By Dana Harding/For OzarksSportsZone.com
Monday night’s clash between Mt. Vernon and Ash Grove hammered home a point of which most teams in the Ozarks have already become aware.
If you plan on checking either Cameron Call or Mallory Keith, you’d better pack a lunch.
PHOTOS: ASH GROVE VS. MT. VERNON
Call erupted for a game-high 32 points on the night, leading the Lady Mt’neers to a 74-61 road victory over a resilient Lady Pirates squad.
The sophomore guard got out to a torrid start, knocking down four of her seven 3-pointers in the first quarter alone.
Ash Grove head coach Austin Houp talked about the difficulties presented by Mt. Vernon’s lineup, Call in particular.
“You’ve got to give credit to Mt. Vernon,” Houp said. “Dusty’s a great coach, and Cameron … credit to her. We had her well-defended, but she just shoots over the top and it goes in. I think she made four or five 3-pointers there in the first half. It’s a hard deficit to get over, but I’m just proud of my girls for the resilience.”
While Ash Grove was resilient and refused to go away quietly, Call was equally resilient. Her ruthless efficiency almost made a 32-point outburst seem quiet, by most accounts.
Almost.
Riding the early haymakers, Mt. Vernon jumped out to a 16-8 lead. While the Lady ‘Neers appeared to be heading for a first-half rout, Keith had other ideas.
Ash Grove’s senior guard answered Call’s quick start with some fireworks of her own, pouring in a trio of 3-pointers to close the quarter with the score knotted at 17-17.
Mt. Vernon head coach Dusty Killingsworth wasn’t surprised by Ash Grove’s ability to quickly shoot itself back into the game. Like Houp, Killingsworth was faced with the task of slowing down a standout player.
“We know how hot Keith can get, and she showed us why she’s one of the better shooters in the area,” Killingsworth said. “We had a pretty good plan, and she just went off on a couple of 3s that were just special. We had hands in her face, but she shoots step-backs from 20 feet. We just tell our kids to applaud it and go play offense.”
In the second quarter, Mt. Vernon raced out to another hot start. Ashlyn McCanless and Camryn Eldridge helped Call pace the Lady ‘Neers on an 11-0 run.
Ash Grove found itself in yet another uncomfortable spot but, once again, the team managed to battle back. Paced by Catie Martin, six different Lady Pirates scored points in the second quarter to help cut Mt. Vernon’s halftime lead to 39-31.
While Ash Grove was able to take some momentum into the locker room, the third quarter told an all-too-familiar tale.
Once again, Call and company opened a quarter with a burst. The 15-1 run put the Lady ‘Neers up 54-32 and all but closed the door on Ash Grove’s comeback hopes.
This time it was Mikala Veith doing the dirty work in the lane.
The Mt. Vernon six-footer opened up the quarter with a quick basket, then gobbled up a rare Call miss for a putback and foul. While Veith missed the conventional three-point opportunity, it showed just how dangerous Mt. Vernon can be at times when clicking on all cylinders.
“We have good rebounders,” Call said. “Mikala and Caitlin [Hicks] both attack the boards hard. I have great people that go to the rim and get rebounds, so I know that if I miss a shot, I know there’s a good chance one of them is going to get a put-back.”
Down by as many as 22 in the third quarter, Ash Grove mounted yet another rally of its own behind its senior leader.
Keith scored 13 of her team-high 25 points in the game’s final nine minutes of play; however, the Lady Pirate rally fell short.
Coach Houp lamented Ash Grove’s missed opportunities inside the paint during crucial stretches of the game.
“When you look at those runs that [Mt. Vernon] was able to get into, we had three or four missed power layups that allowed those runs to continue,” Houp said. “We’ve got to be able to cut down those runs by making power layups, and things will go our way.”
Call was joined in double figures for Mt. Vernon by Eldridge and Caitlin Hicks, who scored 14 and 11, respectively.
When asked about the individual matchup with another of the area’s premier scorers, Call’s eyes were quick to light up.
“I love seeing a great talent, and [Keith] is a great shooter,” Call said. “There were times when I was right up on her, and she knocked it down right in my face. I haven’t played against someone like that in a long time. It was a lot of fun to have some good competition like that.”
Martin chipped in with 12 points for Ash Grove, followed closely with 9 points each from Stefani Duncan and Sydnee Cashio.
Next up for Mt. Vernon (17-5) is a neutral-site clash with Logan-Rogersville on Saturday, Feb. 4, at Drury University. Ash Grove (9-11) travels to Pleasant Hope on Thursday, Feb. 2.
Mt. Vernon 74, Ash Grove 61
Mt. Vernon 17 22 18 17 — 74
Ash Grove 17 14 09 21 — 61
Mt. Vernon scoring: Cameron Call – 32, Camryn Eldridge – 14, Caitlin Hicks – 11, Ashlyn McCanless – 6, Mikala Veith – 6, Lyndsey Hood – 5
Ash Grove scoring: Mallory Keith – 25, Catie Martin – 12, Stefani Duncan – 9, Sydnee Cashio – 9, Patsy Gorski – 4, Kennedi Climer – 2=
JV final (one half): Mt. Vernon – 18, Ash Grove – 15
(Lyndsey Hood – 11 points)
