Report by Blake Smith
The Melbourne Lady Bearkatz had a quick turnaround Monday morning, playing just over 36 hours after their regional championship win, hosting the Riverside Lady Rebels in the first round of the Class 2A state tournament.
After a brief sluggish start, the Lady Katz turned it on to the extent of a 16-0 run to close the first quarter, setting the score at 20-4.
It was more of the same, as Melbourne took a 43-11 lead into halftime.
That 30 plus point margin remained, and the sportsmanship clock ran the entire fourth quarter, setting the final score at 77-26.
Kenley McCarn led all scorers with 27 points, Jenna Lawrence added 21.
The Lady Bearkatz improve to 30-1 and advance to the quarterfinal round Friday morning at 10:00, where they will face the winner of Wednesday’s game between Horatio and Mansfield.