Lady Tigers’ sophomore, Kaemyn Bekemeier, has led the team to win nine of their last eleven games, including two this weekend at the Nixa Invitational Tournament. Bekemeier averaged just over twenty-four points per game during the tournament, and she scored more than thirty in both of Republic’s wins.
The Lady Tigers squared off against rival Nixa Thursday night, just two days after both teams were ranked in the top ten in Class 6 (Republic at #9 and Nixa at #5). The Lady Tigers needed all of Kaemyn Bekemeier’s thirty-four points, edging out a thrilling 79-75 victory in overtime to upset the Lady Eagles at home.
While it wasn’t a conference game, this was a massive game for Republic for both morale and to test themselves against a good team before diving into conference play. Bekemeier said that she and the rest of the Lady Tigers were motivated going into the tournament this weekend and for the game against Nixa.
“We just know that they’re a super competitive team and that we match up really, really well with them, and we know that they play the same speed as us and that it’s going to be a really fast-paced game. I think that there’s just some extra motivation going into games like this.”
After dropping Friday’s game to West Plains, Bekemeier and the Lady Tigers looked to bounce back Saturday against Parkview. Bekemeier netted thirty-two more points, leading the Lady Tigers to a 74-65 win to go 2-1 in the Nixa Invitational Tournament. Bekemeier was already leading the team in points and rebounds per game, and her stats this weekend will only go to improving those categories.
In all three games this weekend, and all of the games this season, Kaemyn Bekemeier plays with the same intensity every time she steps onto the court. It doesn’t matter if the game is a conference or tournament game, who the opponent is, or what the score is; Bekemeier keeps the pressure up and continues to play hard at all times.
“Honestly, I don’t really look at the score very much, I just kind of play and assume it’s tied up.”
This competitive mindset, combined with her abilities as a player, makes Kaemyn Bekemeier one of the best players in the area. And she still has more than half of her high school career ahead of her. The Lady Tigers will continue to lean on her as the season progresses and as they look to make another push towards the state tournament later this year.
