Jr. high teams win 4 of 5
By Sam Waller
The Albany Junior High Cubs and Lady Cubs basketball teams won four of five games against Hamlin on Monday, Dec. 5, with the girls sweeping at home and the boys winning two of three at Hamlin.
The junior high teams wrap up the first half of their season Monday, Dec. 12 against Anson. The boys teams will play at home starting at 5:30 p.m. The girls will play at Anson with start times to be determined.
Boys and girls teams will return from the holiday break Thursday, Jan. 12, to resume the district schedule against Cisco. The girls will host the Albany Tournament on Saturday, Jan. 14.
In Monday’s home games, the Red team won 32-5 and the White team won 36-5.
At Hamlin, the boys combo team lost 14-9, the seventh grade won 32-13, and the eighth grade won 27-10.
GIRLS
Red Team
The Albany Red Team led throughout in their game, jumping ahead 8-0 in the first quarter and leading 19-3 at halftime.
Tatum Grady led Albany with 13 points, followed by Hattie Braly with six, Zayne Lefevre with five, and Ashlyn Miller with four. Brooke Richards and Charlee Hefner each scored two points.
“The Red team did great Monday night,” coach Jamie Wilson said. “We saw them execute offenses well. Tatum Grady had a plethora of rebounds, which turned into points from putbacks. Overall, it was a great team effort.”
White Team
Albany White controlled the game almost from the start, holding Hamlin without a field goal until the third quarter. The Lady Cubs led 16-1 at halftime and outscored Hamlin 10-2 in each of the final two quarters.
“The girls did really good pushing the floor and playing aggressive defense,” coach M.J. Reneau said. “Hamlin played zone defense, so we were able to run a new play. Our ball movement has improved so much.”
Finlee Brown and Kamryn Graham each scored 12 points to lead the Lady Cubs. Charli Trail added eight points, with Leah Glick and J’Cee Keen scoring two apiece.
BOYS
Eighth Grade
Albany’s eighth grade boys at least doubled Hamlin’s scoring output in every period to take the win, leading 8-4 after one quarter and 16-7 at the half.
Six of seven Cubs scored, led by Zane Green with nine points and Jack Nail with eight. Connor Smith added four points, while Sam Vickers, Wesley Gleitz, and Colter Edgar scored two apiece.
Seventh Grade
The Cubs built a 23-9 halftime lead in taking the win in the seventh grade game.
Clay Chapman scored 19 points, 17 of them in the first half. Aiden Vickers added six points, and Bennett Neece had five, while Jakobi Roberson scored two.
Combo Team
Albany’s combined team fell behind 6-2 in the first quarter and couldn’t catch up.
Judson Rodgers led the Cubs with four points. Jacob Knight and Slayten Kelly each scored two, with Rush Kidd adding one.
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