By Michael Lindsay
Girls
The Stone Memorial Lady Panthers picked up a road victory Friday evening as they won at Oak Ridge in in the first day of the 5 Star Preps Hoop Jam.
“I am really proud of our kids,” said Stone Memorial head coach Mike Buck. “They competed and handled pressure. We talked on defense; Oak Ridge is solid at getting extra shots, so our focus was limiting that.
The Lady Panthers were balanced offensively on Friday as Kortney Headrick led Stone Memorial with 14 points, followed by Lily Hinch with 11, Adison Howard with 10 and Ashley Whittenburg with 9.
Stone Memorial took control early as the Lady Panthers opened the game on a 12-2 run in the opening 3:15 of the first quarter. Stone Memorial led 18-10 after one period.
The Lady Panthers outscored Oak Ridge 21-11 in the second half as three Howard free throws at the halftime buzzer gave Stone Memorial a 39-21 lead entering the locker room.
Stone Memorial’s lead grew to nearly 30 points in the third quarter as they led 50-31 entering the fourth. Oak Ridge battled back late, but Stone Memorial’s lead was too much as the Lady Panthers won by a 59-44 final score.
“They pressured us a lot in the second half and we had a nice lead,” Buck said. “It was good for us to see 16 minutes of steady pressure. We’re better now than we were at the beginning of this game.”
Stone Memorial improves to 4-5 overall with the victory while Oak Ridge falls to 5-2. The Lady Panthers are set to face Fulton (1-9) Saturday afternoon at Hardin Valley Academy at 2 p.m. EST in the second day of the 5 Star Preps Hoop Jam.
Stone Memorial (59): Kortney Headrick 14, Lily Hinch 11, Adison Howard 10, Ashley Whittenburg 9, Kailee Waldo 6, Kara VonAchen 4, Paige Roberts 3, Rachel Houston 2
Boys
The Stone Memorial Panthers came up short in their first contest of the 5 Star Preps Hoop Jam Friday evening as they were defeated by defending Class 3A state champion Fulton, 73-39.
Junior guard Cade Capps led the Panthers with 15 points.
Stone Memorial (7-3) is scheduled to face Anderson County Saturday at 2 p.m. EST at Oak Ridge in the second day of the 5 Star Preps Hoop Jam.
