Saks girls work Miracles

Miracle Dennard, Miracle Bass led Saks to an overtime win over Ohatchee in Calhoun County Tournament opener

CALHOUN COUNTY TOURNAMENT
Girls Bracket
Saturday’s Games
at Oxford Sports Arena
Saks 54, Ohatchee 43
JCA 46, Donoho 33
Faith Christian 45, Sacred Heart 39
Weaver 45, White Plains 35
Monday’s Games
at Jacksonville State
Saks vs. Alexandria, noon
JCA vs. Wellborn, 3 p.m.
Faith Christian vs. Pleasant Valley, 6 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today

OXFORD – When you’ve got a pocketful of miracles, why wouldn’t you ask for one — or two — down the stretch?

Saks girls coach Michelle Morgan called on both her Miracles – Miracle Dennard and Miracle Bass – in the opening round of the Calhoun County Basketball Tournament Saturday and both prayers were answered.

With the two Miracles leading the way, the 12th-seeded Lady Wildcats won their second game of the season, beating Ohatchee in overtime 54-43 in the Oxford Sports Arena.

Dennard, playing with the flu that sidelined her Friday night because “I wanted to play for my team,” scored 15 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had five steals and four assists. A “so comfortable” Bass, a freshman, had 23 points, 16 rebounds and blocked seven shots; it was her putback with 3.7 seconds left that tied the game and sent it into overtime.

“Those two (Miracles) play well together; now if I can get the rest of them to play well, like they did today . . .,” Morgan said. “We’ve been inching forward and forward to it at practice and in these other games. We’ve played a bunch of close games here recently and I think people have kind of underestimated us a lot.

“We’re a good team, we’re just super young and once they find a way to win – a miracle to win – we’ll pull through, we’ll prevail, because we’ve got a good ball team.”

The Miracles, both named that way for the way they arrived into this world, were particularly impactful in overtime, combining for nine of the Lady Wildcats’ 13 points in the extra period. In one stretch, Dennard, the team’s only senior, hit a 3-pointer to give Saks a 45-41 lead and on the next possession made a steal and fed Takiedra Borden for a layup to make it 47-41.

“I just think they’re tired of losing,” Morgan said. “I think they wanted to prove they’re a good team.”

“This win means a lot, really, because this season hasn’t been as good as the past seasons,” Dennard said. “This win really means a lot to me.”

The Lady Wildcats (2-11) now play fifth-seeded Alexandria at noon Monday, when the tournament moves to its traditional home at Jacksonville State.

Kourtney Shuler led Ohatchee (5-14) with 24 points; she hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter to give the Lady Indians a 32-29 lead. Tori Vice had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Faith stuns Sacred Heart

Casey Farr said on the occasion of Faith Christian’s first victory of the season last week at Donoho everything her team does is in dramatic fashion. Well, her position changed Saturday in the Calhoun County Tournament.

The 15th-seeded Lady Lions weren’t drama queens the way they won their tournament opener. They were, in the eyes of their coach, just “strong.”

Faith rallied from eight points down with four minutes to play to score the first upset of the tournament, beating No. 10-seed Sacred Heart 45-39.

“That wasn’t dramatic,” Farr said. “That was just strong.”

The Lady Lions (2-11) will go for their second tournament upset Monday at 6 p.m. against No. 7 Pleasant Valley.

Faith trailed 37-29 with 3:59 to play. Sticking to what they planned coming in but just doing it better, they went on a 13-0 run to take the lead.

Logan Boyd, the hero in that first win at Donoho, hit the 3-pointer that gave the Lady Lions the lead for good 40-37 with 1:44 to play. She hit a pair of free throws in the final 15 seconds to stretch the lead to seven and cap the comeback.

“I just wanted to make a shot,” Boyd said of her 3-pointer. “Anything to help the team.”

Boys and Kristin Covington were both playing after seeing limited action the night before against Wellborn because of the flu. Two other players, Montana Huie and Kassidy Nix, were battling sinus infections.

“These girls got a lot of heart,” Farr said.

Weaver, JCA advance to Jax State

Weaver 45, White Plains 35: Weaver’s Caleigh Cortez did an excellent job getting to the free throw line with aggressive moves to the basket. Cortez was 16 of 23 from the line for the Lady Bearcats, 12 of 19 in the second half and 8 of 12 in the fourth quarter. She finished with 24 points.

“She takes the ball to the basket as good as anybody,” Weaver coach Gary Atchley said.

The Lady Bearcats now draw top-seeded Anniston Tuesday at 7 p.m.

JCA 46, Donoho 33: The Lady Thunder avenged a five-point loss to Donoho earlier in the week by outscoring the Lady Falcons 37-23 over the final three quarters. JCA’s Sidney Hancock led all scorers with 16 points. The Lady Thunder will play sixth-seeded Wellborn Monday at 3 p.m.

CALHOUN COUNTY GIRLS TOURNAMENT BOX SCORES

Saks 54, Ohatchee 43
SAKS (2-11) – Amya Carlise 1 0-1 2, Stefanie Christopher 0 1-2 1, Takeidra Borden 3 4-6 11, Teana Edwards 0 0-0 0, Takierra Hudson 0 0-0 0, Deja Almond 0 0-0 0, Miracle Dennard 2 10-15 15, Miracle Bass 9 7-8 25. Totals 15 22-32 54.

OHATHCEE (5-14) – Gracyn Snow 0 0-0 0, Jazmine Adams 0 0-2 0, Tori Vice 5 6-12 18, Kourtney Shuler 6 9-9 24, Marli Hanks 0 0-0 0, Gracie George 0 0-0 0, Millie Rainwater 0 1-2 1, Regan Snow 0 0-0 0. Totals 11 16-25 43.

Saks 11 8 6 16 13 — 54
Ohatchee 5 11 10 15 2 — 43

3-point goals: Saks 2 (Borden, Dennard); Ohatchee 5 (Vice 2, Shuler 3). Fouled out: Carlise, Edwards, Adams, Vice. Total fouls: Saks 21, Ohatchee 23. Officials: Whitten, Reece, Lail.

Jacksonville Christian 46, Donoho 33
JCA (4-10) – Kylie Cupp 2 4-8 9, Rebekah Carter 0 2-4 2, Briah Cupp 5 0-0 11, Mia Morales 1 2-4 4, Elizabeth Goss 2 0-0 4, Sidney Hancock 7 2-6 16. Totals 17 10-22 46.

DONOHO (8-7) – Anastasia O’Neil 3 0-0 6, Savannah Frickey 0 0-2 0, Campbel Hagan 1 0-1 2, Jenna Stremmel 1 0-2 2, Constance Hodges 5 0-1 10, Victoria O’Neil 5 0-0 13, Chloe Phillips 0 0-0 0, Lillie Sherman 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 0-4 33.

JCA 9 16 12 9 — 46
Donoho 10 8 9 6 — 33

3-point goals: JCA 2 (B. Cupp, K. Cupp); Donoho 3 (V. O’Neil 3). Fouled out: Frickey. Total fouls: JCA 13, Donoho 19. Officials: Kizzire, McKinney, Wood.

Faith Christian 45, Sacred Heart 39
FAITH CHRISTIAN (2-11) – Logan Boyd 2 2-3 8, Emily Sills 0 1-3 1, Montana Huie 2 0-0 4, Kristin Covington 4 2-2 10, Kassidy Nix 0 0-0 0, Sydnee Johnson 5 5-7 15, C.J. Setters 1 1-2 3, Sarah Kate McVeigh 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 11-17 45.

SACRED HEART (5-10) – Tosin Sanusi 0 0-0 0, Ayanna Foster 5 5-12 15, Joelle Tillery 0 0-0 0, Jacque Byerle 0 2-2 2, Sierra Pittman 1 0-0 3, Myiah Harris 5 1-1 13, Alyssa Bell 2 1-2 6. Totals 13 9-17 39.

Faith Christian 8 8 4 25 — 45
Sacred Heart 12 14 4 9 — 39

3-point goals: Faith 2 (Boyd 2); Sacred Heart 4 (Pittman, Harris 2, Bell). Fouled out: Johnson, McVeigh, Harris. Total fouls: Faith 18, Sacred Heart 20. Officials: Hughes, Zauchin, Kendall.

Weaver 45, White Plains 35
WHITE PLAINS (8-11) – Rian Chandler 1 0-0 3, Hanna Dyar 2 0-0 4, Callyn Martin 2 0-0 6, Jordan Sabree 4 4-8 12, Landry Bussey 2 0-0 4, Chasity Nelson 0 0-0 0, Lily Ponder 1 0-0 2, Jocelyn Harris 0 2-2 2, Ary Rosario 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 6-10 35.

WEAVER (11-9) – Caleigh Cortez 4 16-23 24, Kylee Jordan 3 2-2 8, Raume Beck 2 1-6 5, Emily Reed 1 1-4 3, Anna Howell 0 0-0 0, Amira Carter 0 2-2 2, Abby Gaines 1 1-1 3. Totals 11 23-38 45.

White Plains 6 6 11 12 — 35
Weaver 4 12 17 12 — 45

3-point goals: White Plains 3 (Chandler, Martin 2). Fouled out: Martin, Sabree, Bussey, Beck, Carter. Total fouls: White Plains 29, Weaver 19.

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