Lady 'Toppers reach district title game, D-B falls to Lady Hurricanes

MORRISTOWN — After spending virtually the entire season on the comeback trail, Science Hill's girls found themselves in an unfamiliar position on Friday night - holding a double-digit lead in the second half. It wasn't always pretty down the stretch, but the Lady Hilltoppers were able to hold off a furious charge by West Ridge to escape with a 57-51 victory in the semifinals of the District 1-4A girls' basketball tournament. "We haven't had a lead and had to keep a lead," said Science Hill coach Beau Hauldren said. "We haven't experienced that game pressure, and then to have it for the first time in the semifinals of the district tournament - it wasn't pretty, but we were able to win the game." With the win, third-seeded Science Hill moved to 14-15 on the season and will advance to face top-seeded Morristown East in the district title game on Monday night. The Lady Hilltoppers also guaranteed themselves a home game in the semifinals of the Region 1-4A tournament next week. The Lady Wolves fell to 22-8 and will face fourth-seeded Dobyns-Bennett in the district consolation game. The Lady Hilltoppers led for the majority of Friday's contest, but it was nip and tuck until a 10-1 run in the third quarter put them ahead 36-22. Serenity Phillips powered the scoring spurt with a 3-pointer and a putback. When freshman Amiah Lewis hit a 3-pointer to put Science Hill ahead 45-31 in the fourth quarter, it looked like it would be smooth sailing for the Lady Hilltoppers. But West Ridge embarked on a furious rally that pulled the Lady Wolves within a point with 29.6 seconds left in the game. A couple empty possessions by West Ridge and just enough free throws from the Lady Hilltoppers sealed the deal for Science Hill. It was a case of too little, too late for the Lady Wolves, who shot just 9 for 41 from the floor in the first three quarters. Lewis led Science Hill with 17 points while Khloe Sommers and Gabby Long added 10 points each. Carter Jones was instrumental in West Ridge's fourth-quarter rally, finishing with 16 points. Millie Shelton added 13 points for the Lady Wolves. Morristown East 60, Dobyns-Bennett 47 The top-seeded Lady Hurricanes came flying out of the gates and left the fourth-seeded Lady Indians in their wake. Morristown East, which moved to 22-6 on the season, will advance to face Science Hill in the district title game on Monday night. The Lady Hurricanes knocked down 10 3-pointers en route to the win. Dobyns-Bennett fell to 16-13 and will play West Ridge in the consolation game with seeding in the regional tournament on the line. East led 19-10 at the end of the first quarter and scored the first eight points of the second period to push their advantage to 17 points. D-B's Sally McReynolds picked up a couple of early fouls, which threw a wrench into the Tribe's gameplan. The Lady Hurricanes led by as many as 18 in the first half before taking a 35-19 lead into halftime. The Lady Indians got within 11 points on a bucket by McReynolds, who led D-B with 11 points, but the Lady Hurricanes closed out the third quarter on a 13-0 run to build a 53-29 lead heading into the fourth. The goal now for D-B is to regroup with an eye on securing the third seed in the regional tournament. "This thing is a long way from over," said D-B coach Bill Francis. "We still have a great opportunity to be the third seed. We're not in a bad spot. I don't think many people even thought we'd be here when the season started." Hannah Hall paced East with 18 points while Kennedy Phiillps scored 16 and Molli Stuffle added 10.