HANCEVILLE – It was an action-packed night in Tom Drake Coliseum Thursday. In the end, the junior varsity Cold Springs Lady Eagles and the varsity Fairview Lady Aggies and Cold Springs Lady Eagles punched their tickets to the title games this weekend.
JV Girls Game 3: Cold Springs (3) 49 – Good Hope (5) 15
The Junior Varsity Lady Eagles routed the Good Hope Lady Raiders in Thursday night’s first matchup at Tom Drake Coliseum thanks to smothering defense and a hot shooting night from three-point range. Cold Springs’ Kayla Aaron led all scorers with 23 points and knocked down an incredible seven shots from beyond the arc.
Perhaps the only thing more impressive than Aaron’s shooting was the Lady Eagles’ defense in the second half. After taking a 27-14 lead into the locker room at halftime, Cold Springs held the Lady Raiders to just one point in the second half, coming on a free throw from guard Kristin Hart. Lady Eagles’ post Shay Sellers quietly racked up 15 points of her own to go along with two steals and four rebounds.
Cold Springs will try to stay hot on both ends of the floor against the winner of Friday night’s matchup between second-seeded Fairview and third-seeded West Point in the JV Girls Championship Game Saturday at 2:30.
Varsity Girls Game 4: Fairview (1) 49 – Hanceville (4) 39
The Lady Aggies of Fairview knocked off the Hanceville Lady Bulldogs in Thursday night’s second tournament matchup. The Lady Aggies led most of the contest with the exception of a run from Hanceville at the end of the third that gave the Lady Bulldogs a 31-29 lead to start the fourth quarter. Fairview scored 20 points in the fourth quarter and contained Hanceville’s fast-break offense by limiting its turnovers late in the game. Three-point baskets from guard Taylor Yeager and forward McKinna Yearwood helped ice the game for Fairview late in the fourth quarter. Yearwood finished with five points and Yeager led all scorers in the game with 16.
Hanceville’s defense was not able to create as many turnovers as they’re used to on defense, but Lady Bulldogs guard Kierra Merriweather was still a problem for Fairview defensively, coming up with two steals and leading Hanceville with nine points.
The top-seeded Lady Aggies advance to the Varsity Girls Championship Game Saturday at 5:30 where they’ll take on the third-seeded Cold Springs Lady Eagles.
Varsity Girls Game 5: Cold Springs (3) 46 – West Point (2) 38
The third-seeded Lady Eagles of Cold Springs upset the second-seeded West Point Lady Warriors in the final game of Thursday night’s action. The game was defined by momentum shifts after a tightly played first half. Cold Springs came out of the half leading West Point 19-18, but the third quarter was dominated by the Lady Warriors. West Point guard Lexi Shadix scored 11 of her team-high 17 points in the third, knocking down three shots from deep range. Along with her partner in the back-court, Miriam Oldacre, who finished with 15 points, Shadix and the Lady Warriors jumped out to a 38-27 lead to start the fourth quarter, but the momentum shifted back to the Lady Eagles for good from that point on. The Lady Eagles’ offense exploded in the fourth quarter, and Cold Springs sprinted through the finish on a 19-0 run to end the game.
Lady Eagles’ guard Elizabeth Hill tied the game at 38 with three minutes remaining on a 3-point basket and took the lead on another 3-pointer with 1:30 to play. Hill put up 15 points for the Lady Eagles, nine of them coming late in the fourth quarter. Lady Eagles’ point guard Camryn Crider put the game away for good from the free-throw line as time ticked away on the Lady Warriors. Crider led the game with 20 points and also pulled down seven rebounds. West Point was unable to overcome the wave of scoring from the Lady Eagles and was shut out for the entirety of the fourth quarter.
Cold Springs advances to the Varsity Girls Championship Game Saturday at 5:30 where they’ll take on the top-seeded Fairview Lady Aggies for the title.
The 2018 Cullman County Basketball Tournament continues Friday at 5 p.m.
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