Hanks hits historic 3
- Updated: February 9, 2016
Monday roundup: Ohatchee guard drains a 3 with six seconds left to send her team to the substate; Oxford girls win, JCA splits in 1A
By East Alabama Sports Today
RAINBOW CITY – Mckenzie Hanks had no idea of the historical significance of her shot when she let it fly. All she was hoping was it made it to the rim so she could do something good for her team.
Hanks drained a huge 3-pointer with six seconds left Monday to crush a Glencoe comeback and give Ohatchee a 42-40 victory in the Class 3A Area 11 girls tournament at Westbrook Christian.
The shot gives the Lady Indians their first trip to the substate tournament as near coach Bryant Ginn can remember since 2008. They will play Westbrook Christian for the area title Thursday, 6 p.m.
“Honestly, as soon as I let it out of my hand I thought it was going to be an air ball and it wasn’t going to go in so it scared me really bad,” Hanks said. “As soon as it went in it shocked me and I was so happy to do that for my team and send it into the championship.
“I was just trying to do something to help us get a lead. With as little time as there was I knew somebody had to do something and I knew the 3 was one of our best shots.”
Hanks’ 3 from the right wing, right in front of the Ohatchee bench, came after Glencoe erased a nine-point Lady Indians lead with 10 points in the final minute. When it was in the air, Ginn was giving it as much body English as he could muster. When it fell through, he said, he was numb.
“I was about to have a heart attack that we just blew a nine-point lead with a minute and 20 seconds to go,” Ginn said. “We handled the pressure well the whole ballgame, but there at the end …”
There was still time left after Hanks put the Lady Indians back on top. Glencoe got the ball inbounds, but the Lady Indians stepped in front and disrupted the dribble forcing a turnover without the Lady Jackets seeing the two open players down by the goal.
Hanks finished with 10 points. Cheyenne McCarter led Ohatchee with 11 points, five in the fourth quarter.
Class 6A Area 10 Girls
Oxford 65, Chelsea 34: The Yellow Jackets jumped out to an 18-3 lead and coasted to a spot in the substate tournament. They now play Pell City for the area title.
Oxford’s Tremeria Britt led all scorers with 15 points. Jordan Smith scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Winter Taylor had 12 points and five assists.
Alex Gomez came off the bench to hit four straight free throws and finished with eight points and a nifty assist to Grace Mitchell. Ashley Goodwin picked up the slack when Ebony Kelley went out in foul trouble; she grabbed six rebounds. Kelley still finished with nine points and nine rebounds.
Class 1A Area 13 Girls
Jacksonville Christian 68, Gaylesville 48: Sarah Crook’s 15 points led four JCA scorers in double figures as the advanced. The Thunder (15-7) will meet top-seeded Spring Garden Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Sidney Hancock and Briah Cupp both tossed in 13 points for JCA. Joeley Cupp added 11, including three 3s, and Kayla Barnes had nine points.
Lauren Hammett and Adrianna Valencia both scored a game-high 18 points for the Lady Trojans (4-15). Hammett sank four 3s.
The Thunder led at each quarter break, 16-10, 27-24 at halftime, and 47-32.
Class 1A Area 13 Boys
Gaylesville 78, Jacksonville Christian 67: The Trojans took control by breaking away from a tied game with a 17-0 run to begin the third quarter.
Austin Slayton led the way for Gaylesville (5-17) with 23 points. Austin Stordahl sank three 3-pointers and finished with 17 points. Brandon Barnes had 12, while Jon Bradley and Braden Stordahl had nine and eight, respectively.
Reed Murphy had 23 points for the Thunder (8-13), which was dropped to the tournament’s No. 5 seed after having been found Saturday to have used an ineligible player. Walker Messer added 14 points, while Jayni Mosley had nine and Jimbo Tolbert seven.
Gaylesville led 19-17 lead at the end of the first quarter. The game was tied at 36 at halftime before the Trojans went on their scoring run in the third, taking a 55-48 advantage.
The Thunder cut the Trojans’ lead to three twice in the fourth quarter, the last coming with 2:49 left on a basket by Messer that made it 63-60. However, Gaylesville closed it out with a 15-7 run for the final. – Shannon Fagan
MONDAY’S BOX SCORES
Class 3A Area 11 Girls
Ohatchee 42, Glencoe 40
OHATCHEE – Courtney Poole 2 0-1 4, Hannah Howell 2 2-2 4, Shelby Crump 0 0-0 0, Ally McCoy 0 2-2 2, Kourtney Shuler 3 0-0 8, Kacie Cooper 1 0-0 2, McKenzie Hanks 3 2-2 10, Madison Hanks 0 1-2 1, Cheyenne McCarter 4 3-4 11. Totals 15 10-13 44.
GLENCOE – Anna Giles 3 2-3 9, Lainey Ward 0 0-0 0, Ashley Morgan 1 0-0 2, Kenleigh Harper 1 0-0 2, Lauren Cole 1 2-2 4, Kaylie Davis 0 0-2 0, Breia Little 2 4-5 10, Lauren Moore 2 3-4 7, Addison Rogers 0 0-0 0, Skylar Thompson 2 0-0 4, Cami Zahorscak 1 0-0 2.
Totals 13 11-16 40.
Ohatchee 8 15 9 10 — 42
Glencoe 7 7 12 14 — 40
3-point goals: Ohatchee 4 (Shuler 2, Mk. Hanks 2); Glencoe 3 (Giles, Little 2). Total fouls: Ohatchee 14, Glencoe 16. Officials: Parks, Harvey, McDonald.
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