It was an instant classic that saw both Unaka and Cloudland leave it all on the court Monday night.
The Rangers outlasted Cloudland for a 70-67 double overtime victory in the Region 1-A Semifinals at Washburn after rallying from a fourth-quarter deficit. With the win, Unaka advances to the Region 1-A Championship game, where they will take on the winner of Cosby and North Greene on Wednesday night and also advance to Saturday’s sectional round. Cloudland sees its outstanding season come to a close.
After Ari Sutherland opened the scoring for Unaka, Cloudland went on a 13-2 run over the next six minutes that included five points from Emily Forbles. CHS maintained a 13-6 lead after eight minutes of play.
Points were hard to come by in the second.
Abriella Jones opened the scoring for Cloudland in the second before Michele Shields answered for Unaka. Savannah McCoury added a Cloudland basket at the midpoint of the quarter, and Katlyn Dugger added a free throw for Unaka. Regan Blair capped the quarter as CHS maintained a 20-9 lead at the half.
The Lady Rangers battled back in the second half.
After Makinna Shell opened the half with a quick basket, Shields sparked an 8-0 Unaka run to close within five points. Cloudland pushed the lead out to nine points before the teams traded buckets the rest of the way – including in the closing seconds as Kalli Shepard answered a late second Shell bucket.
Cloudland led 32-25 after three quarters.
In the fourth, it was a back-and-forth battle. The Lady ‘Landers were able to answer each Unaka run as CHS held a 42-32 lead with 2:32 left to play. The Lady Rangers rallied with a 14-3 to take a 46-45 lead with 12 seconds left before Blair hit a free throw with eight seconds left to force overtime.
The first overtime continued to see both teams leave it all on the court as the teams traded shots. After a Shields free throw gave Unaka a 59-56 lead with 4 seconds left, Shell drove down the court and hit a buzzer beater to force a second overtime.
In the second over, Emma Whitaker opened the score with a jumper for Unaka, but Eowyn McCoury countered with a 3-pointer for Cloudland. Shields scored the next seven points – countering an old-fashioned 3-point play from Abriella Jones – as Unaka took a 68-65 lead with 41 seconds left.
Cloudland cut the gap back to one point with an S. McCoury jumper, but Unaka was able to secure the win.
Shields led Unaka with 33 points – 27 of which came in the fourth quarter and overtime. Whitaker had 10 points, while Sutherland and Shepard had nine points apiece. Brooklyn Campbell and Dugger had five points each.
Shell finished with 19 points to pace Cloudland. Jones added 12 points, while S. McCoury tossed in 10 points. Jayla Harper and Blair scored eight points each.