Class 3A Quarterfinals Roundup: Wren holds off Blue Ridge

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On Tuesday evening, the frenzy that is February renewed across South Carolina as the 2A, 3A and 4A Upper State and Lower State finalists were determined on the girls bracket. It also saw the 1A boys teams also determine which squads would be making plans for Greenville and Florence.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Among the assemblings that were in action on Tuesday night were Blue Ridge and Wren in what was a rematch from a second-round contest last season. The Tigers may have come away victors last season, but it was the Hurricanes who were in the win column this time as they earned a 49-41 victory over Blue Ridge on the road.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wren improves to 25-5 on the season while Blue Ridge's season ends with a 24-5 mark. The Hurricanes will take on Southside in the Upper State final following its 76-58 win over Walhalla.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Quarter By Quarter</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At the outset of this one, it did not appear as if it would be a competitive matchup. The Hurricanes embarked on an 8-0 run to begin. A stunned Blue Ridge faitfhful that was on hand to support its team could only stare in shock as Wren built up a 16-5 lead after one quarter. All five points from the Tigers came via free throws.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The scoreboard may not have been favorable to Blue Ridge in the first half, but the whistles were as the Hurricanes were booked for 12 fouls the half as opposed to six for the Tigers. Blue Ridge was in the bonus with over four minutes to play in the second. It was 26-15 in Wren's favor after two complete.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers managed to trim its deficit to single digits early in the third quarter before a scoring binge from the Hurricanes grew Blue Ridge's deficit into the double-digits once again. An injury to [player_tooltip player_id='175339' first='Olivia' last='Randolph'] with over three minutes to play in the third briefly halted play. It was 40-28 Wren after three stanzas.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Randolph later returned in the fourth quarter. With their season on the line, Blue Ridge embarked on a furious comeback that gave those in the stands sporting red and black hope. It was not enough as shots were falling for the Hurricanes as well. At the final buzzer, Wren knew its next game would be at Bob Jones University.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>It Takes Two</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":603224,"width":344,"height":225,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_3331-crop-3014x1979-1677098141.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-603224" width="344" height="225" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='175308' first='Raina' last='McGowens']</strong> led all scorers with a 25-point effort. Remarkably enough, McGowens was in foul trouble the entire second half as she accumulated three personals the first two quarters. She had both of the Hurricanes' 3-pointers, effectively ran point and does not shy away from contact.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":603230,"width":347,"height":227,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_3574-crop-2141x1406-1677098613.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-603230" width="347" height="227" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='268139' first='Deyana' last='Hayes']</strong> concluded her evening with 15 points. She had the first four points of the game and was only whistled for two personal fouls from start to finish. Hayes is listed at 5-foot-11 and thrives as a playmaker near the basket. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Just their experience alone helped tonight,” Coach McGowens says. “And that makes a big difference in games like this. If you don't have the experience playing these type of games, you don't have a chance. So, I think the two of them did what they do.” </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":603238,"width":358,"height":234,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_3365-crop-3681x2417-1677098917.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-603238" width="358" height="234" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='252636' first='Zikira' last='Henderson']</strong> led all Tigers scorers as she placed 19 points on the board. Out of those 19, 13 of those occurred in the second half as she keyed Blue Ridge's comeback efforts. Also out of those 19, 12 were via free throws.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":603240,"width":365,"height":239,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_3286-crop-3515x2308-1677099098.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-603240" width="365" height="239" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='252633' first='Anyah' last='Henderson']</strong> concluded her evening with a nine-point showing. Five of her nine occurred in the first half of play. Unfortunately for Blue Ridge, Henderson fouled out in the fourth quarter. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Coach McGowens on Keys to Victory</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“One of the things that we said – Blue Ridge crashes the boards. And so, we had to own the boards. If we wanted to win this ball game, we had to stop them on defense and we had to win the boards.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McGowens did mention that the team struggled from the free throw line – something she hopes will improve prior to Wren's Upper State final matchup with Southside.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Like I told them, stay composed,” Hurricanes coach Pamela McGowens says. “Keep (Anyah) and (Zikira) in front of us … At the end of the day we've got to continue to communicate on defense, get stops and then execute on the offensive end. So, take nothing away from Blue Ridge, they played hard. We matched each other's toughness, I believe.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Unavailable</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coach Pamela McGowens mentioned after the game that <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='124113' first='Riley' last='Stack']</strong> was unavailable for the remainder of the season due to a health issue. Meaning her next basketball will be next season when she wears Coastal Carolina Chanticleers teal as a freshman under coach Kevin Pederson. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Other 3A Scores</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Southside def. Walhalla 76-58 ([player_tooltip player_id='196311' first='Kamari' last='Thompson'] 26 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='194863' first='Kamya' last='Hatten'] 17 pts)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Lower State</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Camden def. Loris 82-47 ([player_tooltip player_id='171798' first='Joyce' last='Edwards'] 31 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='175325' first='Morgan' last='Champion'] 13 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='171806' first='Zyasia' last='Carter'] 11 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='324555' first='Braylin' last='Mungo'] 9 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='195518' first='Deanna' last='Jeffcoat'] 6 pts, [player_tooltip player_id='254155' first='Tateyoina' last='Harris'] 6 pts)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Lower Richland def. Crestwood 59-51</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->