Macie Ridge

Alcoa snaps Westmoreland 25-game win streak to advance to Final Four

BY BRIAN HAMILTON MURFREESBORO – Alcoa came into the game as an underdog in the eyes of many, as the Lady Tornadoes were matched up with Westmoreland, winners of 25 straight. The Lady Tornadoes didn’t view themselves as an underdog, however, as they led for all but 21 seconds of the game and handed the Lady Eagles their first loss since December 3. The Final Four berth will be Alcoa’s first since in 38 years, when the Lady Tornadoes made it to the championship before losing to York Institute 65-34 in 1984. “Dawn Marsh’s team back in 1983-84 made it …

Alcoa-Tyner Academy

Alcoa comes up short in overtime against Tyner Academy 54-52 in substate sectional

BY BRIAN HAMILTON ALCOA – Jahvin Carter’s two free throws sent the game to overtime and Terrence Dorsey had an opportunity to force a second overtime with one half-second remaining, but the senior missed the first, as the Tornadoes trailed by two. Dorsey laid up a perfect miss off the side of the rim, which was corralled by Jordan Harris, but the putback didn’t fall, as Tyner Academy won 54-52 and advanced to the Elite 8 in Murfreesboro. “Sometimes, when you go all in on something, you’ve got to realize that you could come up heartbroken and I think for …

Alcoa

Freshmen come up big to help Tornadoes win region championship at Gatlinburg-Pittman

BY BRIAN HAMILTON GATLINBURG – Eli Graf hadn’t attempted a shot for nearly 29 minutes on Thursday night, but with under three minutes remaining in the Class 2A Region Championship, the freshman hit a three to tie the game at 54-54 and then put Alcoa up 57-54 and ahead for good with under two minutes left with another triple. Freshman Eli Owens also pulled down crucial rebounds and made timely baskets throughout the game. “Eli Graf hadn’t taken a shot all game and comes out and sticks two in that big moment, right there, unbelievable,” Alcoa coach Ryan Collins said. …

Ainsley Pfieffer

Alcoa advances to second consecutive regional final with 73-56 win over South Greene

BY BRIAN HAMILTON GATLINBURG – Alcoa came out hot on Monday night and never took their foot off the gas, as the Lady Tornadoes led by double digits after the first quarter and never let the lead shrink to single-digits again, winning 73-56. The win advances Alcoa to the region championship with an opportunity to face Gatlinburg-Pittman — who defeated Happy Valley later Monday night — for the fourth time this season. Both matchups in Gatlinburg, the Lady Tornadoes have lost, and Wednesday night’s game will be at the same location. “We wanted to give ourselves another shot to get …

Gatlinburg-Pittman

Gatlinburg-Pittman defeats Alcoa 81-56 for back-to-back district championships

BY BRIAN HAMILTON GATLINBURG – Gatlinburg-Pittman jumped out to a 9-0 lead and never trailed, as the Highlanders won 81-56 to win their second consecutive district championship. Gatlinburg-Pittman withstood a heavy punch by Alcoa in the second quarter, before going on a 14-0 run to lead by 16 at the half. The Highlanders blew the game open in the third quarter, leading by as many as 31 points. Four starts graduated from last season’s district championship team, with Houston Byrd as the only holdover in the starting lineup. One year later, with a retooled starting lineup, and a freshman phenom …