Class 4A Girls State Opening Round
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Ahh! What a sensational feeling in the air. Day 1 of the state tournament if finally here. Walking into the glass house, you get that electric feeling going through your body. The smells of the concession stand, the pageantry of…
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Continue ReadingAhh! What a sensational feeling in the air. Day 1 of the state tournament if finally here. Walking into the glass house, you get that electric feeling going through your body. The smells of the concession stand, the pageantry of the fans, it’s game day baby! This is what it is all about.
To start the tournament off, the 4A class got down to business. Talk about tough battles each and every possession. Here is a recap of day 1 at the Murphy Center at the State Tournament.
To kick off the morning session, the Bartlett Lady Panthers vs. the Sevier Co. Smoky Bears was a goodie. Sevier came into the game with something to prove. They are the new kids on the block, a squad who has a balanced attack. They got on the board early, coming out firing on all cylinders. They went into the half up 23-21. You could tell at the break that the Lady Panthers reconvened and got back to the basics. Led by senior guard Carrington Jones Carrington Jones 5'8" | CG Bartlett | 2024 State TN , the Lady Panthers’ stifling defense stepped it up in the second half. It turned into an inside game where the mission was to attack the basket. The Lady Panthers were just too much in the second half. They won this game 54-42 and advanced to the next round.
Key Players
Sevier Co.
Kinley Loveday Kinley Loveday 5'2" | PG Sevier Co. | 2024 State TN (11 pts, 3 rebs)
Aubree Laney Aubree Laney 5'8" | SF Lakeway Christian Academy | 2024 State TN (9 pts, 2 rebs, 2 assists)
Cybil Penland Cybil Penland 5'10" | SG Sevier Co. | 2025 State TN (9 pts, 4 rebs)
Kaliyah Burden Kaliyah Burden 5'8" | SG Sevier Co. | 2027 TN (4 pts, 11 rebs, 2 assists, 3 steals, 1 blk)
Bartlett
Carrington Jones Carrington Jones 5'8" | CG Bartlett | 2024 State TN (20 pts, 2 rebs, 2 assists, 6 steals)
Zoey Rixter Zoey Rixter 6'1" | SG Bartlett | 2025 State TN (12 pts, 9 rebs, 3 blks)
Morgan Williams Morgan Williams 5'6" | PG Bartlett | 2024 State TN (8 pts, 3 rebs, 2 steals)
Samiya Jones (8 pts, 7 rebs)
The second game of the day saw a battle of two blue and red clubs. The Lady Falcons of Lincoln Co. battled against the Lady Raiders of Cleveland. The Lady Raiders came out the gate on fire and never looked back. They were hitting clutch shots from the arc, finishing put back opportunities, placed emphasis on rebounding, eliminating second chance opportunities. Junior star Lauren Hurst Lauren Hurst 6'3" | PF Cleveland | 2025 State TN kicked it into another gear, scoring 20 points from all over the hardwood. You could tell she was on a mission for sure. Alyssa Petty Alyssa Petty 5'10" | SF Lincoln Co. | 2025 State TN did her best to bring back the Lady Falcons. Shooting from the arc, displaying an impressive paint game, she was finding the bottom of the cup at a consistent clip. The Lady Raiders were just too much down the stretch and they held on to win 60-44.
Key Players
Cleveland
Lauren Hurst Lauren Hurst 6'3" | PF Cleveland | 2025 State TN (20 pts, 11 rebs, 3 assists)
Ilianis Rodriguez Ilianis Rodriguez 5'5" | PG Cleveland | 2026 TN (10 pts, 4 rebs, 1 steal)
Callie Brewer Callie Brewer 5'9" | SF Cleveland | 2024 State TN (10 pts, 3 rebs)
Lincoln Co.
Alyssa Petty Alyssa Petty 5'10" | SF Lincoln Co. | 2025 State TN ( 16 pts, 4 rebs, 3 steals)
Abby Bryan Abby Bryan 5'10" | SF Lincoln County | 2025 State TN (11 pts, 8 rebs)
The third game of the day saw the Coffee Co. Red Raiders vs.Dobyns Bennett Lady Indians. The CC attack was just too much right from the start. They played with physicality early and picked their spots to score. They took a big lead in the first 22-9 and never looked back. They killed it in the paint, using Channah Gannon Channah Gannon 6'0" | PF Coffee Co. | 2025 State TN and guard Natalie Barnes Natalie Barnes 5'7" | SG Coffee Co. | 2026 State TN was able to get down hill and finish. Sr. guard Kaydance Black tried to bring her club back hitting some clutch 3s down the stretch. However, the Red Raiders slowed it down, played with poise, as well as pace and space down the stretch. They win this game 48-39.
Key Players
Coffee Co.
Natalie Barnes Natalie Barnes 5'7" | SG Coffee Co. | 2026 State TN (18 pts, 2 rebs)
Channa Gannon (12 pts, 7 rebs, 2 assists, 3 blks)
Dobyns Bennett
Caroline Hill (11pts, 3 rebs)
Kaydance Black (11 pts, 4 assists)
The Last 4a game of the day saw the Bradley Central Lady Bearettes take on the Lady Wildcats from Clarksville. All-American Imari Berry Imari Berry 5'10" | SG Clarksville | 2024 State TN had been wanting to get back to state all year, but Tatianna Stovall, who I might add had been drawing tough defensive assignments all year, was ready for this. Stovall was a beast on the defensive end, eliminating any potential run Imari could go on. With her ability to slow down Berry on the defensive end, the Lady Bearetts were able to grab the boards, push it in transition, and found easy buckets in the paint. Kimora Fields Kimora Fields 6'2" | PF Bradley Central | 2026 State TN was dominant around the rim. If they had to run sets, their coach found the mismatch and used any of his fab 4 to exploit their weakness. Often, they would run sets to post up Harmonie Ware Harmonie Ware 5'9" | SG Bradley Central | 2025 State TN in the paint. The Bradley attack was just too much and they never looked back. The final score was Bradley 62, Clarksville 30.
Key Players
Clarksville
Imari Berry Imari Berry 5'10" | SG Clarksville | 2024 State TN (14 pts, 5 rebs)
Malon Smith Malon Smith 5'6" | CG Clarksville | 2025 State TN (5pts, 2 rebs)
Bradley Central
Kimora Fields Kimora Fields 6'2" | PF Bradley Central | 2026 State TN (22pts, 13 rebs, 2 stls)
Harmonie Ware Harmonie Ware 5'9" | SG Bradley Central | 2025 State TN (14 pts, 9 rebs, 3 stls)
Avary Brewer Avary Brewer 5'7" | PG Bradley Central | 2025 State TN (9 pts, 3 assists, 2 stls)
Tatianna Stovall (8 pts, 7 rebs, 3 assists)