Tournament Photos

Centralia caps dominant home tournament with 59-28 win vs Hallsville, nets first title since 1991

None of the Lady Panthers were alive in 1991.

That was the last time a Centralia girls basketball team won the Centralia Invitational Tournament title. This year’s Lady Panthers ended the drought with a 59-28 victory over Hallsville to extend their winning streak to five games and clinch the best start for the program at 5-1 since 2008-09 — when the Lady Panthers started 7-1 on the way to a 19-6 record.

Centralia (5-1) has been defeating teams decisively on this run as the defense allowed an average of 24.3 points in the three tournament games and 25.4 during its five game winning streak. Keeping teams below 30 points for four straight games has helped the Lady Panthers defeat their opponents this year by an average margin of 32.4 points.

Head coach Megan Brinkmann said the girls were aware how much the community wanted the championship and were eager to deliver it to them. She said outscoring Hallsville 24-6 in the second quarter after trailing 9-8 after one quarter gave the Lady Panthers the breathing room it needed.

“There was a lot of pressure, and I think the girls felt the pressure because it’s so great for the community,” Brinkmann said. “We talked about that pressure, and if we just stay the course of what we’re supposed to be, the outcome’s going to be what it was.”

Centralia knocked down a season-high eight 3-pointers, including four during the massive second quarter run. Raegan Anderson led with 12 points and had two 3-pointers, Morgan Ross followed with 11 points and two 3-pointers, Braylin Brunkhorst had 11 points, five rebounds and a three 3-pointers, and Jozelynn Bostick added another make from deep. Annie Robinson had eight points and six rebounds, Harper Sontheimer finished with seven points and three steals, and Shelby Lewis had five points and seven rebounds.

The 3-pointers that started burying Hallsville (3-2) in the second quarter helped relax the Lady Panthers, Brinkmann said. 

“We settled in and started hitting shots, including three 3s in a row, which let us breathe a little bit and let us play a little bit,” Brinkmann said. “I think we were a little tight because we didn’t know what they would send at us — multiple defenses, pressure, stuff like that. So once we settled in, we just played, made reads, really just stopped thinking and were ourselves.”

Brinkmann said the coaches preach ball security and stout defense to the team, and the Lady Panthers met both of those objectives by having only seven turnovers and holding a team under 30 points for the fourth straight game.

Before all that excitement, Centralia had to adjust to Hallsville’s post player Haley Hagan. The Lady Indian finished the first quarter with six points to solely overtake the Lady Panthers on a 6-0 run to end the quarter. Hagan continued to be pesky in the second quarter, adding another six points before settling for one bucket in the second half.

“She gets in the lane, and she can score so we were constantly making adjustments and talking to our post players just to make sure,” Brinkmann said. “She drops over that right shoulder, and we started taking that away. We got in the flow a little bit and learned how to read her. Annie and Shelby worked their tails off and did a great job on her.”

Brinkmann said her guards defended Hallsville’s perimeter players Kristen Jones and Madysen Lucas well to limit them to a combined nine points, with Jones scoring six of those points. 

The freshman Brunkhorst stepped up by hitting one 3-pointer and knocking down another on the ensuing possession for a 14-11 Centralia lead two minutes into the second quarter. The shooting was contagious as Anderson and then Bostick opened up a 24-13 Centralia lead with three minutes left until halftime. Anderson added another 3-pointer in the third quarter, and Ross and Brunkhorst each converted one more time from deep.

“If Morgan, Raegan, Braylin and Joz are on, holy cow,” Brinkmann said. “Anybody can hit so that just opened up the game. They had to guard the post because I think Annie and Shelby did a great job. They sagged into the post, and they got shooters on the outside. We can be a threat from all five spots, and we proved that tonight.”

After leading 32-15 at halftime, Centralia clamped down on defense to outscore Hallsville 15-11 in the third quarter and then 12-2 in the fourth quarter, with only Jones cutting through once for a layup. 

Brinkmann said forcing teams such as Harrisburg and Hallsville, who each average 50 points per game, into low scoring totals for wide margins of victories begins on the defensive end. Stops transition into a positive flow for the Lady Panthers, but she also said they need to be prepared when they encounter that close-game situation.

“We’ll get in a big game close, and we’re going to have to adjust and make different decisions,” Brinkmann said. “It’s nice to win big at this point, and winning and playing well. Even when we’re up big, we’re still making really good reads and really good decisions, which when it gets tight later down the road, hopefully we’ll be ready.”

Ross, Sontheimer and Bostick were announced as part of the all-tournament team along with Hallsville’s Jones, Lucas and Hagan. During the three games, Ross averaged 13 points, Sontheimer averaged two steals, and Bostick averaged 4.7 rebounds and two steals.

Centralia hosts Class 4 Blair Oaks (2-4) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Lady Panthers buy in, shut down Harrisburg 54-25

The Centralia girls didn’t allow any points during the first quarter Wednesday night.

In fact, the Lady Panthers prevented then-undefeated Harrisburg, who received votes in the first Class 3 state poll, from scoring for almost 12 minutes as Centralia won 54-25 in the semifinals of the Centralia Invitational Tournament. Limiting the Lady Bulldogs (54 points per game) to a new season-low earned the Lady Panthers a spot in the championship game at 8 p.m. Friday against Hallsville (3-1), who defeated Salisbury 63-52 on Wednesday.

Head coach Megan Brinkmann, who installed a new system in her first-year at Centralia, said the Lady Panthers (4-1) have “bought in” sooner than she anticipated as their defense has been strong since the 63-41 season-opening loss to Class 4 No. 9 California. In the next four games, including Wednesday’s results, Centralia has kept opponents to 24.8 points per game and has averaged 57.5 in that stretch.

“To play anybody and not having them score a bucket, especially when Harrisburg has some really good offensive threats, it’s just absolutely outstanding,” Brinkmann said. “If we guard like that, we have a chance to beat anybody.”

Morgan Ross led Centralia with 12 points and two 3-pointers, Shelby Lewis had 10 points and 10 rebounds, Annie Robinson finished with nine points and nine rebounds, and Raegan Anderson had eight points and two 3-pointers.

For Harrisburg (5-1), Carli Ellis, who had a game-high 19 points and 10 rebounds against North Callaway on Monday, finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. Ellis scored 10 of her points in the second half, going 8-for-10 at the free throw line. Brecca Thornhill, who finished 11 points on Monday, followed with six points and six steals.

Brinkmann said Ellis and Thornhill were a big focus because of Ellis’ “soft touch” and skill in the paint and Thornhill being Harrisburg’s “best guard.” Centralia had the players to match, though, holding the Lady Bulldogs to 16.7 percent shooting.

“We put Harper (Sontheimer) on (Ellis) because she is our best defender,” Brinkmann said. “Sometimes, her stat line doesn’t have a ton of points, or whatever the case it, but you have to have her on the floor because she guards the best player. I thought she did an outstanding job. It’s the same thing with Jozelynn Bostick as we put her on (Thornhill). I thought Joz shut her down and did a good job.”

Lewis made an impact in the first quarter, finishing with six points and four rebounds off the bench in the first quarter. Centralia led 14-0 after one as Harrisburg could not throw up a shot without being contested.

The Lady Bulldogs tried desperately to find an answer as they were forced to call another timeout after Anderson drained a 3-pointer to make it 19-0 about three minutes deep into the second quarter. At about 4:15 in the second quarter, Abby Rosson finally gave Harrisburg points on a layup she had in a one-on-one situation off a pass to the interior.

“I didn’t see a ton of defensive breakdowns,” Brinkmann said. “We were just talking and communicating. We went over their sets, and I think we took them out of everything they wanted to do and then they didn’t know what to do.”

Coming out of a 25-7 Centralia halftime lead, the Lady Panthers surged to a 12-2 run, highlighted by 3-pointers by Ross and Anderson and a steal-and-score by Bostick. Harrisburg then gained some life with a 10-0 run, stealing the ball away on three straight possessions. Ellis found ways to cut to the rim and draw fouls to earn free throws until Centralia took a 43-23 lead into the fourth quarter.

Robinson had the last say in the third quarter, scoring six points near the end of the quarter. She added to her total in the fourth quarter along with Lewis, who clinched her double-double with free throws and a rebound she grabbed before stepping out of bounds. Ellis led Harrisburg with eight rebounds while Centralia had two players go north of that total.

“Shelby’s obviously tall, long and lanky, but she’s also really strong so we want her jumping and going to get them,” Brinkmann said. “It’s the same with Annie. She’s super-strong, so shot goes up, go box and go get it.”

Centralia didn’t know who it was going to play after its game as Hallsville and Salisbury tipped off afterward, but Brinkmann said it doesn't matter as long as the Lady Panthers continue guarding the way they have.

“They earned the one seed, and now they have to earn the championship trophy,” Brinkmann said. “We’ll take whoever and prepare.”

Centralia shares in 66-20 win vs Van-Far in first round

The Centralia girls showcased the importance of sharing on the court Monday.

The Lady Panthers finished with 19 assists and 10 of their girls scored to defeat Van-Far 66-20 in the first round of the Centralia Invitational Tournament. Van-Far had another double-double performance from Mara Jensen at 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Carmen Wilburn scored the rest of the team’s points.

Centralia head coach Megan Brinkmann said the team has several girls who can impact the game, and it’s always nice when it has nights like Monday. Five Lady Panthers had scored by the end of the first quarter, and eight were on the scoreboard by halftime, when Centralia was ahead 44-10.

“I love watching everybody score,” Brinkmann said. “I thought we were passing the ball extremely well. We (always) have five girls on the floor who can score.”

Morgan Ross led Centralia (3-1) in scoring for the second straight game, tallying 16 points while knocking down two 3-pointers. Braylin Brunkhorst followed with 14 points, two 3-pointers and four steals, Raegan Anderson had 11 points and was 3-for-3 on 3-pointers, Shelby Lewis had five points and six rebounds, and Jozelynn Bostick added five assists, five rebounds and four steals. The Lady Panthers shot 7-for-12 from 3-point territory.

As Centralia’s lead grew, Jensen was active in the post, going against at least two Lady Panthers oftentimes as she was driving to the rim. She finished with points in every quarter except the fourth quarter, when the Lady Indians (1-3) were shut out. Wilburn gave Van-Far its first points not scored by Jensen at 2:46 left in the third quarter after hitting a free throw.

Van-Far head coach Heather Minter said the team has to push each other to be better. She said it’s early enough in the season that some girls could emerge in spots.

“I told the kids in the locker room we’ve got areas that we’re looking to fill that we’re not comfortable with,” Minter said. “Our younger kids are just going to have to start looking for minutes and pushing the older kids. Until we fill those other positions, our guard play is weak right now. We can’t rely on Carmen and Mara to win us games because it’s just not going to happen.”

Centralia began the game with an 8-0 run that was snapped by a Jensen fadeaway jumper before the Lady Panthers closed strong with a 19-6 lead after the first quarter.

The Lady Panthers put together their biggest run in the second quarter with 19 straight points. Whenever Centralia had the ball in transition, it was a smooth two of three passes before a Lady Panther was oftentimes open for layup. Ross reaped the benefits as she galloped down the floor, posting another leading performance after scoring 21 points against Marshall.

“We work a lot on that and talk about it a lot — getting the ball up the floor,” Brinkmann said. “We make good stuff happen out of it. The girls have been together for a long time now, and I feel like they know where each other is going to be.

“Morgan, you’ve got to find her. She’ll shoot, which is great, and I thought she got to the rim really well too. She can be a complete player.”

Van-Far was able to lob some passes over the Centralia defense to Jensen in the high post in the second quarter. Jensen continued to be a force in the post in the third quarter and presented a challenge for the Lady Panther defense.

“(Jensen) has a soft touch, and you can’t let her catch it around the basket,” Brinkmann said. “We tried fronting her and playing behind. Guarding really hard and making it hard to get that pass to Jensen — she scored some points, but overall I thought it was really well done. Harper Sontheimer and Kaelyn Walters both guarded her and did a good job.”

Minter said Van-Far does want its offense to be more than it was Monday night but needs to develop more scoring over time.

“Carmen knows her job is to take care of the ball, and we want to look at Mara as scoring,” Minter said. “We’re not going to be successful with just looking for Mara to score points all the time.”

Centralia had a 58-20 lead after the third quarter, which is when Katie Carrico scored on a transition layup to make her the ninth Lady Panther to score. Annaka Hombs became the 10th after making a free throw in the fourth quarter.

The freshman Brunkhorst upped her career-high after scoring 13 points against Marshall by knocking down a 3-pointer and taking a layup to the rim in the fourth quarter.

“I still think she’s trying to figure out the speed a little bit in the game,” Brinkmann said. “She’s someone who can also guard on defense and gives us a spark on offense so I’m glad to see she’s kind of breaking through it.”