The Gilmer Lady Cats remain in contention for the No. 1 seed in the region.
GHS was in LaFayette last Tuesday for its lone region game of the week. The Ramblers’ zone defense allowed Gilmer to fire three pointers all night, and the Cats snatched another victory, 54-29.
Gilmer was in Murray County Friday to take on the one-loss Indians. It was the teams’ second meeting of the season, and MCHS came out on top once again, 51-38.
LaFayette opted for an interesting defensive approach, and Gilmer launched 38 three-point shots on the night and made nine. GHS was 50 percent on its two-point attempts at 12/24.
“They zoned us the whole game, which really surprised me,” said head coach David Dowse. “We were up 30 something at one point, and they never got out of it. Defensively, especially through the first three quarters, we were firmly in control. They had a hard time figuring out what we were doing defensively. We forced some turnovers and some bad shots and got out in transition pretty good.”
Jace Sanderson hit a trio of threes on the night, and both Bree Burnette and Aliza Chastain made a pair. They were the Cats’ leading scorers as well, and Sanderson tallied 17 points to go with 10 rebounds.
The Ramblers made just 22 percent of their shots from the field, and Gilmer forced 19 turnovers to limit LHS shots. GHS led by 10 after a quarter and 33-13 at the half. The Ramblers continued to struggle over the final two quarters, and Gilmer’s lead stood at 45-18 entering the fourth.
Burnette scored 13 and Chastain had 10. Chelsey Griggs added six and had five rebounds. Madison Bradshaw led the way with 12 boards and scored four points. Bradshaw tallied three points, and Grace Bramlett had four rebounds.
Fourteen offensive rebounds Friday led to 15 second-chance points for Murray County. The Indians led from start to finish to earn the nonregion win.
“They’re very good and were just more physical than us,” Dowse said. “They were the first time we played them, and I thought maybe we’d adjust and step up to the plate, but we didn’t. They were more physical with us again, and I think that had a lot to do with our shooting.”
The Cats fared well when they were not shooting threes. GHS made just 2/12 from beyond the arc, while it was 46 percent on its two-point attempts. Murray’s offense was bolstered by a 7/21 effort from three-point territory.
MCHS jumped to a 17-8 lead after the first, and the Cats trimmed it to 28-22 by the half. The Indians continued to add to their advantage over the final two quarters and were ahead 40-31 with a quarter to play. MCHS outpaced GHS in the fourth, 11-7.
Behind Sanderson with 16 points were Jaylee McDaniel (nine), Griggs (eight), Burnette (three) and Chastain (two). Griggs was the top rebounder with eight and McDaniel had five. Burnette had five assists on the night.
GHS is 13-8 overall and 7-2 in region play. GHS hosted Heritage at press deadline and will travel to Northwest Whitfield Friday for a 7 p.m. tipoff. Gilmer will hit the road to play Heritage Saturday at 4 p.m.
JV wins again
The junior varsity Lady Cats trounced Murray County, 60-27.
While the Cats have gotten off to quick starts this season, they pounced in the second half versus the Indians.
GHS led 10-5 after a quarter and 19-14 at the break. However, the second half was a different story. Lady Cat Makenna Taylor was scorching hot and scored 19 of her team-leading 26 points in the third, which included five three pointers.
Gilmer opened a 44-18 advantage entering the fourth, and six Cats scored points in the quarter for the lopsided win.
Rosie Everett added 12 points for GHS and was followed by Madison Hall (seven), Kenley Thompson (six), Jaylee McDaniel (four), Morgan Palmeri (three) and Toryn Adams (two).
The Cats have an 11-1 record on the season.