Shootout adds sponsor money to even cash flow

~ The event has lost money in recent years.

A continued emphasis on local teams and increased sponsorship money are the combination Central athletic director Mark Ruark hopes will keep the Tiger Shootout running for years to come.

In recent years, the school has lost money on the one-day, four-game event. The event's main sponsors this year, The Bank of Missouri and River Radio, should be able to help subsidize the cost of the tournament.

"That should help us at least break even, and if we can break even I want to keep it going," Ruark said.

The event will begin noon today with Saxony Lutheran facing Greenville. Saxony Lutheran recently won its own Christmas tournament and sports a 9-1 record.

Notre Dame (12-3) will face Parkway South at 1:30 p.m. The Bulldogs rebounded from a 2-2 finish at the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament with a win against Dexter on Thursday. The Patriots are 6-5 following Wednesday's win over Eureka.

Jackson, runner-up in the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament, will face Jennings (4-7) at 3 p.m. This is the first action for the Indians (9-4) since falling to Class 1 Bell City in the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament finals.

The host Tigers will close the day at 4:30 p.m. against Fredericktown, which is coached by former Central coach Brett Reutzel. The Blackcats are off to a 7-4 start, while Central fell to 6-7 with a loss to Kelly in the consolation finals of the Christmas Tournament.

Scott-Miss girls tourney

The undefeated Delta girls basketball team earned the top seed in the Scott-Mississippi Conference tournament which will begin Monday at Oran.

Delta is 8-0 heading into today's championship game of the Delta New Year's Tournament. The Bobcats routed Kelly in the championship of the conference tournament last year.

Kelly, which fell to Delta in the title game of the Lady Devils Invitational earlier this year, is seeded second. The Hawks entered the Christmas break on a high after making it all the way to the finals of the Lady Royals Classic before falling to Dexter.

Scott County Central and Oran round out the top four seeds. Scott City, Charleston, Chaffee and East Prairie make up the bottom four seeds.

Quarterfinal games are Monday and Wednesday, followed by the semifinals on Thursday. The championship is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

Notre Dame honors

Notre Dame was one of only 48 high schools nationally to earn the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award for both boys and girls.

Overall, 118 boys teams and 224 girls teams were recognized for the 2005-06 school year. A team must have a minimum 3.25 GPA to be eligible.

Heisserer signs

Scott City senior Jenni Heisserer has signed to play volleyball with Shawnee Community College in Illinois.

Heisserer was all-region and all-conference for the Rams, who reached the Class 2 quarterfinals this past season.