Belgreen sweeps Hackleburg on Senior Night after girls’ rout, boys hit buzzer-beater
The Belgreen High School girls’ and boys’ varsity basketball teams picked up victories over Class 1A Hackleburg to celebrate Senior Night on Monday. In between the Belgreen girls rout of the Lady Panthers and the BHS boys’ buzzer-beater over the visitors, Belgreen recognized 12 senior basketball players and three cheerleaders.
Senior Night tipped off with the Belgreen girls taking down Hackleburg in convincing fashion, dispatching the Lady Panthers by a final of 62-27.
After a “slow” first period of play in which BHS scored 11 points to Hackleburg’s six, the Lady Bulldogs really picked up the pace in the second quarter. Exploding offensively and playing suffocating defense, BHS outscored HHS 26-2 to take a 37-8 lead into halftime.
Belgreen’s Randi Terry, who would finish with a game-high 23 points, scored 13 of those points, including nine from three-point range, in the second quarter.
That eight-minute torrent before the break allowed the Lady Bulldogs to coast by the Lady Panthers in the second half. Hackleburg nearly doubled its point production in the third quarter alone by scoring 15 points, but Belgreen more than kept pace: BHS outscored HHS 17-15 in the third and 8-4 in the fourth to win by 35 points.
The three-point shot was especially effective for the Lady Bulldogs in the victory. BHS hit 10 total three-pointers in the game—five from Terry, three from senior Alayna Tate, one from senior Isabella Tate, and one from Jemma Moore.
Behind Terry’s 23 points, Alayna Tate finished with nine points, senior Carson Hovater scored eight, Isabella Tate had seven, senior MaKenna Fisher added four, and senior Mackinley Hogan scored two points.
All five of the BHS girls’ team’s seniors—Hogan, the Tates, Fisher, and Hovater, who were recognized after the game—ended up on the scoresheet against Hackleburg, exemplifying the unselfish nature of the group, head coach Chad Green said.
“They’re an easy group to coach. They make good grades, they’re on time to practice and don’t miss practice, and they play team basketball,” he said. “One girl doesn’t try to get out there and shoot the ball 45 times. They move the ball, they work it inside and out, and they play team basketball—that’s what we’re all about.”
Following senior recognition after the girls game, Green also praised his group of seniors for what they’ve been able to achieve in their time wearing the Belgreen uniform.
“What we talked about pregame was how accomplished they are,” he told the Franklin Free Press. “They won three county championships in a row, which has never been done before here at Belgreen in the girls’ program; they just won 20 games for the fourth season in a row; and they’re just decorated with what they’ve been able to accomplish.
“They’ve been with me for a long time; most of them have been with me since the seventh or eighth grade, so they’re experienced and they’re veterans,” he added.
In the nightcap between the Belgreen and Hackleburg boys, things played out much more competitively than the previous contest. The Bulldogs ultimately won 52-49, but the hosts needed a shot at the buzzer to come out on top in regulation.
The first half was a tale of two quarters: The visitors came out and doubled up on Belgreen 12-6 in the first period, but BHS responded with a 21-point second to take a 27-16 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
The third quarter saw another turn of fortune as the Panthers came out hot and cut the deficit to two points after outpacing the Bulldogs 17-8.
Down 35-33 heading into the fourth quarter, Hackleburg continued to hang around and keep Belgreen uneasy. Going into the final moments of the contest, knotted up at 49 apiece, it was either team’s to win, but the Bulldogs were able to get some literal last-second heroics from Jake Dill. The junior, putting up his shot just before the buzzer, hit a go-ahead three-pointer to win the game for BHS in regulation, 52-49—a memorable way to cap a memorable night for so many, if nothing else.
Belgreen High School’s basketball seniors. Back row, from left to right: Parker Morgan, Braycen Johnson, Gabe Estrada, Easton Mitchell, Jonathan Mendoza, Aaron Rubido, and Miguel Cruz-Perez; kneeling, L-R: Alayna Tate, Carson Hovater, MaKenna Fisher, Mackinley Hogan, and Isabella Tate.
The hero Dill finished the game with 13 points, but it was senior Braycen Johnson who led the Bulldogs with 18 points.
Five of the BHS boys’ seven seniors started the game—those players were Johnson, Easton Mitchell, Parker Morgan, Miguel Cruz-Perez, and Gabe Estrada. The remaining two seniors, Jonathan Mendoza and Aaron Rubido, came off the bench to score six and five points, respectively, for the Bulldogs.
All seven were honored before their game. Their head coach, Will Bonner, said the large senior class has continued to work hard despite the hardships they’ve faced.
“These guys have meant a lot to the program, and they’re great leaders,” Bonner said. “They show up everyday and work hard. We’ve faced a lot of adversity, faced a lot of injuries, but despite that they continue to show up and work every single day.”