Lady 'Cats pass another physical test, lock up district tournament's top seed

Jerry Jarrell photo Dexter's Ashlee Taylor gains control of the ball after ripping it away from Perryville's Kendra Schilli during Friday's 52-36 Lady Bearcats' win at home.

If Dexter coach Chad Allen wanted his Lady Bearcats battle tested heading into district play he's getting his wish.

For the third straight game, the Lady Bearcats have found themselves in a fast paced, physical game and for the third time they have passed the test with a win. The most recent game came Friday at home as Dexter defeated Perryville, 52-36, in a clash of Class 4, District 1 teams.

Junior Ashlee Taylor scored 15 points and junior Jill Temples added 12 in the win that should have locked up the No. 1 seed at the upcoming district tournament scheduled for Feb.18-23, at Perryville.

Jerry Jarrell photo Dexter's Jill Temples (No. 21) drives baseline around Perryville's Nicole Gremaud and looks to the basket during Friday's 52-36 win by the Lady Bearcats at home. [Click to enlarge]

"I think we played really aggressive, the refs definitely let us play, it was a real physical game," Dexter's Allen said after the game. "We've had three real physical games in a row with Notre Dame, Central and Perryville, but our girls battled and I think conditioning was a factor there at the end. We were tired, but I think they were more tired and we ended up pulling away a little there at the end."

Perryville entered the game with a 16-4 record and proved to be a formidable opponent for the now 19-3 Lady 'Cats. The Lady Pirates played an up-tempo game, were strong on the boards and stood up relatively well against Dexter's press.

"They (Perryville) have great guards," Allen answered when asked if he was surprised any be the Lady Pirates. "There inside game is not a good as there outside, but they are a great team. It's going to be a tough district.

Jerry Jarrell photo Dexter freshman Kaitlyn Jarrell (no. 44) dribbles out of trouble during the Lady Bearcats' 42-28 junior varsity loss to Perryville Friday at home.

"I like to see teams try and play an up tempo game with us, because I think that is more to our advantage," Allen continued. "They (Perryville) battled hard and we were just lucky to come out of here with a win."

It was back-to-back games for the Lady Bearcats, who again looked a little sluggish against the Lady Pirates, who scored the game's first four points before Dexter forced some early turnovers and went on to limit Perryville to just a single free throw over the balance of the first period while building a 11-5 lead.

The Lady Pirates again started quick in the second period scoring the first six points to tie the game (11-11) before Taylor got the Lady 'Cats on the board. Kendra Schilli's basket tied the game again at 13-all, but it would prove to be the last basket for the Lady Pirates for over five minutes while Dexter got baskets from Temples, Cathryn Heil and two from Sammy Waldner to take a 21-13 lead with 41 second to play.

Nicole Gremaud (6 points) connected on Perryville's only 3-pointer of the game and Dexter finished the second with a 18-foot jumper from Temples (23-16) and Katelyn Heil came up with a steal and was fouled, connecting on one-of-two free throws (24-16) with one second showing on clock before the half.

Dexter quickly pushed the lead to 11 points in the third and went on to build its biggest lead of the game (17 points) when Taylor completed an old fashion 3-point play with just over two minutes to play in the quarter.

Perryville began to crash the boards and finished the third period on a 6-2 run, with all three baskets coming on offensive rebound put-backs, to trail 41-28 heading into the final eight minutes of play.

Allen said he felt condition was a factor at the end and that could have played a part in Perryville's inability to mount a late charge. The Lady Pirates only managed eight points in the fourth quarter as Dexter took the 16-point win.

You can be assured the Lady 'Cats will be locked up in another physical game Monday when they host the Poplar Bluff Lady Mules. A win by Dexter will give them sole possession of the SEMO Conference regular season title, while a loss will have both the Lady 'Cats and Lady Mules sharing the title with one loss each.

"We'll have to step it up a notch or two, because a feel Poplar Bluff is a better team than Perryville, there's no question about that," Allen said. "We're just going to have to be ready from the start.

"I've seen (Kirk) Chronister (Poplar Bluff's coach) come around scouting us a couple of times," Allen added. "I know they will be prepared to play because he's a great coach and they play really great defense. It's going to be a really tough game and hopefully we can win the conference outright. But we're going to have to get in here (the gym) Monday and get ready for them."

Perryville made it a split on the night with a 42-28 winning the junior varsity game.

Dexter's pivotal SEMO Conference game with Poplar Bluff will get underway after Monday's 6 p. m. junior varsity game.

Note: The seed meeting for the Class 4, District 1 tournament was scheduled for Saturday at Perryville, but because of deadline restrictions the Daily Statesman was unable to have those results at press time. Dexter's Lady Bearcats have defeated all the teams in the district with the exception of Ste. Genevieve. The Lady Dragons have some district losses on their record, so Dexter should be the tournament's top seed.