Lady Tigers reign as county champs

Red Bay and Tharptown battled it out in the semifinals before the Lady Tigers advanced to the champion-deciding game of the Franklin County Tournament

By Bart Moss for the FCT

Finals – Red Bay 38, Phil Campbell 26

The Red Bay Tigers did it again. The defending 2A state champions won their sixth straight Franklin County championship. It wasn’t a pretty effort for the Red Bay Tigers but, in the words of Tiger coach Donnie Roberts, “We got the job done and won the game.”

“It is always special for our girls to win this tournament,” said Roberts. “Phil Campbell has a really good young team. They are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the next few years. We play each other again in the area tournament, and I’m sure it will be another good game. We play each other so much during the year, we know what each other is going to do by now.”

“Red Bay is a good basketball team,” said Phil Campbell coach Craig Thomas. “They are fundamentally sound, they protect the basketball, they play good defense and they make their free throws. There is a reason they have been competing and winning state championships. That is where we want to be. We are young, and we are getting better. We hope to be holding that trophy soon.”

Red Bay jumped out to an 18-11 first quarter lead and extended the lead by a point to 26-18 at halftime. The Bobcats reclaimed that point in the third quarter, outscoring Red Bay 6-5 to cut the lead to 31-24. Red Bay limited Phil Campbell to just two points in the fourth quarter to get the win.

Allie Kennedy led Red Bay with 13 points. Others scoring for Red Bay were Darby Madden (8), Katie Burks (7), Morgan Pierce (5), Hope Cook 3) and Carlee Humphres (2).

Abby Davis led Phil Campbell with nine points. Others scoring for the Bobcats were Leah Gunderman (6), Chloe Roberson (4), Elizabeth Benford (3), Darby Elliot (2), and Carley Nix (2).

Semifinals – Phil Campbell 51, Belgreen 44

The Phil Campbell Bobcats held off repeated Belgreen comeback attempts to advance to the finals of the Franklin County Tournament.

Belgreen led Phil Campbell 11-10 at the end of the first quarter, but the Bobcats reclaimed the lead at halftime, 25-22. Phil Campbell was able to extend that lead to 39-29 by the end of the third quarter. Belgreen outscored Phil Campbell 15-12 in the fourth quarter, and the Bulldogs cut the Bobcats’ lead to one point, but the Bobcats held on.

Abby Davis led Phil Campbell with 16 points. She was followed by Leah Gunderman with 12 points. Others scoring for the Bobcats were Elizabeth Benford (7), Darby Elliot (7), Chloe Roberson (6) and Carley Nix (3).

Belgreen’s Allyson Bragwell led all scorers with 25 points. Others scoring for the Bulldogs were Shellie Barber (7), Gabbie Moore (6), Jasmine Martin (3) and Ana Castillo (3).

Semifinals – Red Bay 42, Tharptown 35

The Red Bay Tigers survived a pesky Tharptown Wildcat basketball team in the semifinals of the Franklin County Tournament Thursday night, winning 42-35.

Red Bay jumped out to a 16-9 first quarter lead and maintained that lead through the second quarter. The Tigers led 22-15 at the half. Red Bay extended their lead to 28-18 at the end of the third quarter. Tharptown outscored Red Bay 17-14 in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers held on for the win.

Allie Kennedy led Red Bay with 15 points.  She was followed by Darby Madden who had 10 points. Others scoring for the Tigers were Hope Cook (7), Morgan Pierce (7), Carlee Humphres (2), and Katie Burks (1).

Jessica Wilson led Tharptown with 12 points. She was followed by Haley Malone (5), Kaitlyn Vandiver, (5), Linda Bahena (4), Ameliah Dawson (4), Klaudia Harris (3) and Erica Gray (2).

Quarterfinals – Tharptown 73, Vina 65

The Tharptown Wildcats held off a hot-shooting Vina Red Devils team in the quarterfinals of the Franklin County Tournament.

Vina hit 17 three pointers in the game, including 10 threes by sophomore guard Emma Humphres.

Vina led Tharptown 19-12 at the end of the first quarter. The Wildcats clamped down on defense and blew past the Red Devils in the second quarter outscoring Vina 21-4 to take a 33-23 halftime lead. Tharptown extended the lead to 57-25 in the third quarter, but Vina hit seven three-pointers in the fourth quarter to outscore the Wildcats 27-16.

Jessica Wilson led Tharptown with 27 points. Kaitlyn Vandiver followed with 15 points. Others scoring for the Wildcats were Haley Malone (9), Ameliah Dawson (6), Erica Gray (5), Debbie Gomez (4), Catie Dawson (3), Linda Bahena (2) and Klaudia Harris (2).

Humphries led Vina with 38 points and 11 rebounds. She was followed by Kaitlyn King, who scored 14 points and Abby Hester who had 12 points and 14 assists. Montana Howard netted three points.