19th St. Joseph Classic scheduled for this week

Photo by Hunter Brooks

By Hunter Brooks and Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

St. Joseph will host the 19th annual St. Joseph Classic starting today at the St. Joseph Family Activity Center.

The eight-team tournament (with divisions for boys and girls) will be a classic bracket format with each team guaranteed to play at least two games. 

Today's schedule includes Lonoke vs. Guy-Perkins girls at 4:30 p.m., Marshall vs. Mayflower boys at 5:45; Vilonia vs. Mayflower girls at 7 and Perryville boys against Guy-Perkins at 8:15.

Tuesday's schedule will include Perryville against Marshall girls at 4:30, followed by Lonoke-Vilonia boys at 5:45, St. Joseph-Hazen girls at 7 and St. Joe-Hazen boys at 8:15.

First-round winners will advance to Wednesday's second round. Losers will drop to the consolation bracket Thursday. The tournament will conclude Saturday with fifth-place, third-place and championship games.

The Lady Bulldogs are 6-1, having lost for the first time this season against Greenbrier.

 Coach Chris Kordsmeier is confident that his team will compete well against the other schools.

“We hope to make a good run in the classic,” he said. “We can gain some momentum and experience for the rest of the season.”

Hazen, the Bulldogs' opening opponent, has yet to play a game all season. 

St. Joseph head coach Brent Bruich said 

“As a coach, it’s hard to play a team in its first game of the season,” St. Joe boys coach Brent Bruich said. “We have nothing to go off of about them and it’s a complete unknown. But the good thing is we have a few games under our belt, and we’ve got some kinks out. We don’t know anything about them other than they’re quick and athletic.”

St. Joseph also will play a non-tournament game Friday at home against Rose Bud. Bruich said the potential of playing four games in five days would benefit the team.

“It will be good for us,” he said. “We will see different styles and teams. We want to win so we can have an extra day of preparation. We’re going to play a lot of games in a lot of days. We will really see how deep our bench is. It will prepare us for regionals and hopefully the state tournament where we will have to play quick turnaround games. We’ll see it all this week.”

-30-

            

            

Greenbrier hands Lady Bulldogs first loss

Photo by Hunter Brooks

By Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph girl’s basketball team fell short for the first time this season with a loss to Class 5A Greenbrier Monday night, 42-29, at the St. Joseph Family Activity Center in Conway.

The Lady Bulldogs dropped to 6-1 for the season. Coach Chris Kordsmeier said he knew it would be a challenging game for his team as it faced a stronger opponent.

“Greenbrier is a competitive team,” Kordsmeier said. “We knew this would be a tougher game than one we have had before so far. Greenbrier is a bigger school that plays in a bigger class. It’s going to be good experience for the girls to face this type of team.”

Greenbrier jumped to a quick eight-point lead in the first quarter after a follow-up shot and two free throws by junior guard Heather Donham.

With a steal from senior point guard Rachel Briggler resulting in a quick lay-up and a 3-pointer on the left wing, the Lady Bulldogs closed within 10-3 in the beginning of the second quarter.

But the Lady Panthers were quick to respond with 3-pointers by senior point guard Brooklyn Freeling and Donham again. Greenbrier continued to lead with a left side lay-up by Donham, a set of free throws by Freeling, and Donham again with a 3-pointer. Briggler ended the second quarter for the Lady Bulldogs with a right baseline shot, but it wasn’t enough as St. Joseph headed into halftime down by 10.

“At halftime I told the girls to keep working hard,” Kordsmeier said. “This game is definitely going to improve our fitness level and will help prepare us for our 2A conference games.”

St. Joseph had a few opportunities to finish baskets, but the shooting was a little off.

“We started off a little shaky and had a good comeback in the second quarter,” Briggler said. “The third quarter was a little rough but overall we did OK and not our best.”

Greenbrier came out in the third quarter hot with a 3-pointer by junior forward Kenzie Batterton and continued with another 3-pointer by Donham. St. Joe’s only response was a free throw by junior Monica Dabanzo.

“We should have made some of those shots tonight, and it all comes with practice,” Dabanzo said. “We've just got to put the basketball in the net.”

With a 3-pointer in the center of the court by Donham and two free throws by Batterton, the Lady Panthers reached their biggest lead of the night, 40-21, in the fourth quarter. Dabanzo responded with a left-handed lay-up and a free throw after making a two-point basket, but it wasn’t enough to finish the game.

“We shot off tonight because normally we have a better percentage,” Briggler said. “Coach told us that we had a lot of good looks but it just wasn’t falling together tonight.”

The Lady Bulldogs will return to the court Tuesday night when they play host to Hazen in the St. Joseph Classic. 

Bulldogs fall to Panthers by 10

Photos by Hunter Brooks

By Wynrick Smothers
UCA Sportswriting

St. Joseph was outmatched Monday in a 51-41 loss to Class 5A Greenbrier at the St. Joseph Family Activity Center.

Greenbrier guard Tyler Simmons started the game by knocking down shots from beyond the arc from both wings, giving him a quick six points. The Bulldogs matched the aggressive play with senior guard Landon Enderlin driving to the basket, getting a layup from one and a couple of free throws from the other. The Bulldogs also got some good big man play from 6-3 senior forward Drake Cooper, whose  big play in the paint resulted in some early free throws that narrowed the difference to 10-8.

As the first quarter came to a conclusion, the Panthers’ guard play stayed on the rise with both Dustin and Justin Tims playing well. Dustin Tims knocked down a jump shot from 15 feet out, and Justin Tims attacked the rim for a layup. Bulldogs senior guard Taylor Schrekenhofer also displayed some attacking ability, resulting in him getting to the foul line, where he made three of four. Greenbrier hit a huge 3 from the baseline to stretch its lead to 15-11 after the first quarter.

St. Joe coach Brent Bruich said he thought the Bulldogs got the shots they were looking for; they just didn’t knock them down with basically all their first-quarter points coming from the free throw line.

“We have to hit those shots,” Bruich said. “We work from the inside out and when Drake is being doubled, we have to be able to knock down some shots, and we didn’t do that tonight.”

The start of the second quarter was better for the Bulldogs. After Dustin Tims came out and knocked down a short jumper, the Bulldogs came alive. They got a couple of layups from Dylan Schrekenhofer and Nash Nichols and a couple of free throws from Taylor Schrekenhofer to tie the game at 17 before the Panthers hit a big 3 from the top of the key. Cooper helped the Bulldogs by working for a couple of big layups to give his team a bit of a boost, which was cut short by Dustin Tims, who scored the final six points of the quarter to give the Panthers a 27-21 lead at the break.

Cooper scored six points in the third quarter, and it was obvious that Bruich wanted to get him the ball. His hard work paid off in spurts but wasn’t quite enough to help his team pull off a victory.

Bruich said he knew his big man was tired, but he had to keep him in the game if he wanted any chance of prevailing.

“He was tired and I knew it,” Bruich said. “I called a timeout just to get him a break. He probably had 20 points and 10 rebounds tonight. He’s a big part of us and so are the rest of the guys.”

Greenbrier's Simmons also had a big third quarter as he brought energy to his team with a couple of assists, a layup, and a big 3-pointer midway through the quarter. The Panthers’ were easily feeding off his play, and he propelled them to a 40-34 advantage after three.

The Bulldogs were back to looking for Cooper in the paint in the fourth quarter. The strategy worked for a couple of minutes with him attacking the rim getting layups. Once again, though, the guard play was too much for the Bulldogs with Tyler Simmons adding to his bucket of points and Dustin Tims using his quickness to attack the basket and get to the free throw line. The Bulldogs started to foul once they realized the game was just about over. Dylan Schrekenhofer knocked down one last jump shot from about 15 feet, but it was too little, too late, and the Bulldogs fell by 10.

Bruich said he was proud of his team and knew the Bulldogs still have some things to work on.

“We talked about some things we have to do that we’re not doing yet," he said. "They hit a lot of 3s and we didn’t hit one tonight, but the main component was that they wore us down.”

England games cancelled

By Wynrick Smothers

UCA Sportswriting

With England's Lions still involved in the football playoffs last week, St. Joseph's basketball doubleheader there was cancelled.

Coach K celebrates 600th victory

By Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

St. Joseph girls’ basketball coach Chris Kordsmeier celebrated his 600^th win for the program on Tuesday night at the St. Joseph Family Activity Center.

The Lady Bulldogs rolled over Marshall, 61-21, improving their record to 6-0. The team and fans awarded Kordsmeier after the monumental win with a plaque and a celebration later that night after the boy’s game.

In his 23^rd year at the helm of the Lady Bulldog basketball program, Kordsmeier holds an impressive 600-202 record and said he felt honored to have the historic win at home at his alma mater.

“I told the girls that I was real proud of the fact that they could do this,” Kordsmeier said. “It’s a good group so it’s good that they were here to share that with me.”

Kordsmeier credited everyone involved in the St. Joseph athletic programs for reaching this mark for the girls’ basketball team.

“I’ve been blessed and I’ve obviously had a lot of good players, families, parents and a good administration,” Kordsmeier said. “Coach (Brent) Bruich has been a big help for me, and Coach (Luke) Davis, all of our pee-wee coaches. It’s just been a team kind of thing and it’s been really nice.”

During the game, the Lady Bulldogs dominated not only on offense but also on defense where they played in a zone formation. Marshall rarely passed half-court, and the Lady Bulldogs were able to limit them to just 21 points. With some Marshall players injured and out, the competition was a bit down against St. Joseph.

“We’re doing a better job [on defense] and that competition was a little bit down,” Kordsmeier said. “Marshall will get better when their players return, but we still did a good job as far as that goes. There’s always room for improvement. We let them drive us a little bit and didn’t quite cover like I wanted to, but I can’t complain too much when we only allowed them 21.”

The Lady Bulldogs are looking to continue their undefeated ways traveling to England on Friday night. 

Bulldogs win physical game against Marshall

By Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

The Bulldogs improved to 5-1 Tuesday after an intense victory over a physical Marshall team, 68-51, in the St. Joseph Family Activity Center.

St. Joseph was called for 13 fouls on the night with Marshall having just seven; however, the Bobcats looked to be the more physical team on the court that night.

Bulldog coach Brent Bruich talked to his team at halftime about keeping composure and not letting Marshall get in the way of a win.

“It was a very physical game and we talked about keeping our heads and cooling our heads to prevail and to show a lot of poise out there,” Bruich said. “That’s one of the things we have as our goal, to stay composed, and we want to represent ourselves and our school well.

"We are a Catholic school and we want to act in the Christian way.”

The Bulldogs began the game with high intensity and pressure on defense, jumping to a quick lead in the first quarter, forcing Marshall to trail the rest of the game.

“We started the game really well and the other team had to play behind," Bruich said. "They were 10 points behind the majority of the game. Once we got that 10-point lead, we were just trying to save some legs and play good half-court defense from there.”

Senior Landon Enderlin led the Bulldogs with 16 points for the night. The Bulldogs could have had a more convincing lead; however, a couple of missed opportunities kept the game tighter.

“I think we need to be in better shape; I think we got tired at the end defensively and we didn’t move the ball as crisp as we needed to on offense,” Bruich said. “We missed some free throws and didn’t finish some plays, but we’re always going to have something to work on.”

Bruich said he was proud of the total team effort and high-pressure defense for the night, allowing some steals and getting points early to help the Bulldogs clinch a win.

The Bulldogs travel to play England on Friday. 

Basketball teams sweep Abundant Life

By Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph girl’s basketball team continued their winning streak and the boys got back in the win column after back-to-back games Friday night at Abundant Life.

The Lady Bulldogs (5-0) defeated Abundant Life, 58-21, and the Bulldogs (4-1) followed with another win, 56-40.

Lady Bulldog coach Chris Kordsmeier said he was pleased with the girls' performance.

“The girls played well,” he said. “Anytime you can get a win on the road is good.”

Before the season began, Kordsmeier noted that having returning players and varsity starters would help the team’s chemistry. This is evident with the Lady Bulldogs having a 5-0 record in their pre-district games.

“As far as the experience goes, it has helped us in our close games so far,” he said. “The girls have kept their wits and executed.”

In the boy’s game, St. Joseph was able to bounce back from a loss against South Side Bee Branch last Tuesday. The Bulldogs defeated Abundant Life, 56-40.

Bulldog coach Brent Bruich said he was proud of his team’s improved effort.

“We definitely improved on our intensity and we played with great defense intensity the entire game,” he said. “We are still not flowing like we should on offense, but we will continue to work on it.”

Bruich said the team needs to start shooting the ball better to have a more commanding control of the game. Leading the Bulldogs on the scoreboard were Drake Cooper with 18 points, Landon Enderlin with 10 and Nash Nichols with 7 points.

Both St. Joseph teams return home Tuesday to play host to Marshall.

-30-

Bulldogs, Lady Bulldogs split with South Side Bee Branch

By Hunter Brooks

The St. Joseph girl’s basketball team stayed undefeated while the boy’s team suffered its first defeat of the season Tuesday at the St. Joseph Family Activity Center.

The Lady Bulldogs (4-0) defeated South Side Bee Branch, 62-51, while the Bulldogs (3-1) fell, 44-42.

Lady Bulldog coach Chris Kordsmeier said his team grinded out the win.

“South Side presented some big-time matchup troubles for us,” he said. “At times, they would play five guards at once, so it was tough for us to adjust as far as guarding them. We did a lot better job in the second half as far as finding our correct girls. They’re a pretty good ball club. I was proud of our girls for hanging in there. We made our free throws late and eventually pulled away.” 

Meagan Briggler, Anna Mayor, Madeline Moix combined for 51 of the team’s 62 points. Briggler had a game-high 22 points, while Mayor had 15 and Moix added 14.

Kordsmeier said he prefers a balanced offense but was happy with the result.

"The ball got in their hands and they (Briggler, Mayor and Moix) made the shots,” he said. “We want to be balanced, of course, but we’ll take that. Meagan, Anna and Madeline are our best scorers this year and usually you want the ball in the hands of your best scorers. They did a good job of finishing plays and making baskets.”

St. Joseph trailed for most of the game until a 24-point fourth quarter helped the Lady Bulldogs take the lead for good with less than three minutes left.

In the boys game, St. Joseph trailed at halftime, 29-19. Bulldog coach Brent Bruich said despite giving up just 15 points in the second half, the Bulldogs didn’t make enough shots.

“(Giving up) 29 points in the first half is not us,” he said. “We try to give up less than 35 in a game. We did a lot better job in the second half but just could never take the lead. We got within a point several times but just could not make the big plays when we had to. We shot too many three’s and when you do that, you live by the three and you die by the three. We died by it tonight.”

Bruich said the Bulldogs need to step up their intensity at the start of games.

“We talked at halftime about how we had to play harder," he said. "We matched their intensity level a bit and made a comeback. We played harder and the kids on both teams wanted to win, so that’s what led to the physicality. Guys were out there laying it on the line and getting after it.”

Senior Taylor Schrekenhofer led the Bulldogs with 11 points. Senior Drake Cooper contributed with 10 points and four rebounds. Juniors Dylan Schrekenhofer and William Fields each added six points.

The St. Joseph boys and girls teams each play next at Abundant Life on Friday.

-30-

Lady Bulldogs defeat Rural Special

By Wynrick Smothers

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph Lady Bulldogs took on Rural Special last week and came away with a 60-42 win.

Coach Chris Kordsmeier said his Lady Bulldogs handled the road trip well.

"It was a real long trip, and I felt like the kids adjusted well; anytime you play on the road it’s going to be kind of tough,” he said.

A key factor in the win was the Lady Bulldogs' shooting Kordsmeier said each player had made great strides already in the young season.

“The whole team is doing well," he said. "Everybody that came back has stepped their game up. We are also still trying to find ourselves as a team. Right now we are going in the right direction, but we’ll see in the next few weeks.”

          

Bulldogs improve to 4-0 with win at Rural Special

By Hunter Brooks

The St. Joseph boy’s basketball team improved to 4-0 on the season by defeating Rural Special, 61-37, on Nov. 7.

Despite winning by 24 points, St. Joseph coach Brent Bruich said the team didn’t play up to his standards.

“We didn’t shoot the ball very well,” he said. "We shot 21 of 59 from the field and had a lot of looks that we just didn’t make. We had too many defensive breakdowns. They (Rural Special) hit nine 3s on us. We just can let a team do that to us. We got to be smarter and follow the game plan better.”

Senior Drake Cooper led the Bulldogs with 11 points. Junior Jensen Thielke and senior Taylor Schrekenhofer both added nine, while senior Landon Enderlin and juniors Dylan Schrekenhofer and Nash Nichols each contributed eight.

Although the Bulldogs are undefeated, Bruich said the schedule was about to get tougher.

“We have tougher teams ahead,” he said. “(Southside) Bee Branch will be tough. When Greenbrier comes, we will have our hands full. But it’s good for us and it will help prepare us for conference.”

Bulldog basketball team moves to 3-0

By Hunter Brooks

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph boys basketball team improved to 3-0 with two wins in the last week.

The Bulldogs defeated County Line, 55-49, last week and knocked off Dermott, 61-44, in the home opener Wednesday.

Bruich said not many teams go into County Line and leave with a win.

“It’s a good feather you can put in your cap," he said. "We were down seven at one point in the third quarter and ended on a 14-2 run. We played really great defense in the fourth quarter, holding them to six points. We executed very well on defense and rebounding.”

Senior Drake Cooper led all scorers with 17 points. Junior Dylan Schrekenhofer scored 14, while Landon Enderlin added 10. Sophomore William Fields contributed with seven points off the bench.

Against Dermott, the Bulldogs didn't play as well as they should have, Bruich said.

“They were very athletic and their physicality gave us problems," he said. "We looked like a well-oiled machine at times, and at others we couldn’t do anything. We have to work better on our physicality. Overall, it was a solid win but much can be improved on.”

Cooper once again led the bulldogs in scoring with 16, while senior Taylor Schrekenhofer added 14. Enderlin and junior Nash Nichols each had 10.

Bruich said even though the Bulldogs are only three games into the season, they are making too many mistakes.

“We didn’t shoot free throws as well as we should, and that bothers me,” he said. “I’m always looking at the last game. We have to get better. We can’t have any weaknesses come tournament time."

St. Joseph goes on the road tonight to play Rural Special in Fox. 

Lady Bulldog basketball team looking to improve

By Abigail Hodgson

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph girl’s basketball team is looking forward to another successful season, this time hoping to play past the first round of the Class 2A West Regional Tournament.

The Lady Bulldogs had an even 16-16 overall record, tying for second in the 2A-4 East Conference. They lost to Hackett in the first round of the regional, 54-40, to miss the state tournament.

Chris Kordsmeier returns for his 23^rd year of coaching at St. Joseph with an impressive 594-202 record. Kordsmeier is assisted by Brent Bruich.

The Lady Bulldogs have four returning starters, all of whom are experienced seniors: 5-6 guard Meagan Briggler averaged 12 points per game; 5-4 senior guard Rachel Briggler led the team in assists; 5-8 senior forward Anna Mayor led the team in rebounds and was second in scoring; and 5-9 forward Taylor Womack.

Other varsity returnees include 5-5 senior guard Abby Kordsmeier, 5-8 junior guard Madeline Moix (the leading scorer off the bench last year), 5-6 guard Monica Davanzo and 5-7 guard Maddy Shamburger.

With the girls preparing for a competitive season, Coach Kordsmeier is hopeful the experience from last year will lead the team.

“The experience that our returning varsity starters and players have should contribute to the team’s play this season,” Kordsmeier said. “The girls are working hard together, and we’re building off that.” 

Although the Lady Bulldogs have the talent, they are lacking in size. The tallest girl on the roster is listed at just 5-9.

“We are a pretty small team,” Kordsmeier said. “But I’m still optimistic about this season, and I think the girls play well together and hopefully we can play our way to the state tournament.”

Kordsmeier has built St. Joseph’s basketball program into one well respected around the state with a state championship in 1998 and runner-up finishes in 1997, ’99, 2009, and ’10.

The Lady Bulldogs will open the home schedule Tuesday, Nov. 12, against South Side Batesville.

-30-

Volleyball falls to Hoxie in first round of state

By Wynrick Smothers

UCA Sportswriting

The St. Joseph Lady Bulldogs’ volleyball season came to an end when they lost to Hoxie, the No. 4 seed from the Northeast, in the opening round of the Class 3A State Tournament, 25-16, 25-14, 25-14.

St. Joseph had earned the top seed from the Central with its district tournament championship but could not transfer that performance into the state tournament. The loss puzzled Coach Luke Davis, who couldn’t put his finger on any particular reason as for the cause.

“It’s one of those deals where I could come up with a thousand excuses, but bottom line is we didn’t show up,” he said. “We played very well in the district tournament and, for whatever reason — if I knew the answer I could be making a lot of money — we just didn’t show up for that game.”

Despite the final loss, the Lady Bulldogs had a pretty remarkable season, finishing with an overall record of  21-7 (14-2 in conference play). In the end, Davis said he was proud of his team.

“For the most part it was a good year; I’m proud of the girls, especially my seniors,” he said. “They got better every year (seniors); we didn’t finish the way we wanted to this year, but those guys definitely had a good career and I’m proud of them.”

With seniors Megan Briggler, Rachel Briggler, Linzy Hoelzeman, Madison Seiter and Sydney Spradlin departing, a new group of Lady Bulldogs will have to step up. With only two seniors-to-be, Madeline Moix and Holly Rega, St. Joseph will have some big shoes to fill in 2014.

"Next year we’ll only have two seniors and one junior, so we’ll definitely be a lot younger,” Davis said. “Whether or not we’ll be better or worse will depend on how much work they put in over the summer. My younger girls have a lot of potential, but they’ll definitely have to work at it.”

Next season is likely to be a rebuilding year for St. Joseph with the Lady Bulldogs, who will be very young and inexperienced in some areas, but Davis and his team are looking forward to the challenge.

-30-

Lady Bulldogs look to carry momentum into state volleyball tourney

By Wynrick Smothers

UCA Sportswriting

After winning the 3A-Central District Tournament last week, the St. Joseph Lady Bulldogs are going into the Class 3A State Volleyball Tournament motivated.

St. Joseph (18-6), the top seed from the Central, will open state tournament play at Harrison Parks and Recreation on Tuesday at noon against Hoxie, fourth from the Northeast.

Luke Davis' Lady Bulldogs finished their regular season strong and carried that momentum into the district tournament, where they beat their conference nemesis, Atkins, in the final to take the No. 1 seed heading into the state tournament.

The Central Conference was a pretty tough one, but Davis knows that there will be tougher tasks once state begins.

“It’s usually the West and the Northeast; they are usually the stronger conferences,” he said.

He said St. Joseph would match up pretty well with the other teams in the field, and the Lady Bulldogs know if they can keep up the type of play they showcased throughout the majority of the regular season, they will be just fine.

“If we can play like we did in the district tournament, we’ll have a chance,” he said. “They played real well together and everybody contributed, so that’s what we are going to need. We can’t rely on one person to carry us. We are going to need all of them.”

A win over Hoxie would put the Lady Bulldogs in Wednesday's 4 p.m. quarterfinal. Semifinals are set for Thursday with the state finals to be played at Russellville on Saturday, Nov. 2. The Class 3A State Tournament is being hosted by Alpena.

All in all, he said he was pleased with his team's play to this point. But he wants to make sure his team does better than last year, when they lost to Bergman in the opening round.

“I’m definitely proud of the girls,” he said. “We talked about doing better than we did last year; we had a better record, we finished better in conference, and we finished better in the district tournament. They definitely improved and worked hard, so I’m proud of them for that.”

The Lady Bulldogs closed the regular season Thursday with a non-conference loss to Class 5A Sylvan Hills after the conclusion of the district tournament, 25-23, 25-17, 23-25, 25-22, 15-11.

-30-