The 8-under Gilmer Lady Cat all-stars roared their way to a basketball state championship.
The Cats’ tenacious defense and quickness allowed them to smoother teams as its offense hummed.
Gilmer met Putnam County for the Georgia Recreation and Park Association’s Class C state championship March 7 and came away with a 32-13 victory.
Head coach Ashley Phillips discussed the championship, saying, “It was a huge blessing for the girls, myself, (assistant coach) Brady West and the whole community. We felt like the whole community was behind us.
“It was a huge accomplishment, and we’re very proud of the girls. They put in a lot of two-hour practices and hard work. When it came game time, they brought their A-game every game. They deserved it. It was awesome.”
The championship game was close through two quarters before Gilmer clamped down defensively in the second half. The Cats were ahead 15-10 at the break.
“In the very beginning we struggled a little bit getting the ball inbounds,” Phillips said. “They were pressuring us on the full court and they were double teaming our guards. It took us some time to adjust and adapt to that, but once we did so, we kind of ran away with it from there.”
Putnam stopped scoring in the third quarter and the Cats extended their lead to 26-10 entering the fourth. Gilmer’s defense continued to shine as Putnam was limited to three points and the Cats won by 19.
Lady Cat scorers included Rose Everett (seven points), Mattie Jones and Halle Mae West (six), Ally Phillips (five), Kensey Pritchett (four) and Alayna Martin and Lola Howard (two).
Prior to their title game appearance, Gilmer routed Heard County 30-4 in pool play and White County 23-4 in the semifinals.
Phillips pointed to defense as the Cats’ key to dominating wins at the event.
“The one thing that set us apart from any team in our division is we perfected a 1-3-1 defense,” she said. “It made it almost impossible for opposing teams to get the ball even within shooting range of their goal. Our point on that 1-3-1 is a great ball handler and great at stealing. Both of our guards on the side anticipate passes and we shut teams down with that first layer of defense.”
West led the way with 10 points versus White in the semifinals, Phillips scored six, Pritchett added five and Martin finished with two.
Gilmer qualified for state by winning the District 5 title, Feb. 22. The Cats toppled Fannin County 23-7 in the semifinals before securing their championship with a 25-2 victory versus LaFayette.
The Lady Cats also won the Mountain Athletic Conference Feb. 13. Following a 15-0 victory over Rabun County, they notched a 10-9 overtime win against rival Pickens. They defeated White County for the conference championship, 17-0.
The 8U’s state title is believed to be Gilmer County’s first state basketball championship at the park and rec level in 24 years. The 12U Lady Cat all-stars won the state title in 1995, and a nearly brand-new set of players captured the 12U championship in 1996.