HANCEVILLE – The Cullman County Basketball Tournament wrapped up tonight at Tom Drake Coliseum on the campus of Wallace State.
Girls
Cold Spring Lady Eagles- 48
Good Hope Lady Raiders- 44
The Good Hope Lady Raiders and the Cold Springs Lady Eagles started the varsity action Wednesday night and they did not disappoint.
The first quarter was filled with back and forth action with both teams lighting up the scoreboard to the tune of 28 combined points. Cold Springs grabbed the early advantage 15-13.
The second quarter was more of a defensive battle with a bulk of the points coming at the end of the period. Thanks in part to the great play of Kameron Crider, the Lady Eagles took a 26-22 lead to the half.
Cold Springs started the third on fire. Emme Willoughby helped push the Cold Springs lead to eight with back-to-back three-point baskets, forcing a Good Hope timeout. The break in the action benefited the Lady Raiders as they went on a 6-0 run to pull to within two and prompt a timeout from Cold Springs. Kaylee Maddox scored immediately out of the break to tie the game. The Lady Eagles would score the next four to go up by two heading to the final quarter.
Both teams had to grind for points in the fourth. Good Hope tied the ballgame on a lay-up with 2:10 left to play. The two squads then traded a pair of baskets before Cold Springs was able to pull in front by four with 50.2 left to play. Two blocked shots, a three-point attempt that was blocked by Bailey West and a two-point attempt that was stuffed by Willoughby, were the difference as Cold Springs claimed the county championship by the score of 48-44 over Good Hope.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
- Kelly Pickett, Good Hope
- Melissa Clingman, Holly Pond
- Ruth Horton, Holly Pond
- Taylor Tankersley, Holly Pond
- Kaylee Maddox, Good Hope
- Kate Kent, Good Hope
- Bailey West, Cold Springs
- Kameron Crider, Cold Springs
- Emme Willoughby, Cold Springs
ALL-COUNTY TEAM
- Melissa Clingman, Holly Pond
- Ruth Horton Holly, Pond
- Kaylee Maddox, Good Hope
- Kate Kent, Good Hope
- Bailey West, Cold Springs
- Emme Willoughby, Cold Springs
- Bailey Yearwood, West Point
- Taylor Yeager, Fairview
- Annie Taylor, Fairview
- Taylor Hollingsworth, Hanceville
- Geri Beasley, West Point
- Dallas Mullican, Fairview
CHARLOTTE CUMMINGS MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
- Taylor Hollingsworth, Hanceville
BILL SHELTON AWARD
- Bailey West, Cold Springs
Boys
Hanceville- 55
Cold Springs- 49
In boy's championship, both Cold Springs and Hanceville started off ice cold, combining for just seven points in the first four minutes. After a lengthy feeling out process, it was Cold Springs who had the lead, 11-10.
Hanceville looked to pull away in the second, going on an 8-2 run to open the frame to take the lead, but Cold Springs held tough and fought through the onslaught to keep the game close. After the dust settled, the Bulldogs took a 26-23 lead to the locker room at half.
The Bulldogs stayed hot in the third, extending their lead to seven on the back of a 5-0 run that had Cold Springs on their heels. Following the Hanceville flurry, Cold Springs finished the quarter strong and went into the final stanza down just four.
Cold Springs pulled to within two almost immediately to open the fourth, but a three by Jose Orozco pushed it back to five. From there the points poured in from both sides, keeping the crowd on the edge of their seats. Cold Springs rattled off four quick points to take the lead, but Xavier Malcom answered with a deep three in the left corner to put Hanceville up by one with 4:02 left on the clock. The Bulldogs went back up by three on a pair of free throws by Evans.
The next points belonged to Hanceville as well, another pair of free throws, this time by Malcom, to push lead to five. Cold Springs would answer but found themselves in a precarious position, down three with 45.6 seconds left to play in the championship game. Forced to foul, the Eagles put Malcom on the line with Hanceville in the double bonus. He hit both free throws to push the lead back to five. The Eagles had to foul once more, putting Isaac Weissend on the line. He hit one to put the Bulldogs up six with four seconds left to play, effectively putting the game out of reach. Hanceville took the boy's crown by the final score of 55-49.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
- Tanner Rusk, West Point
- Seth Parker, West Point
- Triston Chambers, Cold Springs
- Josh Freeman, Cold Springs
- Isaac Weissend, Hanceville
- Xavier Malcom, Hanceville
ALL-COUNTY TEAM
- Tanner Rusk, West Point
- Triston Chambers, Cold Springs
- Josh Freeman, Cold Springs
- Isaac Weissend, Hanceville
- Xavier Malcom, Hanceville
- Austin Fletcher, Fairview
- Drew Jones, Holly Pond
- Bailey Smith, Holly Pond
- Hunter Cleghorn, Vinemont
- Matt Cahoon, Holly Pond
- Matt Cofer, Holly Pond
- Kobe Smith, West Point
ELI THOMAS MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
- Xavier Malcom, Hanceville
JOE SHULTZ AWARD
- Triston Chambers, Cold Springs
