Lady ’Cats survive late push at Hardin Valley

January 21, 2026 by Ken Lay

After a slow start to the season, the young Oak Ridge High School girls basketball team is trending upward.

Following a 1-8 opening stretch, the Lady Wildcats have now won five of their last seven games and climbed back to the .500 mark in District 4-AAA play.

That momentum continued Friday night as Oak Ridge went on the road and edged Hardin Valley Academy 49-43 in a key district matchup.

Oak Ridge started quickly and built a commanding lead before having to withstand a late rally from the Lady Hawks at Hardin Valley Academy.

The Lady Wildcats led 10-7 after the first quarter and used a decisive 21-8 run in the second period to take a 31-15 advantage into halftime.

Oak Ridge stretched the margin to 38-18 early in the third quarter and appeared to be in control.

Hardin Valley (9-10 overall, 2-4 district) responded with increased defensive pressure and capitalized on several Oak Ridge miscues to climb back into contention. The Lady Hawks trimmed the deficit to single digits during the third quarter before Oak Ridge carried a 43-30 lead into the final frame.

Hardin Valley continued to chip away and closed to within seven (47-40) with less than two minutes remaining, but Oak Ridge made enough plays down the stretch to secure the victory.

“We had a great first half and about three minutes in the third quarter,” Oak Ridge Coach Kevin Tubbs said. “I think we relaxed on defense and had six straight possessions of bad shots or bad passes.

“What I take from the game is that a district win on the road is huge,” he said. “We are starting to have an identity and play better as a group. It’s exciting to watch them get better as a team in each and every game.”

Hardin Valley Coach Jennifer Galloway credited her team’s effort after a sluggish start.

“We did a good job digging ourselves a nice hole,” Galloway said. “But we almost got out of it.”

Evaiya Mitchell and Jenayah Pippins scored 14 points apiece to lead Oak Ridge (6-10 overall, 3-3 district). Alani Mitchell added 10 points for the Lady Wildcats.