Clay teams win final pair of district games

CLARKRANGE-It was a long time coming.

Until last week, Lady Bulldog Basketball had won a State Championship (2012) more recently than they had beaten the Clarkrange Lady Buffaloes on their home court, plus, when it last happened ten years prior in 2002, they were still known as the Celina High School Lady Dawgs.

Over two decades later and after the opening of a new school in the fall of 2003, the now Clay County High School Lady Bulldogs finally got it done with a 37-29 victory at the home of the Lady Buffaloes.

Lone senior Lady Dawg Laci Wix, whose mother Brooke was on the last local team to pull off the feat 23 years ago, played a big role in securing the historic road win with an eight-point, 14-rebound night, while her sophomore teammate Haylen Garrison lit up the scoreboard with 19 points in the victory.

On top of the rare win at Clarkrange, the Clay County girls also avenged a double-overtime loss to Gordonsville by beating the Tigerettes 46-43 in a thriller in Celina.

Wix paced her team with 15 points and junior Ella Eads added 11 in the win to close out the week.

The Clay County boys also took down a solid Clarkrange team on the road by a score of 84-62 and exacted revenge on Gordonsville with an 80-62 victory, after falling to the Tigers earlier this season.

With the back-to-back conference victories, the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs both clinched a league tournament semifinal appearance (see related story).

Four Dawgs reached double-figure scoring in both of their wins, including a mix of seniors Nate Adams and Lance Burchett, and juniors Nolan Adams, Cole Eads, and Warner Melton.

Brothers Nate and Nolan Adams, along with Burchett, hit double-digits in both games, while Eads did against the Buffaloes and Melton did versus the Tigers.

Both teams were set to close out the regular season by hosting Jackson County for Senior Night Tuesday  and traveling to Jellico Friday night.

Clay County’s final pair of scheduled contests were set to be carried live by the Horizon Sports Network, with a video live-stream available on the Dale Hollow Horizon Facebook page and audio-only coverage online at www.dalehollowhorizon.com/listen.

Lady Dawgs…….….37

Clarkrange…………29

The Lady Dawgs jumped out to an early lead behind a pair of first-quarter threes from Garrison and never relinquished it in their 37-29 victory at Clarkrange, where a stifling defensive effort led by Wix shut down the Lady Buffaloes.

Clay County beat Clarkrange on their home court for the first time in a generation, after leading 16-13 at halftime and doubling up the Lady Buffaloes 13-6 in a decisive third quarter, where they pushed their margin to 29-19.

Clarkrange did pull within three points of the Lady Dawgs midway through the final frame, before Garrison scored Clay County’s final seven points, including going five for five at the free throw line, to finish with 19 points and seal the eight-point victory.

LADY DAWGS (37)-Garrison 19, Wix 8, Natalie Smith 4, Claire Kendall 3, Eads 3.

Dawgs…………..….84

Clarkrange…………69

After trailing 16-18 at the end of the first quarter, the Dawgs gained control in the second stanza and went on to beat Clarkrange 84-69.

Clay County was led by Burchett’s 28 points, while Nate Adams wasn’t far behind with 22, and both Nolan Adams (13) and Eads (12) joined them in double figures.

The Dawgs outscored the Buffaloes 20-11 in the second quarter to lead 36-29 at halftime.

They then maintained the margin into the final frame, where they stepped on the gas to go ahead by as many as 22 points, before reserves finished off the 15-point win.

DAWGS (84)-Burchett 28, Nate Adams 22, Nolan Adams 13, Eads 12, Melton 4, Hayden Adams 3, Caden Copeland 1, Isaiah Burnette 1.

Lady Dawgs…….….46

Gordonsville.………43

The Lady Dawgs held on for a 46-43 victory against Gordonsville in Celina last Friday night, after they defended the Tigerettes well on their last-second attempt to tie the game and avoided overtime.

Before the buzzer sounded on the Clay County three-point victory, Gordonsville turned a seven-point Lady Dawg lead into a one-possession ballgame down the stretch.

Wix paced the Lady Dawgs with 15 points, Eads added 11, and Garrison made a trio of three-pointers for nine points in the contentious contest, where Clay County held on to a slim lead the majority of the way.

The Lady Dawgs were ahead 13-8 at the end of the first period and claimed a 22-20 advantage at halftime.  They then carried a 34-31 lead into the fourth quarter, before they went on to win by the same margin.

LADY DAWGS (46)-Wix 15, Eads 11, Garrison 9, Smith 6, Baylor Walden 5.

Dawgs………..….….80

Gordonsville.………62

The Dawgs rose to the occasion and beat conference rival Gordonsville 80-62 to cap off a good week last Friday night in Celina.

Nate Adams scored 20 points, Nolan Adams added 18, Burchett had 15, Melton put up 13, and Hayden Adams also had nine points for Clay County.

A high-scoring first quarter ended with the Dawgs ahead 20-18 and the game was knotted at 34 at the break, before Clay County took control.

They outscored the Tigers 22-10 in the third period to go up by double-digits, before cruising to the 18-point victory.

DAWGS (80)-Nate Adams 20, Nolan Adams 18, Burchett 15, Melton 13, Hayden Adams 9, Eads 5.