Notre Dame falls to Carl Junction in Class 5 semifinals

SPRINGFIELD. Mo. – Anna Garner thought she had drained the momentum-changing shot, despite it being slightly off-target.

When the Notre Dame senior banked in a left-wing three, it pulled the Bulldogs within two points of Carl Junction and sent the student section into a frenzy.

“When we’re down and we hit a big three, that gives everyone a lot of energy, pumps us up, and gives us that extra leg to go at it,” Garner said.

The Bulldogs went toe-to-toe with the No. 1 team in the state, but Carl Junction made one more play down the stretch and defeated Notre Dame 37-33 in a Class 5 semifinal at the Show-Me-Showdown in Springfield.

Carl Junction (30-1) advanced to face Lutheran St. Charles (26-5) in the Class 5 championship game at 8 p.m. Saturday at Great Southern Bank Arena.

Notre Dame (23-6) will play West Plains (23-8) in the third-place game at noon Saturday at Hammons Student Center.

The Garner three inspired Notre Dame, but it also added a sense of urgency to Carl Junction, which closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 34-25 lead into the fourth.

“That was huge. Against a team as tough as they are, you have to go on any runs you possibly can. It gave us a little cushion going into the fourth,” Carl Junction coach Brad Shorter said.

But like every other time during the game, a Carl Junction run was answered by Notre Dame. Early in the fourth, a drive into the paint by senior Tori Rubel collapsed the Carl Junction defense and set up a corner three by freshman Nevaeh Lucious to cut the deficit to six points.

Lucious led Notre Dame with 12 points.

“Whenever we went inside, the court seemed to open up more,” Rubel said. “Their defenders crashed in to stop the inside move, which opened up the three-point line.”

A putback by junior Kylie Scott, who led Carl Junction with 14 points, 12 rebounds, and six blocks, increased the lead to 37-29 with just over four minutes to play.

It proved to be the final points for Carl Junction as the two teams scrapped for rebounds, dove for loose balls, and challenged every floorboard on the Hammons Student Center court.

“We try to be fast and active on defense, and the (officials) let both teams bang inside,” Notre Dame coach Kirk Boeller said. “It kind of benefitted what we were trying to do on the defensive end. It was frustrating on offense, but it helped us out on defense.”

A steal and a breakaway layup by freshman Brie Rubel cut the deficit to five points. A steal and hoop by Tori Rubel made the score 37-33 with 50 seconds to play.

Notre Dame caused two more turnovers after that, but the final two shot attempts for the Bulldogs caromed off the rim.

“I’m so proud of how we never backed down from the No. 1 team in the state, and credit to our girls for fighting until that last buzzer went off,” Boeller said.

Notre Dame, which made its first semifinal appearance since 2003, was ready from the outset.

Garner and Tori Rubel alternated the task of guarding Carl Junction senior Destiny Buerge, who entered the game averaging 24.6 points per game.

They held her to seven points on 3-for-14 shooting.

“I just tried to move my feet, make sure I stay in front of her and do whatever it takes to stop her from getting past me,” Garner said.

Carl Junction had its defensive stopper in Scott, who stood alone in the paint while her teammates plastered themselves on the Notre Dame three-point shooters.

With Scott altering shots in the paint and perimeter defenders bothering jump shots, Carl Junction held Notre Dame to 25 percent shooting for the game.

Carl Junction took a 23-18 lead into halftime, but Notre Dame made a point to get the ball inside in the second half.

Lucious-Cortez made a beautiful spin move in the lane, and when Garner banked in her three, it trimmed the deficit to 27-25, but it was as close as Notre Dame could get.

Despite the tough loss, Notre Dame players thoroughly embraced the atmosphere and the moment.

“The whole environment was so cool to play in. It’s just really special to be here right now,” Tori Rubel said.