Calhoun County (AL – Tuesday Girls Report: Piedmont flips the switch in fourth and pulls away for Gaston tourney opener. J’ville uses big second halves to defeat Cleburne County and more
TUESDAY GIRLS GAMES Beulah 37, Randolph County 27
Jacksonville 53, Cleburne County 33
White Plains 56 Faith Christian 26
Cherokee County Invitational
Sand Rock 74 Talladega Co. Central 16.
Handley 59, Gaylesville 24
Cherokee County 73, Cedar Bluff 22,
Spring Garden 67, Bremen 20
Gaston Christmas Tournament
Piedmont 45, Ranburne 37
Southeastern vs. Saks
Piedmont switched a switch in quarter four and looked completely different than the team it was in the first three Tuesdays. The turnaround resulted in a 45-37 win over Ranburne during the Gaston Christmas Tournament’s opening round.
After scoring just 19 points in the three previous quarters, the Lady Bulldogs scored 26 in the fourth quarter to erase a 27-19 deficit.
Terrace Ridley, Piedmont coach, said that her team “don’t fold.”
A defensive strategy was key to the victory. It was designed to limit the number of touches Ranburne’s 2,000-point scorer Briley Merill received in each quarter. Merrill scored 17 points, but Merrill was limited to a third-quarter 3-pointer and two free throws.
Ridley stated that they “started back pressing and went aggressively for the ball.” We did everything we could to ensure Merrill didn’t get the ball back once she passed it. We started to finish shots all around and at free throw line. I love having a coachable group.”
Piedmont’s fourth-quarter quarter saw Lele Ridley score 11 of her 19 game-high points. Gracie Naugher added two 3s. Ridley also took 11 rebounds.
The Lady Bulldogs will play St. Clair County Wednesday, at 3 p.m.
RANBURNE 37, PIEDMONT 45
PIEDMONT – Armoni Perry 0 0-0 0, Ava Pope 1 5-7 7, Josie Young 0 0-0 0, Jaycee Glover 1 0-0 2, Lele Ridley 6 7-9 19, Cayla Brothers 3 3-6 9, Melanie Studdard 0 0-0 0, Carson Young 1 0-0 2, Gracie Naugher 2 0-0 6. Totals 14 15-22 45.
RANBURNE Autumn Lovvorn 1 0-0 0, Autumn Phillips 2 0-0 6, Maria Ralston 3 1-2 8, Jadie Phillips 4 0-3 6. Totals 13 6-11 37.
Piedmont 8 – 4 26 – 45
Ranburne 4 8 15 10 – 37
3-point goals: Piedmont 2(Naugher 2); Ranburne 5 (5 (Merrill 2, Anglin 2 Bailey). Rebounds: Piedmont 29, Ridley 11. Total fouls: Piedmont 13, Ranburne 14. Officials: Smith, Telelya, Wottke.
Cherokee Co. Invitational
SPRING GARDEN 67 BREMEN (GA.). 20: With another dominating performance, the Lady Panthers had four scorers in double figures to win Cherokee County Invitational. Chloe Rule scored 18 points, shooting 9-for-10 from the floor. Kayley Kirk and Libby Brown each scored 13, while Maggie Jarrett had 12. Ace Austin had 10 rebounds, 9 rebounds, and 7 steals, with her teammates as the scoring muscles.
Regular Season
JACKSONVILLE 53. CLEBURNE COUNTY 33.3: Corey Mize was once an assistant coach who designed a defense that confounded a eventual state champion. It was pulled out by him for the second half and helped the team to win an important area title.
After a nine-point deficit at halftime, the Lady Golden Eagles recovered and outscored the Lady Tigers 34-5 in halftime. They used a hybrid zone to limit them to less than a dozen shots. They beat their opponents 20-3 in quarter three and 14-2 in fourth.
Mize stated that the defense caused them a lot problems. It’s a hybrid of zone-press and zone-press. It was a concept I created for Talladega, the Jacksonville boys assistant, a few years ago. It was so different that it caused teams to scream every time it was run. It’s a great tool to have in your back pocket in case of sticky situations.”
The Lady Golden Eagles couldn’t have had a more difficult Tuesday. They trailed by 29-18 at halftime, and Mize needed to make a difference.
His new defense resulted in several turnovers that the offense turned into points. Ontarriah Braxton hit a 3-pointer in the opening possession of the half. She then swung another one the next time she was down the floor, and the Lady Golden Eagles were on their way. Braxton ended the game with 15 points.
Mize stated, “At halftime, we discussed how we need to get down the court quicker and the girls went out an executed.” “Braxton went insane in the third quarter, setting the tone for us returning.”
Ashley Grant was equally instrumental. She was the leader in all scorers with 23 points. She hit seven 3-pointers and had six assists as well as four steals. Dee Prothro scored eight points and had eight steals.
Jacksonville shot 11-of-28 in 3-point range, but didn’t attempt a free throw.
Mize stated, “I was proud of how we handled the adversity during halftime and came out to make a statement.” We went 3-1 in this area. This was a huge win. We now control our destiny.”
CLEBURNE COMMUNITY – Hannah Turley 4-5 0-0 11 Navaeh Wilkes 2-4 6-8 10, Faith Brown 3-6 2-2 10 Lilian Whatley 1-1 0-02, Makinzie Frames 0-2 0-0 0 Kiera Henderson 0-0 0-0 0 Cori Austin 0-1 0-0 0 Alivia Boyd 0-1 0-0 0 Baylie Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 10-20 8-10 33
JACKSONVILLE – Ashley Grant 8-18 0-0 23, Ontarriah Braxton 6-13 0-0 15, Dee Prothro 4-5 0-0 8, Halaina Lozano 1-5 0-0 3, Alexis Phillips 1-5 0-0 2, Mya Swain 1-6 0-0 2. 21-52 0-0 53.
Cleburne County 11 17. 3 2 – 33
Jacksonville 10 9 20 14 – 53
3-point goals: Cleburne County, 5-8 (Turley 3, 4, Brown 2-3, Frames 0,-1); Jacksonville 11, 28 (Grant 7, Braxton 3, 4, Lozano 1, Phillips 1-5, Swain 0-3). Cleburne County 28 (Williams 7, Brown 6, Jacksonville 22 (Prothro 5) Total fouls: Cleburne County 2, Jacksonville 6.
White Plains 56, FAITH CHRISTIAN 26, Cooper Martin and Isabella Higgins scored 10 points each, and the Lady Wildcats pulled away steadily after a 13-5 lead in the first quarter.
FAITH CHRISTIAN-Abby Folsom 4 2-3 10, Serenity Paste 2 2-3 7, Joelle Tillery 1-2 5, Cheyenne Rice 1 2-3 5, Emma Shaw 0-3 3. Totals 7 10-18 26.
WHITE PLAINS – Cooper Martin 4 0-0 10, Isabella Higgins 5 0-2 10, Abbie Dickeson 0 0-2 0, Anna Fouche 0 0-0 0, Hallie Williams 4 0-0 9, Addison Bradley 4 2-4 10, Chloee Cromer 0 2-2 2, Braeton Moran 3 1-2 9, Kylee Provencio 0 0-0 0, Cassidy Arnold 3 0-0 6. Totals 23 5-12 56.
Faith Christian 5 7 9 -26
White Plains 13-19 15 9 – 56
3-point goals: Faith 2 – Tillery, Pate; White Plains 5 – Williams, Moran, Martin 2. Total fouls: Faith 12, White Plains 16.
