Red Bay, Russellville girls’ basketball teams to travel for sub-region games after runner-up finishes at area tourneys
The Red Bay High School and Russellville High School varsity girls’ basketball teams both lost in their respective area tournament championship games Monday night, which means the Lady Tigers and Lady Golden Tigers will travel for their sub-region matchups later in the week. Red Bay lost to host Sulligent by a final score of 46-15 and Russellville was defeated 54-49 on the road at No. 4 West Point.
Starting with Red Bay, the Lady Tigers had to first go through Lamar County in the area tournament semifinal to reach the championship round. RBHS, playing at home as the No. 2 seed, won comfortably, beating the Lady Bulldogs 47-29.
Steered by freshman Katlyn Lindley, who finished with a game-high 16 points, the Lady Tigers held a 17-point, 28-11 lead at halftime and maintained that advantage through the second half.
In addition to Lindley’s 16, seniors DaRilee Colburn and Gracie Edgmon each scored nine points for the Lady Tigers.
In the Class 2A Area 10 tournament championship, the Sulligent Lady Blue Devils, ranked No. 8 in Class 2A, took care of Red Bay with a convincing 31-point victory.
The Lady Tigers got off to an inauspicious start. RBHS was shutout 17-0 in the opening period and things improved only slightly over the remaining three quarters. Red Bay was able to end its drought in the second but went into halftime down 26-8. In the second half, Sulligent outpaced Red Bay 12-2 in the third quarter and 8-5 in the fourth to secure the area crown.
Sophomore Kamryn Kuykendall had four points to lead the Lady Tigers in the defeat.
Red Bay’s next opponent will be the champion of Area 11, either Cold Springs or Falkville, in the sub-regional. The Lady Tigers will travel for that contest.
Russellville’s route to a third-straight area runner-up finish began with a tournament semifinal game at home against rival Lawrence County. The Lady Golden Tigers handled the Lady Red Devils without much trouble, beating them 79-52. It was the second time RHS has beaten LCHS by 20-plus points this season.
It didn’t take long for Russellville to take command of the game. RHS had a 21-9 lead after the first eight minutes and expanded its lead to 18 points by halftime. That trend continued in the second half and the Lady Golden Tigers were able to cruise into the championship round.
Junior Ella Copeland, who is averaging just over 25 points per game this season, scored 29 points against Lawrence County. Sophomore Angeleah Smith and senior Laila Hill also hit double figures with 17 and 15 points, respectively.
In the Class 5A Area 15 tournament championship game Monday night, Russellville’s fortunes unfortunately turned. While the Lady Golden Tigers, playing on the road, were able to keep it much closer than in their two previous meetings with West Point this season, they were ultimately unable to grab what would have been a first area title since 2010. The No. 4-ranked Lady Warriors carried the day with a 54-49 victory.
Down 12 points at halftime, Russellville narrowed the gap in the final two periods, closing to within eight points after three and pulling within two shots late. In the end there just wasn’t enough time for RHS to potentially pull of the comeback upset.
Copeland once again led the Lady Golden Tigers with a 24-point performance. Hill gave Russellville 13 points and Smith 10. Sophomore Bella Malone rounded out the team’s scoring with two points.
The defeat dropped Russellville’s record to 18-12. It also means RHS will travel to the champion of Area 13, either Boaz or Sardis, for its sub-region game on Friday, February 13.