ND PULLS RANK IN SHOOTOUT

Some of the best girls basketball teams in the state will converge at Notre Dame High School Saturday as the Lady Bulldogs will hold their first annual shootout.

Four games will be played, which will include the first, third and fifth-ranked teams in Class 4A; and the third-ranked team in Class 2A.

At 1 p.m., Cape Central will take on No. 1 Class 4A Parkway West, followed by No. 5 Class 4A Jackson vs. Seckman at 2:30. Poplar Bluff, No. 3 in Class 4A, will face Nerinx Hall at 4 p.m., then No. 3 Class 2A Notre Dame and McCluer close out the action with a 5:30 p.m. tipoff.

The event is an offspring of Cape Central's Tiger Showcase.

Central athletic director "Terry Kitchen and I talked about having the girls and guys on different days and rotating them every year," said Notre Dame athletic director Chris Janet.

"But for scheduling purposes, we thought it would be best to have one weekend for boys and one for the girls and to keep the boys there and the girls here."

On paper, three of the games look to be mismatches and the fourth game could turn out that way unless Central plays one of its best games of the year.

"For the first year, we're tickled to have these teams," said Janet. "We've already had teams call from St. Louis who have heard about it and ask us to consider them for next year. It should be a nice event."

Parkway West vs. Cape Central

Parkway West (12-1), many believe, has the best starting unit in the state with two Division-I recruits.

Central will face the challenge of containing Dionnah Jackson, who will be playing basketball at nationally ranked Oklahoma next season. Jackson is averaging 18 points, five assists and five steals per game, while Emily Jaskowiak is averaging 18.2 per contest.

Parkway West recently suffered its first loss to state-ranked Springfield Kickapoo.

"At least that breaks their aura of invincibility," said Central coach Mark Ruark.

The Lady Tigers hope to out-balance the Longhorns, who have averaged 27-point victories.

Central gets at least six rebounds and nine points from four different players including Katie Dougherty (12 ppg, 9 rpg), Sara Hyslop (10 ppg, 6 rpg), Heather Jenkins (9 ppg, 8 rpg) and Alex Wieser (9 ppg, 7 rpg).

Jackson vs. Seckman

The Lady Indians (9-2) will boast the highest scorer in the shootout in Andrea Koeper, who is drawing more and more looks from Division I schools after bouncing back from a knee injury.

Koeper is averaging 19 points and nine rebounds per contest, while Jenna Leet scores 10 points per game.

Seckman, which suffered a 62-34 loss to Farmington earlier this year, brings in an 8-5 record and is led by Leanne Bowers' 11.2 points per contest.

Notre Dame (2A) vs. McCluer

The host Lady Bulldogs are the only non-4A team in the shootout, but they appear to have a good shot at beating McCluer, which is 5-6 and has no player in double figures.

Notre Dame (12-3) is led by the inside presence of Deana McCormick and the perimeter shooting Lisa Millham. Both average 15 points per contest.

Notre Dame's only losses this season have come to Poplar Bluff, Central and Jackson.

Poplar Bluff vs. Nerinx Hall

Poplar Bluff has proven on the court that it is the best team in the region.

The Lady Mules are 14-1 and have defeated Cape Central twice and Jackson and Notre Dame once.

Poplar Bluff, which recently beat state-ranked Rolla in overtime, is led by Nicole Rivers (13 ppg), Ashley Williams (12 ppg) and Jessica Wilson (11 ppg).

Nerinx Hall is just 10-6 but has played a rugged schedule which includes two losses to Visitation. It has split games with St. Joseph's Academy. Anna Sonderman leads the Comets with a 14-point average.