OT setbacks land Ringgold girls No. 4 seed
The Ringgold Lady Tigers, who entered the Region 6-AAA tournament ranked ninth in the state and seeded third in the nine-team field, will begin the Class AAA state tournament this week on the road as a No. 4 seed.
Ringgold scored a win over LaFayette to qualify for state, but endured two tough overtime losses during the weekend. They will open the playoffs on the road at fifth-ranked East Jackson (23-3), the Region 8 champion.
RINGGOLD GIRLS 52, LAFAYETTE 43
The Lady Tigers grabbed a 17-10 after the first quarter at LaFayette this past Wednesday and carried a 26-20 lead into halftime. They opened up a doubledigit advantage going into the fourth before keeping the Lady Ramblers at arm’s length over the final eight minutes.
Rachel Lopez scored 16 points, dished out eight assists and collected three steals. Baileigh Pitts had nine points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Taylor Layne had eight points, five boards and four steals, while Addi Broome finished with eight points, five rebounds and three assists.
Allie Massengale added six points and two rebounds, while Kayla Lopez chipped in with five points.
MURRAY COUNTY GIRLS 47, RINGGOLD 39
Freshman Kayla Lopez hit a dramatic 3-pointer at the buzzer to send Friday’s semifinal to overtime, but the second-seeded and sixthranked Lady Indians outscored the Lady Tigers 9-1 in the extra session.
The two teams put on a classic for the first four quarters. Murray County led 11-9 after the first quarter and were up 16-9 at halftime as the Lady Indians scored the only five points of the second quarter.
SEE RINGGOLD GIRLS, B5