HOLLY POND — Fairview’s varsity girls entered Thursday’s game at Holly Pond without a loss to a county opponent.

They’ll head into next week’s Cullman County Basketball Tournament the very same way.

The Aggies (17-4) controlled the Class 3A No. 8 Broncos (14-8) early, fought off a valiant comeback attempt and outlasted the home team to escape with a 50-44 triumph inside Felton Easterwood Gymnasium.

Taylor Ann Yeager attacked the paint late in the fourth quarter to convert a pair of crucial layups, which allowed her squad just enough breathing room for a big-time road victory.

“We just needed to get the score ran back up on them,” the sophomore guard said. “We didn’t want them to come back, so we needed some baskets. It helps our confidence to win a game like this. It helps us know where we’re at heading into next week.”

Fairview opened up a 14-5 first-quarter cushion and lead by 10 heading into halftime.

Holly Pond — needing a spark — switched to a box-and-one defense in the second half, which caused some issues for coach Mary Hartline’s Purple and Gold in the final 16 minutes.

The Broncos took advantage of those offensive lapses to cut their deficit down to six points with about four minutes remaining, thanks in part to Ruth Horton’s 3’s and Molly Gambrill’s clutch play.

“We have plenty of other girls who can score when people go to that defense,” Hartline said. “They just weren’t looking for the basket. When that happens, it’s four against four. We looked a little scared in the fourth quarter. You’ve got to take your shots. Despite that, we held strong and did what we had to do to win.”

Indeed they did.

The Green and White couldn’t hit their shots late, and Yeager’s baskets all but sealed the deal.

Yeager added eight assists and seven rebounds to her stat sheet, while Abbi Taylor (10 points, nine boards), McKinna Yearwood (nine points) and Lizzie Mae Garrison (seven points) also contributed in the victory.

For coach Scott Adams, it was yet another game chalked full of early missed opportunities.

Emphasis on early.

“Fairview’s very good, give them credit,” he said. “We gave ourselves a chance in the second half by scrapping hard. But we’ve got to get out of this ‘not being able to score in the first quarter’ stuff. We put ourselves in a hole. It makes it so hard to win.”

Horton finished with a game-high 18 points for Holly Pond, while Gambrill (12 points) and Haley Higginbotham (seven points and 12 rebounds) each dished out solid efforts.

Adams and Co. hope to get another shot at the Aggies in the finale of the county tournament a week from Saturday.

In order to do just that, they’ll have to get by Vinemont and the winner of Cold Springs/West Point.

“We’ve got to take care of ourselves,” said Adams, whose teams have won three straight county crowns. “We can’t keep going haywire. I love this team’s fight and toughness. But sometimes, we don’t play as smart as we should. But I believe in this team. We’re going to be the best we can be next week.

Fairview, on the other hand, will coax a first-round bye before tackling either Good Hope or Fairview.

For Hartline, she’s just glad to keep the Broncos at bay for as long as possible.

“This win does a lot for us, but I’m really happy we don’t play them in the first round,” Hartline said with a laugh.

Varsity Boys

% Holly Pond 81, Fairview 57: Midway through the third quarter of Thursday’s county clash, Mitch Morris called a timeout with his 3A No. 2 Bronco squad holding on to a slim one-point lead.

The oft-calm coach couldn’t help but let his frustration come to the surface during the short recess, either, urging his team to pick up its play on both ends of the court.

It seems as though Morris’ point came across loud and clear.

Holly Pond — having firmly been scolded — proceeded to go on a 42-19 run over the final 12 minutes to seize firm control of the outcome and improve to 17-4 on the season.

So, what caused the fire within Morris?

“I got tired of seeing us play awful,” he said. “We were just awful. We weren’t playing well offensively, defensively. I really don’t like to be that way, but every now and then I have to … to get their attention. We got after them pretty hard after that.”

The Broncos led 23-6 after one quarter, but the Purple and Gold didn’t back down. The road team received strong contributions by Sam Elrod (18 points), Austin Fletcher (15) and Bryson Fletcher (eight) to trim into their double-digit deficit.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.

Drew Jones went off for 22 points, Matt Cahoon tacked on 19 and Dylan Basenburg drained a quartet of fourth-quarter treys to all but leave the Purple and Gold in the dust.

Basenburg finished the contest with 15 points. Other contributors were Dawson Foust and Griffin Morris, six points each; and Jed Hardman and Michael Lambert, four apiece. Hardman also notched 10 rebounds.

For Morris, it was another chance to see what his squad looked absent an important piece — Bailey Smith. The junior guard was shelved for the year last week with a back injury, leaving Holly Pond searching for some ingredients for a new recipe at the point.

“We’ve got the people who can step up,” the coach said. “We can’t replace him, but we can fill in and handle our offense. Bench play will be key. When those guys have their head right, we’ll be OK.”

Both teams will now turn their attention to the county tournament. The Broncos will await the winner of Cold Springs/Fairview.

“I hate we have such a big gap,” said Morris, who won’t see the court again until next Friday. “We’ll have to get creative with how we practice. There’s four or five teams that can win this thing. You’ve got to play your best every night, because you know you’ll get everyone else’s very best.”