OFC Tournament: Donettes earn fourth title in a row, now 21-0

A brewing Ozark Foothills Conference rivalry went full-throttle Friday night as the top two seeds went head-to-head for the grand prize.

While one team looked to dethrone the reigning OFC champions, the other aimed to add to its dynasty by winning a fourth consecutive title.

The No. 1 seed and undefeated Doniphan Donettes and the No. 2 seed East Carter Lady Redbirds met center stage at Three Rivers College’s Libla Family Sports Complex on Friday to compete for the OFC Tournament championship.

When it was over, the Donettes once again kept a firm grip on the OFC crown as they rolled past the Lady Redbirds 76-60 and improved to 21-0.

Doniphan’s Sarah Owen said getting to the championship was a success in itself, but getting the win felt even better. Owen finished with 13 points.

“This was a great win for us,” Owen said. “Though we’re still undefeated, I believe if we continue to play as a team and take care of the little things on the floor, no team will be able to slow us down.

This is the third meeting between the two and the Donettes have come out on the winning side each time. The Donettes defeated the Lady Redbirds 54-43 for the Lady Royal Christmas Classic championship in December and last month at home 61-50, giving East Carter its only losses on the season.

With both teams being known for racking up points, the matchup was expected to be a slugfest.

The game kicked off with a lot of tension as both teams were familiar with each other’s playing style. They had to throw whatever they had at each other to walk away with the hardware.

The Lady Redbirds struck first with a basket from senior Dylan Price, but the Donettes responded quickly with a basket of their own from Kenzie Redus. Both spent most of the first quarter inching to gain the upper hand.

The game had a lot of intensity as each team dove for every loose ball, setting the tone that this was a battle. The Donettes saw a window to capture the lead and they didn’t let up for most of the second quarter, but the Lady Redbirds managed to stay on their heels.

The Lady Redbirds built up a lot of momentum before the half with a dagger 3-pointer from Anna Crowley, but the Donettes shut it down with a basket at the buzzer before halftime to take a 35-27 lead.

Midway through the third quarter, the Donettes caught fire from beyond the arc, extending the lead to 15. Though they trailed big with one quarter remaining, the Lady Redbirds continued to attack in hopes of a comeback.

As the game entered its final quarter, the only opponent that stood in the way of the Donettes raising the trophy was the clock.

Redus led the Donettes with 19 points, Carsyn Hagood had 14 and Kensey Killian had 12.

Price led East Carter with 20 points, while Crowley had 15.

Head coach Adam Epps said there were a lot of players who stepped up for them and it feels good to bring home another OFC championship.

“I feel pretty good right now because that’s a good high-caliber team,” Epps said. “I thought we struggled a little on defense, but we made up for it with our offense. Sarah really stepped up by giving us good looks at the rim. I’m really proud of these girls. It’s not easy winning something twice let alone four times because that’s tough. I couldn’t be happier with this team and how they competed each time.”