The Habersham Central High School Lady Raiders basketball team will be hosting a first-round state tournament matchup after securing the No. 2 seed with a strong performance in the Region 8-AAAAAA tournament over the last week.
The region tournament, hosted by Shiloh High School in Snellville, tipped off Monday with a play-in game between the No. 6 and 7 teams, Jackson County and Apalachee high schools, and culminated in the championship game Friday between HCHS and unbeaten North Forsyth High School.
HCHS came into the tournament as the No. 3 team in the regular season with a 6-6 region record.
MORE: HCHS boys fall in region title game, will host 1st-round state playoff game
Region championship: North Forsyth 54, Habersham Central 20
The battle between both sets of Lady Raiders finished in a lopsided loss for HCHS as North Forsyth (27-0) cashed in from beyond the 3-point line and smothered HCHS (10-15) defensively.
The win garnered the seventh-straight region title for North Forsyth’s Lady Raiders.
North Forsyth opened the game with 17 points in the first quarter, hitting four straight 3-pointers before scoring a reverse layup and finishing with a fifth deep ball. The explosive display gave the top-seeded squad a 17-2 lead after the opening period.
Overall, the Lady Raiders from Cumming knocked down 10 3-point shots.
“Obviously we’re disappointed about tonight’s game. We wanted to compete a little bit better, but (North Forsyth is) a really, really good basketball team. I can’t take anything away from them at all,” HCHS Head Coach Bill Bradley said. “We’d have to be perfect to even play close. Obviously we’re not perfect.”
Senior Kyia Barrett and freshman Daytona Underwood combined for 12 of HCHS’s 20 points. Barrett totaled seven and Underwood had five.
North Forsyth had Gabbie Gliatta with 15, Emma Rose with 12, and London Weaver with 11.
“At the beginning of the season, I was like, ‘I want to make it to state,’” Barrett said. “I didn’t think that was going to mean that we were going to be playing in the region championship. I don’t think a lot of people thought (we would make it to the region championship). I think we shocked ourselves.”
Both Barrett and Bradley know that even being in the championship game will pay dividends for all the freshmen on the team down the road.
“Hopefully, the most important thing is these ninth graders learn from it,” Bradley said. “They learn what the level is that they’re going to have to learn to play at. That means you’ve got to get a ball in your hands. You’ve got to go and compete often. (North Forsyth) didn’t get that good by just coming out in October and playing through March.”
“Just being able to watch these girls grow, I’m glad they had the chance to get to feel this environment because I feel like that’s going to be in their future,” Barrett said. “When I was a freshman, I played under a lot of older girls. They’re playing under two older girls and only one that’s been here. This just kind of gives them an upperhand for future seasons. They’re very lucky to get this.
“Region changes next year, so it’ll be a little different, but I think it will help them know what to expect and to know this is an expectation we have every year.”
Counting her eighth-grade season, Barrett has played under Bradley for five seasons. That’s a ton of time spent together working on her game, both the physical and mental sides, and learning expectations for the play on the floor. That connection is something the senior holds dear.
“We’re to the point now, we just look at each other and we can read each other’s minds. We sit in a timeout and I know what he’s thinking,” Barrett said. “It’s been a blessing to be able to grow with him through each season. Being in this final moment where we can both settle and know we have each other’s backs, it’s been a cool experience.”
The Lady Raiders will host Region 5’s No. 3 seed South Paulding in the first round of the state playoffs on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Mt. Airy.
Despite not winning the region championship, the season has been somewhat of an unexpected success when gauging by expectations.
Barrett said that while they’ve shocked themselves, the Lady Raiders have definitely “shocked a lot of people.”
Bradley said he talked to his team after the game Friday about pushing the unexpected even further next week as the state tournament tips off.
“I said, ‘Alright, we’ve got to flush (this loss). It’s over with. Now, let’s talk: you’ve had a great season so far. Tuesday made you have a good season. Thursday night made you have a great season. This coming Tuesday night will make you have a fantastic season because you’re farther than anybody dreamed is possible. You’re farther than anybody dreamed, but can you go further than that?’ That will be our rallying cry right now,” Bradley said.
Taking a step past expectations has led Barrett to a familiar place: home (a.k.a. Raider Gymnasium).
“It keeps getting better and better, you know,” Barrett said. “When we found out (Thursday) we were going to get to host, I was like, ‘My mind is blown.’ The fact we were playing in the region championship the next day, it was like, ‘Wow!’
“I’m excited to get to play one more home game,” she continued. “Just to be able to play in that home atmosphere one more time, it’s going to be exciting. I’m looking forward to it.”
How the Lady Raiders got to the final
Region semifinal: Habersham Central 32, Lanier 31
The win that ultimately put HCHS in the driver’s seat to host a state tournament game came on Thursday night as the Lady Raiders topped the Lady Longhorns in a defensive struggle.
HCHS held Lanier to just two points in the third quarter, extending a 19-17 lead to a larger, 29-19, gap.
The Lady Longhorns returned the favor, nearly pulling out the win, in the final period. Lanier outscored the Lady Raiders 12-3 in that final eight minutes of play.
The victory was especially surprising given that Lanier defeated the Lady Raiders in both matchups during the regular season, including a contest just the previous week that saw HCHS take a 20-point loss on the road.
Both Barrett and Underwood notched double-doubles in the game.
Barrett finished with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Underwood had 11 points, 12 rebounds.
Senior Sophie Bramlett pulled down an astounding 18 rebounds, 13 of which were on the defensive glass.
Mayzie Nelson was the only Lanier player in double digits with 11 points.
Region quarterfinal: Habersham Central 46, Jackson County 29
Winning the tournament opening matchup against Apalachee bought Jackson County the opportunity to play the Lady Raiders for the second time in five days.
The previous matchup saw the Lady Panthers secure a 49-40 win in the final game of the regular season.
HCHS earned the last laugh and the right to advance to the next round of the competition behind a monumental effort from Barrett.
The senior tossed in 29 of the team’s 46 points, tying the total for Jackson County. Barrett shot 44 percent from the floor on the night.
Accolades
Along with the team securing a second-place trophy, several other awards were announced and presented Friday night.
Underwood was named an Honorable Mention for the All-Region Team as a freshman.
Barrett earned a few different awards.
For the region tournament, Barrett was named to the All-Tournament Team.
For her consistent play throughout the season, the senior was named an All-Region Team Defensive Player in addition to being named a member of the All-Region Team.
