The Warriors had an upset on their mind. However, a late rally came up short.
Happy Valley saw a fast and furious rally fall short as they dropped a 62-60 decision to Unicoi County in the District 1-AA tournament at Sullivan South.
In other action, Elizabethton pulled way late to take a 57-32 victory over Sullivan North to advance to the District 1-AA semifinals in addition to the Region 1-AA tournament.
For the Warriors, it was a climb from the opening minutes as HV trailed 16-4 at the end of the first quarter, and the Blue Devils maintained a 39-26 lead at the half.
The Warriors, however, weren’t going to go without a fight. Happy Valley slowly cut into the lead with Austin Hicks and Sam Blevins hitting big shots. UC held a 49-45 lead heading to the final quarter.
Blevins knocked down a 3-pointer to pull the Warriors within three, and HV closed the gap to one in the final seconds. However, the Warriors couldn’t get a last second shot to fall as UC held on for the win.
Hicks led HV with 18 points. Blevins finished with 11 points.
For the Cyclones, it was a slow start as Elizabethton held an 8-4 advantage after a quarter of play, and maintained a 20-14 lead at the break.
The second half, however, proved to be all Elizabethton. In the final two quarters, Elizabethton outscored SN 37-18 to take the victory.
Hayden Townsend and Bo Pless led Elizabethton with 15 points, while Michael Robinson had 11 points. Teve Mushayamunda had seven points.