Notre Dame throttles Central in regular season finale

Notre Dame defeated Cape Central 50-15 using 41.2% beyond-the-arc shooting on Wednesday at Notre Dame Regional High School.

Freshman Kate Rubel led the Bulldogs on offense with 12 points and an assist while shooting 2-2 from three. Freshman Neveah Lucious finished close behind with nine points, six blocked shots, four rebounds, and a steal.

Head coach Kirk Boeller said his team put together a full game and got to prepare for the district tournament.

“It was the last regular season game and we wanted to come out and put together four good quarters and head into the postseason with a little bit of momentum,” Boeller said.

Almost all of the Tiger offense came from senior Ki Bogan who led Central with nine points, four of which came from the free-throw line.

Notre Dame opened with a three-pointer to take the lead and they never relinquished it. Central struggled to get any offense going, and the Bulldogs forced them to turn the ball over and blocked nearly every shot attempt, finishing the game with nine. Notre Dame held a 17-6 lead after the first quarter.

The second quarter was more of the same as the Bulldogs coasted into the locker room with a 31-11 lead. The second half of the game was mostly reserve play for both sides as the two coaches cycled in their bench players and Notre Dame cruised to the victory without a hitch.

Notre Dame and Cape could potentially meet again in the Class 5 District 1 Tournament, Boeller said they have to be prepared for the next meeting because Cape will adjust.

“I know they’re missing a few kids with injuries and can have a huge impact on the game,” Boeller said. “It’s tough to play a team twice and they’ll be ready next time, so if we play them again it should be a good matchup.”

Notre Dame’s first opponent in the district tournament is Sikeston at 7 p.m. on March 2, and Cape’s first opponent is Festus at 8:30 p.m. on March 2. The tournament will be hosted at Farmington High School.