Notre Dame crushes St. Charles

~ The Bulldogs pulled away in the second half for the lopsided win.

Notre Dame's Alex Fowler cannot remember a game this season in which she scored as many points as she did Saturday against St. Charles.

The junior, who averages 9.4 points per game, led the Bulldogs with 19 points in a 61-30 win over the Pirates in the final game of the five-game Notre Dame Shootout.

The win got the Bulldogs back on track after two losses this week, to Poplar Bluff and St. Joseph's.

Fowler, who also collected five rebounds, said her team entered Saturday's contest with confidence despite the slide.

Notre Dame's Alex Fowler shot a 3-pointer over St. Charles defenders Saturday during the Notre Dame Shootout in Cape Girardeau. (Kit Doyle)

"We just wanted to come out and play as hard as we could," Fowler said. "After coming off those games -- two losses -- we just wanted to come out and show them what we could do. We knew we had it in us to come out and play really hard, and that's what we were doing."

Fowler, a three-sport athlete who also plays soccer and softball, scored 11 of her 19 points in the first half. Her effort helped the Bulldogs outscore the Pirates 21-14 in the first quarter and 21-6 in the second period.

Notre Dame sophomore Jane Morrill added 15 points in the first half as she and Fowler accounted for 62 percent of the Bulldogs' first-half offense.

"We played our transition game really well," Fowler said. "We tried to run them into the ground. We tried to keep running and running no matter what, even if we were tired. Just run down the floor. That's what we needed to do -- beat them down the floor and get our shots open and tire them out."

Notre Dame senior Paige Schumer said that Fowler helped manage the Bulldogs' transition game.

Notre Dame senior Paige Schumer drew a foul while shooting over St. Charles defender C.J. Hodges Saturday, January 19, 2008, during the Notre Dame Shootout. (Kit Doyle)

"I think she has been doing a really good job of following her shot, rebounding and running the floor," Schumer said. "She's been a huge part of our transition game, and I think that made a big difference tonight."

Fowler came out strong again in the second half. She extended the Bulldogs' lead by nailing two of her three 3-pointers in the third quarter.

"The whole rest of the team, we were playing so well together that it gave me the confidence to keep going," Fowler said. "I knew if I didn't do it, there were other people there, too. It just keeps you going when your whole team is playing well."

The Bulldogs, which shot 25 precent from the field, outscored St. Charles 14-5 in the third quarter and from there went on to the 31-point win.

Before the game, Notre Dame honored former Bulldogs girls basketball coach Jerry Grim, who led the team to more than 440 wins in 25 years. He retired at the end of last season.

"They were dedicating the court to him, and it was a really great experience because all of us had played for him," Fowler said. "So it was really neat."

St. Charles 14 6 5 5 -- 30

Notre Dame 21 21 14 5 -- 61

Notre Dame (61) -- Alex Fowler 19, Jane Morrill 17, Emily Brumitt 8, Paige Schumer 5, Amanda Pleimann 5, Allyson Bradshaw 5, Erika Reinagel 2. FG 21-47, FT 13-16, F 10 (3-pointers: Fowler 3, Brumitt 2, Pleimann 1. Fouled out: none)

St. Charles (30) -- Tori Fenemor 13, Whitney Eufinger 4, Erin Bekebrede 3, Maddie Ruse 3, Gianna Ocello 2, Amy Hotchkiss 2. FG 11-50, FT 5-10, F 11 (3-pointers: Ruse 1, Fenemor 1, Ocello 1. Fouled out: none)