The Fair Grove Girls team took home fifth place from the annual Pink and White High School Basketball tournament. 32 different schools participated in the tournament, ranging in all different sizes. Held at the Drury University Campus on December 26-29, the tournament is considered one of the largest high school sporting events in the area.

The Eagles went 3-1, with a win over Marshfield (68-26) early, a tough loss to Nixa (48-58), and then two more wins over Carthage (61-24), and Lutheran North (61-31). Head Coach, Jennifer Talbert stated, “We were disappointed in our performance vs Nixa. We did some things that are uncharacteristic of us and that loss was upsetting.”

Although the Nixa game was a hard loss, the team still felt good about the tournament. Senior Harley Maxwell described, “I think that our place in the tournament was not too bad but better than what the public expected as we were seated seventh. I think that we should’ve won our second round game and could’ve ended up either playing for first or third place, but playing for fifth was still a big accomplishment.”

A few key players had big moments and games during the Pink and White. Senior Alana Finley scored 26.8 points per game, and 9.8 rebounds per game throughout the tournament. Talbert mentioned another senior player, Lexie Sutherland. Talbert said, “Lexie did a great job of hitting some big 3’s and playing good defense. She also was able to get in with the post players and get some big rebounds.”

However, the girl who celebrated the biggest moment of all was Harley Maxwell, who broke 1000 points during the tournament. She emphasized, “I feel super honored for reaching my 1000 points in the Pink and White. It is super exciting to know that I’ve scored that many times, but also good to know how well my team has trusted me with the ball. I couldn’t have done it without any of my teammates throughout the years.”

The team’s next game takes place on January 17th against Blue Eye at Fair Grove. Coach Talbert leaves with a positive attitude, she commented, “We have some good momentum leaving the Pink and White, since we were able to win our last game. It is the first time for this senior class to win on the last day of the tournament.”