BRISTOL, Tenn. – The Daniel Boone girls basketball team had an unforgettable senior moment at Tennessee High on Tuesday night.
The Trailblazers got 15 points from freshman guard Kyleigh Bacon and held on to defeat the Vikings, 50-45, and record their first win of the season while spoiling Senior Night at Viking Hall.
“We were winless and it’s January 26,” Boone coach Beau Hauldren said, “but one thing these girls haven’t done is they haven’t given up. They’re still showing up at 6:30 on Mondays and Thursday for weights. They’re showing up from three to five to practice and they go hard.
“Obviously, this is a character year. How much character do we have? And they’ve shown a lot. They’ve done a great job and they responded well tonight. That was a good win.”
Boone (1-14, 1-8) built a 42-24 lead with 7:22 remaining and held on for dear life. The Vikings (7-10, 2-7) got within 49-45 on Riley Fritts’ driving basket with 14 seconds left, but McKenna Dietz’s free throw with 12 seconds left concluded the scoring.
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“We built a great lead,” Hauldren said. “We hadn’t been in that situation all year, and we were in that situation tonight and we’re only gonna get better from it. … I’m glad we were up 18 so we were able to keep the lead there at the end.”
Fritts and fellow senior Tori Ryan scored 18 and 13 points, respectively. The Vikings’ other senior is Annie Hayes, who hit a 3-pointer in the first quarter.
“I’m very proud of these three seniors, and how they have grown on and off the court over the last four years,” Tennessee High coach Kim Bright said. “They have raised the bar for our program with their hard work, competitiveness and resilience through a very challenging 2020-2021. Not one time have they quit on their team.
“I’m disappointed in the way we played tonight but give a lot of credit to Daniel Boone because they played really well and wanted it a little more than we did. We will bounce back and keep moving forward as we have done all year and at the end of the day that is what it is all about.”
Bacon also had five assists and five steals for Boone.
“She’s good and she’s only gonna get better,” Hauldren said. “Bacon’s playing a full game at 4 o’clock and she’s playing a full game at 6:30, and she’s done that all year. She’s playing two games on Tuesdays and Fridays instead of just one. I think it goes back to the character of the team and how mentally tough we are.”
BOYS
Tennessee High 73, Daniel Boone 55
Wade Witcher scored 25 points for the Vikings (9-11, 3-3). Brandon Dufore added 22 and Brayden Wilhoit scored 10.
Witcher scored seven points in the final 3:08 of the first half, helping the Vikings end of the half on a 13-4 run to take a 36-23 lead.
Breiydon Gilliam led Boone (9-10, 2-7) with 21 points. Samuel Stroupe scored 15.
Stroupe’s 3-pointer from the left corner on an assist from Gilliam got Boone within 38-35 with 4:45 left in the third quarter.
Dufore responded with an interior basket and a tip and Wilhoit capped an 11-2 run with a trey that gave Tennessee High a 49-37 lead with 2:20 left in the third quarter.
The deficit was at least seven for Boone the remainder of the game.