Youth teams finish at tournaments
The seven local teams of Little Dribblers played their first sets of games last Saturday, Feb. 9, in Albany, while the fifth and sixth grade youth teams finished out their season playing in tournaments in Clyde and Eula with mixed results.
Results from the Little Dribblers games on Saturday were not available as of press time
Fifth Grade Boys
The fifth grade boys won their first game 39-9 over Clyde #2.
“The boys came out and really played well,” said coach John Tom Heatly. “They played great in all facets of the game, shared the basketball well, and put forth tremendous effort.”
Scoring for Albany were Cade Fairchild 13, Calhan Fairchild 9, Huffman Heatly 7, Woods Peterson 5, Brody Oliver 4, and Breylon Billington 1.
“We played Stamford next,” Heatly said. “Our boys got off to a fast start, playing excellent defense and causing lots of turnovers. This game was extremely rough, and I’m very proud of how well our boys held their composure.”
Albany won 24-14 to advance to the championship.
Scoring for Albany were Huffman Heatly 14, Calhan Fairchild 5, Cade Fairchild 3, and Peterson 2.
“The third game was a thriller,” the coach said.
Albany led by 9-4 after two quarters, but had trouble scoring in the second half.
“It was a defensive battle; they pressed us the entire game,” Heatly said. “We played great and had good looks, but we just couldn’t make a bucket.”
The game was tied 9-9 when the buzzer sounded.
“The battle continued into overtime, and we found ourselves down by a point with less then a minute left,” said the coach. “Calhan made a great shot with about 26 seconds left.”
Albany won 13-12.
Scoring for Albany were Peterson 5, Cade Fairchild 4, Calhan Fairchild 2, and Huffman Heatly 2.
“These boys are lots of fun to coach,” said Heatly. “What they lack in size, they surely make up with heart. It was a great season, and I am so proud of all of them.”
The Albany fifth grade boys team ended the season 11-0.
Also on the team are Mason McCloy, Jackson Shack, and Gatlin Wills.
Sixth Grade Boys
The sixth grade boys only played one game on Saturday.
They lost 20-10, according to coach Campbell Terry.
Fifth Grade Girls
“Our girls played really well to finish strong in the tournament,” said coach Clint Chapman.
Chapman credited Caroline Chapman, Mimi Ivy, Kaisley Bartee, Braylee Clark, Madison Holson, Avarie Myrick, Cheyenne Hebel, Alli McDaniel, and Brook Green as defensive standouts.
According to the coach, Albany handled Hawley’s full court pressure in the first game and won 12-6.
Scoring for Albany were Caroline Chapman 6, Clark 2, Myrick 2, and Holson 2.
“Our next game was against a very good Clyde team,” said Chapman. “They were the top team to beat, and I think we were a little nervous. We missed too many easy baskets.”
Clyde outscored Albany 24-4.
Scoring for Albany were Clark and Myrick, 2 points each.
“We played Eula in the last game, and everything we worked on all season seemed to come together,” Chapman said. “This was a fun group of girls to coach.”
Scoring for Albany in the 16-9 win over Eula were Caroline Chapman 6, Clark 2, Ivy 2, Myrick 2, and Holson 4.
Chapman said he appreciated Paul Ivy for his help coaching, and he also thanked all the moms that helped keep the books and scoreboard.
Sixth Grade Girls
The sixth grade girls pulled within one point of Eula during the second half of their first tournament game, but could not hold on for the win.
“We won our next two against Hawley (who had beat us twice) and then Baird,” said coach Leslie Neve. “We saw so much growth and improvement this season. I am very proud of all the girls!”
Neve said that the team has worked hard since October.
“Saturday’s tournament was a highlight to their season,” Neve said. “I want to thank my assistant coaches Jennifer Everitt and Sissy Presley.”
