INDIANS SUFFER ANOTHER CLOSE LOSS, FALL TO EAGLES

JACKSON -- John Oehl scored a career-high 28 points but it was not enough to keep the Jackson boys basketball team from suffering its seventh loss by three points or less as the Indians fell 65-62 to New Madrid Friday night.

Oehl, who also had nine rebounds, was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.

"Oehl played really well for us," said Jackson coach Steve Burk. "He had an outstanding game."

Tory Meyr added 14 points before fouling out in the final seconds.

Byron Minner paced New Madrid with 21 points.

After playing to a 17-17 tie in the first quarter, New Madrid got up 41-35 by halftime.

"They shot the ball really well the first half," said Burk. " The second half we played better defensively, but we couldn't quite catch up."

New Madrid carried a 49-45 lead in the fourth quarter and saw Jackson (11-12) cut the lead to a point with 15 seconds left in the game. The Indians pressed on the ensuing inbounds play and saw New Madrid get loose for a layup for the final margin of victory.

Scott City 76, Bloomfield 33

BLOOMFIELD -- The top ranked 2A Rams continued their domination over 2A district foes, along with everyone else, with a lopsided victory over Bloomfield, increasing their record to 21-1.

Scott City dominated Bloomfield defensively, both on the boards grabbing a 40-20 rebounding advantage and by forcing 23 turnovers.

"Our kids really got after it on our full-court defensive pressure," said Scott City coach Derek McCord. "We forced a lot of turnovers off our press and got some easy buckets. We're really starting to shoot better."

Scott City won its 15th consecutive game and had five players in double figures: Ronald Watson had 18 points, Ben Sample had 13, Scott Johnson and Ryan Weatherspoon had 12 points apiece and Matt Miller added 11.

Advance 66, Delta 41

ADVANCE -- Advance coach Jim Hall celebrated his 450th career as the Hornets subdued Delta and boosted their record to 19-3.

"All it means is I've been coaching a long, long time," quipped Hall, whose team is ranked second in Class 1A.

Advance led by 16-13 after the first quarter, but held the Bobcats to just six points in the second quarter to take a 28-19 lead by halftime.

The Hornets outscored Delta 38-22 through the second half for the win.

"I felt like Delta outplayed us in the first half, even though we led," said Hall. "We came out in the second half and played more aggressive defensively."

Adam Rainey led Advance in scoring with 23 points, while Garrett Broshuis finished with 21.

Delta's Robert Pruitt scored 16 points and Josh Altenthal added 10.

Woodland 67, Bell City 48

WOODLAND -- The Cardinals overcame a second-quarter defensive letdown in their homecoming game to defeat Bell City and push their record to 10-9.

"I think we got caught up in the hoopla of homecoming and let up our intensity," said Woodland coach Jennings Wilkinson. "We took care of business defensively in the second half, however."

Woodland started hot, taking an 18-3 lead midway into the second quarter, only to see Bell City close the gap to 32-26 by halftime.

The Cardinals regained control in the second half, outscoring the Cubs 35-22.

Woodland's Jason Greer led all scorers with 17 points, followed by Jared Houchins with 14 and C. W. Stacy with 12.

Bell City was led in scoring by Gabe Scherer and Eric Henry, who both notched 15 points.

Richland 65, Zalma 62

ZALMA -- The host Bulldogs missed a potential game-tying shot at the buzzer as they fell to 3-14 on the season.

Sherman Cole scored 28 points to pace Richland to victory.

Jason Means led Zalma with 17 points, and was followed by Chris Canoy (14), Dustin Wiseman (12) and Brad Isaac (10).

Zalma, which held a fourth-quarter lead at one time, committed 32 turnovers in the game.

"We made some mental mistakes that put us in the position to have to make the three," said Zalma coach Dwight Ford.

Richland led 40-30 at halftime and took a 52-49 lead into the fourth quarter.

Oran 59, Leopold 51

LEOPOLD -- The Eagles, fresh off a win over Richland on Tuesday, held on to their lead in a high-scoring fourth quarter.

Leopold outscored Oran 26-24 in the fourth, but it wasn't enough to overcome a 12-point deficit which it faced going into the final eight minutes.

Oran (12-7) was tied at 11 points with the Wildcats in the first quarter, but held Leopold to seven points in the second quarter, taking a 25-18 lead into the break.

"They played a tough man-to-man defense," said Leopold coach Carlton Thoma, who saw his team's record fall to 14-8. "We let them do too much under the basket and they had a few fast-break points that we shouldn't have allowed."

Travis Friga led the way for Oran, notching a game-high 21 points. Philip Seyer added 15.

Daniel Schaab had the hot hand for Leopold, pouring in 18 points, while Jason Van De Ven finished with 13.

Oak Ridge 58, Kingston 47

OAK RIDGE -- Oak Ridge improved to 6-11 with a win over Kingston, thanks in part to Beau Morrison, who sank 14 points, Ben Fadler, who had 13 and Matt Schoen, who finished with 10 for the Blue Jays.

Oak Ridge took a 14-6 lead in the opening quarter, and led 25-19 by halftime. The Blue Jays held a 36-30 lead in the third and outscored Kingston 22-17 in the final eight minutes to seal the win.

"I thought we performed pretty sluggish compared to the way we have played," said Oak Ridge coach Paul Lynch, "but it's still a win."

Charlie Thornton led Kingston with a game-high 18 points.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Kelly 67, East Carter Co. 33

BENTON -- The Lady Hawks capped a perfect 3-0 week with their eighth straight victory Friday night.

Kelly, which also defeated Charleston and New Madrid earlier in the week, improved to 19-3.

Marissa Essner led the rout with 24 points, while Audrey Burford added 19 and Bridgett Riley had 11.

The Lady Hawks stormed out to a 22-5 lead in the first quarter and were well on their way to victory.

Natalie Smith led East Carter with 14 points.

BOYS SWIMMING

ST. PETERS -- Cape Central swimmer Jon Lowrance posted a personal best time of 1:05.99 at the state swimming meet Friday, but did not qualify to the finals.

Lowrance finished 27th overall on a day where five new state records were broken, three of which were by a sophomore from Parkway South.