Ringgold teams pick up dramatic home victories
The Ringgold Lady Tigers got two free throws from senior Maggie Reed with just 1.4 seconds left on the clock last Tuesday night to send the Blue-and-white to their fifth consecutive victory, 53-51, in front of their hometown fans.
The Lady Tigers were down four with 2:15 to go, but got back-to-back buckets from Jade Gainer to tie the score at 48 with 1:29 to go. Mattie Nuckolls answered with a 3-point play for Murray, but Ringgold’s Kayla Lopez drained a stepback 3-pointer with 48 seconds left to tie it up at 51.
After a Murray County turnover, Ringgold chose to play for the final shot and got Reed open at the top of the key. Her 3-point attempt hit off the back of the rim, but she timed her follow-up perfectly as she got the rebound and drew a foul on a put-back attempt.
The senior then connected on both foul shots to put the Lady Tigers up by two and Murray’s ensuing inbound pass to half-court was deflected by Gainer as the clock expired.
The two free throws were Reed’s only points of the fourth quarter as she finished with six points on the night. Lopez led the Lady Tigers with 14 to go with seven assists, while Gainer added 10 points and pulled down seven boards. Baileigh Pitts, Riley Nayadley and Caroline Hemphill each had seven points, while two from Hannah Scott rounded out the scoring.
Rockmart girls 69, Ringgold 63
Rockmart senior Keyarah Berry, ranked as one of the top 50 prospects in the country by ESPN, dropped in 52 points on Friday and the Lady Jackets needed every one of them to escape Ringgold with a victory.
The Lady Tigers led 3937 at halftime, but were outscored 18-9 in the third quarter. Four other players for Rockmart combined for 17 points, including five 3-pointers.
Nayadley had 20 points, eight rebounds and four steals for the Lady Tigers (6-2, 3-2). Reed finished with 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals. Pitts had 10 points and nine boards. Lopez finished with nine points to go with five rebounds and
four assists, while Hemphill had three points to round
out the scoring.
Ringgold boys 55, Rockmart 39
It’s been a tough start to the season for the Tigers, but on Friday night, the Blue-and-white were finally able to put it all together.
Facing the Jackets, a Class AA Elite Eight team last season, Ringgold got a combined 40 points from O’reilly Matthews and Jayden Williams as they picked up a win on Senior Night at David Moss Gymnasium.
It also marked the firstever coaching victory for first-year head coach Josh Hensley.
“It feels like a giant weight has been lifted off my shoulders,” said a relieved Hensley afterward. “I’m more proud that we were able to win on Senior Night for our two seniors, Daniel (Fow) and Christian (Balistreri), but we all understand it’s only one step in the right direction toward where we want to be.”
Rockmart got out to a slim 11- 8 lead after the first quarter, but the Tigers came charging back to take a 20-15 lead by halftime. They would outscore the Jackets by six in the third quarter before tacking on 22 points in the fourth to put it away.
Matthews finished with 22 points and Williams poured in 18 to set the pace. Fow and Caden Dodson each had four points. Gage Long and Alex Otting both added three and one point by Brevin Massengale rounded out the scoring column.
Murray Co. boys 70, Ringgold 43
Hensley would face his old team and his alma mater for the first time last Tuesday, but the Indians would dart out to a 16-4 lead after one period and took a 37-20 advantage at the break before extending their lead in the second half.
Cooper Sexton had 13 points for Ringgold (1-7, 1-5). Massengale finished with eight and Matthews had seven on the night. Williams chipped in with six points, followed by Fow with four, Dodson with three and Long with two.
The Lady Tigers were slated to play in a threeday tournament at North Murray High School early this week, but results were not available as of press time. The boys’ tournament had to be cancelled due to COVID-19 issues.