Mark another goal of the Cloudland list.
The Lady ‘Landers picked up a 34-29 upset of North Greene in the Region 1-A Tournament semifinals at Cocke County to clinch a spot in Wednesday’s Region 1-A Championship game against Unaka as well as a berth in Saturday’s substate.
In the first quarter, Cloudland slowly built up a lead. Five Lady ‘Landers scored in the opening eight minutes – including 3-pointers from Megan Lunsford and Kenzie Birchfield. That gave CHS a 12-5 lead going into the second.
In the second quarter, points were at a premium. Jasmine Birchfield and Trinity Vines had two points apiece in the frame to account for Cloudland’s points in the quarter. The CHS defense, however, limited North Greene to just five points in the stanza as the Lady ‘Landers held a 16-10 advantage at the half.
Cloudland got things going inside the paint in the third quarter as Stacia Wilson and Vines combined for six points in the frame. That allowed CHS to double-up the Lady Huskies in the period.
After taking a 28-16 advantage into the final stanza, the Lady ‘Landers were forced to hold on in the closing minutes. NG methodically cut into the CHS lead as they pulled within six points with just over two minutes to play. Birchfield recorded the first Cloudland points of the stanza with a free throw at the 2:22 mark, but NG was able to pull within two points in the final minute.
Cloudland, however, saw Lunsford hit clutch free throws to secure the win and the upset.
Lunsford had eight points to lead Cloudland, while Kenzie Birchfield, Wilson, and Vines had seven points each. J. Birchfield had five points.
