Warriors basketball wins 7-AAA opener

The White County High School basketball teams opened the 7-AAA schedule Tuesday night in Cleveland, getting a split with Dawson County.

The Warriors used a big second half effort to get past the Tigers, 71-52, while the Lady Warriors dropped a 62-47 decision. The WCHS teams head to Ellijay Friday night another region matchup, taking on the Gilmer Bobcats.

In the boy's contest, the Warriors finally shook off the Tigers in the second half to improve to 3-4 overall and 1-0 in league play.

After the Tigers took a 5-2 lead in the opening moments of the game, the Warriors a big run to grab a double digit lead. The Warriors hit five 3-pointers in the opening quarter on the way to a 32-18 lead. Silas Mulligan had 10 points in the early barrage, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, while Jadon Yeh scored nine, with two 3-pointers. Chad West had five points in the quarter, and Kenny Simpson added a 3-pointer.

The Tigers battled back in the second quarter, using a 17-11 run to make it 43-35 at the break.

The Warriors used the long ball to take control in the third quarter, getting two 3-pointer each from Mulligan and Dawson Bailey, and from Simpson as the lead grew to 63-43.

Mulligan led the way with 24 points, including five 3-pointers, while Yeh had 18 points, including a 3-pointer.

Bailey connected on three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points, while Simpson had a pair of 3-pointers, and scored eight points. West had five points, with Noah Futch, Dawson Oliver, and David Boman each scoring two points.

In the girl's game, the two teams tied up at 42-42 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Lady Tigers won the game thanks to defense and some near-perfect shooting at the free line.

Dawson limited the Lady Warriors to five points in the final eight minutes, and knocked down 15-of-16 free throws to key a 20-5 game-deciding run.

Kirklyn Porter was 6-of-6 from the line down the stretch run to help the Lady Tigers seal the win.

The Lady Warriors, who are missing Naomi Roberts and Chandler Weaver with injuries, were led by Chesnee Freeman with 14 points. She was 3-of-4 from the free throw line and also knocked down a 3-pointer.

Kylie Watkins had eight points, all in the first half, and had a 3-pointer, while Claire Beckman scored all seven of her points in the second half.

Emma Lightsey and Maci Shelnut each had four points, while Brelan Sieveking and Zoe Burkett each hit a 3-pointer. Kinsey Dockery and Aaliyah Anderson each scored two points.

Union County

Last Friday, the Warriors knocked off Union County 53-39 in a non-region battle in Cleveland.

The Warriors fought off a sluggish first half and followed the lead of Yeh in the second half to rally for the win.

Union County took advantage of the Warriors' offensive struggles in the first quarter, jumping out to a 16-8 lead.

White County managed to stay in the game by limiting the Panthers to only three points in the second quarter, but still trailed 19-16 at the break.

But Yeh got things going in the third quarter, scoring 12 points and Simpson added seven points as the Warriors went on a 19-6 run to take a 35-25 lead heading into the final quarter. Yeh had seven points in the final quarter, and Mulligan and Simpson each knocked down a 3-pointer to help the Warriors get away with the win.

Yeh finished with a game-high 23 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, while Simpson had 10 points, all in the second half, with a pair of 3-pointers. Mulligan added nine points, while Futch scored four, West, Eli Shoemake, and Tavi Simmons all scored two, and Bailey had one.

In the girl's game, the Lady Warriors took a lead into the fourth quarter but couldn't hold off a late run as Union County claimed a 75-66 win.

The Lady Warriors went on a 20-8 run in the third quarter to take a 56-52 lead. Nine players scored during the third quarter, with Freeman scoring four and Mya Yeh knocking down a 3-pointer.

But the offense went cold in the fourth quarter as Union used a 23-10 run to get out of Cleveland with the win.

Burkett led a balanced attack with 12 points, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, while Freeman finished with 11 points. Lightsey, Sieveking, and Yeh all had eight points, while Shelnut added six points. Kendyl Cantrell scored four points, and Anderson, Watkins, and Dockery each had two points.

JV teams

On Tuesday, the Lady Warriors' junior varsity squad posted a 41-38 win over Dawson County.

The Lady Warriors found themselves down 32-27 heading into the fourth quarter, but used a 14-6 advantage in the final quarter to rally for the win.

Watkins scored all eight of her points in the final quarter to key the comeback.

Yeh and Von Minutello each had a basket, and Maggie Aglin hit a late free to hold off the Lady Tigers.

Watkins' eight points were a team-high, while Allie Beth Nix scored six points, all in the first half. Sieveking had five points, Lightsey and Minutello each had four points, Anglin and Yeh each had three points, and Anderson, Burkett, and Kiannah Dorsey each scored two points.

Last week, the Lady Warriors blasted Union County's JV team, 71-31.

The teams were locked up at 181-18 after the first quarter, but the Lady Warriors went on a 57-12 run the rest of the way to finsih off the Lady Panthers.

Anderson led the way with 10 points, while Lightsey had nine points, and Gracie Kimbrell scored eight points. Dorsey and Burkett each scored seven points, and Yeh, McKenna Clark, and Aubrey Free all scored six points. Watkins and Nix each had three points, Anglin and Sieveking each scored two points, and Amelia Kennedy scored one point.

The Warriors' junior varsity squad dropped a 51-47 decision to Union County last week in Cleveland.

The were down 37-25 heading into the final quarter, but rallied to make things interesting down the stretch.

David Boman had a team-high 15 points, while Reid Tanner hit three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points. Dawson Oliver had eight points, Zach McCoy had seven points, Tristan Orndorff had three points, Tripp Nix scored two points, and Logan Schindler had one.

Freshmen win

The Warriors' ninth grade team opened the it's schedule last weekend with a 45-30 win over Cherokee Bluff as former WCHS basketball standout Cooper Turner picked up his first coaching win.

After taking an 11-8 lead in the opening quarter, the Warriors grabbed control of the game with a 29-17 run during the second and third quarters.

David Boman score six points in the second quarter, and Dawson Oliver and Tristan Orndorff each had five points in the second quarter as the lead grew to 29-17 at the break.

Tripp Nix canned a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter, and Orndorff added one as the Warriors pushed the lead to 43-23.

Boman finished with 18 points, while Oliver had 11. Orndorff added eight points, Nix had six, and Cade Dockery scored two points.