By Staff
Charles Prince/Hartselle Enquirer
DECATUR – The Lady Tigers of Hartselle High played most of the tournament final in the River City Classic without leading scorer Shan Jones.
The injury would contribute to a 14-point loss to the host Decatur Lady Red Raiders, a team Hartselle had beaten earlier this season.
Jones appeared to twist her knee early in the opening period of play and sat out the rest of the contest.
Decatur 54,
Hartselle 40
The Lady Tigers trailed by only four points at halftime, but a 27-17 Decatur run in the second half took Hartselle out of the game.
The second half run was fueled by Hartselle turnovers. The Lady Tigers committed 24 turnovers and forced only 12.
Lauren Drake led Hartselle with 17 points on eight-of-10 shooting.
Mary Virginia Reeves and Anna Reeves scored six each, followed by Jessica Andrews with five and Jones with four.
Kayla Orr added two points.
The loss dropped Hartselle's record to 13-3 overall.
Hartselle 69,
Buckhorn 65
In the tournament semi-finals, the Lady Tigers trailed by seven points at halftime but used a 22-12 run in the third period to take the lead. In the final period, Hartselle held off a Buckhorn rally.
Jones scored a game-high 20 points to led the way, followed by Drake with 16 and Mary Virginia Reeves with 10.
Anna Reeves and Andrews
scored eight each, while Orr added seven more.
Hartselle held a 45-34 rebound advantage thanks to Drake's 15 boards and Jones' 12.
Hartselle 53,
Carver-Montgomery 51
With the score tied at 51, Mary Virginia Reeves sank a jumper with four seconds to play to lift the Lady Tigers into the tournament semi-finals.
Jones again led the scoring with 24, followed by Andrews with 12, Drake with nine, while Anna and Mary Virginia Reeves scored four each.
Hartselle 58,
Grissom 45
Hartselle turned a seven-point halftime advantage into a 16-point lead with a 18-9 run in the third period as they improved to 11-2 on the season.
Jones led all scorers with 20, followed by Drake and Mary Virginia Reeves with 14 each.
Reeves shot four-of-five from the field and five-of-six from the free throw line.
Anna Reeves added six more, while Tess Hill and Shauntee Smith had two points each.
Jones grabbed 13 rebounds and Drake 11 as Hartselle won the battle of the boards, 37-26.