By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
STRAFFORD, MO – The Strafford girls basketball program completed an undefeated run through the Mid-Lakes Conference with a 79-10 victory over a shorthanded Reeds Spring squad Thursday evening.
Sophomore Kinley Larsen led the Indians with 21 points, including five 3-pointers. She was joined in double figures by senior Elsie Larsen (19 points) and sophomore Trista Vanhorn (10 points).
While conference titles tend to be a mere postseason stepping stone for traditional powers, the MLC has proven to be fiercely competitive during head coach Dustin Larsen’s tenure with the Indians.
Over the past six seasons, Strafford, Fair Grove and former member Skyline have combined for eight final four appearances and five state championships.
“It’s exciting for our kids and our program,” Coach Larsen said. “Any time you get a conference championship, it’s a big deal, and you get to celebrate that. Super proud of our kids and what they’ve done all season, the work ethic and how they just continue to get better every week. Our seniors are very driven and focused on doing the right things, so it’s been fun to see.”
Senior Lizzy Vanhorn echoed Coach Larsen’s thoughts and talked about her team’s goals throughout the season.
“We definitely have set goals as seniors for our team, and we wanted to lead our team to a conference championship,” Lizzy Vanhorn said. “So we came together, and we have just been full-on pushing to get a conference championship. We also have goals to get to districts and further – so really we just set our goals ,and then we really want to pursue them.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
From the opening tip, Strafford (21-3, Class 4 No. 1) wasted little time dictating pace and imposing its will.
The Larsen/Larsen/Vanhorn trio poured in 23 of Strafford’s 25 points in the first quarter, pacing the Indians to a commanding 25-6 lead.
For Strafford seniors Zoe Allison and Carly Davis, it was important to establish the tone early in the game.
“I think we just came out really hot,” Allison said. “As a team, we were making plays on defense and offense. (Reeds Spring) had a couple players out, so we wanted to really go hard at them in the beginning.”
Davis alluded to Strafford’s team chemistry as a major contributing factor to the team’s defensive success this season.
“Our defense has been something we struggle with, but every game we get better,” Davis said. “We go hard in practice all the time, we pick each other up, and we just really love that feeling whenever we get to play with each other – we just get that energy, and we just get going.”
Reeds Spring Emma Thompson scored all six of her points in the quarter to lead the Wolves, who played the game without three starters due to a family emergency.
Strafford’s MLC dominance has been crystal clear this season with a 52.5-point average margin of victory. Fair Grove – last season’s Class 3 state champion – proved to be the Indians’ closest opponent on the scoreboard, and they were blown out by 34 points.
Seven games. Seven turbo-clock results.
While the overall conference might be a bit down this season, Strafford’s schedule has difficult games sprinkled in the final three-week stretch to keep the team sharp and focused.
The Indians fell to Class 6 No. 1 Incarnate Word Academy 63-58 just over a week ago and will finish the season at Class 5 No. 5 West Plains.
For senior Ayda Baker, Strafford’s fiery practices – challenging as any game on the schedule – help keep the Indians sharp and focused.
“Our practices are very, very intense,” Baker said. “Coach Larsen does not let us take plays off, so when we come to games like these, these are our practices. We just have to make each other better, we’ve got to push each other and we have to stay connected. We have to trust each other and just keep doing what we’re doing.”
Up next for Strafford is a Feb. 25 matchup at home against Glendale. Reeds Spring finishes the regular season with a 19-7 record and will prepare for the district tournament.
VARSITY FINAL: Strafford – 79, Reeds Spring – 10
Reeds Spring 06 02 00 02 | 10
Strafford 25 16 23 15 | 79
Reeds Spring scoring: Emma Thompson 6, Ellie Hambree 2, Addison Slaybaugh 2
Strafford scoring: Kinley Larsen 21, Elsie Larsen 19, Trista VanHorn 10, Zoe Allison 7, Jayden Onore 5, Lizzy VanHorn 5, Lydia Goodin 5, Zoey Cowles 3, Blair Bough 2, Ayda Baker 2
