Warriors’ season draws to a close in OT thriller
Gordon Central dropped its first Region 7-AA tournament game to Armuchee on Monday night.
The Gordon Central Warriors witnessed its season come to an end on Monday night with a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Armuchee Indians by a score of 60-52.
The Warriors ( 3- 23, 1- 13 in Region 7-AA) couldn’t get its shots to fall early, and fell into a swift and early 12-3 deficit in the first three minutes in the contest.
Gordon Central continued to remain determined, and battled back all night while displaying solid team defense. The Warriors held the Indians to just 15 points the entirety of the second half.
The tables begin to really turn as the fourth quarter began when Warriors took advantage of quick 6-0 run to close the scoring gap to three. It was a back and forth game the whole fourth quarter with costly turnovers and missed shots by both teams.
With under a minute to go, Christian Marycz headed to the free throw line for Gordon Central for two shots, down 50-49. He made the front end of the two, which tied the game at 50 with a little over 30 seconds to go.
Armuchee (7-16, 5-9 in Region 7-AA) failed to score in the closing seconds to force the game into overtime.
Overtime proved to be all Armuchee, as the Warriors’ foul trouble eventually caught up to them and became the deciding factor, as leading scorers Dawson Lackey and Marycz both fouled out to put the Warriors in a tough spot on both ends of the court.
When it was all said and done, the Indians converted its clutch free throw opportunities the stretch to hold on for the overtime victory.
Armuchee (7-16, 5-9) had two in double figures. Brayden Perry had 11 points, and Eli Brock added 10 points for the Indians. They move on to face the Coosa Eagles in the second round of the 7-AA region tournament on Tuesday.
The Warriors were led by senior Dawson Lackey, with 23 points. Christian Marycz was also in double figures for Gordon Central with 12.
Head Coach Derrick Broom said after the game that he thought the team fought hard, but was still disappointed.
“It’s a hard loss,” Broom said. “Foul trouble did hurt us, but it was still a winnable game. We didn’t fulfill our standard this season. We left plenty on the court every game, but it does come down to practice, and it shows. It comes down to the a mental change, and until that happens for us, it’s going to continue this way.”
He also wanted to give one last comment on his seniors and who have shown growth as the season has progressed. Broom is also now turning his attention on next season and how his team can advance further when the next tournament rolls around.
“They are going be missed,” Broom said. “Hopefully, we can find something at the next level for them. They contributed a good bit to the team this year, so it will be a big loss for us. Now, we have to get the underclassmen ready for next year.”