JACKSON GIRLS OUTLAST CENTRAL

JACKSON, Mo. -- The Cape Central-Jackson girls basketball game Thursday night may have been a bit short on star power, but it lacked nothing in excitement and intensity.

Jackson, ranked 10th in Class 4A, needed overtime to outlast Central 53-47 in front of a boisterous crowd in a stuffy Jackson gymnasium.

With Jackson playing without all-stater Andrea Koeper, who is sidelined with mononucleosis, and with Central playing without its only point guard and its backup center, it was a game where several role players took on larger responsibilities.

Jackson's Jenna Leet bore much of the burden for her team, scoring a game-high 19 points including 17 from the free-throw line. She was 17-for-22 for the game and seven of nine in the fourth quarter.

Time after time, despite the taunts from Central's student section, the sophomore cooly sank one free throw after another.

"You just try to ignore it and let it go in one ear and out the other and concentrate on the shot," Leet said. "But it's a privilege to play in front of all these people."

"She did a real good job in the second half," Jackson coach Ron Cook said. "With Koeper out, we don't have a lot of ball handlers and she just needs to be near the ball."

Jackson attempted only one shot in the overtime period, that coming on the last possession of the game. The Lady Indians scored all 10 of their overtime points at the foul line.

Central, meanwhile, had difficulty keeping its starters in the game and had trouble scoring.

Katie Dougherty, who played in her 99th consecutive game, was forced to leave in the second half with a shoulder injury. Her status was uncertain immediately after the game. Central center Heather Jenkins and forwards Alex Wieser and Sarah Hyslop all fouled out. That left only one Central starter -- Jessica Sinn -- and four junior varsity players on the court the last 41 seconds of the game.

But even without Dougherty, Jenkins and Wieser for most of the fourth quarter, Central hung in there.

"Sometimes as a coach, you don't know what more to say," said Central coach Mark Ruark. "We've had so much adversity this year. I'm extremely proud of how we responded to the adversity tonight. We kept battling, even in overtime."

Speaking of adversity, Cook was pleased with the way the Lady Indians dealt with theirs. Koeper averages about 18 points per game and without her, Jackson suffered a blowout loss to Parkway West, ranked second, last week.

"When you have something like this happen, it's forcing the team to find other avenues to win and that's good," Cook said.

Hyslop carried the Lady Tigers through much of the fourth quarter, scoring six of her team-high 16 points in the final 4:19 of regulation.

The two teams swapped leads most of the fourth quarter.

Central owned a 43-41 lead with 1:21 left, but with 10 seconds remaining Ronna Cook scored to tie the game at 43. The Lady Tigers turned the ball over with five seconds left but Leet's shot at the buzzer missed.

Jackson led 14-9 after the first quarter, but Central managed to obtain a 24-24 tie by halftime. Central led 35-34 going into the fourth quarter.