Jackson survives in defensive battle

In the final game of the Notre Dame Shootout on Saturday, the Jackson and Eureka girls' basketball teams brought blanks on offense and turned the game into a defensive struggle.

The Indians survived the contest 38-31 despite shooting only 14 of 48 from the floor and committing 17 turnovers due to Eureka's constant pressure. Helping the Indians come from behind was their own splendid defensive performance, which forced Eureka into 16 turnovers and 13 of 44 shooting.

That type of defense is a staple of the Jackson program, point guard Kelly Loos said.

"We've always been told, it's always been Jackson's strategy that if it doesn't fall in on the offensive side, make it up defensively," Loos said. "We made tons of turnovers, but then we managed to pull it out on the defensive side."

Trailing 19-15 entering the third quarter, Jackson (15-1) limited the Wildcats (10-5) to two points in the quarter. While the Wildcats missed 11 of their 12 shots in the third quarter, the Indians were unable to pull away, leading only 24-21 after a layin by Kylie Werner with 6 seconds remaining.

Jackson coach Sam Sides said his team's execution was hampered by the defensive intensity Eureka showed.

"Eureka had a big part to do with that. They played real physical, and we weren't ready for that, and they were ready to play," Sides said. "It was a real physical game, and those games are hard to play in.

"They didn't give us a lot of good looks. We had to shoot everything on the move, and we hurried our shots a little bit."

Loos said the Indians were caught off guard by the physical style of play displayed by the Wildcats, and halftime included sorting out which Wildcats were quick on defense and which were scorers. One of the haftime adjustments was having wing players Werner and Bobbie Jones bringing the ball up against the press instead of Loos, who was hounded by 5-foot senior Ronda Ramsey.

Werner had 12 points to lead Jackson. Jones added 11, despite shooting three of nine from the free-throw line. The Indians were only nine-for-16 from the free-throw line in the game but made four in the final minute to secure the win.

ND, Central fall

Notre Dame was unable to hold on to a halftime lead, falling to St. Charles 46-41. The Bulldogs (4-11) used a 13-point second quarter to take a 19-18 lead, but the Pirates attacked the basket early in the second half to regain control. Notre Dame was led by Meredith Medlin's 13.

Central lost 62-26 to Nerinx Hall Academy of Webster Groves in the opener. Erica Schabbing and Courtney Schuessler each scored eight points for Central.

JACKSON 38, EUREKA 31

Eureka 14 5 2 10 -- 31

Jackson 8 7 9 14 -- 38

EUREKA (31) -- Erin Lindsey 8, Erika Share 2, Ronda Ramsey 6, Emily Woodland 2, Stephanie Mach 13. FG 13, FT 3-12, F 17 (3-pointers: Lindsey 2. Fouled out: none)

JACKSON (38) -- Kylie Werner 12, Gabrielle Garritano 3, Loni Littlepage 2, Kelly Loos 3, Bobbie Jones 11, Amanda Peiffer 7. FG 14, FT 9-16, F 11 (3-pointers: Loos 1. Fouled out: none)

NERINX HALL 62, CAPE CENTRAL 26

Nerinx Hall 11 16 23 12 -- 62

Cape Central 6 5 10 5 -- 26

NERINX HALL (62) -- Katie Mathews 4, Kristin Kopp 5, Emily Marshall 6, Katie Marshall 1, K.C. Stoll 11, Meggie Kennedy 20, Casey Kraft 13, Hayley Pieper 2. FG 25, FT 9-18, F 17 (3-pointers: Kennedy 2, Kraft 1. Fouled out: none)

CAPE CENTRAL (26) -- Dani Gross 2, Meg Yates 1, Jessica Johnston 1, Courtney Schuessler 8, Erica Schabbing 8, Christina Sexton 6. FG 8, FT 10-14, F 14 (3-pointers: none. Fouled out: none)

ST. CHARLES 46, NOTRE DAME 41

St. Charles 11 7 15 13 -- 46

Notre Dame 6 13 9 13 -- 41

ST. CHARLES (46) -- Abby Schaberg 1, Abby Schultehenrich 17, Erin Berkebrede 6, Lisa White 6, Tori Fenemor 16. FG 17, FT 11-13, F 8 (3-pointers: Schultehenrich 1. Fouled out: none)

NOTRE DAME (41) -- Allison Toole 6, Brooke Beussink 3, Meredith Medlin 13, Amber Karnes 3, Kristain Burger 6, Amanda Toole 3, Amanda Essner 7. FG 17, FT 5-9, F 13 (3-pointers: Beussink, Medlin 1. Fouled out: none)