Region semis next for Lady Hawks

HAMPSHIRE — It wasn’t clear when the Hampshire girls basketball team made its last region semifinal appearance, but it is clear when the Lady Hawks will make their next one.

Building a 10-point third-quarter cushion Friday night, the hosts held on as Houston County missed three shots in the final 30 seconds for a 51-50 Region 5-A Tournament quarterfinal decision.

The win sends Hampshire (19-7) into Monday’s 6 p.m. region semis at Richland against Jo Byrns, a 67-29 winner Friday over visiting Santa Fe.

In the other portion of the bracket, Richland defeated East Robertson 70-41 and McEwen downed Culleoka 45-31. The two winners will play in Monday’s 7:30 p.m. semifinal.

Friday’s victory marked Hampshire’s second of the season over Houston County (11-16), following a 46-32 homecourt triumph on Jan. 21.

“They’re a really good team,” Lady Hawks coach Ronnie Brewer said. “The last time we played, they shot it poorly and so did we. We expected them to play better this time, and they did.”

Posts Karlee and Kortney Rowland led the Hampshire attack in the earlier contest. Houston County made life a bit tougher for the sisters Friday night — though it came with a cost, as the hosts converted 10 of 14 free throws in the opening half.

“We got in foul trouble, trying to keep them from getting it,” Lady Irish coach Jason Jackson said. “They’re talented players. We knew coming in what they wanted to do. They did a good job of doing that.”

Once Hampshire got settled offensively, Abby Jones’ deep 3-pointer with 3:22 remaining in the opening half put her team ahead 22-20 and Houston County never led again.

“We were really nervous before the game,” Jones said. “Our main goal was to feed it inside. When we couldn’t do that, wee freaked out a little. We had to look at what we were doing and calm ourselves down.”

A 27-23 halftime lead grew to 40-30 midway through the third period, aided by treys from Kayla Stephens and Emma Jones, but Houston County cut the deficit in half by the beginning of the fourth.

“They refused to quit,” Brewer said. “They knocked down some big shots. And we turned it over and took some untimely shots with the lead. We’ve got to be smarter with the ball in late situations.”

After the visitors trimmed a seven-point margin to 49-48 on a Karlie Stinson 3 — her fifth of the night — with 2:38 to play, Karlee Rowland converted a pair of foul shots. A Hailey Hibbler layup pulled Houston County back within one, but a couple of 3-pointers and a low-post attempt missed the mark late as Hampshire escaped with its first semifinal berth in “at least 20 years,” according to principal and graduate Sonya Booker Cathey.

“We made a bunch of mistakes late in the game, but we fought back,” said Jones, one of the team’s two seniors along with twin sister Emma. “Whatever they brought to us, we had to bring back harder.”

Abby Jones finished with a team-high 11 points and Kortney Rowland 10 for Hampshire. Stinson’s 18 points led all scorers, with Hibbler adding 12 for the Lady Irish.

“This is a crucial part of the season. We’re really starting to click as a team,” Karlee Rowland said.

Hampshire girls 51, Houston Co. 50

Hou 13 10 14 13 — 50

Ham 10 17 15 9 — 51

Houston Co. (50) — Hailey Hibbler 12, Josey Gant 2, Autumn Eleazer 6. Karlie Stinson 18, Holly Elliott 2, Mallie Mills 5, Allie Black 5

Hampshire (51) — Abby Jones 11, Kortney Rowland 10, Ansley Stoner 4, Kayla Stephens 7, Emma Jones 7, Karlee Rowland 9, Kadence Stoner 3

3-pointers — Houston Co. 6 (Hibbler, Stinson 5), Hampshire 4 (A. Jones 2, Stephens, E. Jones)

Jo Byrns girls 67, Santa Fe 29

SF 5 15 8 1 — 29

JB 19 17 14 17 — 67

Santa Fe (29) — Aniston Slaughter 1, Elise Adkison 6, Emmy Bates 6, Laci Warf 8, Ally Warf 6, Gracie Mills 2

Jo Byrns (67) — Ashlen Bryant 4, Jaya Herring 14, Grayson Bryant 10, Brooke Dowlen 7, Evy Helm 19, Reese Payne 4, Alysia Schluetter 5, Brianna Rivera 4

3-pointers — Santa Fe 5 (Bates 2, L. Warf 2, A. Warf), Jo Byrns 3 (Herring, Dowlen, Schuletter)

McEwen girls 45, Culleoka 31

C 8 2 7 14 — 31

M 9 13 5 18 — 45

Culleoka (31) — Hannah Collins 9, Breanna Dickson 1, Madison Ingram 5, Maci McKennon 4, Katie Primm 3, Tyler Reischman 9

McEwen (45) — Bradie Smith 9, Madison Hankins 13, Dakota Hankins 6, Faith Coltson 11, Jorja Stiltner 6

3-pointers — Culleoka 4 (Collins 3, Primm), McEwen 2 (M. Hankins 2)