Cloudland senior Ella Benfield (left) is presented with a ball to commemorate her 1,000th career point that she scored against Cosby. She stands with her coach Matt Birchfield.
Cloudland senior Ella Benfield (left) is presented with a ball to commemorate her 1,000th career point that she scored against Cosby. She stands with her coach Matt Birchfield.
BLOUNTVILLE — In a stretch from the end of the second quarter to midway through the third, Hampton’s Taylor Berry took over Monday’s Region 1-1A semifinal girls basketball game at West Ridge.
Berry scored 14 straight points and propelled Hampton into Wednesday’s regional final at West Ridge’s Evelyn Rafalowski Athletic Complex with a 56-38 win over Carter County rival Cloudland.
The Lady Bulldogs (28-2) also clinched a sectional berth, which is set for Saturday. Hampton will meet North Greene in Wednesday’s finals at West Ridge with a 7 p.m. tip-off.
“Our pressure wore on them and I told the girls if we kept pushing that we’d get some pretty easy baskets late,” Hampton coach Brandon Carpenter said. “Taylor is a player and she can score with the best of them. We needed her to step up tonight, but I’m really proud of all of them.”
Berry notched a game-high 25 points, netting her final six shots of the game. Madison McClain was an early catalyst for Hampton, scoring seven of her 17 in the first quarter.
The Lady Highlanders (17-10) had their season come to a close, going 13-for-34 from the field, but really fell way behind in the third when leading scorer Ella Benfield had to go out with foul trouble.
Benfield led the way for Cloudland with 18 while Regan Blair scored 11.
Before the game, Cloudland’s Benfield was recognized for scoring her 1,000th career point during the Lady Highlanders’ win over Cosby last Saturday.
“We want to come out Wednesday night and play well,” Carpenter said. “It’s nice to win tonight, but we want to keep our head and keep our focus on our ultimate goal.”
North Greene 50, Unaka 32
The Lady Huskies (19-16) grabbed an early lead and never trailed as they clinched another sectional berth.
Hannah Miller led the way for North Greene with 15 points while Sonya Wagner (14) and Campbell Gaby (10) also finished in double-figures.
“We got a few buckets there when we were able to stretch the lead out after Unaka cut it to about nine in the fourth,” North Greene coach James Buchanan said. “For Ramsey, that’s one minute or three possessions and they’re right back in it. Sonya and Hannah Made some big buckets that allowed me to breathe a little bit.”
Unaka (11-21) senior Class A Miss Basketball finalist Lyndie Ramsey scored a game-high 30 in her final game on 10-for-26 shooting and went 6 of 8 from the free throw line. The only other Lady Ranger to score was Haley Taylor in the second quarter.
Ramsey finished her illustrious prep career with 2,902 points, becoming the first Northeast Tennessee female to go over 2,900 in 42 years.
“Lyndie has always been great for our team and our program as a leader on and off the floor,” Unaka coach Kenneth Chambers said. “I think Lyndie should definitely win Miss Basketball simply because of the kind of person she is on and off the court.”
Buchanan, who has been around the Watauga Valley for over 20 years, gave high praise to the Unaka senior standout.
“When you look at our conference, it has produced some magnificent players, but as far as an opposing coach, she’s the best I’ve ever coached against,” Buchanan said. “She can literally win a game by herself and she’s almost proved that to us twice this year.”
Ramsey reflected on her time at Unaka after the game, thanking many of the people along the way like Chambers and her teammates.
“Unaka has taught me how to be a family with your teammates, have your teammates' backs and never be satisfied,” Ramsey said. “Our team never quit and always wanted to put the extra work in. It showed at the end of the season because a lot of people thought we wouldn’t make it this far.”
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