Of the St. Louis American
The Metro Panthers are headed back to their second home in the month of March. That would be Columbia, which is the site of the Missouri State High School Activities Class 3 girls state championships.
The Panthers will make their fourth consecutive Final Four appearance. After second-place finishes in 2004 and 2006, Metro broke through and won the Class 2 state title last season, but this year, the Panthers have moved up to Class 3 where a formidable field awaits.
Metro (26-4) will take on Blair Oaks today at 12:20 at the Mizzou Arena. The winner of that game will face either Springfield Catholic or two-time state champion Kansas City Pembroke Hill on Friday at 2 p.m. for the state title. Pembroke Hill defeated Blair Oaks in the state championship game last season.
Coach Gary Glasscock’s Panthers have dominated the postseason outscoring their opponents by an average of 29 points during the state playoffs.
Metro is led by its senior backcourt of Brittany Dodson and LaChelle Livingston. Both are averaging 11 points a game with Livingston averaging 5.6 steals and Dodson averaging 3.1 steals. Together, they fuel Metro’s full-court pressing defense that makes life miserable for opposing ball-handlers.
Up front, sophomore Ebony Davis is averaging 11.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game. Junior Dekeisha Mathis averages 9.3 points, including a team-high 42 three-pointers. Sophomore Jasmine Cooper and freshman Nakia Robinson are also big contributors to the Panthers’ success.
Joining Metro girls in Columbia will be the Wellston boys, who are making their first Final Four appearance since 1988 when the Trojans won the state championship.
Wellston will face Harrisburg this afternoon in the Class 2 semifinals at 4:30 p.m. The winner will face either Mansfield or Osceola on Saturday afternoon at 12:20 for the state title.
The Trojans entered the district playoffs with a 10-10 record, but they played against much larger schools in the Suburban East Conference, including Class 4 McCluer South-Berkeley and Class 5 Normandy.
Once district play came around, the Trojans have won five consecutive games, including two overtime victories. Wellston defeated New Haven 52-50 for the district title in overtime, then defeated Puxico 53-40 in the sectionals in another overtime thriller. In the state quarterfinals, Wellston crushed South Pemiscot 72-51 to earn its trip to the Final Four.
The Trojans are led by 5’10” junior guard Edward Jamerson, a tremendous three-point shooter who averages 14 points a game. Jamerson is joined in the lineup by 6’0” junior Lydell Patton, who averages 11 points a game. Also turning in big contributions are 5’11” junior Dwight Harkness, 5’7” junior Tommie Brooks and 5’9” senior Kevin Wrice.
Jamerson and Wrice scored 15 points each in the victory over South Pemiscot in the quarterfinals. Brooks was the high scorer in the sectionals with 13 points while Wrice scored 16 points to lead the Trojans in the victory over New Haven.
