Caldwell County’s girls are headed to the 2nd Region semifinals for the first time in 12 years.
An 11-1 run to start the fourth quarter put the Lady TIgers in front for good, and Caldwell went on to upend Christian County 62-51 in first round action at Hopkins County Central High School.
Caldwell (15-12) will next face Crittenden County (25-5) at 6:00 Friday night in the opening semifinal game in Mortons Gap.
Tink Clark had 19 points and six steals while Audrey McCoy added 18 points to lead the Lady Tigers against Christian.
Caldwell also got 11 points and 13 rebounds from Ke’Darriah Thompson while Laylay Shearer had nine points and 13 boards.
Anaysia Bagwell scored 24 points for Christian, including several baskets late to try to keep her team in the game. Carlie Hobson and Deriona Hickman each had eight points for the Lady Colonels, who played the game without three key players, including two starters.
Still, Christian got off to a good start in the contest.
The Lady Colonels ran out to a 9-2 lead following a 3-pointer by Aaliyah Bell.
Bagwell had seven points in the first quarter as Christian built a 20-10 lead after one quarter.
The Lady Colonel press paid dividends in the opening frame, but Caldwell’s half-court trap helped it get back in the game in the second period.
Down 23-10, the Lady Tigers outscored Christian 15-5 the rest of the half to get within 28-25 at the break.
McCoy had six points during that run to help Caldwell get back in the contest.
The Lady Tigers took their first lead at 31-30, but the lead changed hands four times in the third quarter before Christian took a 39-38 advantage to the final frame.
However, Caldwell grabbed the upper hand with its run to open the fourth quarter.
The Lady Tigers pushed the margin to 51-41 before the Lady Colonels made one late run.
Bagwell had seven points as part of an 8-2 burst that had Christian within 53-49 with still 1:55 remaining.
But a layup by Shearer and a short runner by Clark started a 9-0 Caldwell run, giving the Lady Tigers their largest lead of the night at 62-49.
Caldwell, which has won seven of its last eight games, did not make a 3-pointer in the contest, but was able to force the ball inside and get to the free throw line.
The Lady Tigers were 20 of 34 at the stripe. Christian was 6 of 11.
The final season of basketball for the Christian County Lady Colonels ends with a 14-10 record. The new Christian County High School will open next season.
Caldwell’s win means the all-time series with the Lady Colonels ends dead even at 45-45.
The Lady Tigers’ last win in the regional tournament had been a 70-57 victory over Lyon County in 2014. Caldwell’s girls fell in the semifinals to Henderson County that season.
Caldwell County 10 15 13 24 — 62
Christian County 20 8 11 12— 51
Caldwell County (15-12)—Clark 19, McCoy 18, Thompson 11, Shearer 9, Thomas 3, Whitaker 2.
Christian County (14-10)—Bagwell 24, Hickman 8, Hobson 8, Bell 5, Brazelton 3, Smith 2, George 1.
