Norm Stewart Classic: Rock Bridge, Battle girls victorious in late-night matchups

The first two Columbia basketball programs to participate in the 11th annual Norm Stewart Classic both were victorious — not that either game didn’t have its fair share of drama. In the 10 p.m. Friday timeslot, the Rock Bridge girls defeated Hazelwood Central 45-40. In the midnight game, Battle overcame a 20-point deficit to defeat Harrisburg 51-49 in overtime. Rock Bridge improves to 2-1 with the victory, while Battle stays undefeated at 3-0. The Bruins led for the majority of their game. The only lead change occurred late in the second quarter. Bruins junior Eryn Puett led all scorers with 18 points and was named the game’s most valuable player, giving her the chance to be interviewed on ESPN3 after the game. “I was kind of worried, I thought I was going to be pretty tired,” Puett said. ”... When we started, it felt it was like 6:30.” Despite only winning by five, Rock Bridge led by as many as