GAINESVILLE — It was an uphill battle from the beginning for the Chestatee girls against Madison County in the opening round of the Region 8-4A tournament at the Lynn Cottrell Center on Tuesday.
But in the end, the Lady War Eagles (19-7), behind sophomore Riley Black with a game-high 21 points, stormed back in the second half to take the win, 52-40, and advance to the semifinals of the region tournament. The win also guarantees the Lady War Eagles a berth in the Class 4A tournament next week.
The Red Devils ran out to a 10-0 lead to start the game. That's when the Lady War Eagles started chipping away, and by the end of the first half, they cut Madison County's lead to just one point, 20-19.
"We had to fight back the entire game," Chestatee coach Sutton Shirley said.
In the second half, Riley Allison and Addison Boyd led the comeback, combining for 23 points to give the Lady War Eagles a 34-32 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Allison finished with 12 points, while Boyd had 11.
Chestatee will play North Oconee at 4 p.m. on Thursday at Cedar Shoals High School.
