Bryleigh Krieger, No. 10, slips past a Murphy defender for a crucial basket in Hayesville's thrilling victory over the Bulldogs.
By Gary Corsair
Sports Writer
Big schools, small schools, short and tall, Hayesville beats them all.
The girls varsity Lady Jackets extended their win streak to nine games and their record to 15-4 with victories over Andrews, Nantahala and Murphy last week.
The wins over Andrews and Murphy give Hayesville a 4-1 record in Smoky Mountain Conference play. The Lady Yellow Jackets take aim at conference leader Cherokee, 7-0, Friday on the road. That game should be a humdinger.
Hayesville 51, Murphy 47
Hayesville led most of the way, but the Bulldogs refused to go quietly.
Murphy led 44-43 with 3:22 left to play, but Bryleigh Krieger’s baseline bucket and two free throws she swished a minute later gave Hayesville a 47-44 lead it would not relinquish.
Murphy had the opportunity to pull within one by making two free throws, but neither went through the rim and Emma Ashe speared the rebound.
Hayesville sealed the deal with free throws by Ava “Unshakeable” Shook and Breanna Abrams, who also made a big steal with :46 on the clock. Ashe put the final kibosh on Murphy’s dreams by rebounding a missed three-pointer and dribbling out the clock.
“It’s a huge win for us. Any time you play rival schools, you throw records out the window,” Hayesville Coach Chad McClure said. “It’s a credit to Murphy that they kept playing hard. We found a way there at the end.”
Hayesville didn’t shoot very well, but they didn’t make many mistakes either, committing just 10 turnovers.
Every Lady Jacket hustled.
There were too many little/big moments to list, but a few hustle plays demanded recognition.
Krieger, starting in place of the injured Brooke Graves, set the tone less than a minute into the game when she chased down a missed Murphy shot, saved the ball from going out of bounds and flipped the ball backwards, over her shoulder, to keep the ball on Hayesville’s end.
Krieger had another inspiring moment with the Bulldogs leading 11-9 midway through the second quarter when Murphy rebounded a Hayesville miss and Krieger dove on the floor to steal the ball and pass it to Abrams, who put the ball in the hole to tie the game.
Special K struck again in the third period when she scooped up a loose ball, enabling Shook to score and put Hayesville up 26-17.
Krieger continued to display a knack for making the big play at the right time.
With :24 left in the third quarter, with Murphy chipping away at a 33-27 lead, Special K drove the lane and tossed in two points.
“I thought Krieger did some really good things. She hit a really big shot at that moment in the game that we needed to keep us going,” McClure stated.
Krieger, who finished with 6 points, two rebounds, two steals and 2-of-2 free throwing, wasn’t the only hero.
Ashe, the diminutive dandy, was also impressive with nine (count ‘em, nine) boards, 8 points, two assists and two steals. One of her biggest rebounds came when Murphy missed a free throw with 1:45 remaining and Hayesville leading 47-44. Earlier, she ripped a three-pointer to increase the lead to 43-38.
“I thought we got some really big minutes out of some kids,” McClure said. “A kid like Ashe getting nine rebounds. That was big.”
McClure also praised the tireless Malory Peck, who wore Murphy out with 11 rebounds (six on offense) and 12 points on 5-of-12 popping and 2-of-3 from the free throw line.
Peck kept the Lady Jackets alive with an awesome burst of activity at the start of the fourth quarter. During a span of 1:18, Peck swished a 10-footer to increase the lead to 37-31, grabbed rebounds at the defensive and offensive end, made a free throw and powered inside for a basket that made the score 40-33.
As usual, the back court of Ashe, Shook and Abrams, with Brooks coming off the bench, dictated the flow of the game.
Shook led the team with 14 points. She also had three assists, two steals. In the final 1:07, she displayed deft dribbling that ate up precious time, and made two free throws.
Abrams was everywhere once again. She scored 8, cleared six rebounds, handed out four assists, and hit 3-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Brooks contributed a timely three-pointer.
Hayesville also played smart, especially during a momentous third quarter. An example: Ashe patiently waited for a screen from Peck to get open for a three-pointer that gave Hayesville a 30-20 lead.
Murphy fought back to close the gap to 30-27, but Brooks restored order by taking a feed from Shook and busting a three-pointer with 1:44 left.
Krieger’s bucket on a feed from Abrams with :22 left was just as timely since Murphy scored again right before the horn sounded. Hayesville 35, Murphy 31.
In the fourth period, the Yellow Jackets kept Murphy at bay with teamwork, the aforementioned hustle and smarts.
“We didn’t shoot well early,” McClure said. “We missed some easy shots, but we just kept scrapping and grinding and found a way. I’m super proud of the effort and the hustle we showed, especially going after rebounds. We got tired there, we missed Brooke a little bit in our rotation. Kind of got us out of kilter at times, but hey, it’s a win.”
Hayesville 73, Nantahala 25
Hayesville roared to a 26-3 first-quarter lead and never looked back.
“Nantahala it was a good win for us,” McClure said. “We came out early and got a big lead and got a lot of playing time for some kids who don’t get a lot of playing time.”
The Lady Yellow Jackets stymied the visitors by making 10-of-10 free throws and only committing six turnovers.
Shook paced the balanced attack with 21 points on 5-of-7 three-point shooting, 2-of-2 free throwing, 2-of-2 from charity stripe, four assists and three rebounds without making an error.
Peck also starred, scoring 16 markers om 6-of-10 firing and taking seven rebounds.
Brooks added 7 points, six rebounds and two assists.
Abrams handed out four assists, scored 4 points, made two steals and had two rebounds.
Morrow added 4 points and two boards.
Krieger had a team-high eight rebounds, two assists and 2 points.
Ashe contributed 11 points by canning 4-of-6 from the field to go with four assists and two steals.
Brown had 4 points, three rebounds and two assists.
Moore added 2 points and two rebounds.
Graves had three boards and 2 points.
Briley Clampitt collected four boards and dished two assists.
Hayesville 53, Andrews 35
Hayesville used white-hot outside shooting to roar ahead of Andrews and then put the Wildcats away with gritty defense and unselfish offense last Tuesday.
The Wildcats had a 4-3 lead when Hayesville turned up the thermostat, with Shook doing most of furnace stoking.
The Hayesville heatwave included Shook nailing a three from the top of the key on a feed by Graves, Clampitt busting a triple a minute later on a pass from Ashe and Shook hitting a trey off a Clampitt assist.
The barrage of long balls gave Hayesville a 12-6 advantage at the end of the first stop.
Shook added three more home runs and her teammates controlled the boards in the second quarter. Graves snared four boards, Clampitt three.
Hayesville was sitting pretty, 23-14, at the half.
Shook changed her M.O. in the third quarter by foregoing the long ball and driving to the hoop, which repeatedly put her on the foul line. She earned five trips to the charity stripe, where she cashed in six times.
Hayesville led 39-17 after three quarters.
The Yellow Jackets had 13 steals and only made nine turnovers.
Shook tallied 25 markers on 5-of-9 firing from downtown. Ashe added eight, Peck tossed in six and Moore had five markers. Krieger contributed four, Abrams two.
Shook led the team in seven steals and six assists. She also had three rebounds.
Krieger, Graves and Clampitt tied for honors in rebounds. They each had five. Peck and Ashe had four boards apiece. Abrams had two caroms.
Ashe, who didn’t commit any turnovers, also had four assists.