Still dancin’ Heritage girls enjoy Elite status
A program that for years had trouble getting out of the first round of the GHSA state playoffs is now one win away from the Final Four.
After collecting its first-ever state playoff victory against Chestatee on Feb. 16, the Heritage Lady Generals picked up its second-ever playoff victory on Thursday as they held off Oconee County, 53-42, to punch their ticket to the Class 4A Elite Eight.
“I think we’re all kind of numb right now,” head coach Eddie Bryant said. “All year, this team hasn’t gotten very high or very low. With our six seniors, it’s just been sort of business-like. But I think they’ll get home tonight and starting thinking about what they’ve done and what they’ve accomplished and say ‘my gosh, we’re in the Elite Eight’.”
No. 10-ranked Heritage jumped out quickly on Thursday and led wire-to-wire, though it was far from a comfortable win. Emily Wiley
scored 15 points in the first half, nine in the opening quarter, while Ansley Bice added seven first-quarter points as the Lady Generals took an 18-6 lead after the opening period.
The Lady Warriors would keep Heritage from pulling away and sliced the gap down to six points in the final minute of the half. But a scrappy defensive play from Gracie Murray led to a loose ball foul on Oconee County and Wiley would connect on two free throws with 5.1 seconds left to give her team a 24-16 lead at intermission.
Oconee County (17-13) would trim the deficit down to three after scoring the first five points of the second half. But back-toback buckets by Wiley was followed a short time later by a big 3-pointer from Bice as Heritage was able to take a 34-27 lead into the fourth quarter.
Once again, the visitors from Watkinsville refused to go quietly. They would get big block on the defensive end, which led to a
basket by Julia Peroni at the other end, and suddenly Heritage’s lead was down to 34-30 with six minutes remaining.
But the Lady Generals wouldn’t allow them to take the lead.
Bice converted a big 3-point play with 5:29 to go and, after Oconee County got back to within three points of the lead with 4:30 remaining, Wiley knocked down two free throws following an offensive rebound. Moments later, senior Haley Phillips hit perhaps her biggest shot of the season, ripping the nets with a three to push the Heritage lead back to eight, 42-34, with 2:38 left.
“That was a big 3-pointer Haley hit,” Bryant said. “She just buried it and that was really the shot that got us over the hump.”
Bice would find Sydnee St. John all alone under the basket for two big points with 1:31 to go and Heritage would ice the game at the line as Wiley and Bice combined to go 9-of-12 at the charity stripe in the final 1:04.
Bryant said his team’s experience helped in crunch time.
“These seniors have been around a long time,” he said. “They’ve been there and done that, espe-
cially in tight games that come down to the fourth quarter. They just know how to play in tough situations.”
Wiley finished with 24 points and went 10-of-12 at the line, while Bice had 21 points, including a 9-of-12 night at the line. As a team, Heritage was 20-of-26 from the free throw stripe, while Oconee County was just 6-of-15. St. John picked up four points, Phillips finished with three and Murray added one.
Sara English had 12 points to pace Oconee County with Peroni finishing with 10.
Up next for Heritage (24-5) will be No. 1-ranked Carver-Columbus (29-0). The game will be played in Boynton on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Lady Tigers coasted past Cross Creek, 76-36, in their second-round game.
The winner of the game will face either Region 4 champion Henry County or Region 7 champion Flowery Branch on March 2 (6 p.m.) at Fort Valley State University in the Final Four.
Heritage is also the lone remaining team from Region 7 in the field after Northwest Whitfield dropped a narrow 65-61 decision at Sandy Creek in the second round.