The John Burroughs Bombers made history in girls basketball last season when they won the Missouri Class 4 state championship, which was the first in the school’s history.
With several key players back from that championship team, the Bombers were anxious to get the 2022-23 season started in a big way. They passed their first big test on Friday when they defeated Columbia Rock Bridge 56-40 in the featured game at the St. Joseph’s Turkey Shootout and St. Joseph’s Academy.
In a battle of two of the state’s top teams, the Bombers looked like they were in midseason form as they raced out to a 13-1 lead out of the game and built a 26-8 lead at the end of the first quarter. All of the key players contributed to the hot early start as junior Monet Witherspoon went coast to coast for a layup, junior Allie Turner knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, senior Sydney Starks hit a baseline jumper and sophomore BreAunna Ward scored on a tough baseline drive. The Bombers led 38-23 at halftime and coasted in the second half to the impressive opening-season victory.
Turner, a returning All-State guard, led the Bombers with 20 points, including four 3-pointers. Witherspoon scored 14 points while Ward and junior guard Alice Crowley added seven points each. The Bombers also got four points from talented 6’3″ freshman Moriyah Douglass, who is the granddaughter of former McKinley High and Saint Louis U. great Monroe Douglasss.
