WIN OVER BLUFF IN '91 HELPED SPUR GIRLS' DYNASTY

Although Jackson girls basketball had been around a generation, one could say it was born on March 2, 1991, when freshman Jill Heit took a brilliant pass from teammate Brenda Thompson and sank a huge layup.

That monumental play--coming 31 seconds after a huge steal and rebound by all-stater Andrea Siemer helped the Lady Indians break the ice and prove to the world and to itself what it could do.

"It seemed like after that we started getting some confidence in ourselves," reflected Coach Ron Cook. "After that we got more players and were able to turn the tables in the nineties."

That pivotal game, in which the Lady Indians stunned highly-favored Poplar Bluff 50-48 in the Class 4A District 1 finals, got them going in a decade in which they would become the region's dominant basketball program. Since that night the Jackson girls have won eight district championships in nine years.

They have posted a phenomenal 220-29 record since the beginning of that 1990-91 season, averaging 24.4 wins and 3.2 losses per year. After going 17-9 in the 1990-91 season, they have posted eight straight seasons of 23 or more victories per year. Archrival Poplar Bluff is their closest competition, winning 20 games seven straight years and going 186-53 in the decade.

The Lady Mules and Cape Central had kept the solid Jackson program out of the state playoffs throughout the 1980s. When Poplar Bluff shellacked the Lady Indians 72-36 early in the 1990-91 season, it looked like business as usual. The young Jackson girls (9-8 at one point) gained confidence, though, and matured. With the 6-1 Siemer, Thompson, Crystal Hecht, Katie Stoverink and April Conley leading the way, they surged back, winning nine straight games and the district title.

A powerful DeSoto team derailed them in the sectionals, but the dynasty had arrived.

The Red and Black roared to its first Final Four berth the next season, as Siemer blossomed into Ms. Missouri Basketball 1992. The team went 25-4, taking fourth in state.

"Since then it's been building," Cook said.

Indeed it has, with players like his daughters Sherry and Shauna, the Milham girls, Shannon Perry and many others. The Lady Indians reached the Final Four again in 1995, taking third place and finishing 28-1. A year later the semifinal hurdle was overcome.

That led to three straight second place finishes. The final prize--the Class 4A state championship--is still being sought by the Jackson girls.

"Going to state our senior year had to be the highlight," said Shauna Cook, who went on to play four more years of basketball with Sherry at Southeast Missouri State. "There were eight seniors on the team that year. It was great going out like that. We all worked so hard throughout our high school career. We were really disappointed our junior year that we didn't get to go to state.

"That whole (senior) year was awesome. We were disappointed that we lost up there, but going to state was a big highlight."

Ron Cook has trouble choosing one game that stands out during his 300+ victories with the Lady Indians. That 1991 district championship game is hard to bet against, though.

"It's been good all the way through," he said. "It's hard to put the emphasis on one game. We had to strive forward to try to win district. Your first district (championship) always stays with you.