Oak Ridge downs Meadow Heights to advance to tournament final

The Oak Ridge Blue Jays took down the Meadow Heights Panthers 33-30 in the semifinal round of the BCS Conference Tournament on Wednesday, Jan. 10, at Meadow Heights High School in Patton, Missouri.

It was an intense rematch between the Panthers and the Blue Jays. Meadow Heights won the first game 44-38 on Dec. 20 at the First State Community Bank Holiday Classic.

"Meadow Heights is a tough team with great inside play," Oak Ridge head coach Julie Ward said. "I thought we did a great job on defense tonight and just as Meadow Heights made it tough for us to get shots off, we were doing the same. It was a great game by both teams for sure, a fight until the end."

Oak Ridge guards Reagan Howe and Madyson Ruehling each scored 12 points and were huge factors in the team's success on the court putting up 24 of the Blue Jay's 33 points.

“It was kind of hard to get open,” Howe said when asked what her strategy was for the game. “They pushed me out to the three-point line and I’m not a three-point shooter, so I had to work really hard to get inside”

The game was tight between the two teams right out of the get-go with the score being tied 8-8 after the first quarter. The Panthers went to halftime up 14-12 thanks to Rachel Hellenusch. who scored six of the teams' total points over the first two quarters.

The Blue Jays took the lead after a 15-10 third quarter and maintained it until the final buzzer, as both teams made six points in the final period.

Hellenusch finished the game with a team-high 16 points. The Panthers' other two scorers were Cheyenne Tonjum, who added 10 points, and Jaycee Shelton, who chipped in four in the second quarter.

The Blue Jays will take on Woodland for the championship game on Thursday, Jan. 11. Woodland advanced by beating Advance 44-26 in the semifinals. Addy Massa led the Cardinals with 15 points while Mallary Barks scored 10.

The Panthers will fight for third place against Advance on Thursday. The Hornets were led by Rylee Roper's eight points against Woodland on Wednesday.