FLOWERY BRANCH — For the No. 1-ranked Lumpkin County girls, forgetting the first 24 games was the goal during their eight-day layoff after securing the No. 1 seed in the Region 7-3A Tournament.
The Lady Indians took it to heart, playing like their playoff fates were at stake on Saturday in the semifinals against rival Dawson County.
After falling behind 2-0 in the opening seconds, Lumpkin County exploded for a 26-0 run into the second quarter en route to an 80-29 rout of the Lady Tigers at the Cherokee Bluff gym.
Lumpkin County coach David Dowse said getting ready for the “third season” was their focus.
“We want to be peaking at the right time. We talked about just forgetting the first 24 games and getting ready for the playoffs,” he said. “I was very pleased with how we played.”
The game was tied at 4 when Lumpkin County (24-1) got three consecutive turnovers with Averie Jones burying a 3-pointer, Lexi Pierce converting a three-point play, and Kate Jackson getting a stick-back basket for an 8-0 run in 30 seconds.
Mary Mullinax and Jones added two more 3-pointers each, Jackson had a 3-pointer and another stick-back basket, and Pierce also had a steal and layup and by the time the blitz was over, the Lady Indians led 30-4.
Dawson County’s Kirklyn Porter ended the more than 8-minute drought with a long 3-pointer midway through the second.
Despite the offensive firepower for the Lady Indians, Dowse said the key to any deep playoff run will be their defense. They forced nearly two dozen for the game, turning those into 19 points.
“During our layoff, our main focus was working to get better defensively. When we play well defensively, it drives our offense,” Dowse said. “We were much better tonight.”
Jones finished with 23 points, including seven 3-pointers. Jackson added 19 points, Mullinax finished with 18 points, and Pierce had 16 points for Lumpkin County.
The Lady Indians now will take on upstart East Forsyth for the title on Tuesday.
“(East Forsyth) is well-coached, and they’re playing very well right now,” Dowse said. “I expect a game like the one we had at their place [a 54-46 come-from-behind Lumpkin win].”
Morgan Chester led Dawson County with 9 points. Eva Bishop had 6 for the Lady Indians. The Lady Tigers will take on White County in the third-place game on Tuesday.
EAST FORSYTH 50,
WHITE COUNTY 43
East Forsyth may be a first-year school, but they’re certainly not acting like it.
The Lady Broncos used a 9-0 third-quarter run to grab the lead and then held on down the stretch to knock off White County in the semifinals.
The win secured East Forsyth (19-7) a home court in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs no matter what happens in Tuesday’s final. They’ll take on No. 1-ranked Lumpkin County for the region title.
“We feel like we’re playing pretty well right now,” East Forsyth coach Mike Hedrick said afterward. “I thought we did a great job of staying poised at the end.”
White County (13-11) used its own 10-0 spurt midway through the third, capped by a Chandler Weaver basket, to reclaim the lead at 28-24. But Alison Hiddema converted a three-point play, and Hailey Hiddema drained a 3-pointer to cap the answering 9-0 run for a 33-28 advantage. The Lady Broncos would not trail again.
Alison Hiddema, a junior, poured in 24 points to pace East Forsyth. But it was another junior, Ella Holbrook, that kept White County at bay, scoring 10 of her 16 points in the final six minutes, including hitting 5-of-7 free throws.
The Lady Warriors cut a 42-32 deficit to 42-38 on a Weaver 3-pointer with 3:15 left but Holbrook answered with a trey of her own and added a pair of free throws moments later to push the lead back to nine.
“Alison and Ella were good players when they got here, but they are really starting to step up as leaders in the playoffs,” Hedrick said.
It was a tough defensive game throughout, but the first quarter saw seven lead changes and four ties in the opening 16 minutes. The two teams combined for 26 turnovers and went 0-for-11 on 3-pointers as the defenses defended every shot.
However, White County certainly had its chances to blow it open early, forcing 18 East Forsyth miscues but was only able to turn those into 4 points. The Lady Warriors took an 8-4 lead with just over a minute left in the first quarter on an Aaliyah Anderson basket. But the Lady Broncos, who were just 1-of-6 from the field at that point, finally got going.
Alison Hiddema’s driving basket early in the second capped a 6-0 run for a 10-8 lead and her three-point play later in the period gave the Lady Broncos a 16-12 lead.
White County tied the game at 16 on two Naomi Roberts free throws before East Forsyth took an 18-16 lead into the half on another Hiddema basket in the final minute.
Chesnee Freeman led White County with 10 points. Roberts and Claire Beckman each finished with 9 for the Lady Warriors.
White County forced 26 East Forsyth turnovers for the game but generated just 8 points. The Lady Warriors also were just 5-of-20 from 3-point range, and that was after hitting their final three attempts.
The Lady Warriors will take on Dawson County in the third-place game on Tuesday.
