Oak Ridge boys grab another district crown

The last time Oak Ridge High School did not claim the District 3-AAA title was back in the 2011-12 season when Powell defeated the Wildcats in the semifinals.

History did not repeat itself on Tuesday.

Oak Ridge cruised to an 86-58 rout of the Panthers at Clinton High School en route to their fifth consecutive district title.

Powell hung around for a quarter, trailing 19-14 after the first, but the Wildcats dropped 30 points in the second to take a 49-31 lead into halftime. Out of the break, Oak Ridge outscored the Panthers 24-11 to put the game away.

Anthony Gibson scored a game-high 24 points for Oak Ridge. Tajion Jones and Tee Higgins also contributed 21 and 14 points, respectively. Powell was led by Jack Richards’ 14 points.

The Wildcats will host West in the opening round of Region 2-AAA tournament, while Powell will face Hardin Valley. All first-round games in the boys region tournament are scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday.

Catholic 70, CAK 54: Catholic extended its winning streak to 22 games and grabbed the District 4-AA championship with a rout of CAK.

The Irish limited the Warriors to just two points in the second quarter while scoring 15 of their own to turn a one-point lead into a 33-19 advantage heading into halftime. CAK cut the deficit to 11 in the third quarter, but Catholic tallied 22 points in the fourth to close out the victory.

The Irish were paced by Brock Jancek’s 19 points, while Jack Sompayrac (17), Luke Smith (16) and Davari Reeder (10) also scored in double figures. Hunter Reynolds scored a game-high 23 points for CAK and Isaiah Sulack added 17.

Both Catholic and CAK will host region games, with Catholic playing Union County and CAK facing Austin-East.

Grainger 59, Greeneville 46: Grainger downed Greeneville in the District 2-AA championship game to claim its first district title in program history. The Grizzles were led by a 20-point performance from Nathan Hayes.

Grainger will host Happy Valley in the opening round of the Region 1-A tournament, while Greeneville will play Elizabethton.

GIRLS

Kingston 58, Alcoa 50: Trailing 50-49 with one minute, 57 seconds left in double overtime, Alcoa head coach David Baumann was hit with a technical foul that shifted momentum, helping Kingston claim the District 4-AA championship.

Abby Wilson hit both free throws following the technical foul, and Rachel Baggett was fouled on the ensuing possession and split a pair at the line to give the Lady Yellow Jackets a 53-49 lead.

Wilson led Kingston with 14 points, while Riley Guillemet (13), Baggett (12) and Hannah Bailey (11) also scored in double figures. The Lady Tornadoes got a team-high 13 points from Riley Hicks.

Kingston will open the Region 2-AA tournament at home against Austin-East, while Alcoa will host Carter. All first-round games in the girls region tournament are scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.

Oak Ridge 59, Powell 34: Led by 21- and 18-point performances from Mykia Dowdell and Jada Guinn, Oak Ridge cruised to a District 3-AAA championship against Powell. Powell was paced by Haley Schubert, who scored 13 points.

Oak Ridge will host Bearden in the opening round of the Region 2-AAA tournament, while Powell will face Hardin Valley.