The Harrisburg Lady Bulldogs (Class 2) hosted Boonville (Class 4) on Friday evening as part of the Mid-Missouri Invitational. Both teams, deploying similar styles of play, battled throughout, with Harrisburg taking the 68-58 victory.

Another wrinkle to the game was that Harrisburg Head Coach Jaryt Hunziker led Boonville to the State Championship three years ago before departing for Osage High School. He is in his first season at Harrisburg.

“This was such a great environment and a big game,” Hunziker said. “I have great memories from coaching there; my assistants were there, and my daughter was a Lady Pirate. It was a fun game.”

Both teams deployed full-court presses to open the game. Boonville scored first, but the lead changed hands eight times in the first quarter alone. A duel emerged as Lady Bulldog junior Lorelai Hunziker and Boonville junior Bella Imhoff each scored six straight points for their respective teams. Harrisburg scored five of the last seven points to take a 16-14 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The battle continued in the second quarter as Harrisburg built the lead as high as nine but held a 36-30 lead at the half. Hunziker led the way, scoring 19 points, including three second-quarter 3-pointers.

“We did a good job of knocking down shots. Our defense and hustle were good, but the biggest difference in the first half was that we knocked our shots down when we had the chance,” Coach Hunziker said.

In the third quarter, Boonville cut the lead to two, but Harrisburg stretched it back to six by the end, finishing on an 8-4 run.

“We made some defensive adjustments in the second half and did a better job of keeping [Boonville junior Isabella] Imhoff out of the lane,” Coach Hunziker said. “We also focused on contesting their 3-point shots. Our girls executed well.”

Harrisburg stretched the lead to eight, forcing a Boonville timeout with 6:38 left in the game. The Lady Pirates responded with an 8-3 run, cutting the score to 60-57.

With Boonville focused on stopping Hunziker, junior Jaidyn Stephenson scored five points and senior Avelina McKinzie scored four in the final quarter. The Lady Bulldog defense clamped down and greatly aided an 8-2 run to end the game, securing the 68-58 win.

“It was a game of runs,” Coach Hunziker explained. “They kept coming back and getting within three or four points, but our kids, whether it was Lorelai, Avelina, or Jaidyn, kept hitting big shots to widen the lead. It was a team win, and I’m proud of how we battled from start to finish.”

Hunziker led the Bulldogs with 29 points, including five 3-pointers. McKinzie added 12 points.

Imhoff led Boonville with 23 points.

With the victory, Harrisburg improves 10-2 on the season. Boonville falls to 8-7.

Harrisburg was scheduled to host South Callaway in the first ever Central State 8 game on Coach Combs Court on Tuesday after the Advertiser went to press. This season marks the first ever for the brand-new conference.

On Wednesday, Harrisburg will host area rival New Franklin before returning to CS8 play on Friday at Eugene. The Lady Bulldogs secured the No. 2 seed in their own tournament next week. They take on seventh-seeded Hallsville at 6 p.m. on Monday, January 27 in the middle school gym.