First Night of Macon Tournament in Books

Macon, Mexico, Brookfield and Moberly girls are all heading to the semifinals after the first night of the Macon tournament.

In the three-six matchup, Moberly knocked off third seeded Kirksville 58-44 in the final game of the evening. The Lady Spartans played strong defense on the Lady Tigers courtesy of Makayla Payne. The senior also had one of the more important baskets in the second quarter to keep Moberly in control.

Scott Lunte with the call on 99.9 The Captain and centralmoinfo.com. Payne would complete the four point play and give Moberly a 26-11 lead. The Lady Spartans held a 30-23 lead after the first half. Coach Tony Vestal said a good start was one of the top priorities for the team coming off a Warrenton tournament title last week.

Senior Mary Billington tallied a game-high 26 points, and Lauren Koenig added 13. The Lady Spartans improve to 7-6. Kirksville is now 6-7.

Moberly will take on Mexico in the semifinal as they defeated Harrisburg 51-33. The Bulldogs gave up the opening basket, then went on a 9-0 run and never trailed again.

J.B. Connoley with the call. The game stayed close until the final quarter, when Mexico outscored Harrisburg 19-7. Mexico girls coach Ed Costley…

Mexico is 8-4. Harrisburg falls to 6-10. Harrisburg girls coach Ryan Richardson says playing a bigger school like Mexico can pay off down the road.

Harrisburg will get Kirksville in the consolation bracket.

The Brookfield Bulldogs started the Macon Tournament with a 55-50 win over Centralia. Despite being down 12 at the half, Centralia was able to cut it to three by the end of the third quarter.