Naples Holiday Shootout Day 3: Rock Bridge and Plant crowned champions

The Naples Holiday Shootout wrapped up on Thursday at Barron Collier High School, with champions in the American and National divisions crowned.

American Division Championship

Rock Bridge (Mo.) 40, Sacred Heart 36

Defense. Wins. Championships.

The longtime saying proved to be true in the final game, as Rock Bridge took home the American Division championship.

Jill Nagel’s Bruins held the Valkyries to a season-low 36 points in the win and handed Sacred Heart its first loss of the season.

“Sacred Heart is a great team and we didn't have much prep time,” Nagel said. “I’m proud of our coaching staff for putting together a good scouting report on such short order. I'm really proud of the kids for taking the scouting report to heart and just guarding hard.”

The final game of the tournament was arguably the most intense, as both teams came out aggressive from the opening tip-off.

After two quarters of play, the Valkyries and Bruins were locked in a defensive battle, but Sacred Heart headed back to the locker room with a 21-16 lead.

The Bruins began to claw their were back into the game thanks to their gritty play on the defensive side of the ball and their ability to limit Valkyries scoring threats Reagan Bender, Triniti Ralston, and ZaKiyah Johnson.

“She's an amazing player, and I knew I was going to have to be really locked in on her,” Bruins guard Averi Kroenke said about defending Johnson. “I just tried to move my feet as well as I can and not get too close for a foul, but not make it an easy look.”

Johnson and Raston led the Valkyries with nine points apiece, followed by Bender with seven.

With momentum on its side, Rock Bridge regained the lead, 33-31 with four minutes left in the fourth quarter and held on.

Down the stretch, the Valkyries had opportunities to pull closer, but struggled at the free-throw line, shooting just 25%.

For the Bruins, Kroenke excelled at the line in crunch time as the University of Missouri commit hit all 10 of her free throws.

“Free throws, as they say, win games, and tonight they did,” Nagel said. “I'm proud of the kids for stepping up and hitting tough free throws in tough spots.”

One of the free throws was particularly special for Kroenke. Late in the fourth quarter she surpassed the 1,000 points scored mark in her career.

“It was awesome, and I didn't know it was coming,” Kroenke said. “I thought everyone was just cheering because I put us up by four so they couldn't tie it. Just to get to experience this with my teammates in Florida means a lot to us.”

Kroenke led the Bruins with 21 points and 10 rebounds, and she was named the American Division’s most valuable player.

Now, the five-time Missouri Class 5 girls basketball champions will head back home with some extra hardware and motivation for the rest of the season.

“It's a jumpstart and it lets our kids know where we can be,” Nagel said. “We've still got things to work on and that's why we come here, they show us our deficiencies and we'll go back to the gym in Columbia, Missouri, and we'll start working on getting better.”

National Division Championship

Plant 63, Miami Christian 51

It’s not often in sports that you are given a second chance, but in this case, the Panthers seized the opportunity and redeemed themselves

After suffering defeat to the Victors, 70-49 on Day 1 of the Shootout, the Panthers held Miami Christian scoreless for the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter on their way to the victory.

“You don't get do-overs a whole lot,” Plant coach Carrie Mahon said. “To have the opportunity of a do-over 48 hours later against a team that really handled us completely, it was just a fun opportunity for us.”

A 16-5 run that gave Miami Christian a one-point lead meant momentum was in the Victors' favor entering the fourth quarter, but the Plant defense clamped down and held the Victors scoreless for the first seven minutes of the quarter.

Mahon spoke about her team’s inability to close out tight games this season after having leads, but this time was different as the Panthers shined when it mattered the most.

“We lost three close games before we came here,” Mahon said. “When you do something for the first time, like (Wednesday), it was hold on and get that win. Now we know we can do it, It's kind of like riding a bicycle, seemed a little bit easier today.”

The two teams traded leads early on with the Victors taking advantage after the first quarter 18-13, but the Panthers stormed back and outscored Miami Christian 22-13 in the second period to take a four-point lead into the half.

Following the break, Plant guard Morgan Sieper hit two threes back-to-back to give the Panthers their largest lead of the afternoon, 41-31. Sieper finished with a team-high 22 points while earning herself National Division’s most valuable player honors.

“She needed this tournament,” Mahon said. “Basketball is Morgan’s super passion. It's all she lives for and so she needed to hit the shots that she did.”

While it began to look like Plant was about to put the game to rest, Victors guard Enjuilina Gonzalez began chipping away, leading a 16-5 run capped off by a Samantha Vales 3-pointer to end the quarter with a one-point lead.

Gonzalez and Vales led the Victors with 15 points.

“Miami Christian is so energetic and number 11 (Gonzalez) is just a heck of a player,” Mahon said. “They're very well-coached and they're a great program. So, we feel really blessed to have a win.”

Other results from Naples Holliday Shootout

Palm Bay 77, Baron Collier 24

Miami Country 70, Oakleaf 38

Blanche Ely 63, Ensworth 60

Colegio Adianez 32, Spanish River 31

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Rock Bridge and Plant crowned champions in final day of Naples Holiday Shootout