Kalee Johnson posted a double-double (27 points, 14 rebounds) and Jenna Eaton scored 14 points to help Happy Valley control a 54-36 triumph over Unaka during Senior Night at Charlie Bayless Gym on Warrior Hill Thursday.
The win is No. 16 on the year for the Lady Warriors while the Lady Rangers fell to 5-14 on the year.
Unaka had the upper-hand early on Happy Valley, receiving four points from Hannah Tipton, who finished with a team-high 19 points, to take a 7-3 at the end of the first.
Johnson cut loose in the second quarter, scoring 14 points to help the squad boast a 37-22 lead at the half.
It was the defensive pressure, Johnson said, that led the Lady Warriors to the transitional buckets to take the lead.
“We started trapping,” she said. “We just turned up the pressure and got good steals. We started out slow and I didn’t want my seniors to go out like that so I tried to turn it up and do what I could to get them the win.”
Happy Valley accounted for 19 steals on the night with Kaylee Street, Johnson and Eaton adding five apiece.
“It was a very emotional night,” Happy Valley head coach Larry Abel said. “It’s a very special group of seniors. Three of them have been with me since my first year coaching here. Jenna set the pace for us, she got after a loose ball. It’s easy to get caught up in the hoopla of a night like this but our seniors led the way and KJ was relentless down low.”
Annie Woods had five points for the Lady Warriors while Justine Faataui added a bucket for the senior members of the team.
Cheyenne Drew, Renya Austin and Sierra Wright all added four apiece for Unaka and Sierra Tipton added six rebounds for head coach Kenneth Chambers’ crew.
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Happy Valley Head Coach Larry Abel
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