Lady Jackets pressed
- Updated: January 28, 2017
Girls roundup: Cherokee County puts away Oxford with hot shooting, tight defense; Piedmont, Saks also fall
Cherokee County’s Jensen Alexander (30) gets off a 3-pointer before Oxford’s Anna Bolton can get over to disrupt the shot. (Photo by B.J. Franklin/GungHo Photos)
By Brant Locklier
For East Alabama Sports Today
OXFORD – Playing their second ranked opponent in as many games, the Oxford Lady Jackets ran into a Cherokee County team that was sharp shooting and tough on defense.
The Lady Jackets lost 64-31.
Cherokee County (15-6), ranked No. 6 in Class 4A, set the tone early with a torrid first quarter as six different players got on the board to build a 25-13 lead. The Warrior press created nine first-quarter turnovers and then nine more in the second quarter as they extended the lead to 44-18 by halftime.
For the game they nailed five 3-pointers and created 23 Oxford turnovers in their awesome balance of offense and defense.
“We spend a lot of time on our press,” said Cherokee County coach Leah Nelson. “We try to spread out our opponents over the court and create situations where we can pick up some easy baskets and we were able to do that today.
“We shot the ball real well. I was proud of our intensity,”
Laney Johnson led four Lady Warriors in double figures with 17 points. Emily Williams had 12, Crimson Mahannah 11 and Coley Battles 10.
Oxford lost most of last year’s team to graduation and are lacking height. The inexperience has created an up-and-down season. They have played a rugged schedule, but there was a solid performance against Southside on Tuesday night.
“We have not played as well as I expected at this point in the season,” Oxford coach Melissa Bennett said. “We only lose two seniors off of this team this year and we have played well at times. I thought played right with Southside on Tuesday until their eight-point run in the fourth quarter.”
Eight Lady Jackets (5-15) scored points. Justyce Smith and Tremeria Britt had six points apiece.
Cleburne County 61, Saks 33
Cleburne County coach Todd Gable gave his young players a chance to put their games on display and he couldn’t have been happier with what he saw.
Gable played four eighth-graders and one seventh-grader more than half the game and said they did a “great job.” Eighth-grader Olivia McDaniel scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Seventh-grader Brooklyn McDaniel scored her first varsity points, finishing with seven points and four boards.
Saks struggled at the start of each half. The Lady Wildcats stayed with the visitors in the second and fourth quarters, but scored only two points in the first and third.
Neither team could get into any kind of rhythm. There were 57 fouls called and 69 free throws shot in the game.
Hokes Bluff 47, Piedmont 32
PIEDMONT – The Lady Bulldogs held their visitors to one point in the first quarter, but couldn’t produce much offense of their own and once the Lady Eagles found their stride it spelled trouble for the home team.
Amanda Noah scored all 18 of her points over the final three quarters. Logan Black hit four 3-pointers and scored 13.
Sydney Prater scored all six of Piedmont’s points in the first quarter and finished with 11. She was the Lady Bulldogs’ only scorer in double figures.
SATURDAY’S GIRLS BOX SCORES
Cherokee County 64, Oxford 31
CHEROKEE COUNTY (15-6) – Meagan McGatha 0 0-0 0, Coley Battles 4 2-2 10, Emily Williams 5 1-2 12, Laney Johnson 7 0-0 17, Kendal Perry 2 0-0 5, Crimson Mahannah 4 3-3 11, Jensen Alexander 3 0-0 6, Ashley Acrey 1 1-2 3. Totals 26 7-9 64.
OXFORD (5-15) – Anna Bolton 0 2-2 2, Makayla Kidd 2 1-2 5, Halaya Harmon 0 0-2 0, Ashleigh Jackson 1 0-0 2, Tremeria Britt 3 0-0 6, Quameria Britt 1 0-2 2, Amaia Whitfield 1 1-2 3, Justyce Smith 3 0-0 6, Kaylyn Hendrix 0 0-0 0, Akeira Robinson 2 1-2 5, Acacia Kidd 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 5-12 21.
Cherokee County 23 21 17 3 — 64
Oxford 12 6 10 3 — 31
3-point goals: Cherokee County 5 (Williams, Johnson 3, Perry 1).
Hokes Bluff 47, Piedmont 32
HOKES BLUFF – Rebecca Payton 0 0-0 0, Haley Simpson 1 0-0 3, Gracie West 2 1-2 7, Sydney Ball 0 2-2 2, Amanda Noah 5 6-6 18, Kristen Shields 0 0-2 0, Jayden Presley 0 0-0 0, Logan Black 4 1-2 13, Tylynn Register 1 1-2 3, Kelsee Otwell 0 1-2 1, Kaylee Ingram 0 0-2 0. Totals 13 12-20 47.
PIEDMONT – Breanna Brazier 2 0-0 6, Kaitlyn Ridley 4 1-2 9, Lulu Jackson 0 1-4 1, Camron Logan 0 0-0 0, Cassidy Jackson 0 0-0 0, Sydney Prater 3 5-10 11, Rebecca Smart 2 1-2 5. Totals 11 8-18 32.
Hokes Bluff 1 14 13 19 — 47
Piedmont 6 10 6 10 — 32
3-point goals: Hokes Bluff 9 (Simpson, West 2, Noah 2, Black 4); Piedmont 2 (Brazier 2). Total fouls: Hokes Bluff 15, Piedmont 14. Officials: Strott, Kelly, Kadle.
Cleburne County 61, Saks 33
CLEBURNE COUNTY (18-6) – Shawntavia Boyd 5 2-4 14, Olivia McDaniel 3 4-8 10, Erykah Ware 1 1-2 3, Lauren Brown 4 0-1 8, Haven Freeman 2 0-0 4, Alex Casey 3 4-6 10, Tatiana Ervin 0 0-2 0, Kendall Houston 1 0-2 2, Alisia Person 1 1-5 3, Brooklyn McDaniel 3 1-4 7. Totals 23 13-34 61.
SAKS – Izzy Shaver 0 0-0 0, Amya Carlise 0 4-6 4, Takeidra Bordin 3 8-19 15, Amari Nealy 0 3-4 3, Summer Baxter 0 0-0 0, Miracle Dennard 2 0-2 4, Madison Tate 0 3-4 3, Alexis Petty 2 0-0 4. Totals 7 18-35 33.
Cleburne County 14 13 18 16 — 61
Saks 2 14 2 15 — 33
3-point goals: Cleburne County 2 (Boyd 2); Saks 1 (Bordin). Fouled out: Ervin, Carlise. Total fouls: Cleburne County 29, Saks 28. Officials: Askew, Roberts, Brown.
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