Lady Eagles Get Final Bite Over Bulldogs

The Lady Eagles (10-17), seeded fifth, had the final bite over No. 4 St. Clair (14-11). Sullivan upset the Lady Bulldogs 54-38 to tip off the Class 4 District 3 Tournament. The quarterfinal round took place at Cuba High School on Tuesday, Mar. 4.

Sullivan set the tone early against their conference rival. They led St. Clair 12-6 after the first quarter and 30-15 at halftime. However, the Lady Bulldogs attempted to rally back, cutting their deficit to nine before the start of the fourth period.

With their season in jeopardy, head coach Jordan Flora huddled with his team and reminded them that the game was still under their control. He said, “Basketball’s a game of runs, you know, and [St. Clair] went on one, and that’s fine. We just got to calm down and breathe. And the main thing is just realize [that] once we settle down, take care of it, get across half, then we can make some offense happen. But we got to take care of it before we get there.”

The Lady Eagles followed their coach’s words and shut the door on St. Clair’s comeback. Karlee Head clutched nine points in the game's final eight minutes. Katie Miller fired a shot from downtown, while Molly Lohden and Olivia Barton sank free throws. 

After beating St. Clair, Sullivan advanced to the semifinal the following Thursday. They faced top-ranked St. James (21-6) in a tough fight but fell 52-30 to finish their year.

In the end, Flora stated that he was “extremely proud” of his team “for all the hard work and time they put into this season.” He shared, “Not only that, but also all the great memories we made throughout this season, and I hope they can look back and cherish those moments and continue to strive for excellence in everything they do. I’m very proud of this group and really enjoyed coaching these young ladies this year.”

The Lady Eagles started the year with a 4-5 record before leaving for winter break. But Sullivan struggled when they returned, going on a 2-9 skid that included a loss to St. Clair.

The Lady Eagles eventually found their momentum again in the final stretch. They won four of their last seven games, defeating Salem, Pacific, Washington and then their rival.

Flora was happy to see his team finally hit its stride, especially in their rematch against the Lady Bulldogs.

The coach credited Sullivan’s rebounding as a “huge” factor in upsetting St. Clair. He stated, “We got out-rebounded the first time against them a ton. You know, they got a lot of offensive rebounds with putbacks, and we limited that [tonight].” 

Flora also shouted out his defense for holding Lila Hinson to four points. The sophomore led St. Clair with 17 points in their first matchup. 

He also gave a nod to Head, saying she “defensively was all over the place” and “had a phenomenal offensive game.”

Head shot off-the-charts against the Lady Bulldogs. The 5’6 sophomore led Sullivan with a career-high 19 points. She went 5-9 from beyond the arc, 6-12 from the field and 2-5 at the charity stripe. Head also racked up nine rebounds and an assist.

Flora mentioned Barton as another player who “came in [and] did a great job defensively as well.” The 5’5 sophomore brought in 2 points, an assist and a rebound.

Kynlee Peterson also put on a defensive clinic against St. Clair. She recorded 10 rebounds, the most on her squad and in her career. The 5’9 sophomore also collected five steals, 4 points and two assists.

Lohden dished out a team-high four assists. She loaded up 4 points, a steal and a rebound.

Miller topped Sullivan with six steals. She also tallied 7 points, three assists and three rebounds.

Cora Shetley dominated with 8 points, five rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block. The 5’10 senior swished 4-7 of her buckets.

Avery Merkel stacked up 3 points, two rebounds, a steal and an assist.

Sydney Montee dropped 5 points, a steal and a rebound.

Ava Hayes drained two points while swatting a shot for a block.

The Lady Eagles soared ahead with 32 rebounds, 18 steals, 14 assists and two blocks. They sank 20-49 of their field goals, 12-27 two-pointers, 8-22 threes and 6-10 free throws. Sullivan survived 20 turnovers and 11 fouls to beat St. Clair.