HANCEVILLE — Hanceville’s varsity girls made sure not repeat last season’s disappointment in the Cullman County Basketball Tournament, garnering a 56-40 first-round victory against Good Hope at Wallace State’s Tom Drake Coliseum on Wednesday night.

Kelly Pickett (15), Cassidy Campbell (12) and Kierra Merriweather (11) all produced double figures for the No. 4 Lady Bulldogs, who improved to 15-7 this season after pulling away in the fourth quarter.

“It was an emotional game for us,” coach Christina Watson said. “We came here last year and didn’t play well against a team we had already beat earlier in the season. We wanted to make up for that. Once we calmed down and played our game, the team settled in. We feel we’re at our best when we push it, and we were able to do that.”

Hanceville made its first run in the second stanza.

After Kate Kent’s layup handed the fifth-seeded Lady Raiders a 14-9 advantage early in the period, the Purple and Gold responded with a 13-0 surge and led 22-14 with 2:11 to go before halftime.

Good Hope answered back with eight straight points, though, tying the bout at 22 on an Erika Woodall 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the first half.

Hanceville began to hurry up its pace even more during the second half and eventually took a 34-28 lead following a Merriweather layup late in the third quarter.

The Lady Bulldogs extended the lead to 38-30 by the end of the frame and earned a trip to the semifinals with an 18-point fourth quarter.

Hanceville’s Lauren Roberson swished two 3-pointers midway through the final period to initially push the cushion to double digits. She netted all eight of her points off the bench over the final eight minutes, while Karmen Johnson also pitched in with nine points throughout the tilt.

“Lauren has missed most of the season and is just now finding her way back. She’s a good shooter and can make a difference,” Watson said.

For Good Hope, Kent led the way with 15 points. Leyton Seal had nine points, and Woodall and Savanna Derrick tossed in seven apiece.

Watson’s squad now has a date with top-seeded Fairview on Thursday at 6:15 p.m.

“We played Fairview the first game of the season, so we know what to expect. They’ve got good shooters and size. We’re looking forward to the challenge,” Watson said.