The Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences Lady Patriots hit the court running and kept the pressure on for four quarters Friday night in defeating Whitwell for the ladies District 6-A championship. Starting the game with a 10-0 run the Patriots cruised to a 40-24 win.
Rashell Buchanan got the action going early for the Patriots, blocking a Whitwell shot and taking the ball the length of the court for a lay-in. Three other Arts & Sciences players scored in the first quarter. Defensively the Patriots held Whitwell scoreless until more than six minutes had elapsed in the game, forcing them to miss their first 16 shots. The Patriots pressure defense continued to hound the Whitell ball handlers into the second quarter and did not allow another Whitwell field goal for the remainder of the half, holding Whitwell to just 1-22 shooting at the break. Arts & Sciences also held Tiffany Barnes, whose 17 + points per game average is among the area leaders, scoreless going into the break.
The beginning of the second half showed that Whitwell would not go quietly as they held the Patriots scoreless for the first five minutes and ran off a 10-0 streak that brought them to within three.
The Patriots responded by pressing the Whitwell offense the rest of the way, forcing turnovers and bad shots that led to easy buckets on the other end. Arts & Sciences made Whitwell work for every shot down the stretch and responded to Whitwell’s run by scoring 13 unanswered. The Patriots connected on seven free throws in the final minutes, including five by Mara Naylor, and missed just one to keep Whitwell at bay and claim the district championship.
Leading the way for the Patriots was their defense, holding Whitwell to just 7 of 49 shooting. Rashell Buchanan scored 12 for the Patriots, Mara Naylor added 11, and Joy Morgan 10. Tiffany Barnes, scoreless in the first half, managed 11 in the second and led the way for Whitwell.
In the women’s consolation game South Pittsburg beat Lookout Valley 40-38 in overtime. Sonja Beene scored 16 for the Pirates, and Leila Appel added 10. Lookout Valley was paced by April McCann’s 18 points.
Game Stats
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final
CSAS 14 7 6 13 40
Whitwell 5 3 14 2 24
CSAS: Buchanan 12, Naylor 11, Morgan 10, Wickley 5, Bragden 2.
Whitwell: Barnes 11, Thomas 7, Layne 3, Barnett 2, Cookston 1.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT Final
South Pitt. 9 6 9 9 7 40
Lookout Val. 6 2 11 14 5 38
South Pittsburg: Beene 16, Appel 10, Kelley 9, Wehunt 3, Blevins 2.
Lookout Valley: McCann 18, Stoker 15, A. Johnson 3, C. Johnson 2.
A Whitwell player looks for a pass.
- Photo2 by John Graeber