St. Joseph's Academy tops Cor Jesu in Missouri girls basketball rivalry; Cor Jesu wins 'Funderwear' charity drive
ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI – In one of the most entertaining high school rivalry events you'll ever see, both St. Joseph's Academy and Cor Jesu Academy were winners on Tuesday night.
Visiting Cor Jesu won the halftime tug-of-war battle and took home the trophy as the winner of the "Funderwear" competition as the school that collected more donations for St. Patrick Center, a local charity that serves individuals and families throughout the community who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Together, the schools collected 64,393 items.
On the court, following Cor Jesu's halftime celebrations, St. Joseph's Academy seized control of a back-and-forth game late to earn an impressive 53-44 victory with its three seniors – Kayla Jansen, Zoe Stewart and Abby Sievers – leading the way.
"Just because of the history and all of the emphasis for both schools and the legacy and us having a tough loss last year, for our seniors, I'm truly thrilled for them," St. Joseph's coach Julie Matheny said.
"We've been training for this since last year when we lost," Sievers said. "The win just means everything, especially being a senior. I knew I had to come out here and we had to shut them down and bring home this W."
Jansen, the Angels' 6-foot-4 center who has signed to play volleyball at Saint Louis University, put up a monster stat line with a team-high 16 points, eight rebounds, five blocked shots and five steals.
"She rebounded harder tonight," Matheny said. "She rebounded and she wasn't going to let us lose. She played like a senior tonight. Every game I think she's getting better and stronger with that mentality – as far as basketball, because her sport's volleyball."
Sophomore forward Caroline Schierding added 10 points and grabbed five rebounds for St. Joseph's (10-4), which avenged a 48-43 loss at Cor Jesu in last year's 'Funderwear' matchup.
Stewart added nine points and five rebounds. Sievers finished with five points, three rebounds and two blocked shots – but had three key points and took a charge in the final minutes to secure the victory.
"We've been here, we've been on varsity since our freshman year," Sievers said of her fellow seniors. "It's always been us three, so it was really nice to put it away tonight."
Paige Dolrenry, a senior guard, led Cor Jesu (9-4) with a game-high 19 points, including sinking all nine of her free throw attempts. Sophomore Lauren Ortwerth, a 6-1 forward, scored 11 points.
St. Joseph's Academy - Cor Jesu Academy girls basketball
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- Nate Latsch | latsch@scorebooklive.com | @SBLiveMiz
