Bulldogs Bounce Back Against Borgia with Dominant Road Win
- RoMoAthletics
- Feb 18
- 4 min read
February 18th, 2026
If Head Coach Mark Miller was worried about how the Rolla Bulldogs would respond to the 35 point loss to nationally ranked Principia, he didn’t have to wait long to have those fears put to rest. The Bulldogs unloaded some frustration from the past weekend out on the St. Francis Borgia Knights with a 21 to 3 first quarter and then cruised to a 60 to 42 win.
Turning the Page on the Principia Loss
“We liked what we saw last night with how we responded to the loss at Principia Saturday night but I really think it started in the 2nd half of that Principia game,” said Coach Miller. “They (Principia) are so good and we didn’t play close to our expectations so it was basically over after the first half. But the fight and determination (the team) showed in the 2nd half was very encouraging. This team is resilient and have shown they can bounce back and that’s what they did last night. Solid game for the Dogs.”
Senior Ethan Brown knew that Principia would be a tough match-up as he is very familiar with the players and coaches from his summer team. "It was a good response after a tough loss to a great team. We got after it on defense. We pushed the tempo and jumped on them early. Where we struggled against Principia, we were able to do well in those areas tonight."
Bulldogs Defense Sets the Tone
Going into the game, the Bulldogs had to focus on stopping 6’2” Jr guard Emery Woehrmann who is one of the top scorers in the state. Averaging around 25 points per game for the Knights. Last season, the Bulldogs were able to shut down Woehrmann on their way to two 18 point victories and once again it was 6’2” Sr guard Jenson Thomas assigned the task of shutting him down. But this year, Thomas would have some help with 6’1” Sr guard Landen Richter available to hound the Knights players.
As Hall of Fame Coach Dave Neier had his team executing their offense trying to get Woehrmann a shot running off of multiple screens, the Bulldogs defense was more than ready for the challenge. Forcing a tough shot that failed to touch iron, the Bulldogs had no such problem on their first possession as 6’4” Sr guard Cooper Gideon was able to shot fake a defender for a fly by and knock down a deep two point shot.
That kicked off a 21-2 start of the game including a 15-0 run until a Borgia free throw made with 23 seconds left in the quarter ended the drought. Borgia was never comfortable taking shots as their lone field goal in the quarter came on a put back from an airball 3 point shot attempt. Borgia was 1 for 6 from 2 point range and 0-8 from beyond the arc in the opening period.
Bulldogs Maintain Control
The Bulldogs lead would stretch out to 25 points in the final 3 quarters and they never let Borgia get closer than 15 points. Woehrmann would finally find his shooting touch and scored 10 points in quarter 2 and finished with a team-high 16.
But it was 6’7” Sr forward Paxton Ledbetter who asserted himself in the final 3 quarters of the game on his way to a game high 20 points. Ledbetter dominated the paint going 8 for 10 from and worked his way around the basket and cutting off screens to work his way to the rim. The Knights had no answer for the Bulldog big man and his teammates made sure to find him.
Coach Miller was excited to see the production. “Paxton is such a huge part of what our potential is through the remainder of the season. He’s got to own the paint but his perimeter game is going to open up more for others.”
The Bulldogs enjoyed a 19 point lead at halftime and a 21 point lead heading into the final quarter. The 60-42 victory moved the Bulldogs to 19-5 on the season.
The Wrap Up
Bulldogs defense made it rough on Borgia all night holding them to under 33% shooting for the night. 6’4” Sr forward Easton Smith banged around on the 6’7” Jr post man Bryce Collins limiting him to 4 points but more importantly, keeping him off the boards.
Overall the Bulldogs dominated the glass with 35 rebounds compared to 22 by the Knights and pulling in 11 offense boards. The Bulldogs had a whopping 15 rebounds in the first quarter with 5 offensive rebounds on a single possession.
The defense allowed the Bulldogs to get out in transition and along with the rebounding, kept the Knights from doing the same as the Bulldogs outscored the Knights 12-2 in transition.
Three Bulldogs scored in double figures with Ledbetter going for 20 points, Brown with 19, and Thomas with 11. The guard duo of Brown and Thomas combined for 15 rebounds and 12 assists.
The three-point shooting woes continued for the Bulldogs as they only hit 5 of 25 from deep. However, with their speed, length, and size they found success inside the arc, shooting 69% from 2 and getting 36 points in the paint.
Next Up
Final home game of the season against #6 in Class 4, Orchard Farm (19-2) out of St. Charles, Mo.. This will be a Saturday game with Freshmen and JV starting at 4:30pm and Varsity at 6pm.
Last season was a 56-58 heartbreaking loss for the Bulldogs
Rolla is averaging 69.4 PPG vs Orchard Farm at 65.5 PPG
Rolla’s defense is allowing 55 PA while Orchard Farm is at 50 PA
No Common Opponent
Boys Class 6 District 2 Standings
Seeding meeting has not yet been held.
TEAM W L Win %
Rolla 19 5 79.17%
Eureka 16 5 76.19%
Marquette 15 8 65.21%
Lafayette 12 9 57.14%
Parkway South 11 11 50.00%
Waynesville 10 12 44.45%
Parkway West 9 13 40.91%
Northwest 5 11 31.25%
STATS Rolla 60, St. Francis Borgia 42
The individual scoring (FG-FT-TP):
Rolla (19-5): Thomas 4-2-11, Gideon 2-0-4, Ledbetter 9-1-20, Brown 7-2-19, Smith 1-0-2, Robinson 2-0-4
Borgia (15-10): Woehrmann 5-4-16, Reinberg 2-3-8, Gildehaus 5-0-14, Collins 2-0-4
The score by periods:
TEAM Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 F
Rolla 21 16 15 8 60
Borgia 3 15 13 11 42
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