Nothing was stopping the New Madrid County Central girls basketball team from reaching its second-straight district championship appearance on Wednesday night. Behind four players reaching double-figures in scoring and a third quarter that broke the lead wide-open, the Lady Eagles were able to defeat Charleston 64-38 to advance to the Class 3, District 1 Tournament championship game on Thursday night. New Madrid County Central’s Ayannah Ruff handles the ball in a Class 3, District 1 girls basketball semifinal at Charleston Wednesday night. (Dustin Ward/SEMO News Service) Alivia Hartman and Ayanna Ruff had outstanding performances to pace NMCC (24-2). Hartman finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Ruff finished with 16 points and six boards. “We know that most night we got to rely on them to put some points on the board and really push the pace and tempo,” NMCC head coach Toby Heeb said. “We got a lot out of them tonight. I thought they did their job and the other girls stepped up as well and kind of filled in around them and played their role for sure.” Shakyra Wright added 13 points and four rebounds, while Alexis Phillips shot 4 of 8 (50 percent) from the floor for 10 points of her own. Coming off the bench, senior Kiara Brown did not record a point, but did her fair share on the glass, as she cleaned up nine missed shots Mastajah Walker was also a force on the glass, finishing with 15 rebounds. Leading by double-digits at halftime, Heeb said that he knew what Charleston was bound to bring at his team, but it took them a little longer than usual to click. “This being the third time we’ve played them, we know them, they know us, and we knew that going in,” Heeb said. “We knew it was going to be a battle the whole 32 minutes, no matter what. Our main focus was really keying in on their guard, Jones, who is their go-to, and we thought if we could take her away, we’d be able to run away with it. It took a while but we wore them down, and kind of ran away with it.” The Lady Eagles clicked once the second half started, though, as they outscored Charleston (15-11) 22-9 in the period to put the game well out of reach. Ashanti Jones was the only Charleston player to record double-figures in points. She finished with 18 points, on 4 of 20 (20 percent) shooting. Trying to get the ball out of Jones’ hands was a key for the Lady Eagles, and when it happened, Charleston head coach Dollette Hall knew it was going to be a struggle. “They put two people on our ball handler, and we prepared for that all week,” Hall said. “When we got in the game, we just fell apart. We just couldn’t hold it together or think straight enough to go set picks, to get her open, and we just couldn’t handle the ball. With the ball being out of Ashanti’s hands, we’re just not used to that.” The Lady Bluejays never lead once in the contest, thanks in large part to defense. NMCC forced 29 turnovers in the game — 21 which came in the first half. When it came down to taking care of the ball, though, both teams were equal. NMCC also had its struggles against Charleston’s defense, as it committed 30 turnovers — an area that Heeb pointed to before the game. “That was another one of our main points of emphasis before the game; don’t turn the ball over,” Heeb said. “Rebound and take care of the ball I felt we did not do a very good job of that. If we’re going to win this district or go any further than that, we’re going to have to take better care of the ball. We just got to make smarter passes and stronger passes. Once you get in these games, everybody wants the ball a little bit more than a regular season game, so we have to go after it like somebody’s trying to steal it.” NMCC and Kelly play tomorrow night, at 7 p.m., for the Class 3, District 1 crown, at Charleston High School. Charleston 6 10 9 13 — 38 NMCC 13 16 22 13 — 64 CHARLESTON (38) — Ashanti Jones 18, Mistavia Murray 2, Jermaneja Smith 7, Nicole Hart 2, Zycaisha Williams 7, Ah’Kaya Paris 2. FG 12, FT 11-19, F 19. (3-pointers: Jones 2, Williams. Fouled out: none) NMCC (64) — Alivia Hartman 18, Ayannah Ruff 16, Shakyra Wright 13, Alexis Phillips 10, Mastajah Walker 4, Allisia Hester 3. FG 23, FT 16-28, F 18. (3-pointers: Phillips, Wright. Fouled out: none)