The Blair Oaks Lady Falcons came close to winning a track and field state title last May. They have the pieces to be competitive among the state’s top athletes again this season. “With the great athletes we lost, you wonder how great we’re going to be this year,” Blair Oaks girls coach Marc Keys said. “After seeing the incoming freshmen and who we’ve got coming in, I think we’re going to be a little better than I thought."
The third time was the charm for the Blair Oaks Lady Falcons against the Boonville Lady Pirates, as the Lady Falcons won 50-39 in Monday night’s first round of the Class 4 District 9 Tournament. The fourth-seeded Lady Pirates, who were the defending Class 4 state champion, had beaten the fifth-seeded Blair Oaks twice in the regular season and had won seven straight in the series dating back to 2018. Boonville won 56-49 in overtime Dec. 3 in the third-place game of the Tri-County Conference Tournament in Boonville and then won 70-67 in their regular-season meeting Jan. 20 in Wardsville.
Not much was going right in the first half Monday night for the Blair Oaks Lady Falcons, with two exceptions: Emma Wolken and rebounding. Wolken scored 16 of her career-high 24 points in the first half, while the Lady Falcons outrebounded the Versailles Lady Tigers 27-12 in the first 16 minutes. Blair Oaks was able to overcome an 11-point deficit for a 56-45 victory in Tri-County Conference play.
A total of six games are on the schedule today in the Central Bank Shootout at Rackers Fieldhouse. The Helias Crusaders and Lady Crusaders, the Jefferson City Jays and Lady Jays and the Blair Oaks Lady Falcons are among the area teams taking part in the one-day event.
It didn’t go well almost from the start as the Blair Oaks Lady Falcons dropped a 61-28 decision Monday night to the Owensville Dutchgirls. The Lady Falcons jumped out to a 2-0 lead after a pair of free throws from Autumn Bax on the opening possession, but Owensville was able to respond with a 9-0 run to take the lead for good.