Friday night at ACHS was electric
Lady Dragons hold off scrappy Lady Mavs for fourth straight win
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Addi Gamble led the Lady Dragons in scoring with 19 points against Anderson County Friday night. She was one of four Lady Dragons to hit double digits. - Ricky Williams
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Anderson County’s Shelby Kelly jacks up a three — one of 10 the Lady Mavs hit — Friday against Clinton High - Ricky Williams
Since returning from the holiday break, Clinton High School’s girls basketball team has won three of its last five games, and the Lady Dragons entered this week on a three-game winning streak.
On Friday night, Clinton notched a 67-56 win over District 4-AAA rival Anderson County on the road in the second installment of the Crosstown Showdown.
And despite posting a double-digit win, Lady Dragons Coach Alicia Phillips commended the Lady Mavericks for their effort.
“They gave us all they had and they made 10 threes,” Phillips said.
Clinton (10-8 overall, 3-1 in the district) picked up contributions from all over the floor against ACHS (6-12, 1-3).
When the Lady Dragons needed a big play, someone stepped up, and it wasn’t just one player.
Clinton got sparks from several players on this night, and Phillips said that continued a positive trend.
“It’s been that way in the last three games,” Phillips said after watching her squad complete the regular-season sweep against the Lady Mavericks. “We played some really good competition over the break.”
Clinton defeated ACHS 53-50 at the Don W. Lockard Gymnasium on Thursday, Dec. 1.
The Lady Dragons had four players score in double figures Friday night. Addi Gamble led the way with 19 points. Allie York and Lanee Carmichael added 13 points each. Bailey Burroughs had 12 and Josie Moody finished with nine for Clinton, which trailed 13-10 at first quarter’s end.
The Lady Dragons would rally and take a 29-23 lead at halftime, but the Lady Mavs would hang around, keeping the contest close and slicing Clinton’s advantage to 43-40 heading into the final frame. The Lady Dragons pulled away in the fourth quarter as York knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and Gamble went 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Anderson County, which was without its top scorer Emily Mustard (illness), picked up a solid effort from freshman Emily Basford, who led the scoring attack with 17 points. Lydia Meldrum added 12 and Shelby Kelly had 11.
ACHS Coach Mitch Cupples said he was pleased with his team’s effort despite the loss.
“I was really proud of them,” he said. “We played hard.”