The Republic Lady Tigers overcame an early deficit to avenge their loss in the Pink & White Tournament semifinals, and beat Ozark 56-53 in the Central Ozark Conference opener for both teams Monday. (Highlights below)
Republic trailed 31-20 just before the halftime buzzer, when Payton Rayl banked in a 3-pointer to cut the lead to eight. The Lady Tigers reeled off eight straight points to start the 3rd quarter, and tied the game at 31-31.
After Ozark extended its lead back to seven points, Republic’s Kyra Ramsey answered with a 3-pointer, a steal and a layup, and the Ozark lead was 52-51. Ozark hit a free throw to take a 2-point lead at 53-51.
But with 19 seconds left, Sarah Kruel put back a rebound and got fouled. She completed the three-point play to give Republic a 1-point lead. Kyra Ramsey knocked the ball away on Ozark’s next possession and Alexis Edwards hit two free throws after being fouled. Ramsey blocked a last-second 3-point attempt to seal the victory.
Ramsey finished with 13 points. Kruel had 11 and Alexis Edwards had 10. Brooke Dutton added 9, Alex Botkin scored 5, Payton Rayl had 4, and Emily McDaniel and Alice Heinzler added 2 apiece.
Republic improved to 8-4 with the win.
The Republic JV beat Ozark 64-54 in double overtime to improve to 7-1. The Republic freshmen lost 29-20 to fall to 4-2.
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