From Staff Reports

GORDONSVILLE-The Clay County Lady Bulldog basketball team wrapped up third place in the District 7 tournament with a win over Pickett County last week, but their season ended here four nights later in the opening round of Region 4 play, as they fell to the host Lady Tigers 43-39.

The CCHS girls picked up their 20th win of the season against Pickett County, setting up a trip to play Gordonsville, whom they had split with during the regular season.

The Lady Bulldogs finished the season with a 20-11 mark, finishing in third place in the district in the regular-season and tournament, and returned to region play for the first time in three seasons. Friday night’s game was the last for seniors Katie Kerr, Amelia Kirk and Tristan Watson. 

REGION 4 – FIRST ROUND  

Gordonsville…………….43    

Lady Dawgs……………..39

The Lady Bulldogs went on a 16-0 scoring binge to finish the first quarter ahead by 12, but eventually fell to a barrage of three-pointers by the Lady Tigers in a game highlighted by bunches of fouls. 

Clay County wound up losing two players to fouls and were outscored 24-9 from three-point land.

Gordonsville hit a three to lead 3-0 in the first, but the Lady Bulldogs then rolled off 16 points in a row, putting the Lady Tigers on their heels. Leading scorer Kirk picked up her third foul of the game with just under two minutes left in the first quarter, eventually fouling out in the closing seconds. Clay led 16-4 after one. 

Gordonsville, fueled by the long-distance shooting, launched a comeback in the second quarter. Back-to-back threes closed the gap to 18-16, Clay, at the 5:04 mark of the period. The Lady Tigers tied the game at 20 with 2:30 left, and took the lead with a three-pointer just after that. They held a 23-22 lead at intermission, having canned five three-pointers, four foul shots and only a pair of two-point baskets.

Kirk and Sarah Ogletree had three fouls at the half, with Kerr and Kayla Kimes having a pair each. CCHS had 12 fouls at intermission. 

Watson put CCHS back on top, 24-23, with a rebound bucket, and the Lady Bulldogs eked out a 28-25 lead only to be tied by another Lady Tiger three. A Kirk rebound bucket put Clay County up 30-28 after three quarters, in a period that saw Sydney Roach score half her eight points. 

CCHS led 32-28 early in the fourth, but a pair of three-pointers over the next couple of minutes gave Gordonsville a 36-32 margin. Ogletree’s three made it a one-point game and Kirk gave Clay the lead at 37-36 with only 2:41 left in the game. 

Gordonsville took the lead for good at the 2:08 mark and CCHS lost Kimes with five fouls. A Lady Tiger steal and bucket put them up 40-37 with less than a minute and a half left. 

Clay County had the ball down by that score with just under 36 seconds left, but a turnover on a charge call gave the ball back to Gordonsville. They built a 43-37 lead and held on for the win. 

LADY DAWGS (39)-S. Ogletree 3, Kimes 4, Kerr 5, T. Watson 6, Kirk 10, Burnette 2, Roach 8, E. Ogletree 1. 

7-A CONSOLATION 

Lady Dawgs………………51

Pickett County…………..50

Talk about wild finishes!

The Lady Bulldogs were involved in one in the District 7-A girls consolation game against old foe Pickett County, pulling out the one-point win, their 20th of the season in coach Sharon Kimes’ first year at the helm. 

Clay County came from eight points down twice in the final quarter to beat the Lady Bobcats and take third place in the 7-A tourney, in a game filled with a lot of momentum swings. 

The Lady Bulldogs had the early momentum, jumping to a 12-6 lead, which included three-pointers from Kimes and Ogletree, but then saw the tide turn. The score was tied at 12 after one, with Pickett County in the midst of a 13-0 run that put them up 19-12 in the second quarter. Ogletree, who led the CCHS scoring with 16, stopped that run with a rebound basket, but the Lady Bobcats still let by seven, 26-19, at the half.

Clay County cut into the lead a couple of times in the third quarter. They pulled to within one (29-28) on baskets by Watson and Ogletree, and pulled to within four a couple of other times on a bucket by Rachel Burnette and free throws by Roach. Pickett County still led 40-34 after three.

The lead stretched to eight points twice in the fourth quarter before the Lady Bulldogs clawed their way back. They rolled off nine straight, eight of them by Kirk, who scored a dozen points after intermission, and took a 47-46 lead at the 1:43 mark. Pickett County retook the lead with a pair of free throws, but Roach gave the Lady Bulldogs the lead for good on a drive just seconds after that.

The Lady Bobcats then held the ball until the 19-second mark and called a timeout. They missed a field goal attempt, CCHS grabbed the rebound and Kirk nailed two free throws with 4.5 seconds left to make it 51-48. 

Pickett went to the line with 3.3 seconds left and made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to one.  A quick foul sent the Lady Dawgs to the line with 2.5 seconds remaining. The try was no good, but a steal after a Pickett rebound by Roach sealed the win.

Ogletree (16), Kirk (14) and Roach (10) all hit double figures for the Lady Bulldogs. Ogletree and Kirk were named to the all-tournament team (see related photo). 

Clarkrange rolled to its 32nd win of the season with a 47-30 win over Jackson County in the tournament championship game.

LADY DAWGS (51)-Kirk 14, Kimes 3, S. Ogletree 16, Roach 10, Burnette 6, T. Watson 2.