Defense Delivers

Carpenters girls, Alcoa boys claim American Conference crowns

Alcoa’s Tornadoes celebrate their American Conference championship last week. Photos by Jolanda Jansma

By Stefan Cooper
Editor
Blount Press Row

Cade Chambers brings the ball across the timeline.

Even at the elementary level, defense wins championships.

Two points separated Alcoa and Carpenters after a quarter of the American Conference championship game last Tuesday night at Heritage Middle School.

Isaiah Cox-Person goes for the block on the Cougars' Jared Tarver.

The Tornadoes held the Cougars scoreless for the second quarter, opening a gap that only widened in a 29-13 Alcoa win in the title game of the small schools division at the Blount County Elementary Basketball Tournament.

Balanced scoring all ’round carried the Tornadoes to the title, Cade Chambers setting the pace with a team-best eight points. Isaiah Cox-Person wasn’t far back with seven, with Rodney Jackson tossing in six, Cameron George and Josiah Scudder four each.

Tate Daniels led Carpenters with five. Jared Tarver, Justin Snider, Josh Moore and Hunter McCoy had a bucket each for the Cougars.

The Tornadoes work the break.

A tight contest looked in the offing with George, Jackson and Cox-Person accounting for a 6-4 Alcoa lead after six minutes. Pressure defense disrupted the Cougar offense in the run up the half, Alcoa picking up six more points on turnovers to extend to a 12-4 lead at intermission.

Tarver, Moore and McCoy broke through for the Carpenters in the third. When the Tornadoes raised the defense again in the fourth quarter, the offense came along. Jackson, Cox-Person and Chambers led a scoring blitz that put it away with a 13-point closing rush.

Girls’ championship
Carpenters 44, Mary Blount 4

Mary Blount's Brenna Ridge make dish around Carpenters' Emma Harig.

After upsetting favored Alcoa in the semifinals, the Lady Bears had little left for the Lady Cougars in the championship game.

Cara Garner pumped in a team-best 15 points, with Brenna Ridge adding 11, to push Mary Blount past the Lady Tornadoes. Denying Garner the ball in the championship game was key, Carpenters coach K.C. Haworth said.

Julia Combs pump fakes at the basket.

“Our goal was to pressure the guards so they couldn’t get it to her,” he said.

Garner tallied once at the end of the first quarter and again in the third in the championship game. Even with one of its best players, Sarah Satterfield, out sick, the Lady Cougars found scoring from all sides to get it done.

Emma Harig had a team-test 13 points to lead the champions, with Jenna Forster tossing in seven, Destiny Haworth six. Abby Costner, Georgia Drinnon and Hannah Williamson had four each for Carpenters. Gracie Love and McKenna Myers had a bucket apiece.