By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A tentative start morphed into a convincing victory for Watauga in the championship game of the High Country Holiday Classic women’s division on Dec. 29. Led by sophomore point guard Kate Sears’ 40 points, the Pioneers worked their way to a 61-50 win over the Ashe County Huskies in Lentz Eggers Gym.

Ashe County took command early behind deadeye shooting by Abigail Jones and Abby Sheets, who together scored 15 of the Huskies first 21 points, propelling their team to a 21-16 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Pioneers caught up, but even at halftime intermission the score was 35-32 in favor of Watauga. And yet, Ashe County would never again lead. Three Huskies, however, scored in double figures, including Abigail Jones and Abby Sheets tying for team-high honors at 14 apiece, with Overcash right behind, with 13 points.

While Watauga women’s basketball fans are accustomed to seeing Sears emerge as a game-high leader in points scored, at least in most games, the Pioneer offensive attack is usually much more balanced. Partly that is because opposing teams know of Sears’ talents and versatility and focus on her at the expense of leaving Pioneer teammates open. On this night, Sears did little to change her modus operandi. She still attracted a crowd of opposing defenders and kicked the ball out, distributing it to open teammates. As a team, the Pioneers whipped the ball around the court, occasionally one or another would drive the lane and pass back out to the perimeter, to an open teammate. It’s just that most of their shots weren’t going in and Sears’ were. In short, she had the hot hand and has the ability to take full advantage from just about anywhere on the court.

Beyond Sears’ offensive production, there were other keys to this win:

• Brooke Scheffler drew the assignment as the primary defender against Ashe County’s Paige Overcash and did a remarkable job against the Huskies’ star, limiting her to just 13 points when Overcash’s season average is almost 19 points, according to statistics maintained by MaxPreps.com.
• The Pioneers dominated the boards on both ends of the court, with Sears and Scheffler joined by Caroline Farthing, Kaitlyn Darner and Charlotte Torgerson in rebounds, turning the ball up the court in transition after a defensive board or keeping the ball in play on the offensive end for second, third, and even fourth scoring opportunities/
• Yet another younger Pioneer is having an impact. In Round 1, it was sophomore Julie Matheson. In the championship game, it was junior forward Diane McGlamery weaving her way through traffic, collecting an errant shot, or finding the open teammate with a pass. She didn’t play an abundance of minutes but when she was on the floor giving one or more starters a needed breather, she made the most of the opportunity.

Sears earned tournament MVP honors for her performances on behalf of Watauga and fellow Pioneer Brooke Scheffler also was named to the All-Tournament team.

While the Dec. 29 matchup may well prove a pre-cursor to the battle for a Northwestern Conference championship in a couple of months, other NWC contenders may have something to say about that, too, including 12-0 Alexander Central, 11-1 Hibriten, 8-4 Freedom, and 9-5 South Caldwell.

After one more non-conference game at Central Davidson in Lexington on Tuesday, Jan. 3, the Pioneers go on the road Jan. 6 to open conference play at South Caldwell, in Hudson. They will also be on the road Jan. 10 in Taylorsville against Alexander Central, before their home opener in conference play vs. Hibriten on Jan. 13.

BONUS PHOTOS

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A broad based scoring effort, disruptive defense and rebounding dominance on both ends of the court led to Watauga men’s basketball victory over Pine Lake Prep on Dec. 29, 79-62, in the semifinals of the High Country Holiday Classic hosted by the Pioneers in Lentz Eggers Gym.

Four Pioneers scored in double figures, led by power forward Jackson Pryor’s 21, with key contributions by Grant Morrison (18), Wyatt Keller (15) and Wyatt Kohout (14).

The Pioneers jumped out to a 20-10 lead by the end of the first quarter and never looked back.

Key Points:

• Jackson Pryor stayed out of foul trouble and was aggressive under the basket, especially on the offensive end. In short, Watauga’s most valuable inside asset was able to stay on the floor.
• The two Wyatt’s Kohout and Keller, quickly recognized and took command of their opportunities, whether shooting from outside (together they accounted for five 3-pointers) or inside, driving down the lane or along the baseline to the basket.
• Improved free throw shooting (9-of-13).
• Critical rebounding on the offensive end to give the Pioneers multiple chances after errant shots.
• Pesky defense by Watauga kept Pine Lake off balance and forced turnovers.

With win, Watauga advances to the tournament championship final on Dec. 30 against the other semifinal winner, Apex Friendship, a dominant, 71-36 winner over Ashe County in the earlier semifinal. In Apex Friendship, Watauga will take on a 6-4 Patriots team that has already started league play in a strong, 4A conference that also includes Green Level, Holly Springs, Panther Creek, Green Hope, Cary, and Middle Creek.

Apex Friendship is led by Jake Grubb, who scored 24 points against Ashe County while also leading the team in assists and steals.

The men’s division championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 30, at Lentz Eggers Gym.

Bonus Photos

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Doubling up on a basketball opponent is one thing. Tripling their offensive output is quite another. Watauga outmatched Forbush on Dec. 28, 73-24.

Freshman guard Cade Keller came off the bench to record a game-high 15 points for Watauga against the Falcons on Dec. 28, in Round 1 of the High Country Holiday Classic. The Pioneers got offensive production from no less than 10 rostered players. In addition to Keller, Jackson Pryor (11 points), Grant Morrison (10) and Morgan Henry (10) made it to double figures as a lot of Watauga players saw court time against the outmanned Falcons.

Watauga started off with a 29-9 first quarter, led by 9 points from Morrison and 7 from Pryor, and kept their pedal to the proverbial metal to a 54-16 lead at intermission, then largely cruised through the second half. All totaled, the Pioneers made seven 3-pointers on the night and strong inside play to overcome 60 percent shooting from the foul line (12-of-20).

Even though Forbush had six players get into the scoring column, the Falcons had few answers for the Pioneers at either end of the court.

With the win, Watauga will take on Pine Lake in the tournament’s second semifinal matchup on Dec. 29, with a planned 7:30 tipoff. In the first men’s semifinal, Ashe County meets Apex Friendship at 6 p.m.

SCORING SUMMARY

• WAT Cade Keller (15)
• WAT Jackson Pryor (11)
• WAT Grant Morrison (10)
• WAT Morgan Henry (10)
• WAT Wyatt Keller (8)
• FOR Pierce Sprague (6)
• WAT Cole Horine (5)
• WAT Wyatt Kohout (5)
• FOR Jacob Boyles (5)
• FOR Gavin Maines (5)
• FOR Josh Brown (4)
• WAT Davis Hunt (3)
• WAT Maddox Greene (3)
• WAT Matthew Habich (3)
• FOR C J Boyd (2)
• FOR Cody Thompson (2)

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — When two basketball teams with decisively winning records meet in Round 1 of an early tournament, you might expect a nail biter of a contest. The Dec. 28 matchup between the Watauga women’s team and R.J. Reynolds in Round 1 of the High Country Holiday Classic was anything but. Watauga leveraged a 25-5 first quarter run to dominate the visiting Demons, en route to a more than convincing, 67-37 victory.

The Pioneer win sets up a much anticipated High Country rivalry game for the tournament title on Dec. 29, between Watauga and Ashe County. Tipoff for the women’s championship game is set for 4:30 p.m. in Lentz Eggers Gym.

Against Reynolds, Watauga’s Julie Matheson, Charlotte Torgerson and Caroline Farthing combined for five 3-pointers in just the first quarter to propel the Pioneers to a commanding lead. Then they doubled up the Demons, 20-10, in the second period, with six Pioneers getting in on the scoring action. Sophomore point guard Kate Sears led the way with 6 points in the second quarter, but the Pioneers also got contributions from Matheson (2 points), Brooke Scheffler (3), Laurel Kiker (2), Kaitlyn Darner (2), and Torgerson (5) to complete the pre-intermission scoring.

In short, the Demons were demonized by the hot-handed Watauga scoring outburst, as well as the Pioneers’ pressing, disruptive defense. Scheffler drew the challenging assignment of guarding Reynolds’ 6-3 center Raniyah Hocutt, limiting the senior to just 16 points (team high) as the Demons tried to take advantage by feeding her inside.

Overall, only four Demons made it into the scoring column, led by Hocutt and Thompson, while Watauga got offensive production from eight Pioneers.

The Dec. 29 championship matchup between the Watauga women and Ashe County promises to intensify the regional rivalry. The Pioneers bring an 8-4 record into the contest, while the Huskies will be trying to build on their early season, 8-2 record. The tournament tilt matches two of the favored contenders for the Northwestern Conference title, with league play set to start shortly after New Year’s Day.

SCORING SUMMARY

• WAT Kate Sears (19)
• RJR Raniyah Hocutt (16)
• WAT Charlotte Torgerson (13)
• RJR Destiny Thompson (13)
• WAT Julie Matheson (10)
• WAT Caroline Farthing (8)
• WAT Brooke Scheffler (7)
• WAT Laurel Kiker (4)
• WAT Kaitlyn Darner (4)
• WAT Diane McGlamery (2)

BONUS PHOTOS

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Surviving a rain of 13 three-pointers by Hickory Christian, the Pine Lake Prep Pride used strong inside play led by 6-4 junior Lucas Strickfaden team-high 23 points to defeat the Knights, 86-69, on Dec. 28 in Round 1 of the High Country Holiday Classic hosted by Watauga High School.

Strickfaden was joined in double figures on the afternoon by 6-5 junior small forward Robert Magner (13 points) and junior shooting guard Brennan Greene (12).

The Knights fell behind, 20-10, by the end of the first quarter and could never catch up, despite outscoring the Pride in the second and fourth periods. Pine Lake caught fire in the third quarter on a 26-11 run to put the game in spite of a combined, 17-point effort from Hickory Christian senior guard Zavien Dillingham and 6-5 junior guard Levi Robinson.

The Pride was not without long-range firepower of their own, with eight 3-pointers augmenting the inside play of Strickfaden and Magner, including three from Greene and two each from Magner and point guard Ethan Morgan.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — It wasn’t the Hatfields and McCoys but a basketball battle between two neighboring counties — in different states — came down to the final seconds on Dec. 28 at Lentz Eggers Gym. In the end, the High Country’s Ashe County edged eastern Tennessee’s Johnson County, 59-57, midway through the first day of the High Country Holiday Classic.

The Huskies’ senior guard Jake Grubb poured in a game-high 21 points but it was seven fourth quarter points from fellow senior Austin Grogan and four each from junior guard Eli Lemley and Bryce Peters in the final period that proved major difference makers, as well as five from Grubb in the last stanza. With the broad-sourced scoring by Ashe County in the second half, the Huskies rallied from a 13-point deficit at intermission (36-23) to tie the game at 50-50 with just 2:40 to go in the game, then kept going to claim the win.

Johnson County jumped out to a dominant first half lead with tenacious defense and hot handed early scoring by Eli Dickens, Skylar Lawson, Graham Reece and Austin West.

With eight 3-pointers in the first quarter — four by Reece — Johnson County was able to overcome Ashe County’s height advantage in the early going. All of West’s nine points for the game came in the first quarter, in the form of three shots from beyond the 3-point arc.

The pivotal fourth quarter proved too much for the Mountain City team, as Ashe County used its height advantage to better effect, rebounding, and a pressing defense forced Johnson County turnovers.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Led by Paige Overcash’s game-high 18 points, the Ashe County Huskies dominated Central Davidson on Dec. 28 at Lentz Eggers Gym in the women’s division opening round of the High Country Holiday Classic basketball tournament hosted by Watauga High School.

The Huskies’ Abby Sheets added 15 points, 10 of  them in the first half as Ashe County ran away from the Spartans right from the get-go. By the end of the first period, ACHS led, 17-8. Abby Eller came off the bench to add 10 points, including 8 in the critical third quarter, while Lexie Dawson contributed six points to the Huskies’ winning cause.

Alexandra Myers recorded a team-high 11 points for Central Davidson.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A 19-10 run by Apex Friendship in the third quarter broke open a tight, one-point edge over Central Davidson at halftime (17-16). With the early second half surge, the Patriots went on to defeat the Spartans, 61-50.

Patriot senior Aiden Neiger poured in 7 of Apex Friendship’s 19 points in the third period, and finishing the game with nine points.

The Patriots’ Terry Hicks shared game-high scoring honors (14) with Central Davidson’s Eli Tysinger.