Lady Eagles exterminate Yellow Jackets for win over rivals
Hiwassee Dam – The Dam Lady Eagles played two close games last week and came away with one win.
The first was a win over their Clay County rivals in the Lady Yellow Jackets, while the second was a road trip to Highlands where they lost. The Lady Eagles kicked off their week with a big win over Hayesville on Dec. 9.
It’s a short drive from Hayesville to Hiwassee Dam, but it was a very long drive home for the Lady Yellow Jackets after they were defeated by the Lady Eagles. In a close, physical game that saw multiple fouls – some worse than others – on both teams throughout the game, the Lady Eagles prevailed over the Lady Yellow Jackets 60-54.
The Lady Eagles came into the game facing a Lady Yellow Jackets squad that had just lost to Towns County, Ga., which the Lady Eagles decimated in a preseason scrimmage. Hayesville was looking to turn things around against their rivals across county lines, but the Lady Eagles had other ideas.
From the jump, it was a close game, with both teams pressing right away. The Lady Eagles forced an early timeout for Hayesville to avoid an eight-second violation.
Hayesville took an early lead by playing their fast-paced style of play. The Lady Eagles came back to tie it at 10 apiece with 33 seconds left in the first quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Brinkley Payne drained a 3-pointer to give the Lady Eagles a lead. With just under three minutes left, Hayesville regained the lead. Then, with just under a minute left, the Lady Eagles leveled the score again.
In the final minute, Hayesville took the lead on a 3-pointer. Brooklyn Hyde was then fouled and made one of her free throws to bring the game within two points for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles got possession of the ball as the clock was winding down in the first half. As time expired, Bella Stiles fought off Hayesville defenders to tie the game on a buzzer-beating layup.
Coming out of the half, Hiwassee Dam took control of the game, with Hayesville close on their heels.
A 21-point third quarter gave the Lady Eagles a seven-point lead heading into the fourth. In the third quarter, Payne made points in the paint to held extend their lead. The Lady Eagles went on a tear to take an eight-point lead, prompting a timeout by Hayesville.
Payne went 3/4 on field goals and a perfect 3/3 on free throws in the third quarter to held extend their lead.
Hiwassee Dam converted free throws and made tough points in the paint while fighting off Hayesville defenders to take the lead into the fourth quarter.
About halfway through the fourth quarter, Olivia McNabb – who went 6/9 from the free throw line – converted a free throw to give the Lady Eagles the first 10-point lead of the game.
Hayesville fought back to bring the game within three points, but Hyde got a steal and drove down the court to hit a layup to show the Lady Eagles were still in control of the game at home.
In the final minute, Abby Harris made two free throws to extend their lead to seven. On the next play, Hayesville drove down the court and made a layup as they weren’t going to go down easy against their neighboring county rivals.
Hayesville began fouling late to stop the clock, but Hiwassee Dam was clutch from the free throw line late to keep the game out of reach.
Avery McNabb made a free throw late to make it a five-point game with 8.2 seconds left. The Lady Eagles got possession of the ball and gave it to Olivia McNabb, who was then shoved by Hayesville’s Brooke Graves. Graves was then charged with a flagrant intentional foul and sent off the court.
The Lady Eagles made one of their two free throws and then were given possession of the ball. They inbounded it and held on to exterminate the Lady Yellow Jackets 60-54 for their fourth straight win and third straight against Big Smoky Mountain Conference competition.
Senior Olivia McNabb led the Lady Eagles with 20 points on Monday night. Payne and Hyde were also in double digits with 16 and 14, respectively.
To close out their week, the Lady Eagles took on their first Little Smoky Mountain conference opponents of the season in Highlands.
The Lady Eagles took an early 9-7 lead in the first quarter, but then were outscored in the second quarter to bring the game to a 23-23 tie heading into halftime.
In the second half, Highlands scored 15 points and held the Lady Eagles to eight points. Despite the Lady Eagles outscoring Highlands in the fourth quarter, the Lady Highlanders built a large lead in the third quarter and were able to hold onto to win the game. This was the Lady Eagles’ first conference loss since they fell to Highlands in the 2022-23 season.
Olivia McNabb and Payne were in double-digit points on Friday night. McNabb had 19 points, while Payne scored 12.
The Lady Eagles will play one more game before winter break. They host Murphy at 6 p.m. Friday for their first matchup with their in-county rivals this season.
Last season, the Lady Eagles defeated the Dogs in both of their matchups.