Nixa knocks off Republic to end Lady Tigers' season

Republic's girls basketball season ended Thursday with a 52-41 loss to Nixa in the Class 6 District 5 semifinals. The Lady Tigers finished 23-5 after a week that started with a comfortable 58-34 win over Waynesville in the district opener Monday.

Against Waynesville, Republic fell behind 6-0 before settling in and pulling away with a 21-6 second quarter. Paelyn Gilmore led all scorers with 18 points, hitting five threes, and Cora Cutbirth added 11.

Thursday's matchup with Nixa was a different story. When Republic beat the Eagles 60-43 in January, the Lady Tigers had overcome a significant size disadvantage by doing the little things well — blocking out, moving the ball, limiting turnovers, and knocking down shots. Thursday, none of that came together, and Nixa's length showed all night. The Eagles controlled the offensive glass, turning second chances into easy baskets while Republic couldn't generate its own.

Nixa scored the first four points and never trailed. Taylor Wood had seven points in a first quarter that ended 18-5. Wood finished with 20, going 12-of-13 at the free throw line.

Republic made its best run in the second quarter, outscoring Nixa 18-10 to trim the deficit to five. Addie Brown hit two threes, Charlie Hagewood scored five, and Cutbirth added four during that stretch.

"We just dug ourselves a hole early and had to dig out of that, and that made it hard," coach Tori Mooneyham said. "Shots that have been falling didn't fall tonight."

The third quarter was even at nine apiece, and Republic trailed 37-30 heading into the fourth. Josie Stalzer hit a three to pull the Lady Tigers within five at 43-38, but Nixa answered each push, and Wood kept converting at the line.

The free throw disparity told part of the story. Nixa went 17-of-21 from the stripe. Republic, a team that normally shoots around 75 percent from the line, made just five of 13.

"Free throws alone, we were in the game," Mooneyham said. "It just was a combination of things."

Republic shot 26 percent from the field and six of 27 from three. Brown led the Lady Tigers with nine points, all on threes.

Despite the loss, Republic set a new school record for three-pointers in a season with 186, topping the 2016 mark of 181.

Thursday was the final game for seniors Brown and Awbree Berning, both two-year varsity contributors, with the rest of the team set to return next year.

"I told them, 'I've done this for 27 years and I've been a part of many of these games, and sometimes it's just not your night,'" Mooneyham said. "But you've got to walk out of here with your head held high. We had a great season. I couldn't be more proud of them."