As it turned out, the championship game of the South Callaway Girls Basketball Tournament between top-seeded Hermann and third-seeded New Haven was a defensive battle.
The Lady Bearcats (13-2) emerged with the title, knocking off New Haven, 41-26.
“It was a well-played game by both teams. Defensively, it was one of the better games we’ve played in quite a while,” said Hermann Head Coach Todd Anderson. “Although there were not a lot of points scored, we had several kids make contributions during the game.”
Hermann held leads of 11-6 after one quarter, 20-14 at halftime and 30-22 after three quarters.
“We played well on defense for the most part. We held them well under their average of 60 points a game,” said New Haven Head Coach Doug Peirick. “On offense, we were never really able to run any of our sets because we missed screens and failed to use them. I have to give credit to Hermann’s defense. They played up close and personal defense and we didn’t handle that real well. Hermann also controlled the boards on both ends of the court.”
Karinne Lane led Hermann with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Jamie Gleeson added 12 points and six rebounds.
Kirsten Leimkuehler pitched in with seven points. Tesla Ruediger collected four points and six rebounds. Kali Stiers had three points and four assists. Makaley Schneider scored one point.
Emily Kallmeyer led New Haven (9-5) with 12 points. Rachel Steinhoff added eight points.
“Emily played well on the offensive end,” Peirick said.
Stephanie Gerling, Kierstin Monzyk and Kayla Meyer each scored two points.
Boys Bracket
Seventh-seeded Russellville claimed the boys championship Saturday with a 50-41 victory over top-seeded New Haven.
“The game was closer than 50-41. We were down by five points with 1 1/2 minutes to go and had a couple of possessions to cut it to three or two points,” said New Haven Head Coach Ray Steinhoff. “Once they got on us in the second quarter, we never could catch them. It seemed like every time we scored, they had an answer.”
Ross Seitter led the Shamrocks with 11 points. He was 3-4 shooting from three-point range.
Seth Schenck and Ben Luecke both added eight points.
Austin Madden netted seven points. Alex Poggas scored five points. Blake Eggers had two points.
New Haven (8-5) was without its leading scorer, Kyle Ruediger, who suffered a leg injury in the semifinal win over North Callaway.
“Without Ruediger, our kids fought hard. I wouldn’t expect anything else,” Steinhoff said. “We came to play and to win, but just came up a little short.”
Chandler Wolf, a 6-6 forward, led Russellville (7-3) with 21 points.
Hermann (7-9) won the consolation title Friday over Montgomery County, 52-24.
Craig Winkelmann paced the Bearcats with 13 points. Matt Hug added 12 points. Collin Hart netted nine points. Josh Schannuth had eight points.
