ATLANTA — The West Hall boys and Marist girls both won play-in games Tuesday night in the Region 7-AAAA Tournament to advance to the state tournament.
The West Hall boys rallied from a big first quarter deficit to hold off Chestatee, 65-54 to advance to the state tournament.
The Spartans (8-16) trailed 15-5 after the first quarter but outscored Chestatee 23-7 in the second quarter to reclaim the lead. The maintained the advantage the entire second half to pull away for the victory.
West Hall coach Bobby Pless said it was a satisfying outcome after a challenging regular season.
"We had a very tough schedule early with a young team, and it's been a battle all season," Pless said. "The kids had rough start tonight but battled back. It's exciting to be be able to play on Friday."
Xzavier Reid lead West Hall with 25 points and Noah Edmondson added 15.
Chestatee, which finished its season at 5-20, was led by Donovan Hernandez with 18 points. Nick Lyles added 12 for the War Eagles.
The Spartans (8-16) next will take on No. 1 seed Blessed Trinity on Friday in the semifinals. West Hall lost both regular season games to the Titans.
The host Marist girls knocked off White County 52-32 on their home floor. The Lady Warriors, who finished the season 6-18, were hoping to pull the upset but could not get much going against the host Lady War Eagles.
