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Archives
01-29-2003
Lady Wildcats sweep through week with four wins
Dewain E. Peek/OCN staff LA freshman Whitney Hill, #12, looks for an opening against the Lady Dragons in Friday night's home win.
By ASHLEY HUNTER, OCN staff The Lions don't roar, the Bees don't sting, the Dragons don't breathe fire, and the Buffaloes don't do whatever it is they do. Graze, maybe? At least none of them do after they've been tamed by the Livingston Academy Lady Wildcats basketball team. The girls began last week with a district game at Cannon County on Monday, Jan. 20. The game was originally scheduled for the Friday before, but was postponed because of snowy weather. Cannon County jumped out to an early lead, going on an 11-0 run at one point during the first quarter, leaving LA to play catch-up. At the end of the frame, Cannon County was up by 7 at 15-8. The second quarter was filled with one characteristic: LA makes a little run, Cannon County pours a bucket of cold water on them by shooting a 3-pointer. LA then managed to keep the Lady Lions lead down to 10 at halftime, 29-19. The Woodbury team managed to get the first score of the third quarter, but after that, LA went on a 7-0 run to get the ball rolling a little bit. Then, they just kept right on catching up, tying the score and exchanging baskets for the rest of the quarter. The fourth period was more of the same, a giant basket exchange. A Katrina Beechboard bucket, a timely Christen Cates offensive rebound, and good play from the charity stripe swung the victory LA's way, 58-57, for the win. Lady Wildcats Coach Lesley Smith said, "We were very lucky to get out with a win. We had some late offensive rebounds to give us the game-winning shot." Cannon County was led in scoring by Ashley Nichols and Heather Gilley, with 17 points apiece. They were followed by Olivia Snyder and Shelley Sullenge, with 10 and 6 points, respectively. LA was led in scoring by Katrina Beechboard with 19 points. Kellie Thurman and Christen Cates scored 11 and 10 points, respectively. Kasey Baltimore scored 8, Megan Thompson scored 6, and Haley Mullins scored 3 points in the win. The following night, the Lady Wildcats traveled to Baxter to play the Upperman High School Lady Bees in a brand new, never-been-played-in gymnasium. The building smelled of fresh paint, the fans were ready to go, and so were the Lady Cats. The girls began the game on a 7-0 run, with Kasey Baltimore scoring the first bucket in the facility. UHS didn't really get anywhere offensively in the first quarter, only scoring 4 points, and trailing LA by 7 to end the frame at 11-4. The second quarter began with more of the same. Livingston continued to build on the lead for most of the period, and went ahead 22-13. Following that, Upperman came back and went on a 6-0 run to end the second quarter. Up until right before that point, only two Lady Bees had managed to score. When the halftime horn sounded, it was Livingston ahead by 3, 22-19. The third quarter began with more scoring by the Lady Bees, who came back to take a two-point lead over LA at one point. Then, Kellie Thurman scored 5 straight points to put the Cats up by 3 at 29-26. A technical foul was called on Upperman's Kristin Hartung for slamming the ball in disagreement of a call made by the referee. LA pulled away a bit from there, going ahead by 6 points. Another T was called on the home team, this time on UHS coach Dana McWilliams and the Upperman bench. LA hit one of two and ended the third quarter ahead by 7, 39-32. To begin the fourth quarter, LA went on another 7-0 run. The Lady Wildcats kept a pretty big lead throughout the fourth quarter and sank the customary free throws to end the game, sure in knowing how to christen a new building and winning the contest by an 18-point margin, 58-40. Upperman was led in scoring by Hillary Mead and Cynthia Medley, each with 10 points. They are followed by Danielle Kelley and Cody Brown, with 7 and 6 points, respectively. LA was led in scoring by Kellie Thurman, with 16 points. Christen Cates and Katrina Beechboard scored 12 and 10 points, respectively. Kasey Baltimore and Megan Thompson each scored 7 in the win. Coach Smith said, "We had several turnovers, more than we characteristically have, but we did manage to win big on the road. Kellie Thurman had a big game. We also got to play a lot of people, and that's always good." Livingston Academy played host to the York Lady Dragons on Friday, Jan. 24. The Lady Cats played with the absence of LA senior Christen Cates, who was out of town for the weekend to compete in a beauty contest. Early in the game, the score was tied at 4 apiece, but that didn't last long, as LA went on to score the next 11 points and take a big lead, 16-4. York outscored LA 3-2 to end the frame, but it was the Lady Wildcats with the big lead at the end of the quarter, 18-7. Livingston started the second quarter in high style, with a 3-pointer by Danielle Thrasher, which was immediately followed by a 3 from Megan Thompson, which was immediately followed with a 3-point play by Kasey Baltimore. Kellie Thurman hit two free throws and Katrina Beechboard hit one to make it a 12-0 run to begin the quarter. York managed to score 4 more points in the period, and LA had a huge lead at halftime, 32-11. After that, the game wasn't really much of a game anymore; it was a race to see if Livingston could stay ahead of the Lady Dragons by 20 points or more. The Jamestown team came close by the end of the game, but LA won by 18, 53-35. York had two players with 8 points apiece, Brandi Brown and Kristin Ross. Livingston was led in scoring by Katrina Beechboard with 13 points. Kellie Thurman wasn't too far behind with 12 points. Kasey Baltimore scored 8, Megan Thompson scored 7, and Danielle Thrasher scored 5 points in the victory. Coach Smith said, "We played great. We cut our turnovers in half and held them to 11 points in the first half and dominated defensively. It was a big district win." The following evening, the girls traveled to Clarkrange to play the Lady Buffaloes for the second time this season. Livingston won their last meeting and this time was no different. The game began with LA going up 4-0. Then, Clarkrange's Erica Whittenberg hit a big 3. Not to be outdone, Livingston guard Megan Thompson scored a bucket and then two back-to-back 3-pointers to give Livingston a 12-3 lead. Clarkrange's Carrie Jones came back and hit a 3 of her own to cut the lead down to 6, at 12-6. No one else scored for the rest of the frame. The second quarter began with 7 straight unanswered points by Katrina Beechboard to begin the period. Clarkrange isn't a team to be counted out quickly, though. They came back and scored three consecutive 3-pointers. April Handy scored a 3 for LA to end the half and increase the lead to 7, at 26-19. The second half began with Clarkrange going on a 13-7 run and continuing to put on a dazzling show from the 3-point line. The Lady Buffaloes went up 34-30 on the Lady Cats, but not for long. By the end of the quarter, it was Livingston Academy in the lead again, this time by 3, 39-36. Despite opening the fourth quarter with a trey, it ended up being too much LA and not enough time for Clarkrange as LA won the contest, 62-48. Coach Smith said, "We played even better at Clarkrange than we did at York. We only had 7 turnovers, 14 is our average." Clarkrange was led in scoring by Jordan Ramsey, who scored 16 points. Carrie Jones scored 12 points in the loss. Katrina Beechboard had a monster night for Livingston, scoring 32 points, and going 12 for 12 from the line. As a team, the Lady Cats went 20 for 21 on the night from the charity stripe. Megan Thompson scored 14 points in the victory. Kellie Thurman and April Handy each scored 5 points. Coach Smith said of her players, "Katrina Beechboard was just awesome offensively. Kellie Thurman may have played the best post-defensive game against Michelle Snow I've ever seen. Megan Thompson played the entire game with no turnovers." LA's record stands at 15-5 overall and at 7-1 in district play. The Lady Wildcats are ranked #8 in The Tennessean's Midstate Top 10 poll. LA will not see action again until Friday night, Jan. 31 at home against White County at 6:30 p.m. Coach Smith said of the upcoming schedule, "It's good to have a bit of a break. White County beat us last time; we'll have to try and get a little revenge."
Cats suffer three district losses By KEVIN BURMEISTER, OCN staff
Dewain E. Peek/OCN staff Livingston Academy's Jamie Gurley goes to a higher elevation for 2 of his 22 points against York Institute in Friday night's loss to the visiting Jamestown team.
The Livingston Academy Wildcats continued a four-game string of games away from home when they traveled to Woodbury to face the Cannon County Lions on Monday, Jan. 20. The catfight had been postponed because of central Tennessee's recent rash of snowstorms, and the Wildcats would have opted for another blizzard had they forseen the outcome. Along with the rest of the area, LA was whitewashed by the Lions, as they were held to a meager 5 points in the first quarter. The next frame featured a slightly less gloomy scorecard, but Cannon County still easily retained the upper paw, leading 27-18 at halftime. The remainder of the contest showcased little more than bucket trading, with Cannon County inflicting a blow to Livingston's district record, winning 50-36. Wilson Cates led the Cats in scoring with 11 points, followed by Kyle Copeland, who netted 9 points, Dustin Ferrell and Cody Sells, who each popped in 6, and Luke Eldridge, who scored 4. On Tuesday, Jan. 21, the Wildcats tried to regroup from the loss at Cannon County in their match-up against Upperman in the Bees' first game in their shiny new gym. The Cats also came into Baxter with a few old faces joining them for the first time in recent memory. Along with five other players, senior stand-out Jamie Gurley returned from his suspension to help LA face the hostile hive of Upperman faithful. Livingston faltered out of the gate, trailing 0-7 to start the first quarter. LA mounted several runs, but were unable to push hard enough for any kind of a lead. After the break, Upperman had swarmed to a 35-29 lead. The Bees held control of the game like it was the last pollen particle to survive a nuclear holocaust, staving off the Cats with each of their six appendages, as Livingston trailed throughout the entire game. At the final buzzer, the Bees claimed a 75-63 victory. Gurley picked right up where he left off, scoring 23 points, as Matt Reeder had 13 points of his own, while Copeland and Cates scored 12 apiece, and Brandon Matthews scored 3. In the midst of their slide, Livingston hosted York Institute on Friday, Jan. 24, with the Dragons in search of retribution for their December 6 loss to the Cats. After a strong start in a first quarter in which Livingston posted a 4-point advantage, the Dragons came alive, torching the Cats 24-12 in the second frame, and taking a 35-27 halftime lead. York was unrelenting from then on, answering every Wildcat comeback effort with yet another burst of nasal firepower. York satisfied their hunger, beating the now roasted Wildcats, 74-61. In defeat, Gurley nailed down 22 points, with Cates scoring 15, and Copeland plopping home 12. Matt Reeder scored 4 points, Dustin Ferrell and Brad West each scored 3 points, and Cody King scored 2 points. Losing had to take a backseat to the ÔW' in the Wildcats' Saturday, Jan. 25 game against Clarkrange. The game was close throughout, with neither team pulling away. At the end of the half, the score was deadlocked at 28. The third quarter saw Livingston at their most dominant, as the Wildcats took a 5-point advantage into the final frame, leading 45-40. But the Buffaloes would not be so easily erradicated from the grassy plain that was Clarkrange's home court, as the horned ones battled back to tie it up at the end of regulation, 61-61. Forced into overtime, the Cats bit and clawed their way to a 2-point lead by the time the clock ran out, handing them a slim 68-66 victory. Not surprisingly, Gurley led LA in their emotional victory with 23 points. Matt Reeder chipped in with 15, followed by Brad West, who scored 10, and Cody King, with 9. Kyle Copeland scored 5 points, and Wilson Cates, Brian Colson, and Brandon Matthews each scored 2 points. The 1-3 week brings Livingston to 10-9 overall, with a 5-3 district record. As part of their upcoming four game homestand, Livingston hosts the White County Warriors on Friday, Jan. 31, Crossville's Cumberland County Jets on Monday, Feb. 3, and Smith County's Owls on Tuesday, Feb. 4.
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