Murphy – The Lady Bulldogs had their Senior Night spoiled, ending their regular season by falling to the Hayesville Lady Jackets 50-32.
Things started out good for Murphy (2-21) on Feb. 13, as the Lady Dogs built a 4-2 lead behind baskets from Emma Laney and Julia Dockery. The bad part was that lead didn’t last long, as Ava Shook hit a 3-pointer at the 5:04 mark to put Hayesville (19-5) ahead and the Jackets never trailed again, building an 11-7 lead in the first quarter.
Emma Ashe extended the Jackets’ lead to 14 at the beginning of the second period, when she buried a 3-pointer. The Lady Dogs’ shooting woes continued, as they only shot 34 percent from the field and didn’t score another one until three minutes left in the period.
Saige Kent hit a field goal for the Lady Dogs with 3:04 left in the seconds quarter, but by that time Hayesville had built a 23-11 lead. The Jackets went on to build a 29-14 lead at halftime.
Murphy came out in the second half and made a run at the Lady Jackets. Julia Dockery led the charge, as she hit a field goal and a 3-pointer for five of the Lady Dogs’ third-quarter points. Cayla Greer hit a 3-pointer with 4:24 left in the quarter to close Hayesville’s lead, but Murphy could get no closer than that.
Bryleigh Krieger hit a field goal for Hayesville, and the run ended there. The Jackets went on to extend their lead to 36-22 at the end of three.
Hayesville went on to outscore the Lady Dogs 14-9 in the final stanza. Greer had nine points to lead the Lady Dogs in scoring. Mallory Peck of Hayesville led all scorers with 12, while Shook had 11 points for the Lady Jackets.
Murphy ended the season without a Smoky Mountain Conference win. Kent was honored before the game as the Lady Bulldogs’ only senior.