTON -- Top-seeded Charleston advanced to tonight's championship game and will face No. 2-seeded New Madrid County Central at 7:30 p.m.

Charleston improved to 24-3 with a 77-54 victory over Dexter. New Madrid advanced with a 53-45 win over third-seeded Doniphan.

Charleston built a 10-point lead by the close of the first quarter and led 34-20 at halftime. Dexter came back in the third quarter, cutting the Blue Jay lead to 49-45 by the start of the final period. Charleston outscored Dexter 28-9 over the final eight minutes.

LaRico Coleman scored a game-high 25 points for Charleston. Howard Biles finished with 13 and Rashad Oliver netted 11.

Ed Farr scored 25 points in New Madrid's victory.

Charleston is 2-0 against New Madrid this season.

Bell City 83, Meadow Heights 49

PATTON -- Bell City closed its regular season Thursday with a decisive victory, building a 24-point lead by the end of the first quarter.

Justin Stephens scored a game-high 20 points for Bell City, which improved to 7-16. Brandon Stewart added 16, Nate Wills 14, Matt Knoderer 12 and Jay Gadberry 11.

Avery Ennis led Meadow Heights with 14 points.

Bell City led 29-5 after one quarter and 48-17 at halftime.

"We came out and shot the ball well and put a lot of pressure on them," said Bell City coach Scott Kruse.

Bell City opens Class 1A, District 2 action Monday in Oran against Advance.

Bloomfield 62, Woodland 59

MARBLE HILL -- In a preview of their opening-round district matchup, the Bloomfield Wildcats upended Woodland despite a 35-point effort from Shawn Massa Thursday.

Woodland, the No. 3 seed in its district, fell to 17-9. Bloomfield, the sixth seed, upped its record to 14-10.

Nathan Conner scored 28 points for the Wildcats as they used a 17-9 scoring advantage in the third quarter to pull away for the win.

Campbell 73, Zalma 70, OT

ZALMA -- Foul trouble took its toll on Zalma as the Bulldogs finished with just three players on the floor Thursday.

Terry Hendrix finished with a game-high 30 points for Zalma, but was among three players to foul out. Michael Wade added 18 points.

Zalma, which concluded its regular season at 2-20, opens Class 1A district play Monday against defending state champion Richland.

Girls basketball

Notre Dame 54, Chaffee 31

CHAFFEE -- Notre Dame tuned up for Saturday's district opener with a solid victory over Chaffee Thursday.

Notre Dame outscored Chaffee 14-7 in the first quarter and 27-15 in the first half. The lead grew to over 20 points in the third quarter.

"I thought Notre Dame looked very good getting ready for district," said Chaffee coach Brian Horrell. "I have to give my girls credit for trying to fight them. They were a little better ballclub."

Randi Senciboy was the lone Lady Bulldog in double figures, scoring 15 points.

Brandi Foulk netted 10 points for Chaffee.

Notre Dame takes a 16-9 record into Saturday's opening Class 2A, District 2 round in Bloomfield. The Lady Bulldogs, seeded No. 1, face East Prairie at noon.

"We're doing some good things going in," said Notre Dame coach Jerry Grim. "We're playing some pretty good basketball right now."

Chaffee, 9-13, wil play Greenville in a 1:30 p.m. game Saturday at Bloomfield.

Scott County 56, Delta 55

DELTA -- Scott County Central freshman Vontrice Blackmon missed her first six free throws Thursday at Delta but made her final one, sinking a free toss with no time remaining to give the Lady Braves a thrilling win over Delta.

With the score tied 55-55, Blackmon was fouled after driving to the hoop for the potential game-winning basket. Blackmon and Ashley Woodson led Scott County (11-11) with 19 points each.

The Lady Bobcats trailed most of the game before coming back in the final quarter, led by eight fourth-quarter points from Erin Eftink, who finished with a team-high 18 points for Delta. The loss ended Delta's regular season with a 15-6 record.

St. Vincent 57, Oran 26

PERRYVILLE -- St. Vincent senior Becky Lorenz finished her final game at home with a dominating performance against the Oran Lady Eagles.

Lorenz scored 21 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead the Squaws to victory in their final regular-season game. The win improved St.Vincent to 7-17.

Senior Laurie Kirn added 10 points for the Squaws, who led 32-8 at halftime and 48-11 heading to the final quarter.

Freshman Sara Heisserer led Oran with 11 points