Lady Trailblazers bow out in state quarterfinals

MURFREESBORO — Daniel Boone senior Andrea Flores kept her head held high, embracing and congratulating one of the finalists who stood beside her on stage when she was named Class 3A Miss Basketball. A day after receiving Tennessee's top individual basketball honor, the Mississippi State-bound Flores left the court for the final time in a Lady Trailblazer uniform Wednesday at MTSU's Murphy Center. Chelby Jordan and Dyersburg brought second-ranked Daniel Boone's season to a close in the Class 3A state quarterfinals of the TSSAA BlueCross Basketball Championships, claiming a 46-34 triumph. "I've actually known Chelby since seventh grade, so I've known her for a long time. She's a great person, great player, very happy for her," Flores said. "Getting to know her off the floor, she's an amazing human being. I wish her nothing but the best." It was Jordan in the spotlight Wednesday, as she posted a double-double to keep Dyersburg's 15th overall state tournament trip, and fourth consecutive, going. She shot 7-of-15 and scored 18 points while grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out three assists with a team-high five steals. Jordan's and-one with 4:47 in the third quarter gave Dyersburg (26-6) a 19-point lead, and the margin grew to 34-12 before Boone ended the frame on a 9-1 run. "My mindset was just to go out and show that I'm the best on the floor," said Jordan, who's headed to Belmont to continue her basketball career after high school. "We had motivation coming into this game. We've been counted out all season. Everybody's said things about us, and I feel like we've proven ourselves on this stage." No doubt. Two years after winning its first-ever state championship, Dyersburg is two wins from another. The Lady Trojans are now 11-12 all-time at the big dance. CAN'T GET IN RHYTHM The Lady Trailblazers went to the locker room with more turnovers than points, giving the ball up 12 times in the first half — eight of those on steals by Dyersburg. Free throws by Ella Wilson kept Boone within 12-10 early, before the Lady Trojans ended the half on a 12-0 run. Jordan two jumpers in that stretch, the latter off-balance for a 24-10 halftime advantage. Neither Flores nor Aaliyah Story scored in the first half, Story ending her drought on a layup with 6:23 in the third quarter. Boone trailed 24-12 at that point. Flores dented the scoring column with 2:51 in the frame, and Story cleaned up a miss through contact with time running out to make it 35-21 entering the fourth. The Lady Trailblazers couldn't get closer than 12 points, the last time coming when Piper Ball buried a 3-pointer with 1:02 left for the final score. "We knew we had to slow (Flores) down. I thought we did a great job slowing her down," Dyersburg coach Tim Strayhorn said. "One thing about this team is we can play any style. We can play fast, we can press, we can zone, play any style so we can adapt really quick." Kay Kay Hockett and Kaliyah Lewis both had nine points for the Lady Trojans. SPECIAL YEAR In her final game before joining Chattanooga's basketball program, Story led Boone in the scoring column with 10 points and nine rebounds, along with four blocks. She fouled out with 5:18 remaining. Ella Wilson was second in scoring with eight points while matching Ayla Masters with five rebounds. Laney Britton fired in seven points, and Flores had six along with 11 rebounds. Wilson's 3-pointer broke the scoreless tie 1:52 into the game, and Britton hit from 3 nearly a minute later for a 6-0 lead. But the Lady Trojans scored 10 points before Boone's next field goal, a jumper from Britton which cut Dyersburg's lead to 10-8 after one quarter. "I knew if we were going to win, we were going to have to have a good shooting night," Wilson said, while reflecting and admitting her role didn't shift as much as she thought it might when Story and Britton transferred from David Crockett. "I thought my role might shift a lot, but it really hasn't. They were able to come in and just mold into the team so well and fit into where we needed them. We didn't really have to shift much. I think that's why we were so successful." Boone ended the year 32-4 overall, sweeping the conference, district and region championships before dominating Northview Academy in the sectional round. "Nobody I'd rather be with," Boone coach John Good said. "Every day, they answered the bell, had a lot of challenges, lot of adversity, had ups and downs. It may not look like it in our record, but we fought through a lot of things … they're going to make great moms, wives, and they're going to be great in anything they do. Great examples, just good people to be around." STILL LOOKING TO ADVANCE The Lady Trailblazers have now reached the TSSAA state tournament four times (1997, 1998, 2018 and 2026) but have yet to advance. Wednesday's loss was the closest they've come in terms of margin. Boone's previous closest state tournament game was a 20-point loss (53-33) to Grundy County in the 1998 Class AA quarterfinals. UP NEXT Dyersburg takes on Alcoa in the 3A semifinals on Friday, with tip set for 1:45 p.m. Eastern.