Hornets have experience in championship showdowns

After capturing the Woodland Tournament Championship to start the season, the Advance Hornets are going into the seMissourian Christmas Tournament as the only team in the area with a tournament crown already under their belts.

Despite an early loss to defending Class 1 state champion Bell City, the Hornets look primed to make a strong run in the Christmas tournament.

"I'm pleased with where we are," coach Jim Hall said.

'A pure shooter'

Senior Jared Ritter has picked up a large part of the offense, scoring 34 points in the Hornets' semifinal game and 23 in Advance's championship match at Woodland.

Ritter averages nearly 24 points in a 4-1 start, including 26 against a strong Bell City squad.

"He's a pure shooter," Hall said. "He has a knack for getting open when he doesn't have the ball."

While Ritter's strong start may have exceeded Hall's expectations, Hall said he knows that Ritter has to score if the Hornets are going to continue winning.

"I feel like he's got to score points for us to be effective," he said.

Jason Bahr and Zach Hudson also have put up solid numbers for the Hornets. Hudson and Bahr each reached double figures in scoring in three of the team's first four games.

Bahr has been handling the point for the Hornets, while Hudson has helped to pick up the scoring slack during the absence of senior forward Eric O'Hare.

"The most pleasant surprise has been Zach Hudson's performance in those games," Hall said.

The Hornets hope to have O'Hare, a returning starter recovering from a broken hand, back in the next few weeks.

Hall said it will be nice to get O'Hare's senior leadership back on the floor.

"Without him we're really inexperienced," he said.

While Advance has had success in past Christmas tournaments, including a championship in 2000, Hall said with his team's lack of size, it will be to compete against Charleston and other big schools.

Charleston likely in round two

Unfortunately for Advance, Charleston likely would be its second-round opponent if the Hornets get past Kelly in the opening round.

Hall said he's not the type to make predictions or set certain expctations for the tournament.

"I honestly don't set goals," he said of tournaments like the seMissourian Christmas Tournament. "What I do is we try to prepare and play each game as competitive as we can."

jjoffray@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 171