The Happy Valley boys team saw their upset bid fall short in Mountain City.
The Warriors were unable to answer a fourth-quarter run as Johnson County pulled away for a 61-50 win in Three Rivers action. In the girls’ game, Johnson County scored the final four points to take a 44-41 win over the Lady Warriors.
In the boys’ game, Happy Valley went toe-to-toe with one of the hottest teams in Northeast Tennessee.
Noah Stevens and Bryce Carter had five points apiece in the first quarter as HV trailed 17-13 after eight minutes of play.Stevens and Carter once again provided a spark for the Warriors in the second stanza, and buckets from Timmy Mounts and James Harmon held HV take a 28-27 lead at the half.
In the third quarter, the Longhorns edged back head despite a balanced attack by the Warriors as JC held a 41-40 advantage going to the final quarter. Happy Valley continued to battle in the final eight minutes, but was unable to answer a Longhorn run late in the quarter.
Stevens and Carter finished with 15 points apiece, while Blake Young had seven points.
Johnson County – who has won 17 straight games – was paced by Blake Atwood’s 26 points, and Blake Eller added 14 points for the Longhorn cause.
In the girls’ game, defense was the story in the first quarter.
Both teams limited opportunities for the other in the opening quarter and the squads played to a 6-6 tie. Johnson County settled in during the second quarter by outscoring HV 18-8 in the frame to take a 24-14 lead into the locker room.
Happy Valley, however, answered in a big way.
The Lady Warriors saw Shalyn Whitson scored six points in the third quarter, and HV rolled to a 30-29 lead after three complete quarters. The teams traded points over the final quarter and Johnson County’s Taylor Cox secured the win as she scored four unanswered points in the final quarter to push Johnson County to the win.
Whitson led the way with 19 points, while Adrienne Henegar had nine points. Tiana Long scored seven points for the Lady Warriors.
