The Meadville Lady Eagles captured the Class 1 girls basketball state title on Friday afternoon at Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield, defeating Chadwick 39-28 in a contest broadcast on Hot Country Z 101.7. The win capped an unbeaten season for MHS, with a record of 31-0, with Chadwick finishing 25-6.
Junior guard Korrie Holcer finished with a game-high 18 points for Meadville, picking up the scoring slack for a pair of guards battling injury, as freshman point guard Madison Carvajal had a hamstring pull that affected her speed and agility, while junior guard Paige Carvajal dealt with a sprained ankle suffered in the first quarter of Thursday’s semifinal win overt Leeton. Paige Carvajal did hit four 3-point shots on Friday, finishing with 12 points. Raeleigh Little had 11 points for Chadwick.
Defense played the decisive role in the championship showdown for Meadville, as the Lady Eagles, after giving up 14 points and falling behind after one quarter, kept the Lady Cardinals to just 14 points in the rest of the game combined. Tom Johnson had the call of the championship-winning moment:
Here is victorious head coach Steve Carvajal:
In Thursday’s semifinal round, Meadville survived a strong challenge from the Leeton Lady Bulldogs, with a fourth-quarter surge giving the Tri-County Conference champions a 51-46 victory. Madison Carvajal had 17 points for Meadville, with Paige Carvajal adding 11, and Mallory Dennis 10 points. Leeton, falling to a mark of 26-4 after Thursday’s defeat, had 12 points each from Hadley Shaffer and Jadeyn Johnson.
The 2023 state title adds to Meadville’s basketball tradition, with this year’s Lady Eagles squad joining the 1995 group, coached by Laurie Hardie, as girls state champions. The tradition rich Meadville boys beat Winston for the Class 1 state title in March 2015 under head coach Drew Nier.
In other Class 1 results from Friday, the Platte Valley girls took third place with a 46-42 win over Leeton. In the boys Class 1 state tournament, South Iron rallied in the fourth quarter to force overtime, then pounced on St. Elizabeth for a 56-47 win in the state title contest. The Platte Valley boys captured third place with a 81-45 victory over Glasgow. Both PV teams, made up of the Jefferson and South Nodaway co-op take third place hardware back from Springfield.
On Saturday, the high school basketball season wrapped up for Missouri’s smallest districts, with Classes 2 and 3 crowning champions. The Salisbury Panthers took the boys Class 2 title over Principia 55-46. The Plattsburg boys beat Hartville in the third place game 59-48.
The Tipton Lady Cardinals capped a dominant season with a win over LeBlond in the Class 2 final 55-36, with the New Haven ladies claiming third place, 44-43 over Norwood.
Turning to Class 3, the Fair Grove girls won the state title over El Dorado Springs, 54-52, denying the team that ended South Harrison’s season in the quarterfinal round a championship. The Skyline girls claimed third place, 58-29 over West County.
The boys Class 3 title went to New Madrid County Central, 56-46 over Lutheran North, with Thayer edging Higginsville in the third place game 67-64.
Photo credit – Korrie Holcer (@KorKorBB0) / Twitter / Springfield, MO
