BRIDGEPORT – The Bridgeport Lady Bulldogs overcame a determined start by Ogallala in the C1-10 Sub-District title game Saturday afternoon at Bridgeport High School to earn their sixth District Final appearance in a row. Bridgeport, who trailed by 10 points in the first quarter, righted the Bulldog ship and sailed to a 57-41 win.

Each team had won a game heading into this third meeting of the season between the two. The Indians took full advantage of their size in the paint to get off to a fast start. 6”0” junior Laney Caskey scored six early points and 5’10” freshman Shaydyn Rasby not only added four points but grabbed eight rebounds to pace Ogallala to a 14-4 lead.

But the Bulldogs pressure started to take its toll on the Indians in the second period. Bridgeport forced several backcourt turnovers that the Bulldogs turned into quick, easy points, forcing an Ogallala timeout. Ella Schluterbusch pumped in nine second quarter points as Bridgeport outscored Ogallala 22-5 in the period behind to lead 26-19 at the half.

Although Bridgeport had an answer for every Ogallala surge in the second half, the game remained in question heading into the final stanza with the Bulldogs up 41-33. Bridgeport’s three leading scores took over in the fourth quarter. Ella Schluterbusch, Tacey From, and Olivia Brown combined to score all 16 points for the Bulldogs to seal the 57-41 win.

Schluterbusch paced the Bulldogs with 21 points, despite spending a lengthy amount of time on the bench with foul trouble. Olivia Brown chipped in 13 points while Tacey From added 12 points. Shaydyn Rasby led the Indians with 14 points and 13 rebounds.

Bridgeport (24-1) will host Battle Creek (17-8) in the C1-5 District Final on Friday with a fifth consecutive state tournament appearance on the line for the Bulldogs. The Bravettes, who qualified for a District Final as a wildcard, lost to 20-4 Scotus Central Catholic 48-37 in the C1-4 Sub-District championship game. The tipoff time in Bridgeport has yet to be determined.