MIDDLE SCHOOL BASKETBALL: Hanceville’s boys, Parkside’s girls claim county championships
Published 4:14 pm Monday, December 18, 2017
Hanceville’s boys and Parkside’s girls steamrolled the competition to take home respective titles following dominant showings at the Cullman County Middle School Basketball Tournament, which wrapped up play inside Lane Horton Gymnasium last Saturday afternoon.
The second-seeded Bulldogs defeated No. 1 West Point 47-30, while the No. 2 Lady Panthers took down the top-seeded Lady Warriors 29-19 to obtain the championship trophies.
Hanceville, which held a 26-10 cushion at halftime, was paced by Ben Johnson’s 22 points. Taejon Jones (eight), Brayden Harris (seven), Zach Campbell (six), Tristan Herrera (two) and Adam Cooper (two) came up with big buckets as well for coach David Miller’s squad, which concluded its season with a 13-3 record after avenging a previous loss to the Maroon and White.
Dylan Twilley, Malcom Farris and Kelson Moore comprised the rest of the roster.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game against a very good and well-coached West Point team,” Miller said. “Our guys fought hard, and we were able to pull out the win. I’m proud of all our players for their hard work and dedication this season.”
The Warriors netted scoring contributions from Jayden Laney (10), Matthew Hawley (nine), Sam Wheeler (four), Ethan Gammon (four), Noah Barnette (two) and Isaac Huffpauir (one).
Coach Mason Voce’s team ended its campaign with a 12-6 record.
Parkside, on the other hand, recorded its first-ever Cullman County Championship since opening in 1997, which — coincidentally — was the last time the girls played in a title contest.
Morgan Lindsay corralled a game-high 14 points, while Makayla Latham (six), Emma Garcia (four), Abby Davis (two), Kaitlyn Benson (two) and Allie Scott (one) also contributed.
The Lady Panthers had lost to West Point 42-16 earlier in the season.
“It’s really cool for the smallest school to beat the largest school in the finals,” said coach Danny Weaver, whose team produced a 12-3 mark. “I think there are around 40 girls in the entire middle school, and the 10 we have on this team worked really hard. I couldn’t have asked for a better group.”
Kiley Stevens, Alexis Schaefer, Jayla Harper and Carrissa Golden rounded out the roster.
The Lady Warriors — who finished 13-6 under first-year coach Hayden West — were paced by Timberly Shadix (six), Summer Mendoza (six), Bethany Minck (five) and Nikki Tyree (two) offensively in the tough loss.
Coaches’ All-County Teams were announced following the end of each game.
Boys
Matt Hawley, West Point
Jayden Laney, West Point
Sam Wheeler, West Point
Brody Peppers, Cold Springs
Seth Williams, Cold Springs
Ben Johnson, Hanceville
Taejon Jones, Hanceville
Parker Martin, Fairview
Collin Speegle, Good Hope
Kanen Trussle, Harmony
Tyler Simmons, Holly Pond
Landon Twitty, Parkside
Colby Miller, Vinemont
Girls
Summer Mendoza, West Point
Kristine Shaddix, West Point
Nikki Tyree, West Point
Reba McCarn, Cold Springs
Haley Williams, Cold Springs
Makayla Latham, Parkside
Morgan Lindsay, Parkside
Madyson Rickman, Holly Pond
Paris Pannel, Holly Pond
Cassidy Hutchinson, Fairview
Desire Odachawski, Good Hope
Lasundra Turner, Hanceville