GIRLS HOOPS: Catholic wins again in Chapman Tourney; St. James wins two in Albertville

Catholic’s Hannah Smith looks for room to drive against Teonna Davis (24) of Stanhope Elmore. (Ryan Gayle)

COMBINED REPORTS

For the second time in as many days, the Catholic girls have used a strong fourth quarter to put away their opponent.

After Tuesday’s 58-50 win over Stanhope Elmore, the Knights are headed to the championship game of the Coach Larry Chapman Foundation Tip-Off Classic, where they’ll face Pike Road on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.

“At halftime, I went in and told them that they’re playing like dogs and we’re playing like poodles,” Catholic coach Courtney Ward said. “They’re being aggressive on the offensive end and we’re just standing around and not getting the defensive boards we need to get. It’s a challenge of them from me to see if they really want it, how bad they’re going to fight, that free throws are definitely going to count at this point of the game and really just showing me what they want to do to better further our season.”

The score was tied 20-20 at that point. The Knights took a slim one-point lead into the fourth quarter, where they outscored the Mustangs 23-16 in the final eight minutes.

“Late in the game, we’ve just got to learn how to win,” Stanhope Elmore coach Kelvin Stokes said. “I think we fought back hard to put ourselves back in it, but late there were just certain sets we’ve got to be in. We took some bad shots late and got out of character.”

The Mustangs had cut the lead to a basket when Kierstyn Green hit a 3-pointer with 1:32 remaining for her only field goal of the game. The Kinghts went on to seal the win at the free-throw line, where Hannah Smith hit 12 of 12 attempts, including four in the final minute.

Smith finished with 28 points, scoring 19 in the second half. Aja Tuggle added 12.

“There’s a lot we’ve got to get through from what I’ve observed since I’ve been there of us not being comfortable,” Ward said. “That’s got to be my number one thing of them not being comfortable and them going out to fight. We’re a great team, playing against developed teams that’s been together for years and not having a new coach. Once they get used to my coaching staff and what we’re really about, I think they’re going to hop on board.”

Former Catholic standout Heaven Bailey led the Mustangs with 19 points, followed by Aniya Burton with 14. Stanhope Elmore (6-2) will play Montgomery Academy in the consolation game on Wednesday at noon.

Pike Road 48, Montgomery Academy 41

Camille Moorer scored 17 points and Haiden Scott finished with 13 points and seven rebounds to lead Pike Road to a 48-41 win over Montgomery Academy in the Coach Larry Chapman Foundation Tip-Off Classic at Montgomery Academy on Tuesday.

Pike Road (3-2) will face Catholic in the championship game of the tournament on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m., while Montgomery Academy (1-1) will play Stanhope Elmore in the consolation game at noon.

Montgomery Academy took a hard-fought 19-17 lead into the locker room at the half, but foul trouble plagued the Eagles in the second half.

Kaci Armistead had 19 points, three assists and a rebound to lead Montgomery Academy, followed by Bailey Davis with nine points, five rebounds and an assist and Bennett Britt with six points, 10 rebounds, five steals and an assist.

St. James 73, Moody 19

St. James 54, Gadsden City 32

ALBERTVILLE - The Lady Trojans picked up a pair of wins in the Lady Aggies Thanksgiving Classic, improving to 7-0 on the season.

Natalie Barton led the scoring in the win over Moody with 18 points. Kaitlin Mitchell added 14 and Kaden Fair had 13, Morgan Lilly had nine points.

In the win over Gadsden City, Mitchell had 18 points with Barton adding 14 and Lilly  with 10 points.

St. James continues in the tournament on Wednesday against Scottsboro.

COACH LARRY CHAPMAN FOUNDATION TIP-OFF TOURNAMENT

at Montgomery Academy

GIRLS

Monday’s results

Game 1 -- Stanhope Elmore 73, Lee-Scott Academy 30

Game 2 -- Pike Road 61, Prattville Christian 39

Game 3 -- Catholic 67. Brewbaker Tech 42

Game 4 -- Montgomery Academy 44, JAG 32

Tuesday’s results

Game 5 -- Catholic 58, Stanhope Elmore 50

Game 6 -- Lee-Scott Academy 54, Brew Tech 52

Game 7 -- Pike Road 48, Montgomery Academy 41

Game 8 -- JAG 34, Prattville Christian 30

Wednesday’s schedule

Game 9 -- 7th place, Brew Tech vs. Prattville Christian -- 9 a.m.

Game 10 -- 5th place, Lee-Scott Academy vs. JAG -- 9 a.m.

Game 11 -- Consolation, Stanhope Elmore vs. Montgomery Academy -- noon

Game 12 -- Championship Game, Catholic vs. Pike Road -- 1:30 p.m.