GAINESVILLE, Ga. — After the first 10 games, Lakeview Academy doesn’t appear to have many kinks in its armor.
The Lady Lions moved to a perfect 10-0 after routing Gainesville 63-26 on Thursday in the semifinals of the Lanierland tournament. It was the Lady Lions’ seventh win by 14 or more points so far.
First-year coach Ken Huffman, however, says they have plenty of weaknesses, though he was not about to give any meaningful scouting reports just yet.
“We’re playing really well right now but I can assure you, we have a lot of things we can improve on,” Huffman said. “Our kids have bought into what we’re trying to do.”
The wins put Lakeview into the championship game for the third time in five years, and the third time against North Hall, as they look for their first-ever Lanierland title.
Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. at Johnson High School.
“I wasn’t here the other two times but I know how much this tournament means to the community, and especially for the Lakeview fans,” Huffman said. “We’re just taking the approach that it’s the next game on the schedule and do everything we can to try and get the win.”
Lakeview didn't get the quick start it did in the first round as the Lady Lions led just 13-4, though Taliah Gaither poured in 8 in the opening frame. The second quarter was the difference as Lakeview used a 6-0 run to get things started and eventually closed out the half with a 22-7 run for a 41-11 halftime lead.
Gaither had another 9 in the second and Taylor Clark also added 9 points in the period. The Lady Red Elephants never got closer the rest f the way with Lakeview taking a 53-21 lead into the fourth quarter.
Gaither finished with 21 points and Clark had 13. Dynesty Putman added 11 for the Lady Lions.
Julia Payne paced Gainesville with 9 points. Mattie White had 8 for the Lady Red Elephants.
Gainesville will take on Chestatee in the third-place game on Friday at Johnson at 3 p.m.
NORTH HALL 50,
CHESTATEE 39
North Hall coach Eric Herrick said he has been waiting for his post players to join the party in 2023.
Martha Vachtsenanos and Zara Gosse did just that at just the right time on Thursday in the semifinals of the Lanierland tournament at the Lakeview Academy gym. The pair combined for 12 fourth quarter points, Gosse pulled down 15 rebounds to go with 3 huge blocks, and they helped the Lady Trojans erase a 10-point third quarter to take a win over Chestatee.
It was a huge 41-point turnaround from a 58-28 drubbing the Lady Trojans took at the hands of the Lady War Eagles two weeks ago in Region 8-4A North play.
North Hall (9-3) moves on to play Lakeview Academy in Friday’s 6 p.m final at Johnson High School.
“Martha is a young kid that has been struggling but she showed what she can do today. She changed the game for us,” Herrick said. “That first game (against Chestatee) just got away from us. We showed better poise today.”
Down 28-20 following an 11-2 Chestatee run, Vachtsenanos hit four free throws late in the third and then opened the fourth with a steal and layup and a 3-pointer to tie the game at 30. Her sister, Athena Vachtsenanos, then exploded for seven consecutive points to cap a 13-0 run for a 37-30 lead. Gosse had a stick-back basket and another bucket underneath as North Hall would build on it down the stretch.
“(Zara) played her best game of the season and played some really good defense. We expect 20 and 20 from (Martha and Zara) every game,” Herrick said.
Two of Gosse’s blocks came on Chestatee standout Riley Black, who still managed a game-high 24 points before fouling out. But for eight minutes in the second half, they held the Lady War Eagles to just a pair of Black baskets.
“Defensively we put in a unique defense that we worked on (Thursday) morning. I’m really proud of how the girls executed and were able to guard all those shooters they have,” Herrick said.
The Lady Trojans defense was certainly the story early on. They held Chestatee to just 3-for-10 shooting and also held Black to just a pair of free throws in the opening frame.
That gave the offense a chance to start strong as North Hall hit 3 of its first 4 3-pointers, including back-to-back treys from Genesis Satterfield and Athena Vachtsevanos, to run out to an 11-6 lead. An Athena Vachtsevanos basket late in the period gave the Lady Trojans a 15-11 lead heading into the second.
The opening four minutes of the second quarter saw both teams go cold from the field before Lady War Eagles began to chip away. Black got her first field goal with 4:02 left in the half. Two free throws each from Caroline Bull and Black gave Chestatee a 17-15 lead but North Hall’s Braelyn McCall hit the first basket for the Lady Trojans in over 8 minutes to reclaim the lead 18-17.
But Black continued her second quarter barrage hitting two 3-pointers, including one at the buzzer, to give Chestatee a 23-18 halftime advantage.
In the third quarter, two free throws from Addison Boyd and three straight points from Black gave Chestatee a 28-18 lead. But Gosse hit two free throws to get the Lady Trojans comeback rolling.
No other Chestatee player reached double figures, with Bull and Cable both finishing with just 5 points apiece.
Athena Vachtsevanos had 18 points to pace North Hall, with 11 coming in the fourth quarter. Martha Vachtsevanos had 12 points and Gosse finished with 9 points for the Lady Trojans.
Chestatee (9-4) will take on Gainesville on Friday at 3 p.m in the third-place game at Johnson High School.
SEMIFINAL ROUND SCORES, Thursday, Dec. 28
GIRLS BRACKET (at Lakeview Academy)
North Hall 50, Chestatee 39
Lakeview Academy 63, Gainesville 26
CONSOLATION BRACKET (at Lakeview Academy)
Flowery Branch 55, East Hall 48 OT
Cherokee Bluff 76, Johnson 13
