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The Parry McCluer High School girls basketball teams got a taste of competition from beyond the region, going 1-2 at the Smoky Mountain Christmas Classic in Gatlinburg, Tenn., Dec. 20-22.
The Fighting Blues dropped a 44-39 overtime decision to Gallatin County (Ky.) and lost 47-19 to Shelby Valley (Ky.) before rebounding to secure a 25-20 victory over Booker T. Washington (Tenn.).
PM returned to Virginia with a 5-3 overall record. The Blues would improve to 6-3 with a 48-31 win at Rockbridge County last Wednesday.
“We played some really good teams,” PM head coach Adam Gilbert said of the Tennessee trip. “We found some character points there – learning points, teaching points.”
On Wednesday, Dec. 20, the Blues lost an overtime nail-biter to Gallatin County. Natalie Mohler paced PM with 12 points and added four assists, and Tatyana Turner scored 10 points. Payton Emore recorded seven points, eight rebounds and six assists, and Victoria Hamilton also tallied seven points.
Whitley Biddle racked up 30 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats, and Ava Arnold chipped in seven markers.
PM battled back from an early 15-5 deficit to pull within 19-17 at halftime. With the game tied at 37-37, the Blues had a chance to win in regulation, but Gallatin County got the stop and proceeded to outscore PM 7-2 in the extra session.
The Blues then suffered another setback against a group of Wildcats from Kentucky, falling 47-19 to Shelby Valley on Thursday, Dec. 21.
Zoee Johnson paced a balanced Wildcat attack with 13 points and nine rebounds. Lindsay Baldwin registered nine points, Sadie Johnson contributed eight markers, and Miley Riddle finished with six points, three assists and six steals.
Emore led PM with seven points, and Hamilton notched six markers. But Shelby Valley limited PM to a 17 percent clip (6-of-35) from the field, and the Wildcats outrebounded the Blues 37-19.
PM recovered quickly, gritting out a 25-20 victory over Booker T. Washington in the tournament finale on Friday, Dec. 22.
Hamilton posted 11 points and six rebounds, going 7-of-7 at the foul line. Mohler tallied seven points and six rebounds, and the PM defense forced 25 turnovers. Cassidy Mays and Deanna Brown scored six points apiece for the Warriors, while Cariyonna Banks and Antaniya Britt each pulled down six rebounds.
Playing for the third time in as many days was taxing, but Gilbert praised his team for its resilience. “The third game, we were just going on fumes, but we found a way to win,” he said.
The trip out of state was about more than just basketball. The Blues spent a full week down in Tennessee, with plenty of sightseeing and other activities on the agenda.
“Overall, it was good team bonding,” Gilbert said. “We were there for a week; had a great time together, got to do a lot of things. Hopefully, the kids will make memories from that, and remember that years down the road from now.”
