PJHS, DHCA win junior high titles
Priceville and Decatur Heritage claimed championship honors at the 2015 Morgan County Middle School Basketball Tournament at West Morgan Saturday night.
The Lady Bulldogs preserved their unbeaten season record by coming from behind to defeat the Lady Hawks, 42-33, in the girls final while Decatur Heritage’s boys defeated Eva’a Eagles, 23-19, in the boys final.
Priceville led 7-6 after one quarter but trailed by two points at halftime, 16-18, after Danville‘s Jolee Cole hit a three-pointer with four second left The Lady Bulldogs were up 29-25 after three quarters and clinched the win by making several free throws in the final minute of the game.
“I knew Danville would be ready and would give us a great game,” said Priceville head coach Kim Walker. “These girls put in a lot of extra practice time and it paid off.
“We kept 15 players on the team and each one has contributed in a special way, she pointed out. “They’ve all been great sports and have gotten better as the season progressed. “I‘ve very proud of them.”
The Lady Bulldogs ended the season with a 17-0 record.
Skyler Benson led Priceville in scoring with 17 points. Kathleen Wheeler added 11 points. Mishay Long had 6 points. Mauriene Clark added 4 points while Abby Moore scored 3 points.
Jolee Clark scored 13 points for the Lady Hawks and Kayla Compton and Grace Cobb each had 6 points.
In a hard-fought low-scoring battle, Eva (14-3) held a 5-2 edge after one period while Decatur Heritage (19-4) was up 8-5 at the halftime and held an18-3 edge after three periods.
“It was a hard fought game and the outcome wasn’t decided until the fourth quarter,” said Decatur Heritage head coach Steve Smith. “We were blessed to win.”
Jackson Kyle and Gage Lillich each scored 6 points for Decatur Heritage while Ashton Owens had 4 points and Ian Metzger scored 3 points.
Levi Kelley scored 9 points to lead Eva. Ben Shadden added 4 points and Carter Brown had 3 points.