Elizabeth Hill (3) posted 17 points in the Lady Eagles' 58-33 win over Phillips Saturday afternoon. (Martha Needham for The Cullman Tribune)
HANCEVILLE – Cold Springs, Good Hope and Cullman were in the field at the Jack’s New Year’s Rumble in Tom Drake Coliseum Saturday and both the Lady Eagles and Lady Bearcats collected impressive wins. Cold Springs blew past fourth-ranked Phillips 58-33, Cullman defeated Buckhorn 48-25 and Good Hope fell to the top-ranked Decatur Heritage Eagles 71-46.
(16-5) Cold Springs 58 – Phillips 33 (varsity girls)
The Lady Eagles were sharp from 3-point range and it helped them jump out to an early 12-3 lead over the Lady Red Raiders. After missing her first few shots, Camryn Crider found her rhythm midway through the first quarter and didn’t cool down for the rest of the first half. Crider knocked down six shots from behind the arc in the first half, leading all scorers with 20 points at the break and helping Cold Springs build a 40-13 lead.
The Lady Eagles continued to shoot the ball well and maintained their lead through the third quarter before a hot-clock kicked in early in the fourth, allowing Cold Springs to cruise to a 58-33 win.
All of Cold Springs’ scoring came from just four players. Crider led the Lady Eagles with 23 points, 21 of which came from behind the 3-point line. Elizabeth Hill finished just behind her with 17 points, followed by Toni West and Lina Lieckfeld who added 10 and eight, respectively.
Cold Springs will look to keep things rolling in the right direction when the Lady Eagles travel to play Southeastern on Tuesday.
(17-4) Cullman 48 – Buckhorn 25 (varsity girls)
Points were hard to come by in this one and the Lady Bearcats found themselves trailing 7-3 at the end of the opening frame. Cullman struggled to hit some open shots but defensive pressure in the second quarter kept them close to the Lady Bucks, and a 3-pointer from Jaden Winfrey gave the Lady Bearcats a 12-11 lead midway through the period. Alexandria Barker laid one in at the halftime buzzer to tie the game at 14 going into the break.
Neither offense was able to create separation in the third quarter and the lead changed hands several times. Back-to-back 3-point baskets from Sadie Young and Reagan Quattlebaum late in the third gave Cullman a 26-23 lead going into the fourth quarter and the Lady Bearcats really began to pull away after that.
Olivia Neal knocked down a three and converted an and-one play at the free-throw line to put Cullman on top 33-25 early in the fourth quarter, and the Lady Bearcats continued to pour it on for the rest of the period. The Lady Bearcats forced turnovers on most of Buckhorn’s fourth-quarter possessions and held the Lady Bucks to just two points in the final frame. A 3-pointer from Kinslee Borden and an and-one basket from Hannah Hoffman put Cullman ahead 48-25 late in the quarter and that score would hold through the final buzzer.
Nine different Bearcats scored in the win, led by Neal and Quattlebaum who each finished with nine points. AK Eastman and Winfrey added six, Kortlin Cuellar posted five points, Barker added four and Borden, Hoffman and Young each scored three. The Lady Bearcats will be back in action when they host Athens on Tuesday.
Decatur Heritage 71 – (13-4) Good Hope 46 (varsity boys)
The Raiders fell behind early in this one as Decatur Heritage put together a 12-0 start and held Good Hope scoreless for the first three minutes of the game. The Raiders managed to fight back and make it a 22-11 game by the end of the first quarter, but they weren’t able to get any closer than that.
The first-ranked Eagles smothered Good Hope defensively and were able to score from the inside and outside on the offensive end. Decatur Heritage stretched its lead to 39-19 at the half and pulled away in the second half to win it 71-46.
Cole Maddox led the Raiders with 20 points, followed by Noah Fendley with nine points and Lawton Farr who put up seven points in the fourth quarter alone. Good Hope will try to bounce back on the road against Hanceville Tuesday night with the no. 1 seed in the Cullman County Tournament on the line.
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