Opening Round of LJMWC is in the books; Trico beats Sparta, 45-42 and Chester beats New Athens, 65-24
By Jim Beers
CHESTER –Day No. 2, Tuesday January 6, is in the books and Round 1 of the 19th Annual Chester High School Lady Jackets Mid-Winter Classic Basketball Tournament is complete. Round 2 schedule is set to begin Wednesday January 7.
On Tuesday January 6, Game 3 of the tournament featured Trico and Sparta at 6:00 p.m. The game was tied, 36-36, at the end of regulation play, which sent Game 3 into overtime. The overtime was back and forth until time finally ran out with Trico leading, 45-42. Trico advanced to the Championship Bracket while Sparta moved to the Consolation Bracket.
Trico 45-Sparta 42
After one quarter of play Sparta led, 9-8. In the second quarter, Trico outscored Sparta, 13-10 to take a 21-19 lead into halftime. In the third quarter, the Musketeers outscored the Bulldogs, 8-4, to lead by six points, 29-23, going into the 4th Quarter. Down the stretch, Sparta outscored Trico, 13-7, to tie the game, 36-36, and send the game into overtime. In the overtime period, the Pioneers outscored the Bulldogs, 9-6, to win the game, 45-42, and advance to the Championship side of the bracket.
Trico was led in scoring by two players. Whitney Lovel scored 14 points and Lily Ebers scored 12 points. They were followed by Hazel Helmers (7), Hayleigh Franklin (4), Greta Jones (4), Gracie Graves (3), and Palynn Fager (1).
Sparta was led by two players in double figures. Sierra Starr led all players with 15 points, and Ruthie Pillars scored 10 points. Other contributors included Kaylynn French (7), Liberti Johnson (6), and Serenity Richardson (4).
Chester 65-New Athens 24
Tuesday January 6 at 7:30 p.m. was Game 4, the final game of Round 1. This game featured Chester and New Athens. The Meteors knocked down their first shot of the game, a 3-pointer, at the 7:35 mark to lead, 3-0. Chester’s Lexi Mott hit her first shot at 6:55 and the Lady Jackets trailed, 3-2.
New Athens followed with another basket at 6:14 to extend their lead to 5-2. Chester’s Lillian Diskey answered with a bucket at 5:58 to get the Jackets within one point, 5-4. Diskey followed just seven seconds later with a huge 3-pointer to give Chester a 7-5 lead that would never be challenged the remainder of the game.
Chester then completed a 19-0 run to extend its lead to 16-points, 21-5, with only .44 left in the first quarter. New Athens broke their stalemate with their third score of the game when Avery Albers knocked down two free throws with just 6.6 on the clock. On Chester’s final possession of the first quarter, Aubrey Coleman drained a major 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Chester a 24-7 lead after one quarter of play.
During that first quarter, Lexi Mott scored 10 of Chester’s 24 points. Lillian Diskey scored seven points on a 3-pointer and a pair of traditional field goals. Aubrey Coleman drained a trey and a 2-pointer for five points, and Jessica Stumpe broke her recent dry spell with a field goal.
The score became even more lopsided in the second quarter as the Lady Jackets outscored New Athens, 27-5, to lead, 51-12 at halftime.
During that rally, Jessica Stumpe picked up where she left off at the end of the first quarter and led the Jackets with a nine-point effort which included a 3-pointer and three 2-pointers. Lexi Mott also added nine points on four layups and a free throw. Marley Caby drained a trey and a 2-pointer, and Aubrey Coleman sank a huge 3-pointer. Lillian Diskey rounded out the 27-point second period by sinking a free throw.
New Athens got three points from Ally Barr’s 3-pointer and Brooke Deterding’s back-to-back free throws. The Chester Lady Jackets led, 51-12, at the halftime break.
An additional highlight of the first half was the fact that CHS senior Lexi Mott broke the CHS Lady Jacket rebounding record. The former record was set by former Lady Jacket Alyssa Seymour. She grabbed 843 rebounds in her CHS career.
Lexi Mott broke that record when she reached the 844 mark in the second quarter. By halftime, Mott had 845 rebounds. Coach Jeff Mott said, “Lexi came into the game with 842 rebounds, so we pretty much figured she was going to set a new record. We are only halfway through the season too, so it’s hard to say how many Lexi will have at the end of the season.”
After the break, the Jackets had a 12-6 run to lead 63-18 after three quarters of play. In that run, Lexi Mott scored six points, Hannah Crow came off the bench to score two points, Jessica Stumpe scored a very easy two-point short jumper when the entire group of players on both sides of the lane stood still after a Chester player missed a free throw. Nobody moved to get the rebound. They all stood still, and Stumpe grabbed the easy, non-contested rebound and put it in the hoop for her two points. At the 4:35 mark of the 3rd Quarter, Coach Jeff Mott brought all starters off the floor and substituted the entire lineup with his bench.
Rylee Shemonic came off the bench to make a free throw and Aubrey Coleman made a free throw. She was joined by Evelyn McKinney, Harlow Ebers, Kinley Davitz, Natalie Guetersloh, and Baliey Hartman who came the gamein to man the point guard position and run the offense.
New Athens’ Brooke Deterding got hot in the 3rd Quarter and scored all three baskets for New Athens’ six points. Chester led, 63-18, to end the period.
The Chester bench stayed on the floor to close out the game throughout the entire 4th Quarter. The Lady Jacket’s only points in the final period were from Rylee Shemonic’s hard-fought bucket.
New Athens scored six points in the 4th Quarter, Brooke Deterding popped a 3-pointer and made a free throw, and Ally Barr made two-of-four free throws. At the final buzzer, the Jackets won the game by a score of 65-24.
New Athens was led by Brooke Deterding who scored 15 of the Lady Yellowjackets 24 points. Ally Barr added five points and Avery Ebers scored four points. New Athens was 7-of-13 from the free throw line (54%). They made three 3-pointers and four 2-pointers.
Chester was led by Lexi Mott who led all players with 25 points. Jessica Stumpe, who had been experiencing a minor, short-termed scoring slump, broke loose with 13 points for the Jackets. Other offensive contributors included Aubrey Coleman (9), Lillian Diskey (8), Marley Caby (5), Rylee Shemonic (3), and Hannah Crow (2). The Jackets shot 62 percent from the free throw line (8-of-13). They also added 21 two-pointers and five 3-pointers.
With the win, Chester advances to the Championship side of the bracket and New Athens moved to the Consolation Bracket. Chester is now 9-8 overall for the season. The YellowJackets will face Trico Thursday January 8 at 7:30 in the semi-finals. New Athens will face Sparta at 6:00 p.m. Thursday January 8 at 6:00 p.m. in the Consolation Championship Semi-Finals.
Remaining Tournament Schedule
Game 7: Thursday January 8 at 6:00 p.m. Sparta vs New Athens (Consolation Semi-Final)
Game 8: Thursday January 8 at 7:30 p.m. Trico vs Chester (Championship Semi-Final)
NO GAMES FRIDAY JANUARY 9
Game 9: Saturday January 10 at 12:00 Noon (7th Place Game)
Game 10: Saturday January 10 at 1:30 p.m. (Consolation Championship Game)
Game 11: Saturday January 10 at 3:00 p.m. (3rd Place Game)
Game 12: Saturday January 10 at 4:30 p.m. (CHAMPIONSHIP GAME)
Chester’s Natalie Guetersloh (22) sees action in the game against New Athens Tuesday January 6. it was a special night for her as it as her 18th Birthday. She and her team won, 65-24, to put a great ending to her special day! Jim Beers Photo
Lexi Mott (33) jumps ball to tip-off the Lady Jacket’s first game of the 19th Annual Mid-Winter Cassic Tournament. She was the first Chester player to score in the 65-24 win over the New Athens Yellowjackets. At the game’s end, Mott led all scorers with 25 points. Jim Beers Photo
Lady Jacket senior, Lillian Diskey (21), goes up against two New Athens defenders Tuesday January 6 in Chester’s first game of the 2026 Lady Jacket Mid-Winter Classic Tournament. In the 65-24 win, Diskey scored 8 points and played good defense. She knocked down 1 3-pointer, two 2-pointers, and 1-of-2 free throws in the win. Jim Beers Photo
Chester’s Lexi Mott (33), a senior forward, was happy during 1st half action when it was announced that she had just broken the Chester High School All-Time Lady Jacket rebounding record. Mott came into the game with 842 rebounds and needed just one rebound to tie the school record of 843 rebounds set in 2022 by Alyssa Seymour. Seymour set the record during the COVID-19 Pandemic when the Lady Jackets played a limited season. Lexi Mott not only tied Seymour’s record but broke that record during second quarter action. At halftime Mott had recorded a total of 845 rebounds and grabbed several more throughout the second half. Congratulations Lexi Mott! Jim Beers Photo
Sophomore Marley Caby (35) has been thrown into the Lady Jacket lineup this season and has done an excellent job of adjusting to playing against junior and senior players. In the 65-24 win over New Athens in Game 4 of Round 1 of the 19th Annual Lady Jacket Mid-Winter Classic Basketball Tournament, Caby scored five points and hustled throughout her court time both non offense\e and defense. Jim Beers Photo
The 2026 CHS Dance Team performed during halftime of the Chester vs New Athens game Tuesday January 6 at the Lady Jacket Mid-Winter Classic. The dancers rocked Colbert Gymnasium with a high-energy routine that brought the house down! Jim Beers Photo
The Chester High School Cheerleaders were on hand Tuesday January 6 for the Chester vs New Athens game. The squad cheered and entertained throughout the game from pre-game trill the final buzzer. Shown here they performed a routine during a second-half time out. Apparently, their enthusiasm must have worked because the Lady Jackets beat the New Athens Yellowjackets, 65-24, to advance to the Championship Semi-Finals Thursday Night at 7:30 to face Trico. Jim Beers Photo
The Chester High School Pep Band, under the direction of Steve Colonel, performed Tuesday January 6 at Games 3 and 4 of the 2025 Lady Jacket Mid-Winter Classic Basketball Tournament. For the tournament, Mr. Colonel has infused several new selections into the usual lineup of music to bring life and spirit into Colbert Gymnasium. The band will perform again Thursday January 8 for Games 7 &m 8, and again on Saturday January 10. Jim Beers Photo