Donettes, East Carter to face off in OFC title game

DONIPHAN — With a chance to win their fourth consecutive Ozark Foothills Conference championship, the Doniphan Donettes took the first step with a dominant performance in the semifinals.

The OFC No. 1 seed, Doniphan Donettes, took on the No. 4 seeded Twin Rivers Lady Royals on Monday at Doniphan High School for a spot in the championship game.

The Donettes have been on a tear in the last few games with their explosive offense and intense defense, and they kept the momentum rolling with a strong 59-12 win over the Lady Royals. The Donettes improved to 20-0 the season, and without a single loss to an OFC opponent, their chances of repeating are stronger than ever.

The Last time the Donettes played Twin Rivers, they held them to 14 points, and the game plan for this matchup was to keep the same energy as the last encounter.

Kenzie Redus kicked off the game for the Donettes with an easy bucket under the rim, and Caryn Hagood followed with a dagger from beyond the arc to take a 5-0 lead. The Donettes tapped into their defensive bag, making it difficult for the Lady Royals to get the ball past halfcourt.

With their high-pressured defense, the Donettes held the Lady Royals scoreless in the first quarter, ending Twin Rivers’ hope of making the finals before the game was over. The Donettes continued to pound the paint with multiple baskets, and with their intensity on the defensive end, the worries of a comeback were nonexistent.

Redus had another solid game for the Donettes by dropping 18 points. Hagood continued her sharpshooting from the three and finished with 12 points, and Sarah Owen had six.

The Donettes will put their undefeated streak to the test when they take on the East Carter Lady Redbirds in the championship game on Friday at Three Rivers College in Libla Sports Complex at 7 p.m.

EAST CARTER 67 , NEELYVILLE 59

It was a battle between the No. 2 East Carter Lady Redbirds and the No. 3 Neelyville Lady Tigers as they fought for an opportunity to play for the OFC championship.

After a series of traded baskets for most of the game, the Lady Redbirds managed to pull away midway through the third quarter to take a 67-59 victory.

The last time both teams faced off, the game went down to the wire, and the Lady Redbirds were able to sneak a win over Neelyville 78-74. Though the Lady Redbirds held the upper hand, going head-to-head against the Lady Tigers would not be a cakewalk

Both teams stepped onto the floor with a lot of energy, and neither team was willing to give up the first basket. After a few trips down the floor without a single basket, East Carter senior Breanna Dohleman connected with a shot and foul to take a 3-0 lead at the three-minute mark.

Despite the slow start, the Lady Tigers quickly found their footing to connect with a few buckets, proving that putting them away wouldn’t be easy. The game stayed even for most of the second quarter, but with a short jumper by Anna Crowley, the Lady Redbirds went into the half with a 25-23 lead.

Though the game’s scoring wasn’t as high as the first matchup, the intensity to capture the buckets was on another level.

The Lady Redbirds started the second half on a hot 6-0 run to extend the lead, putting the pressure on Neelyville to capitalize on a basket before the lead got out of reach. After a few steals, the Lady Redbirds slowly pulled away from the Lady Tigers, holding a 12-point lead midway through the third quarter.

While holding a 50-38 lead to start the final quarter, the Lady Redbirds needed to keep the same intercity on defense to get past Neelyville. The Lady Redbirds wouldn't allow the Lady Tigers to upset them again after losing out on an OFC championship game last season. East Carter kept a steady pace in the fourth and landed a spot in the finals after placing third last year.

Dohleman led the Lady Redbirds with 18 points, Dylan Price had 17 points and Parker Golden had 13.

Jade Crosswhite led Neelyville with 18 points, Parker Ernst had 17 and Layni Dobbins had eight.