By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The shots weren’t falling for Molly Blades.
But as the saying goes: Shooters gotta shoot.
With Republic needing a third-quarter spark and Kickapoo locked in on senior star Kaemyn Bekemeier, Blades drained the two biggest 3-pointers of her career to lead a game-swinging run.
“I wasn’t making shots early, but my coaches believe in me a lot. So I just kept shooting and I was feeling the motivation to continue to shoot,” said Blades, a junior guard. “When the shots went through (in the third), the energy just came and ended up carrying through the rest of the game.”
Blades and backcourt mate Misora Nambara were the unexpected stars of the game as Republic overtook Kickapoo and held on down the stretch to win 57-50 on Tuesday night in the Class 6 District 5 Tournament championship at Nixa High School.
“We missed some shots early in the game, but the players didn’t give up,” said Republic coach Kris Flood. “These kids have played a really tough schedule. I think it helped prepare us for this scenario tonight.”
The victory gives Republic its third district title in five years and first since the 2019-20 season. This year’s squad is young: Bekemeier, a Missouri State commit, is the lone senior on the team.
She led all players with 19 points.
“It’s a tremendous accomplishment,” Bekemeier said. “We’ve worked so hard this year. We knew we wanted this and (winning districts) has been something that’s been on our team bucket list. Being able to check it off and move on with this team, it’s great.”
Republic (26-3 overall, No. 4-ranked MBCA Class 6 state poll) will play Raytown (23-2 overall, No. 6-ranked MBCA) in the Class 6 quarterfinals at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 11 at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar.
The winner advances to the Class 6 final four March 17-18 at Missouri State University in Springfield. Republic hasn’t been to state since 2019.
Flood said making it through districts should give his squad a fresh mindset going forward.
“(Districts) are a different intensity. It’s just so much pressure,” Flood said. “Now, getting through and winning the district, you just feel like whatever happens, happens. We can play fear-free. A lot of times, this is the hardest one to get.”
The Lady Tigers, who have won 12 straight since a blowout loss to Park Hill South in mid-January, are peaking at the right time.
Credit team chemistry for the winning streak, Blades said.
“It’s been amazing to see the amount of growth we’ve had since the beginning of the season,” Blades said. “Just having those tough games on our schedule has helped us come together as a team and rely on each other. We’re state bound, and that’s where it all comes from: Connecting with each other and having confidence in each other.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Republic trailed for much of the contest on Tuesday night until finally coming to life late in the third quarter. Blades led the charge, draining 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give Republic a 32-29 lead entering the fourth.
Blades scored nine of her 11 in the second half.
“It definitely helped a lot seeing that first one go in,” Blades said. “Since I was cold the whole game up until that, I was unsure if I should shoot it. When I made that first one I was like, ‘Oh yeah, I can definitely keep going here.’”
Nambara, Republic’s starting point guard, also delivered a big performance with 17 points.
She scored 10 of those in the second half, highlighted by a 3-pointer early in the fourth that gave Republic a 37-29 lead.
“Misora never loses her cool,” Flood said. “In timeouts, you can just see that she’s so steady and smooth.”
With Kickapoo using a box-and-one defense to limit Bekemeier, Republic’s supporting cast rose to the challenge.
“We’ve seen a little bit of (box-and-one), but Kickapoo’s was just a little more physical and a little more of a scramble,” Flood said. “Kaemyn would catch it and a lot of times have two or three girls coming at her. It took some time to adjust to that.”
Said Bekemeier: “We have each other’s back. They have my back, I have their back. They know if I’m not on, they got it. We just pick each other up.”
Republic sealed the win at the free throw line, going 12-for-14 in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore forward Mikayla Pilley scored 17 to lead Kickapoo (22-7 overall).
The Lady Chiefs, who graduate just two seniors in Delainey Wylie and Miya Nieto, have won 20 or more games in all but one season since 2015.
Republic 57, Kickapo 50
Kickapoo 11 10 8 21 — 50
Republic 5 13 14 25 — 57
Kickapoo (22-7 overall) – Mikayla Pilley 17, Miya Nieto 13, Kya Johnson 7, Ariana Mosley 5, Delainey Wylie 4, Allison Scott 2, Katherine Vaughan 2
Republic (26-3 overall) – Kaemyn Bekemeier 19, Misora Nambara 17, Molly Blades 11, Molly Mason 6, Lauren Chastain 2, Alexandria Price 2
