By Michael Lindsay
Lady Jets Win Thriller Over Stone Memorial, 45-42
The Cumberland County Lady Jets returned to action Tuesday following a 11-day layoff as they defeated cross-town rival Stone Memorial, 45-42.
“We knew it would be hard,” said Lady Jet head coach Kim Cram-Torres. “We told our kids that all the kids in this county have experienced the same thing being snowed in. There’s no excuses tonight and I thought we were mentally tough.”
Freshman guard Sydney Wilhite led the Lady Jets with 13 points along with 9 from point guard Aliyah Hawkins.
Daminica Beal hit three three-pointers off the bench totaling 9 points for the Lady Jets.
“I want to give all the credit in the world to Daminica,” said Cram. “She’s been through a lot and stays after practice every day and shoots. We tell our kids every day that somebody is going to need to do something they haven’t done before.”
Kortney Headrick led Stone Memorial with 10 points.
Cumberland County jumped out to an 11-5 lead via a Hawkins jumper with 2:00 remaining in the first period. Stone Memorial responded early in the second period as five consecutive points from Lily Hinch gave the Lady Panthers a 17-13 advantage.
Stone Memorial kept their lead into halftime as they led 28-25 at the break.
Following a back-and-forth third period, a Lauren Clark steal and layup with five seconds left in the third gave Cumberland County a 37-36 lead entering the fourth quarter.
After trading baskets early in the frame, a Headrick layup off a Waldo pass put Stone Memorial ahead 42-40 with 4:04 remaining.
“We kept letting their high post dive and we had to make that adjustment,” said Cram. “They were getting way too many easy looks. Stone is really good and they give you a lot of matchup challenges.”
Cumberland County tied the game via a pair of Wilhite free throws before a Lexi Carrol floater gave the Lady Jets a 44-42 lead with 3:16 left.
The floater would be the final made field goal of the game as Hawkins tacked on a free throw with less than a minute remaining to give Cumberland County a 45-42 victory.
The Lady Jets improve to 14-6 overall and 2-2 in District 7-3A play while Stone Memorial falls to 8-11 and 1-3.
Both teams are scheduled to hit the road Friday as Cumberland County travels to Livingston Academy while Stone Memorial travels to Upperman.
Cumberland County (45): Sydney Wilhite 13, Aliyah Hawkins 9, Daminica Beal 9, Lexi Carrol 8, Lauren Clark 4, Jalynn Baldwin 3
Stone Memorial (42): Kortney Headrick 10, Rachel Houston 8, Adison Howard 7, Ashley Whittenburg 6, Kailee Waldo 6, Lily Hinch 5
Cade Capps Drops 26 As Stone Memorial Takes Down Cumberland County, 49-26
Stone Memorial improved to 3-1 overall in District 7-3A action Tuesday evening as they won at Cumberland County, 49-26.
“I thought defensively we played really well,” said Stone Memorial head coach Neil Capps. “We held them to 26 points and I really liked how we were talking and communicating. Obviously, there’s going to be a certain measure of rust coming out of a break that long.”
Junior guard Cade Capps led the Panthers with 26 points along with 12 by Preston Mayberry. Huston Torres led Cumberland County with 11 points.
“We had multiple guys on Torres,” said Capps. “We knew we needed to stay close and if he got clean looks he’s knock them down. He’s a really good young player with a bright future.”
The Panthers took control early as they jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the first period and held an 18-6 advantage entering the second quarter.
“Any time you get out to a start like that, it’s big,” said coach Capps. “It calms your guys down playing over here with the environment and energy. We were able to keep that tempo going.”
Stone Memorial grew their lead to 17 points by halftime as they led 27-10 at the break.
The Panthers cruised through the second half as they led 39-17 after three before winning by a 49-26 final score.
“We knew they were going to compete hard and battle,” said Capps. “Any district win is a good win, and I’m proud of our effort.”
Stone Memorial improves to 13-7 overall and 3-1 in District 7-3A play with the win while Cumberland County falls to 2-13 and 0-4.
Both teams are scheduled to hit the road Friday as Cumberland County travels to Livingston Academy while Stone Memorial travels to Upperman.
Stone Memorial (49): Cade Capps 26, Preston Mayberry 12, Brady Lane 8, Jayden Eldridge 3
Cumberland County (26): Huston Torres 11, Ethan Dixon 9, Nolen Carter 4, Isaac Scarbrough 2
