HOLLY POND, Ala. – West Point made the short trip over to Felton Easterwood Gymnasium to take on Holly Pond in a pair of varsity matchups Tuesday night and they ended up splitting their games with the Broncos. In the girls’ game, a strong start by West Point helped propel the Lady Warriors to a 67-40 win over Holly Pond while in the varsity boys’ game, the Broncos got off to a great start and had to withstand a late push from the Warriors to hold onto a 52-44 win.
West Point 67 – Holly Pond 40 (Varsity Girls)
A Hallie Wheeler trey got West Point on the scoreboard first, then later on, Camryn Faulkner put in a tough jumper to give the Lady Warriors an early 5-0 lead. Holly Pond was held scoreless for almost four minutes until an Emma Earl made shot put them on the scoreboard. A rebound and put-back by Laklin Shadix made it 7-2 and that was the start of a big night for her. Liberty Shadix drilled a long-range shot and Laklin Shadix added a couple of put-back shots to push the Lady Warrior lead to 14-4 and they would end up taking an 18-5 lead into the second period.
A made shot by Samantha Giles made it a 20-7 game early in the second quarter and she would later knock down a three to cut it to 22-10. Another made basket down low by Laklin Shadix made it 24-10, but another Giles trey cut it to 24-13. Wheeler and Liberty Shadix each knocked down a long-range shot to push the West Point lead to 30-15 late in the second quarter. Liberty Shadix and Emma Earl each traded baskets to end the first half as the Lady Warriors took a 34-17 lead into the locker room.
Jaelyn Faulker hit a driving layup and Wheeler drilled a pair of treys as that gave West Point a 42-18 lead. Another Jaelyn Faulkner made shot and threes by Camryn Faulkner, Liberty Shadix, and Laklin Shadix made it a 60-24 game going into the final period. The fourth quarter saw the younger players get some playing time under a running clock as the Lady Warriors ended up winning their game over the Lady Broncos, 67-40.
Laklin Shadix finished with 21 points, 20 rebounds, and three blocks for West Point (9-7). Liberty Shadix added 16 points and eight rebounds. Wheeler ended up with 12 points and Jaelyn Faulkner added nine points. For Holly Pond (7-9), Earl led the way with nine points. Giles added eight points and Madison Butts ended up with seven points.
Holly Pond 52 – West Point 44 (Varsity Boys)
West Point got on the scoreboard first on an Ashton Rodgers made shot, but a short hook shot by Levi Farr got Holly Pond on the scoreboard. Blake Rickard knocked down a three from the right wing and Kollin Brown hit a driving layup to give the Broncos a 9-2 lead. Kolten Perry put in a tough shot to cut it to 10-4 with less than two minutes to go in the opening period, but a Jackson Wilkins trey from the right corner made it 13-4 going into the second period.
A pair of Rickard free throws increased the Holly Pond lead to 15-4, but a Rodgers made shot cut it to 15-7. Sawyer Olinger knocked down a short jumper to make it 17-7, then a pair of baskets by Farr pushed the Bronco lead to 21-11. Another Rickard trey made it 24-11 with a little over three minutes to go in the first half, but the Warriors quickly made a dent into Holly Pond’s lead to end the first half. A pair of free throws by Jay Lamar, a Perry made shot, and a Rodgers three cut it to 24-18 at the half.
The Warriors continued their run into the third quarter as Perry and Pressley Burtis each knocked down a trey to cut it to 26-24. Burtis added a shot down low to tie the game up at 26 with 5:25 left to go in the third quarter. The Broncos quickly responded with a three of their own by Carson Ryan and Olinger hit a shot of his own to give the Broncos a 31-26 lead. J.D. Cochran hit a shot down low to make it a 31-29 game late in the third period, but with less than two minutes to go in the quarter, five straight points by Ryan pushed the Holly Pond lead to 36-29. A pair of Lamar free throws made it a five-point game going into the final period.
Baskets by Christian Couch and Olinger made it 40-31 early in the final quarter, but a Rodgers trey and a pair of Cochran free throws cut it to 40-36. A Perry made shot made it a 41-37 game, but Ryan knocked down a shot down low and Brown knocked down a three to make it 46-37. Rodgers knocked down a pair of shots to swivel the deficit to eight at 49-41 and later hit a pair of free throws to cut it to 50-44, but they wouldn’t get any closer after that as a pair of Rickard free throws helped seal the 52-44 win for Holly Pond.
Ryan led the way for Holly Pond (14-4) with 11 points. Brown and Rickard each added 10 points, while Olinger and Farr each ended up with eight points. For West Point (7-11), Rodgers finished with 16 points. Perry added 10 points and Lamar ended up with seven points.
Holly Pond will stay at home Friday night to host Falkville in their first area games while West Point travels to take on Russellville for another pair of area matchups.
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