HANCEVILLE – Quarterfinal games in the junior varsity and freshmen divisions got the 2016 Cullman County High School Basketball Tournament at Wallace State’s Tom Drake Coliseum off and running Saturday afternoon.
Those who came to the Coliseum early got a chance to see collegiate hoops with the Wallace State Lady Lions knocking off Chattahoochee Valley 72-66 to snap a two-game losing streak in the Alabama Community College Conference.
No. 5 seeds went 3-0 on the day against the No. 4 seed. It started with the Good Hope Lady Raiders coming from behind to top Holly Pond 29-18 in junior varsity play.
The major comeback was displayed by the Cold Springs Eagles. In their JV game with Hanceville, the Eagles rallied in the fourth quarter with a 17-6 run and eliminated the Bulldogs 48-44.
That set the tone for excitement in the freshmen division. Fifth seed Hanceville fought off fourth seed Holly Pond 45-42 in overtime.
The last two games in the quarterfinal round of the JV were dominated by West Point. The Warriors romped over Vinemont 43-6 and in the finale that ended at 8:22 p.m., the Lady Warriors advanced to the next round by a 47-8 conquest of Vinemont.
Erika Woodall led Good Hope to its comeback win over Holly Pond for the JV girls with nine points. Good Hope trailed the Lady Broncos 11-8 at the half, got control of the game with a 10-4 spurt in the third period and finished with an 11-4 advantage in the final stanza.
Makailey Speegle and Haley Runge added six for the winning Lady Raiders who will face No. 1 Fairview in the semifinals Thursday at 5 p.m. Holly Pond was led by Maddie Heatherly with six.
Cold Springs got double-digit scoring from Hunter McClendon with 13, Noah Henderson with 11 and Carson Garmon with 10 to overcome Hanceville, who led the Eagles 15-13 after the first, 29-24 at the half and 38-31 at the end of the third quarter.
Cameron Brockman tossed in 12 for the Bulldogs, getting scoring support from Evan McMillan with 11 and Josh Stanley 10.
Cold Springs returns to the Coliseum for a Monday semifinal against top seed Fairview beginning at 6 p.m.
The Holly Pond freshmen shook off a 29-19 halftime deficit to Hanceville and stormed back to tie the game at 40-40 in the closing seconds of regulation on a basket by Kyler Chaney. But in the extra four minutes, Hanceville’s Damien Johnson broke the tie with a three-pointer and added a couple of free throws to send the Bulldogs on to the semifinals vs. No. 1 Fairview Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Fred Ellis got 18 points for Hanceville on eight of 10 shooting with Alex Campbell scoring 11. Chaney led Holly Pond with 14 and Issac Ludwig tossed in eight points.
West Point had little trouble with Vinemont, leading 22-3 at the half and 38-5 going into the final period.
Austin Dubberly’s 13 points and Coby Sullins’ 11 led the No. 3 seed Warriors on to the semifinal round. They face No. 2 seed Holly Pond Tuesday at 5 p.m.
The Lady Warriors used their speed and quickness to gain control of the game after the first period with Vinemont by the score of 24-3. It was 32-6 at the half and a comfortable 46-6 lead following the third quarter.
Lexi Farley anchored the win for the Lady Warriors with 12, Carson Talley tossed in 10 and Meredith Calvert scored eight. Talley was six of eight from the foul line with Farley knocking down five field goals.
West Point now has the No. 2 seed Cold Springs Lady Eagles in the JV Final Four Friday at the Coliseum at 5 p.m.
The varsity teams get their first opportunity to enjoy playing at the Coliseum with quarterfinal games on Monday. Three-time county champion Holly Pond Lady Broncos battle Vinemont at 7:15 p.m., followed by the Cold Springs Eagles vs. the Fairview Aggies at 8:30 p.m. The Eagles enter the tournament currently third in the state's Class 2A basketball poll.
