The reigning Class 3 state champions are ready to defend their crown.
Fair Grove was in top form in Friday night’s Class 3 District 11 Tournament championship game at Springfield Catholic High School.
The Lady Eagles scored the first 10 points and later put the game away with a big second-half run to earn a 68-38 victory over archrival Strafford.
“It’s always good to beat Strafford,” said Lady Eagles guard Ashton Bell. “We feel really good about it. We’re ready to make another state run.”
Ten Lady Eagles scored in all. Brooke Daniels (15), Abbey Green (14) and Cam Hart (11) led the way in double figures.
Fair Grove’s dominant performance was a stark turnaround from Wednesday’s sluggish district semifinal win against Catholic.
“Tonight, we looked like we belonged where we’re going to go,” said Fair Grove coach Gary Greene. “We played with confidence.”
Fair Grove (21-7 overall) will play at Mid-Lakes Conference foe Clever (18-9 overall) in the Class 3 sectional round on Monday, Feb. 26. Fair Grove beat Clever 75-54 on Jan. 22 at home in the regular season meeting.
The Lady Eagles hope the last three months of rugged competition pays off in the next two weeks.
All seven of Fair Grove’s losses have come against state-ranked teams. Four of the losses were against Class 5 or Class 6 opponents.
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The Lady Eagles also split a pair of meetings with the team they beat in last season’s Class 3 state title game, El Dorado Springs.
“We feel like we played as good of a schedule as we could possibly play,” Greene said.
In Friday night’s contest, Strafford recovered from its slow start and drew within 19-17 midway through the second quarter. But Fair Grove answered with a 12-4 run and took a double-digit lead into halftime.
“We didn’t take care of some things defensively at the end of the second quarter and they got the lead back to 10 at halftime,” said Strafford coach Dustin Larsen. “You have to be able to control the game a little bit against a good team like that.”
Bell helped Fair Grove pull away for good late in the third quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers that gave the Lady Eagles an 18-point lead.
“This is a special group, and everyone told me that when I came over here,” Greene said. “What makes them special is they compete.”
Sophomore Elsie Larsen scored a team-high 15 for Strafford. Senior guard Lauren Jones added 12 points.
Fair Grove has now won four straight over Strafford, including last year’s district title game.
Bell and many other Lady Eagles grew up watching good Fair Grove teams fall short against great Strafford teams.
Strafford won 13 straight over Fair Grove from 2014-2022 – including four district meetings – as the Lady Indians became a dynasty and won five straight state titles.
“We would be sitting in the bleachers talking about how it made us almost feel sick to our stomach watching (Strafford) win,” Bell said. “Growing up and getting to see our championship dreams be fulfilled, and what we’ve been able to do, it feels really great.”
Strafford finishes 17-11 overall. The Lady Indians graduate four seniors but only one starter. An influx of young talent joins the program next season.
“We’re super excited about our kids and our program,” Coach Larsen said. “We have a lot of really good kids coming back, and a good 8th grade group coming in. It’s going to be competitive and exciting to see how we can become the best team we can be.”
Fair Grove 68, Strafford 38
Strafford 8 13 11 6 — 38
Fair Grove 17 14 17 20 — 68
Strafford (17-11 overall) – Elsie Larsen 15, Lauren Jones 12, Brooklyn Adney 4, Zoe Allison 3, Ellie Heil 2, Ayda Baker 2
Fair Grove (21-7 overall) – Brooke Daniels 15, Abbey Green 14, Cam Hart 11, Ashton Bell 7, Allison Findley 6, Hannah Maxwell 4, Taylor Green 4, Emma Padgett 3, Sage Crowley 2, Shea Skouby 2
