Lady 'Cats survive rugged road game at Kelly

Jerry Jarrell photo Dexter's Abbie Warren catches a pass in the low post during play on the road Thursday night against Kelly. [Click to enlarge]

BENTON -- Dexter's young Lady Bearcats stood tall against a rugged Kelly Lady Hawks squad, winning a ruff and tumble affair on the road, 51-43, Thursday night.

Senior Abbie Warren scored a game-high 19 points and battled on the boards against a taller Kelly team, while freshman Brittany Fraizer added 12 as the Lady 'Cats improved to 13-6 on the season.

Dexter never trailed in the game and outscored Kelly in every quarter, but just barely, while slowly adding to a slim lead each quarter. Dexter jumped out to a 13-10 advantage after one, and increased it to 24-19 at the half. The largest lead of the game came in the third quarter after the Lady 'Cats opened with a 7-0 run and pushed the advantage to 12 points (31-19).

Jerry Jarrell photo Kelly's Carissa Klipfel attempts a pass to teammate Kristen Powell after falling to the floor while Dexter's Erika Mouser steps between the two during action Thursday night at Kelly High School. [Click to enlarge]

The run seemed to light a fire under the Lady Hawks who quickly picked up their intensity and physical play behind junior Kristen Powell who finished with 18 points. Kelly cut the lead to five 40-35 early in the fourth, but that would be as close as the Lady Hawks would get.

The game featured 36 fouls, 20 by Kelly, which slipped to 12-8 on the year.

Both Kelly and Dexter will next be in action Monday on the road. The Lady Hawks will be at Poplar Bluff, while the Lady Bearcats will travel to Cape Girardeau for a game against Notre Dame Regional High School.

Box

Varsity Girls

Dexter 51, Kelly 43

DEXTER -- (fg-ftm-fta-tp) Frazier 4-4-4-12, Ward 1-3-4-6, Hessling 1-2-4-4, Harris 2-4-6-8, Warren 6-7-10-19, Phillips 1-0-0-2. Totals: 15-20-28-51.

KELLY -- Backfisch 2-0-0-4, Klifpel 2-0-0-4, Tetley 3-0-0-6, Hicks 0-2-3-2, Ashcroft 2-1-4-5, Fisher 1-2-2-4, Powell 8-0-1-3-18. Totals: 18-6-12-43.

3-Pointers: Dexter 1 (Ward); Kelly 1 (Powell).