Jackson reaches final

For the second time in three seasons, rivals Central and Jackson met in the opening round of Class 5 District 1 play.

Both times the result was the same -- a Jackson rout.

The top-seeded Indians marched by the No. 4 Tigers 59-29 on Monday at Central.

Jackson (21-4) will face No. 3 Farmington at 6 p.m. on Thursday in the championship game. Farmington was a 57-52 winner over No. 2 Poplar Bluff in Monday's second semifinal.

"We're just bigger and stronger than Central is," Jackson coach Sam Sides said after the win. "We're not going to be bigger or stronger than either of the other teams we'll play."

The Indians, who defeated Central 42-19 in the opening round of district play in 2004 before falling in the finals, secured their spot in Thursday's finals early in the game. After falling behind briefly at 4-2, Jackson went on an 11-0 run and never looked back.

Jackson led 24-10 by the end of the first quarter. Jackson seniors Kylie Werner and Bobbie Jones each scored seven points in the opening quarter.

Sides said his team did a good job of putting the game away early.

"That's what you want to do," he said. "The longer you keep an opponent around, the greater their confidence gets."

Jackson's lead would not dip below 14 points the rest of the game. A 10-0 run early in the second quarter pushed Jackson's lead to 36-11.

Central freshman Wendi Zickfield scored 10 of the Tigers' 14 first-half points, but turnovers and rebounding problems doomed the Tigers.

"We were trying to keep it close the first half, and it slipped away from us," Central coach Sherri Shirrell said.

With a big lead the Indians were able to use their entire bench, subbing throughout the game. Some of those minutes off the bench went to 5-foot-9 senior center Loni Littlepage, who just recently made her season debut after sitting out nearly the entire season with a knee injury.

Littlepage did not score, but Sides said she could give the Indians a little more depth down low on Thursday.

"We've missed her," Sides said. "She's a good, smart player. If she can give us a few minutes, that helps. She's not 100 percent by no stretch of the imagination, but it's good to see her out there regardless."

Jones led the Indians with 22 points and Amanda Peiffer had 13. Jones was also 6-for-8 from the free throw line.

"She's always aggressive," Sides said of Jones. "Sometimes she tries to do too much, but she'll give you 100 percent. She's tough to match up with because she's so aggressive."

Zickfield led the Tigers with 11 points and Courtney Schuessler had eight.

Central finished its season 9-16, nearly doubling its win total from last season. The Tigers will only lose three seniors off this year's roster.

"We definitely made progress," Shirrell said.

Now that the Indians have passed their first district test, they must try to beat Farmington for the third time this season. Jackson defeated Farmington 49-46 at home last week after routing the Knightettes in the championship game of the season-opening Farmington Invitational.

Farmington defeated Jackson in the opening round of district play last season. The Indians are looking for their first district title since 2003.

"That's always our goal," Sides said. "You always want to play your best at the end [of the season]."

Jackson 59, Central 29

Central 10 4 7 8 -- 29

Jackson 24 13 12 10 -- 59

CENTRAL (29) -- Wendi Zickfield 11, Courtney Schuessler 8, Christina Sexton 6, Dani Gross 2, Kristin Shirrell 2. FG 13, FT 3-5, F 19 (3-pointers: none. Fouled out: none)

JACKSON (59) -- Bobbie Jones 22, Amanda Peiffer 13, Kylie Werner 9, Gabrielle Garritano 7, Lindsay Poole 3, Kelci Keith 3, Ashley Charboneau 2. FG 20, FT 17-29, F 7 (3-pointers: Werner 1, Keith 1. Fouled out: none)