CULLMAN COUNTY BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT (JUNIOR VARSITY GIRLS): West Point cruises to title with 47-20 win over Holly Pond

Published 6:15 pm Saturday, January 25, 2020

HANCEVILLE — West Point’s junior varsity girls secured a second consecutive Cullman County Basketball Tournament championship on Saturday, cruising to a 47-20 victory over Good Hope at Tom Drake Coliseum.

The Lady Warriors yielded only a pair of field goals in the first half and used a balanced offensive attack to close out the season with their 20^th win.

“It was a total team effort. I’m proud of these girls. They’ve battled through and been a great group to coach. They play hard and play together as a team. Coach (John) Welborn and I have challenged them all year to step up and play hard, and they were rewarded for their efforts today,” said West Point coach Richie Penn. 

West Point’s swarming defense set the tone early, forcing multiple Good Hope turnovers. The Lady Raiders only mustered three free throws by Desire’ Odachowski in the first quarter. Meanwhile, West Point had four players score points in the first stanza.

“We try to express to the girls that defense wins games, especially in a championship setting. Even if we didn’t succeed on offense, we’re still going to play defense,” Penn said. 

The Lady Warriors, who finished the season with a 20-4 record, led 10-3 at the end of the first quarter and extended the cushion to 21-9 by halftime.

West Point pulled away in the third quarter with a quick 7-0 run. Summer Mendoza hit a pair of free throws at the 6:12 mark, Kylee Quinn added a layup, and Bethany Minck capped the surge with a 3-pointer.

West Point led 35-16 after three quarters.  

Minck paced the Lady Warriors with a game-high 13 points, scoring all of her points in the second half. Mendoza, Quinn and Nikki Tyree scored seven points apiece for West Point.

“This championship feels great. We’ve worked hard for it. We spend countless hours in the gym and work hard on the weekends. Our team chemistry is awesome,” Tyree said. “Our defense was strong to begin the game, and that helped boost our confidence. We were motivated to win this championship and get to 20 wins.”

Braelee Quinn scored five points for West Point, Alexis Kimbril and Kristine Shadix each finished with three, and Kaylee Faulkner contributed a pair of free throws.

Odachowski led Good Hope with nine points. Addie Stripling scored four points for the Lady Raiders, and Kyndall Seal and Maddie McKenney each finished with three. Charly Johnson made one free throw.

West Point’s junior varsity girls put a bow on another strong campaign.

“Whether it’s the junior varsity or varsity, our goal is to be a strong program. We challenge our JV team each day, because they’re going to be in a varsity jersey very soon. We always want the success to trickle down,” Penn said.  

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Bethany Minck — West Point

Nikki Tyree — West Point

Kaylee Faulkner — West Point

Desire’ Odachowski — Good Hope

Kyndall Seal — Good Hope

Bai Widner — Holly Pond

Lauryn Hoffman — Holly Pond

Ella Bruer — Cold Springs