ND girls ease into district final

~ The Bulldogs routed Ste. Genevieve 63-23 in the Class 4 District 1 semifinals

DEXTER, Mo. -- Allyson Bradshaw didn't miss a field goal in the first quarter, Ste. Genevieve didn't make one.

It didn't get much better for the Hunters either.

The top-seeded Notre Dame girls rolled over the Hunters 63-23 in Thursday's semifinals at the Class 4 District 1 Tournament in Dexter.

Ste. Genevieve was 0-for-17 from the field in the first quarter; its only two points came from the free-throw line.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs (22-4) were 9-for-14 from the field in the first, while Bradshaw was 4-for-4, including two 3-pointers. The junior point guard netted 11 points in the quarter.

Notre Dame cruised out to a 15-0 lead to start the game, holding the Hunters scoreless for the first 5 minutes and 9 seconds. The Bulldogs would take a 22-2 lead after one.

Their start was more than impressive.

"We like to set the tone early," Notre Dame coach Renee Peters said. "If we can do that then our confidence and momentum are positive."

Ste. Genevieve was clearly rattled by Notre Dame's press. The Hunters had numerous turnovers that led to easy baskets by the Bulldogs.

Notre Dame continued to dominate in the second.

The Bulldogs scored the first 11 points of the quarter to take a 33-2 lead before the Hunters' Sam Brown netted two free throws.

Ste. Genevieve didn't score its first field goal until an Elle Korenak 3-pointer with 5 minutes, 38 seconds remaining in the second.

Peters was pleased with her team's defense.

"It took them out of their rhythm," Peters said. "We would ideally like to get a steal, but even if we don't we're in the back of their minds. We were able to apply effective pressure tonight; it was a huge momentum boost."

The Bulldogs headed into the half with a 43-9 lead.

The second half was hardly a contest, with Notre Dame stretching its lead to 40 points with a Madison Huckstep basket minutes into the third quarter.

"We ran our transition game well," Bulldog senior Meghan Dohogne said. "We were focused on playing our game."

Dohogne scored in all four quarters, finishing with a game-high 15 points.

"We were working together," Dohogne said. "I just happened to be the one open."

Bradshaw finished with 14 points and senior center Jane Morrill added 12 for Notre Dame.

In all, eight players scored for Notre Dame.

"It helps whenever everybody is scoring," Morrill said. "We can kick it out, throw it inside, it really opens things up."

Peters knows how important her team's balance is.

"It's extremely important," Peters said. "You have to have balance, if not it's too easy to guard."

Notre Dame took a commanding 60-21 lead into the final quarter before finishing off the Hunters with a running clock.

The Bulldogs finished the game shooting 60 percent from the field (26-for-43) while holding the Hunters to 16 percent (7-for-43).

Notre Dame will face off against second-seeded Dexter tonight in the tournament championship at 6 p.m.

Ste. Genevieve 2 7 12 2 -- 23

Notre Dame 22 21 17 6 -- 63

STE. GENEVIEVE (23) -- Elle Korenak 7, Gwen Dallas 4, Laura Rhodes 5, Abby Meyer 2, Sam Brown 2, Kortney Campbell 3. FG 7, FT 6-14, F 13. (3-pointers: Korenak 2, Rhodes. Fouled out: none.)

NOTRE DAME (63) -- Katherine Blasiney 6, Brianne Sanders 5, Allyson Bradshaw 14, Jane Morrill 12, Brooke Bohnert 4, Meghan Dohogne 15, Madison Huckstep 4, Summer Burger 6. FG 26, FT 12-18, F 12. (3-pointers: Bradshaw 2. Fouled out: none.)