Lady Tigers take control of Small-School race

STE. GENEVIEVE — Anna Thomas scored 17 points despite briefly leaving with an injury in the fourth quarter, and Arcadia Valley seized sole command of first place in the MAAA Small-School division chase Thursday night.

Kristen Williams pulled down 14 rebounds and Ana Barzowski added nine points as the Lady Tigers topped Valle Catholic 52-45 to collect their sixth straight win.

Thomas sparked a decisive 8-0 run with a steal and layup after the host Lady Warriors pulled even at 44-44 on a putback by senior Lacie Luttrell. Barzowski followed with two key free throws.

Arcadia Valley (13-4) remains as the lone unbeaten teams in conference play with games against Kingston, Valley and West County awaiting.

Mackenzie Wipfler recorded a double-double with 17 points on 8-of-13 shooting and 11 rebounds as Valle Catholic (11-6) saw a 6-game winning streak snapped. She also recorded five steals and four blocks.

The Lady Warriors grabbed their largest lead of 27-19 when Wipfler scored in the post to cap an 8-0 spurt.

Thomas answered with two 3-pointers in helping Arcadia Valley draw within 29-27 at halftime. The contest featured nine ties.

The Lady Tigers shot just 32 percent from the field and 7-of-17 from the line. Valle struggled even more at the stripe, making only 4-of-14.

Colleen Brake had nine points and Luttrell added five assists for Valle.