On Tuesday evening in Viking Gym the Avery girls varsity basketball squad honored its four senior players for their contributions to the Lady Vikings program. Katie Ellis, Samantha Shook, Sara Singleton, and Allison Vance were each recognized with their families prior to tipoff against a tough Mountain Heritage club. The Lady Vikings overcame the emotion of the evening and was able to pick up their ninth conference win of the season with a 57-51 win.Avery took a 16-10 lead over the Cougars after one period of play by using similar formula that earned it a 58-53 win over Mountain Heritage in Burnsville earlier in the season. The Lady Vikings kept constant pressure on the Lady Cougars and forced a large number of turnovers. Shook scored five first-quarter points, with four from sophomore Katelynn Eudy.
The stifling defense of the Big Red forced a total of 18 turnovers from Mountain Heritage in the first half of action. Defensive stops meant transition opportunities for the Avery offense, which the Lady Vikings used to outscore Heritage 13-4 in the second quarter for a commanding 29-14 halftime lead.
Avery began the second half with a 6-0 scoring run to build its lead to 21 points, but Mountain Heritage finished the quarter strong. Courtney Huskins scored 10 points in the period to pull the Lady Cougars back to within 15 points at 44-29 as the fourth quarter began.
The Lady Cougars defense tightened in the final eight minutes as the Vikings went cold on offense. Avery was held without a field goal for the entire fourth quarter as the Cougars clawed back into the contest. An 8-2 scoring run in the first 3:30 of the quarter brought the Heritage team within single digits at 46-37.
Foul trouble and turnovers also haunted the Lady Vikings. Katie Ellis fouled out of the game late in the fourth quarter with 10 points and 11 rebounds, while both Allison Vance and Samantha Shook played with four fouls each. Heritage took advantage with its inside duo of Huskins and Taylor Boone. The pair scored 21 second-half points for the Lady Cougars to spark their rally.
Mountain Heritage drew to within six of Avery in the game's final minute and four points in the final seconds, but a 13 of 18 free throw effort by the Lady Vikings preserved their lead and subsequent victory.
Katelynn Eudy led all Avery scorers with 14 points and eight rebounds. Vance also scored 12 for the Lady Vikings with five assists and four rebounds. Shook chipped in with eight points, with seven points from Lauren Avery. The Lady Vikings improved its record to 15-8 overall and 9-2 in conference play.
Avery's varsity boys team capped off Senior Night by honoring its lone senior player Jared Ward prior to tipoff.The Vikings were blitzed by over 40 points in a road loss to Mountain Heritage in Burnsville, but Tuesday evening was a different story as the Vikings ralled from a double-figure deficit to nearly pull off the win over the conference leading-Cougars. Mountain Heritage held on, however to hold off the upset-minded Big Red 80-70.
Mountain Heritage jumped on Avery in the opening minutes of the game with an 8-3 run. The Cougars (16-5, 10-1 WHC) used their outside shooting to sink four 3-point baskets in the period. Steven Wilson tallied eight points in the quarter to lead the Cougars, while Avery's Dustin Clarke answered with six points in the frame. Mountain Heritage held a 22-10 lead after one period of play.
The Cougars continued to exhibit confidence in its outside scoring with the mindset that their inside height advantage could generate multiple offensive rebounding opportunities. Guard Michael Fender laced a pair of three-pointers in the quarter and Will McCurry hit the third of his three trifectas for the half during the stanza.
Avery in the meantime relied on the hot hand of Clarke who scored 21 points in the first half, including three baskets from behind the arc in the second quarter and the final one coming on a 30-footer off the glass as the halftime horn sounded. Thomas Dellinger came off the bench with a pair of baskets as Avery cut the Heritage lead to 41-32 at halftime.
It became evident as the second half began that Avery was not going to suffer the same fate as the first encounter between the two clubs. The Big Red was not intimidated by the taller Cougars and was willing to fight to the bitter end. Avery outscored the Cougars 17-15 during the third stanza. The Vikings cut the lead to 56-49 going into the final eight minutes of play.
Avery continued to cut into the Mountain Heritage lead into the fourth quarter, while the Cougars looked to its go-to player inside, 6'10" center Jon Cannon. The big man scored 12 of his team-high 18 points in the second half, while adding nine rebounds and seven blocked shots for the game.
The Vikings trailed 70-62 with under two minutes to play, but a four-point play by Clarke instantly cut the Heritage lead to four points at the 1:38 mark. Mountain Heritage took control of the contest for good after the conversion with a 10-4 run primarily on shots from the free throw line to close out the game.
Dustin Clarke led all scorers with a season-high 32 points, with eight rebounds, four steals, three assists, and two blocks. Jared Ward added 14 in his final regular season home game to go with six rebounds and a pair of steals. Joey Potter was the only other Avery player in double figures with ten points. Along with Cannon, Steven Wilson and Michael Fender added 16 points each for Mountain Heritage, with 11 points from Will McCurry.
Avery closes the regular season on Friday night at Mitchell.
