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North County Tech To Host MLKGirls Basketball Event, Jan. 16-17
By Jim Wieners
North County Technical High School will be playing host to a two-day Girls Basketball event during the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend, Jan. 16-17.
About 16 schools from several states, eight of them from the Metropolitan St. Louis area, including three from the Florissant Valley area — Hazelwood Central, McCluer North and North Tech -—that will participate in the event. Five games will be played Jan. 16 beginning at 12 noon, with Miller Career Academy taking on Cahokia, Ill. and six more will be played on MLK Day, Jan. 17 beginning at 11 a.m.
Hazelwood Central will play the second game of Jan. 16 as the Hawks take on White Station, Tenn., at 1:45. North Tech will be the first game on Jan. 17 as the Golden Eagles play East St. Louis (Ill.) at 11 a.m. McCluer North will be playing Jan. 17 against Butlersville at 3:30.
Six teams — Miller Career Academy, White Station, Tenn., Butlersville, Memphis Overton, Memphis Ridgeway and Potters House — will play two games. Also coming to North Tech are defending 2010 Class Four State Champion Webb City and 2010 Illinois Class 4A State runner up Chicago Whitney Young.
“My goal is to bring the best teams to St. Louis,” said North Tech head coach George Merritt. “Anyone at the MLK Event will see the best teams in the USA.”
Defending 2010 Missouri Class Five State Champion Incarnate Word Academy will play the final game of Jan. 17, against Memphis Ridgeway at 6:30. Playing a team like Ridgeway is “a great opportunity to play one of the better teams in the country,” said IWA head coach Dan Rolfes.
IWA, last week won the 36th Annual Visitation Academy Christmas Tournament, their seventh since 1992 and their third in a row. The Red Knights won over Metro St. Louis (a team that is in the MLK event), 53-21, Lafayette, 56-44, Fort Zumwalt West, 50-47, and St. Joseph’s Academy, 64-63, in front of an overflow crowd. Brianna Puni averaged nearly 14 points per game and pulled down 34 rebounds.
Hazelwood Central took the consolation title at Visitation. After losing to Webster Groves, 60-55, the Hawks defeated Parkway South, 60-51, Principia, 47-35 and Visitation, 64-34. Candyce Ussery scored over 16 points per game and had 15 assists while Alexis Chapelle had 13 steals.
McCluer North was to play Jan. 3-7 in the Parkway West Tournament.
A week before Christmas North Tech won the First Annual Fort Zumwalt North Tournament in O’Fallon, Mo. The Golden Eagles defeated Hazelwood East, 65-50, McCluer, 67-37, and Hazelwood West, 68-53. Tournament MVP Yelena Rosado averaged 22 points per game and had 17 rebounds while All Tournament Team selection Brittany McNutt averaged 13 points and 13 rebounds per game.
HAZELWOOD WEST WON THE DUCHESNE TOURNAMENT in St. Charles last week defeating Duchesne, 65-63, St. Charles, 74-45 and Westminster Christian Academy, 57-53. Shakaunna Oliver-Futrell scored 19 points per game, Alexis Robinson pulled down 26 rebounds and Chanel Gwynn-Williams blocked 14 shots.
West got to the Zumwalt North Tourney title game by defeating host FZ North, 74-57, and Cleveland NJROTC, 72-28. Three made the All Tournament Team — Oliver-Futrell, 14.7 points per game, Mia Williams, 11.3 points per game, and Robinson, 22 rebounds. Gwynn-Williams also had 22 rebounds.
McCLUER took third place at the Fort Zumwalt North Tournament defeating Riverview Gardens, 46-43, and Cleveland NJROTC, 67-37, while losing to North Tech. All Tournament Team selection Sherise Williams scored 23 points per game while Antwalesha Stiles had 15 rebounds per game.
