Lady Golden Tigers upset No. 10 AHS

By Staff
Kim West
ATHENS – The unranked Russellville girls kept their season alive with a 61-52 upset over No. 10 Athens in the first round of the Class 5A, Area 16 tournament Thursday.
Fourth-seeded Russellville trailed No. 1 seed Athens 13-9 after the first quarter but the Lady Golden Tigers snapped a 17-17 tie in the second with an 11-2 run to go ahead 28-19 at halftime.
Athens responded with a 17-10 run in the third quarter and went ahead 44-41 in the final period with 6:10 remaining.
With 2:10 left and the Lady Golden Eagles clinging to a one-point lead, Russellville reeled off a 12-2 run to play for the area championship Saturday against Decatur, which defeated Muscle Shoals 42-40 to advance.
Tasha West scored a game-high 22 points, including eight in the second quarter, and collected seven rebounds. Victoria Taylor scored 15 points, while Erin Reynolds had 13 and Ayanna McCullough and Taylor Smith both added four.
LaCresha Horton had a team-high 15 points, and Elizabeth Schexnayder finished with 12 points and nine rebounds for Athens (21-6).