Kelly makes quick exit at Twin Rivers

~ The Hawks lasted just two games in tourney.

This time, the Kelly girls basketball team didn't last long at the Lady Royals Classic Tournament, hosted by Twin Rivers in Broseley, Mo.

The Hawks, after falling 70-34 to Sikeston on Tuesday, lost 68-54 to East Carter County in a consolation bracket game Thursday night.

Kelly last year finished third in the tournament, losing to runner-up Doniphan in the semifinal round.

"We are a young team," Kelly coach Rod McQuerter said after Thursday's loss. "We have to learn to value the basketball."

The Hawks committed 23 turnovers, which offset their 39 rebounds -- 20 of which were on the offensive end.

Freshman Debra Hall, a 5-foot-11 forward, led Kelly in scoring (12 points) and rebounding (nine).

East Carter had 29 rebounds and was led down low by 5-10 senior Beth Johnson, who had 27 poinds and 12 rebounds. Meaghan Carner helped East Carter to a 41-21 halftime lead by making four 3-pointers in the first half.

"Johnson from East Carter is strong and quick around the basket and was a tough matchup for us," McQuerter said.

His team closed the deficit to 13 with Hall, who was picked up three fouls in the first half, scoring all of her points in the third period. Kelly even closed to within seven, 59-52, with 1 minute, 40 seconds left in the game, but East Carter hit its free throws to secure the win.

East Carter played Portageville on Friday in the fifth-place game.

For Kelly, Katee Moore scored 11 points, Sarah Ruff added nine points and six rebounds, and Kayla Cissell had eight points.

"We can't have our heads down," McQuerter said. "We have to go back to practice tomorrow and get ready for districts down the line."

Kelly, a Class 3 district championship team a year ago, fell to 5-3 for the season. Last year they emerged from Twin Rivers with an 8-1 record.

The Hawks take a two-week break until a Jan. 5 game at Sikeston, a team which has handed Kelly two of its three losses. The earlier defeat came in the semifinals of the Chaffee tournament that Sikeston won.

Kelly made 12 turnovers in the first quarter of Tuesday's 36-point loss to the Bulldogs. They finished the night with 22 turnovers.

"As a coaching staff, we did not have our players ready," McQuerter said after that loss. "We simply got outcoached tonight. "They came to play and we didn't. Give credit to coach [Fred] Johnson and [assistant] coach [Tiffany] King for having their players ready to play. They are very athletic and were prepared."