| |
Admin
St. Louis Lightning 94/95 Girls
St. Louis, Missouri
|
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
 Tournament Results |
|
Saturday, December 30
Eureka Holiday Hoop-Fest
Lightning took the first two games of the Holiday tournament over powering both of their opponents 49-4 and 57-13. The championship game was a different game all together as the Lightning found their opponents (Beaufort, MO) to be tough. Also making it more of a challenge was the fact that Chaley could not play do to breaking her finger during a recent practice. Also both Ashley and Melanine were not playing at full speed as they were both under the weather. Still all in all our girls played great fighting off their opponents and the refs for that matter to post a 19-9 lead at halftime. To Beaufort's credit they played hard and came back against our team to take a brief two point lead 23-21. Like firing a shot this awakened our girls and they turned it up a notch out scoring their opponent 10-3 in the final minutes to win the championship and extend their unbeaten streak to 15 in a row. Way to go girls!!!
Sunday, July 23
2006 Show-Me State Games
The Show-Me State games tipped off Friday with the Lightning playing the Swoosh from Springfield for the first time. The girls had the Swoosh down by 11 at one time, but to the Swoosh credit they came back for a 36-33 win. In the end it was the Swoosh's three point shots that killed the Lightning.
Saturday afternoon saw the Lightning play their old nemesis from across the state, KC Thundercats. These teams bring the best out of each other and this game would be no exception. This was truly a game for the ages as both teams fought hard and played three over time periods before the Lightning finally won 38-32. When the game was finally finished there were more spectators watching this game than any other in the Hearnes Center.
Saturday evening found a mismatch as the Lightning's opponent were the St. Louis Crusaders (the true 5th grade team and not the AAU team with older girls). The final score was 45-15 as the Crusaders could not keep up. Actually the Crusaders went 0-4 overall in the tournament and have much work to do to if they truly want to compete at this level.
Sunday saw the Lightning's opponent in the semi-final game to be the KC Thundercats once again. This was another hard fought affair, with our team maintaining a slight lead over the Thundercats for most of the game. In the end though it would not be enough as with about 3.5 seconds to go the Thundercats were able to take the lead 27-26 and hold on as the Lightning's last shot did not go in. The girls were heart broken, but should be proud as they played an excellent tournament.
Monday, June 26
2006 MAYB Southeast Classic
The Lightning started off the tournament on the right foot Saturday morning with a 45-17 victory over the only other 5th grade team in the tournament, SEMO Storm. The girls began strong in the first quarter then eased up to post a 29-10 halftime lead, in the final period the team finished with 16 points to 7 for the Storm.
Next up for the Lightning were the 6th grade St. Louis Cougars who are always tough on our team and this time would not be different. In a game that saw refs keeping their whistles in their pockets our girls survived a 34-17 lose. The game was very physical and it is a wonder that no one was hurt. Even coaches from other girls teams were dissatisfied with the officiating which lead to one ref being moved to boys games do to his lack of calls.
The 6th grade Rim Rattlers were the Lightning's next opponent which was the team that won the tournament last year. In fact they beat us by 36 points in our pool game. This year the result was no different, but the score was. The girls played them tuff and put a scare in them a couple of times, but finally lost 38-26.
The game against the 6th grade Cape Girardeau Bulldogs was game of highs and lows. The girls came out very strong against the Bulldogs and put them back on their heels early. A run by the Bulldogs at the end of the half cut the score to 20-8 as the Lightning looked well in charge. This was not to last as the Bulldogs came out strong theirselves in the second half and out scored our girls 23-11 sending the game into overtime. The overtime saw our girls fall short suffering a heartbreaking 35-34 lose to the hands of the Bulldogs.
What was a due or die game as the Lightning needed to win this next game to qualify for the semi-finals turned out to be a nightmare. The girls played the 6th grade MO Lil Lady Mules a return team from last year and suffered a hard 46-29 loss that expelled the girls from the tournament. The tournament was tuff on the girls as they only won one game, and showed how hard good, taller, experienced girls can be to play.
Some stats to take note of for the tournament are as follows:
Assists: Anna 6, Erin, Ashley & Alexis 5
Steals: Mikayla 7, Alexis 5, Ashley 4
Defensive Rebounds: Alexis 17, Erin 14, Ashley 5
Offensive Rebounds: Erin 15, Alexis 9, Hayley 6
Points off Rebounds: Erin 10, Alexis 4, Ashely & Carly 2
Sunday, June 11
2006 Lou Style III Tournament - CHAMPIONS
The Lightning started the tournament on Friday night with a 35-23 victory over the host Northstars. Playing in the 5th grade division the girls posted a 25-10 halftime lead and finished up with a good first game win.
On Saturday the Lightning played the 9th ranked St. Louis Cougars and ran off to a 18-6 halftime lead against their opponent. Not showing any sign of slowing down the girls out scored the Cougars 24-10 in the second half to post a very decisive 42-16 victory. This put the Lightning at 2-0 for the tournament and dropped the Cougars to 0-2.
Next up on Saturday were the Saint Matthews team that hung in quite tough with our girls for the first half limiting our lead at half to 10-9. Things were different in the second half as our girls quickly adapted to their opponent and finished the second half off with a 20-7 advantage. Final score Lightning 30-16 over Saint Matthews.
The first game on Sunday was a rematch of Saturday mornings, Lightning vs. Cougars. This games winner would go onto the championship game. The Lightning brought their 3-0 record into the game against the winless Cougars. The girls started off strong and posted a 13-0 lead on the Cougars only to see it disappear to a 13-9. Refocusing their efforts the girls finished the half strong, posting a 23-12 lead. The second half saw our girls double up on the Cougars 20-10,and finish with a crushing 43-22 against the 9th ranked Cougars.
Next up for the Lightning was the Championship game and the girls played the Northstars team that they had beat earlier on Friday. It was the same result again as our girls finished up the first half with a 26-14 lead, before finishing off the Northstars 36-19 for their third 1ST PLACE tournament finish in 2006.
Congratulation girls!!!
Sunday, April 9
AAU OZARK DISTRICT
|  |
In the U11 Division there were 7 teams entered, they were as follows: Mystics, Sparks, Crusaders, Game Face, Gateway Thunder, COPS, and our Lightning.
The girls first game on Saturday was against the St. Louis Crusaders. The game started out slow with the Crusaders gaining a 4-3 advantage at the end of the first quarter, but saw them increase it to 12-5 at halftime. More of the same in the second half. The Crusaders outscored the Lightning 10-4 in the third quarter, and 10-6 in the fourth quarter. The final saw our girls lose 32-15. The Crusaders were a little bigger, but executed very well and deserved their victory. With the loss the Lightning dropped to the loser bracket as this was a double elimination tournament.
In the Lightning’s next game they were matched up against the COPS who were actually a team of mostly 4th graders, with a few 5th graders and one 6th grader. The mismatch was apparent early as the girls ran off to a 14-3 first quarter lead and ended the half with a 28 to 11 margin. The Lightning came out strong in the second half increasing their lead to 41-15 at the end of the third quarter. Finishing off the game as they had started the final buzzer saw the Lightning victorious 51 to 20. Offensively Erin scored 22 points and set a new team high for points in a game by a Lighting player. The teams previous record was 21 points, by Erin.
Next up for the Lightning was an old foe one who they have never beaten, the Gateway Thunder (Future Lady Lancers). Both teams knew the importance of the game as a loss here and you were out of the tournament. The opening play showed this as both teams could only combine for 6 points in the first quarter with the Lightning up 4-2. The Thunder were able to out score our girls 10-9 in the second, but still were behind by one to the Lighting at half time, 13-12. The Thunder were able to take the lead (21-17) in the third quarter by scoring 9 points to the Lightning’s 4 points. In the pivotal fourth quarter our girls did themselves proud with both Erin and Alexis fouling out mid way through they still managed to out score the Thunder 14-8, and secure a hard fought 31 to 29 victory for their first win ever over their old foe. Considering the age of their opponents and abilities this was a very satisfying victory for our girls.
On Sunday the Championships were now down to only four teams and the Lightning were one of those teams. Their opponent were the St. Louis Sparks who two weeks ago in the AAU Prelims had smoked our girls 46-22. The girls were short handed for this game with only having seven players available, but they took the court wanting to play hard. The Lightning did not disappoint and came out strong in the first quarter and played well only being down by 10-8 at the end of the first quarter. This was short lived as the Sparks out scored our girls 8-0 in the second quarter and were now holding a 18-8 advantage at the end of the first half. Most of the damage was done by the Sparks big girl who we did not have an answer for. Regrouping at half time our girls played strong, but could not keep the Sparks down as they out scored the girls 9-5, and increased their lead to 27-13 after three quarters. Knowing this was it our girls turned it up a notch and played some incredible defense in the final quarter with some great blocks, and matched the Sparks point for point, 11-11. Still in the end it was not enough as the Lightning suffered a 38-24 loss to the Sparks. This loss may have put the girls out of the tournament, but they played well and have gained some valuable experience that will surely pay off in the end. Stats: For the tournament the team made 39 out of 69 free throws for a percentage of 56.5, improving all the time.
The end result is a fourth place finish in the AAU District Championships against generally older, bigger, quicker and hand picked girls. There is no reason for one girl to hold her head down on this team, they sought out to play the best teams and they did just that. They did it very, very well.
Congratulations girls you are an amazing bunch and thanks for the memories, and we all look forward to the many more to come.
Sunday, March 5
2006 Rockets March Madness Tournament - 1st Place
To say the girls ran off to a lightning quick start in the tournament would be the best of puns. Yes our Lightning ripped off three impressive victories in 5th grade pool play to go 3-0, and out score their opponents a total of 164 to 56. The girls played strong and were firing on all cylinders as they ran the fast break well and got back on defense.
Moving on to the semi-finals the Lightning girls played another great game and continued to pick up steam winning over the Lady Jets 39-16. The game was helter skelter especially in the first half with a combination of poor officiating and the lack of team play. With only a halftime lead of 11-4 the girls came out strong in the second half and played all parts of the game very well as the final score showed.
Next up in the Championship game was their old foe the Hoopstars Midwest. The Lighting defeated the Hoopstars earlier in pool play (46-23), but were not taking this game lightly as hardware was at stake. The girls started the game strong and continued to build their lead to 15-2 with 1:18 left in the half. In a freak accident with players going strong for the ball our Erin went down hard hitting her head against the floor and play was stopped. She sustained a concussion and was taken by ambulance to the hospital for precautionary measures. In a good Sportsmanship manor the Hoopstars conceded the game and our Lightning were declared winners of the 5th Grade Girls Division. Are thoughts and prayers are with Erin and we hope to see her back on the court very soon. In a great gesture the girls voted to award Erin the team trophy from the tournament.
Congratulations girls, especially Erin!!!
Handout: 2006 March Madness Tournament
Sunday, January 15
2006 Martin Luther King Jr. Tournament Champions
After completing pool play in the MLK Tournament on Saturday, that included games against 6th Grade teams, the girls competed in the semi-finals for the Girls 5th Grade Division on Sunday. The match up was against the Derrty Ballers (ex-Lady Monarachs, 6th ranked) and the Lightning won by breaking free from an 11-8 half time lead and finished off the Ballers with a 29-13 victory. Erin led the team with 10 points, Ashley 5, Hayley 4, Alexis 4, with 3 others scoring. The team had the full squad available for the game and used it to their advantage.
The Championship game was against the KC Thundercats (2nd ranked) who defeated the Crusaders in the other semi-final game. It was a great game for a Championship, as both the Number 2 and 3 ranked teams in Missouri did not disappoint. Avenging their loss in the Championship game in the Show Me State Games in July, the Lightning girls were victorious taking home the Championship with a hard fought 23-20 victory. Erin once again was outstanding as she scored 12 points (10 in the second half), but don’t be fooled this was a total team effort with five other girls scoring and others making some great defensive plays. The Lightning with out a doubt are the Number One 5th Grade Girl’s Basketball team in St. Louis and now have a 2-1 record against the Thundercats.
If anyone is interested in ordering photos you can view them at
Midwest Photgraphic Enterprises listed under MLK, Jr. Basketball Tournament. Click on Saint Louis Lightning.
Saturday, December 31
Holiday Hoops Fest (2nd Place)
The girls won their first game of the tournament 24-14. Chaley led the team in scoring with 8 points, while Ashley and Melanie both scored 6 points each. In the second half the game got sloppy, but the girls secured the victory.
In the Lightning's second tournament game they held a 13-8 halftime lead over Webster Groves, but saw it disappear during the second half in a hard fought affair, finally losing 24-20. Ashley led her team in scoring with 7 points, Alexis had 5 points and Carly contributed 4 points. This loss snapped the Lightning's 15 game winning streak.
Despite the 1-1 record in pool play the girls qualified for the Championship game due to tie breaker. The Lightning played the St. Clair Bulldogs (6th Gr.) for the title and had a rough time of it. The Bulldogs jumped out to an early lead and held the advantage at half time 15-8. The girls had no answer what so ever for the Bulldogs and could not muster any points in the second half finally losing the game 32-8. The lose was hard, but still the girls captured the second place medal in the 6th Grade Girls Elite Division. Way to go!
Sunday, November 27
2005 Hoop Wars 5th Grade Champs
STL Lightning roll through Thanksgiving tournament. Competing in the 5th Grade division the Lightning go undefeated in four games out scoring opponents 149-51. Once again the team had another strong defensive performance. Congratulations girls!!!
Sunday, October 23
CHAMPS!!!
Lightning win the St. Louis Rockets 2005 Fall Classic. Competing in the 5th Grade division the Lightning go undefeated in three group games and put up a resounding 45-16 victory in the Championship game. Through out the tournament Lightning's quickness and defensive tenacity forced other teams back on their heels. This was quite apparent in the championship game with the team pressure defense. The team likes to get up in their opponents faces, that's just part of their game. They're truly a gifted group. Congratulations to our girls!!!
Monday, July 25
Sparks Finish Second in State
The Sparks (Lightning) competed in the 2005 Show-Me State Games this past July. They went undefeated in 4th Grade Division 1 pool play (3-0), as well as winning their quarter-final and semi-final games. Their first and only loss was not until the championship game where they were tripped up by the Kansas City Thundercats (21-17). Thus the girls won the Silver Medal. The girls scored a total of 199 points while only allowing 76 points in 6 games. Truly a remarkable achievement.
Handout: 2005 Show Me State Games Results
Monday, June 27
Southeast Missouri MAYB Classic (Farmington, MO)
Our girls took it on the chin as they came away empty handed. Playing in the 4/5th Girls Division, they were the only 4th grade team. Playing up against older girls was a tough task, but the girls made theirselves proud. Saturday they went 1-3 in pool play, and on Sunday they won their first game putting them in the semi-finals. Unfortuntely they lost, and moved to the third place game losing again. Overall the girls went 2-5 in the tournament, but gained valuable experience playing against bigger girls.
Handout: 2005 MAYB Farmington Results
Monday, March 21
2005 MAYB St. Louis Tournament Champs
The girls won the Mid America Youth Basketball Classic in St. Louis for 4th Grade Girls Division. This was the team's first tournament and they went undefeated in three games. Congratulations to the girls!!!
20 Sparks (Lightning)
16 St. Louis Cougars
49 Sparks (Lightning)
14 Cathedral Basilica
57 Sparks (Lightning)
8 Ste. Gen Cheetahs
|
|
