SPRINGFIELD - The game plan for the St. Elizabeth Hornets was really simple. Get the ball inside to the big guys and let them go to work.
Ross Struemph, the Hornets' 6-foot-6 senior, scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the first half while grabbing 10 rebounds. Brady Heckemeyer, a 6-5 senior, added 10 points and eight rebounds.
St. Elizabeth scored 48 points in the paint Thursday night, powering past the Golden City Eagles for a 67-58 win in the Class 1 semifinals in front of a sparse crowd at JQH Arena.
"We got the job done," said St. Elizabeth coach Dillon Tenholder, whose team will play in the state championship game for the first time since 2004.
The Hornets (25-5), ranked No. 4 in Class 1, will get a rematch against the second-ranked Dora Falcons (31-2) in the Class 1 championship game, which is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. today at JQH Arena.
"Any chance you get to play for a state championship, you couldn't be more excited," Tenholder said. "Playing Dora, they got us in the semis last year in overtime."
Dora defeated third-ranked Jefferson: Conception Junction 82-66 in Thursday's first semifinal game, which was a rematch of last year's state championship game.
"You can't focus so much on that," Tenholder said of last year's 80-71 loss to Dora. "We still have to execute what we do best. If you focus too much on who you're playing, trying to get revenge, it can take you off your own game."
In the first half Thursday, St. Elizabeth made 14 of its 16 shots in the lane, taking advantage of a significant height disparity. Golden City only has one player on its roster taller than 6-foot.
"Playing a team that lacks size and is more guard-oriented, you hope that's there," Tenholder said. "You know they're going to try and do something to combat it, and we were able to get that going early."
St. Elizabeth led 19-12 at the end of the first quarter. Struemph had 11 of those points, and he shot 10-of-15 from the floor in 31 minutes.
"It was hard, but in the Final Four, you have to keep going and keep playing," Struemph said. "They always sent a double(-team), but I've seen that all year."
During much of the first half, St. Elizabeth spread its players around the perimeter, isolating Struemph in a one-on-one matchup inside against an undersized defender.
"Any time we would make a run, they would throw it inside and get a basket that they couldn't miss," Golden City coach Michael Reeves said. "They're a real good team."
In the second quarter, Struemph saved a half-court pass from going out of bounds. He reached up with his right hand, tiptoed the baseline and threw a pass behind his head to Heckemeyer, who scored the easy layup. Struemph's only assist extended St. Elizabeth's lead to 33-23 with 1:18 left in the first half.
"I was just about out of bounds, and I saw Brady out of the corner of my eye," Struemph said. "I knew he'd be expecting the pass, so I just threw it and hoped for the best."
The Hornets went into halftime with a 36-25 advantage and led by as many as 14 points in the second half.
St. Elizabeth led 50-39 through three quarters. Golden City trimmed its deficit to seven points on two occasions late in the fourth quarter.
"When it's seven to 10 points, that can go either way, especially with a team like Golden City," Tenholder said. "If your guards can't handle the pressure, it can go downhill pretty quickly."
Nolan Heckemeyer and Brock Lucas each added 10 points for St. Elizabeth. The Hornets' guard play became the spotlight in the final eight minutes, as Golden City's guard-heavy roster began to apply half-court pressure.
"They played well," Tenholder said of St. Elizabeth's guards. "They've played in these big-time games. You look at last year's Final Four, you look at our schedule, they've had to handle the pressure.
"That's been an area of growth for them this whole year, just becoming more comfortable with it."
St. Elizabeth committed five turnovers in the fourth quarter, with Golden City scoring six points off those miscues.
Carson Kesel stepped to the free-throw line with St. Elizabeth ahead 65-58 with :54 remaining. Kesel missed both free throws, but he rebounded the second miss and scored a layup, sealing the win for the Hornets.
The Hornets shot 50 percent (27-of-54) from the floor and held the Eagles to 35.5 percent (22-of-62).
"We took some 3s out there way past the college line that normally we wouldn't take," said Reeves, who team was 6-of-18 from 3. "Because of their size, we were forced to come out."
Arlo Stump led Golden City with 23 points, finishing his career with 2,750 points.
"Arlo has meant a lot to the program the last four years," Reeves said.
Lane Dunlap and Chain Parrill added 15 and 14 points, respectively, for the Eagles.
Due to the concern of coronavirus in Missouri, only 150 tickets were allotted for each school for Thursday's game.
"It was different, but I'm glad our school let us give (tickets) to our family and closest friends," Struemph said of the atmosphere in a mostly empty arena, "for the people who were there for the whole ride."
The spectator limitations will be in effect again for today's championship game.
"Even with the lack of fans, it still should be a great environment," Tenholder said. "Both groups know what's at stake."
In their previous championship game appearance, the Hornets lost 74-62 to Bell City. St. Elizabeth has not won a boys basketball state championship.
"It's a great opportunity," Brady Heckemeyer said. "It's something we dreamed about since we were 6 years old, playing basketball together."
There will not be a Class 1 third-place game today between Golden City (27-3) and Jefferson: Conception Junction (28-3).