The Mexico girls needed a boost as they were behind heading into the fourth quarter on Dec. 18 at home.

The Lady Bulldogs trailed Hannibal 35-33 but exploded with a 17-0 run in the final frame to win the North Central Missouri Conference matchup 58-42. Mexico had five girls score in the 25-point fourth quarter to rebound off a 76-56 loss at conference foe Kirksville (4-1, 1-0 NCMC) two days prior.

Head coach Makenzie Mudd said Mexico (3-4, 2-1 NCMC) regained some energy in the fourth quarter against Hannibal (3-4, 1-2 NCMC) after seeing the ball go through the net. 

Mexico vs Hannibal Photo Gallery

“We struggled in the first half finishing those easy shots,” Mudd said. “We were taking some great shots, but they just weren’t going in. By the fourth quarter, we made a few at the beginning and that confidence built back up.”

Alyssa Miller led Mexico with 16 points and eight rebounds, Scottie Smith had 15 points, Grace Hudson finished with 12 points and six assists, Payton Shaw posted seven points and 15 rebounds, and Hannah Loyd had six points and seven rebounds. All five of these girls scored in the fourth quarter.

“We talked a lot after the first half about forcing some passes and forcing some shots we didn’t need,” Mudd said. “In the second half, we did a much better job of finding those. We talked to Grace about how she’s a good passer and she can make those passes. She had some great assists to Alyssa, especially in that second half.”

Hudson said the 17-0 run was definitely one of the team’s better runs of the season. She said Mexico was moving and reading each other better in the fourth quarter, which didn’t happen consistently enough in the first three quarters. 

When the Lady Bulldogs are cutting to the basket, Hudson said she enjoys finding her teammates for buckets. She said she has spent years working on her passing game.

“It’s a lot of practice,” Hudson said. “Travel ball has helped me a ton. The girls are all very aggressive so practicing with good defense makes me a good passer.”

Mexico outrebounded Hannibal and especially dominated the boards in the first half. The Lady Bulldogs had a 22-13 rebound advantage at halftime. 

Mudd said Shaw was really “getting after it” on Thursday. She said she is capable of being a force on the boards for Mexico.

“That’s something we’ve been working on a lot with her,” Mudd said. “She’s getting much more confident jumping up, getting in there and fighting for the ball.”

Malia Stolte kept Hannibal within striking distance from the outside despite the Lady Pirates being beaten on the inside. Stolte finished with a floor-high 27 points, four 3-pointers and four steals.

“We have to be better at stopping the drive to the lane,” Mudd said. “We’re getting there, but we’re just getting there too late.”

Mudd said the energy and communication was better against Hannibal than they were against Kirksville, where Miller led Mexico with 25 points and Hudson had 10 points. She said the Lady Bulldogs were caught on screens too much and hopes they can do that better heading into the next calendar year.

The Lady Bulldogs hosted Harrisburg (5-0) on Monday before playing in the Windsor (Imperial) Round Robin Tournament starting on Dec. 29. They have the Spartan Invitational at Battle in Columbia on Jan. 3 before getting back to conference play at Fulton (1-6, 0-2 NCMC) at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 6.

“We just need to keep bringing the energy at the start of the game rather than waiting until the fourth quarter,” Hudson said. “We’ll keep winning a lot of games if we do that.”