Bobcat girls return to regionals
The Phil Campbell Lady Bobcats fended off a third quarter scare from the Lexington Golden Bears to punch their ticket to the Northwest Regionals for the fourth time in five years.
Lexington outscored Phil Campbell 12-4 from the midway point in the third quarter to the end of the period to cut a 12-point Bobcat lead to four points, 44-40. Phil Campbell coach Craig Thomas said his team needed a reset at that point.
“We lost our composure late in the third quarter,” said Thomas. “We made two or three turnovers on in-bounds plays, and they converted to points. I tried to calm them down and get them to set up in an offense and play more disciplined” – and that’s what the Bobcats did.
Offensively they turned to their two leaders, senior Abby Davis and junior Kallie Allen, and the Bobcat girls dominated the fourth quarter by hitting easy shots and getting to the free-throw line.
The Bobcats were 10-for-14 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter as they held off the Golden Bears.
“I told our girls once we hit tournament time, we were going to take it one game at a time and try to get back to Birmingham and the Final Four,” said Thomas. “That’s our goal.”
Davis and Allen ended the game with 22 points and 21 points respectively. Sophomore point guard Caitlynn Mills added 10 points. Olivia Taylor, Katie Thomas and Kacie Harris contributed two points each.
Phil Campbell will play Winfield Thursday in the Northwest Regionals at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville. Game time was not available at press time.
Class 3A, Area 14: Allen, Davis lead Bobcats to second straight area title
Before clinching a trip to regionals, Allen and Davis combined for 46 points to help lead the fifth-ranked Phil Campbell Bobcats (23-4) to their second straight area title.
Phil Campbell won the area championship last year in Class 2A on their road to the Final Four in Birmingham. This year they moved up to Class 3A, and it didn’t faze them a bit, as they easily defeated the Colbert Heights Wildcats 64-39 to win the Class 3A, Area 14 championship.
“It is always nice to win an area championship,” said Phil Campbell coach Craig Thomas. “It is a great goal for the team, and we get to host a sub-regional game, and hopefully our community comes out to support the girls.”
It took the Bobcats a while to find points, trailing 5-1 with just more than one minute to play in the first quarter. Phil Campbell tied the game 5-5 when Allen was fouled in a made layup and hit her free throw.
Colbert Heights reclaimed the lead and led 8-5 at the end of the first quarter. After that, it was all Phil Campbell.
“We have had a great year, and I’m hoping it’s just the start of something big,” said senior forward Abby Davis. “We started off really slow, but we all got it together after halftime and played our game.”
