1/18: Region 3-AA Weekly Roundup

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If one were to look at the most recent 2A coaches poll, one could notice that three of the teams in that top 10 hailed from the Upper State field that is Region 3-AA. Two of those teams did battle on Friday.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clinton began region play this season with a victory over Columbia before heading back into non-region play with a matchup with intra-county rival 4A Laurens. The Raiders scored a 42-39 win over the Red Devils in overtime.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As for Chester, the Cyclones entered Friday's play having played a pair of region games. Chester earned a close defeat to Eau Claire but bounced back with an overtime win over Mid-Carolina.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Which team would gain its second region victory of the season? The answer turned out to be Clinton which prevailed by a margin of 36-19 over Chester.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Records</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The win runs the Red Devils' record to 12-4 in addition to its showing in region. As for the Cyclones, their record falls to 9-4 and 1-2 in region play.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Remember What Happened Last Time?&nbsp;</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clinton and Chester were also in the same region last season as 3A teams with Woodruff, Emerald and Union County. The Red Devils finished with a perfect 8-0 record – including a pair of wins over the Cyclones. Clinton picked up a 58-30 win over Chester on Jan. 16 at the Red Devils' home court.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>These two teams would meet again on Feb. 2 where the Red Devils routed the Cyclones by an emphatic final of 64-16.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Quarter-By-Quarter</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A large crowd was on hand for this one as it was also Senior Night at Clinton HS. The Red Devils fans in attendance had plenty to cheer about as the home team had built a 12-4 lead over its adversaries from Chester.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Points were two things in the second quarter – coming at a premium and evenly distributed between Chester and Clinton. As the 10 minutes of halftime commenced, the Red Devils had a 16-8 lead over the Cyclones.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defense continued to rule the evening – and it played to the advantage of the Red Devils. One frame remained to determine which team would earn its second region victory of the season with Clinton leading Chester by a margin of 25-13.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As the fourth quarter wore on with no extended Cyclones run in sight, Clinton reaching a dozen victories for the 2024-25 season looked more and more in sight. When all was said and done, that 12^th&nbsp;win would occur in a 17-point result.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Primetime Performers</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1148857,"width":"524px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2025/01/IMG_3778.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1148857" style="width:524px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In spite of it being Senior Day, a junior paved the way for victory for Clinton. That 2026 was <strong>Nah'shia Wright </strong>who concluded her evening with a 15-point performance. Eight of those 15 occurred in the second half.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1148879,"width":"514px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2025/01/IMG_3779.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1148879" style="width:514px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Red Devils did get a noteworthy performance from a senior – and it is a name that is familiar to Clinton fans. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='589680' first='Bryanna' last='Belton']</strong> added seven points to the Red Devils total. Those included two of the three 3-pointers Clinton connected on.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1148883,"width":"501px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2025/01/IMG_3754-crop-1833x1204-1737216985.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1148883" style="width:501px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of seniors, a 2025 did pace the efforts for the Cyclones. That 2025 was <strong>Jasmine Callazo</strong> who concluded Friday evening's matchup with nine points. Callazo is one of four seniors on this year's Chester rendition.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Up Next</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clinton will resume region play at home on Tuesday as the Red Devils host another tough comer in Eau Claire. Chester's next contest will be on Friday on its home court against Fairfield Central.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Other Region 3-AA Scores</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Eau Claire def. Mid-Carolina 46-44</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->