Happy Valley Middle splits varsity set with Johnson County
Published 11:42 pm Friday, November 22, 2019
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Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Lady Warriors Abigail Steele puts on the pressure against a Johnson Co.ball handler.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
The Lady Warriors Lilly Forbes and Lady 'Horn Harley W. battle for a rebound Thursday night at Happy Valley.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Lacey Byrd makes a pass inside against Johnson Co. Thursday night.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Cayden Anderson brings the ball down for Happy Valley.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Rayna Byrd was part of a tight Lady Warriors defense against Johnson Co..
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
The Lady Warriors Marcida Thompson was a force to be reckoned with against Johnson Co..
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
C. Simcox for the Longhorns makes a good move against a quick Happy Valley defense.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
The Warriors Joseph Sowards puts up a tough shot against Johnson County's big man C..Simcox.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
It was a close game thoughout the first half as the Happy Valley Warriors took on the Johnson Co. Longhorns Thursday night.
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Dakota Grindstaff looks for an open man against Johnson Co..
Star Photo/Brandon Hyde
Drew Blevins for the Warriors puts up a shot for a score over the Longhorns Thursday night at Happy Valley.
BY AUSTIN ALEXANDER
STAR CORRESPONDENT
HAPPY VALLEY – Johnson County made the trip out east to take on the Warriors of Happy Valley in an early showdown in the middle school season.
While the girls game saw a dominant win from the Lady Warriors, the boys game saw a tightly contested show that saw a big come back down the boys from the Valley.
The girl’s game got a slow start as the score stood at 4-1 in favor of the Lady Warriors after the first quarter. Rayna Byrd scored 3 of her 5 points in the opening frame.
The scoring didn’t pick up a ton in the second, but luckily for the Lady Warriors, the opposition didn’t either.
Lacey Byrd chipped in 5 of her game-high 13 in the quarter and Happy Valley took an 11-6 advantage into the half.
Byrd and Marcida Thompson would take over in the third to all but seal the game away with a combined 11 points in the quarter and the score was 25-6 after a defensive shutout.
The fourth quarter was merely a formality as the Lady Warriors would finish off the Lady Longhorns 30-14.
Also contributing was Cayden Anderson with four points.
The boys game saw a much more competitive battle. Dakota Grindstaff got going early with two of his three three-pointers in the first as the game was deadlocked at 13.
Heading into the second quarter, the Warriors were feeling good as they outscored the Longhorns of Johnson County 18 to 8.
Joseph Soward would score 6 of his 8 points and Donovan Mitchell would pitch in another four points as the Warriors led 31-21 at the break.
The second half told a completely different story though as the Warriors could not find the rhythm the entire half and would only score nine points in the third and fourth quarters combined.
The Warriors would hold the line for as long as they could in the third but Johnson County trimmed the lead to three heading into the last quarter of play.
The fourth quarter was dominated by the Longhorns and when the final horn sounded the Warriors tasted defeat, 46-40.
Scoring for the Warriors also was Drew Blevins (9), Tucker Shoun (5), and Austin Nickles (5).
