by JOHN HOWLEY / sportingpumpkin.com
ASHVILLE — A strong start helped Teays Valley cap off the annual Jeff Sheets Holiday Classic with a 53-40 win over Grove City.
“Grove City is a very solid OCC team,” TV coach Trevor Younkin said. “They’re defensive 2-3 does well for them. To be able to come out on the winning end tonight, I’m very proud of my girls to be mentally and physically strong to finish the game.”
Alyssa Horsley had 10 points in the first quarter, a three-pointer in the third and scored 10 more in the fourth to lead the Vikings with 23 points.
“We have Kennedy (Younkin) inside and a lot of teams focus on her. I told them after scouting (Grove City), Alyssa and even her sister and the other players, that free throw line, that mid-range jumper is open. They leave that spot open, and we’ve got to exploit it,” coach Younkin said. “We practiced that over and over and over. We kind of ran away from it in the second and third quarter, which was agitating me, but we were able to finish strong.
“Alyssa, just proud of her from a slight knee injury to get 23 and be player of the game.”
Horsley’s 10 in the first along with six from Kennedy Younkin and three from Tessa Horsley helped the Vikings to a 19-11 lead.
A slower scoring second quarter had an 8-6 edge in favor of the Vikings for a 27-17 halftime score.
TV had a 38-26 lead entering the final period.
The Vikings scored the first five points of the fourth and built their lead to 51-30 with just under three minutes left in the game.
TV survived 10 second-half turnovers and outrebounded the Greyhounds 30-21.
Kennedy Younkin and Tessa Horsley led the Vikings with eight each and Gabrielle Watkins pulled down five.
The Vikings (5-3) will enjoy their win over Grove City for a few days before heading south to Charleston, SC, to play three games in three days and visit a few historical sites, including Fort Sumter and the decommissioned USS Yorktown aircraft carrier.
“We are excited,” coach Younkin said. “The biggest thing is I like playing schools we don’t know because it brings us out of our shells. In the summertime you get to do that. It’s just nice playing somebody where our girls don’t already have expectations.”
On the slate In the Carolina Invitational are 5-7 Oakland HS (Murfreesboro, TN) Thursday, Geraldine (Alabama) High School (5-8) Friday and David Crockett HS (10-1) from Jonesborough, TN, on Saturday.
Teays Valley 53, Grove City 40
Grove City — Salia McCloud 0-2-2, Nora Chessir 2-0-5, Kaitlyn Boyce 2-0-6, Addy Hansen 3-2-9, Leah Boswell 1-1-3, Adley Adkins 1-1-3, Mia Bumgarner 3-0-7, Thea Palmore 2-1-5. Three-point goals — Chessir, Boyce (2), Hansen, Bumgarner. Total — 14-47 7-9 40.
Teays Valley— Gabrielle Watkins 2-0-5, Abby Tier 0-1-1, Kennedy Younkin 7-1-15, Alyssa Horsley 9-2-23, Tessa Horsley 3-3-9. Three-point goals — Watkins, A Horsley (3). Total — 21-49 7-10 53.
Quarter scores 1 2 3 4 F
Grove City 11 6 9 14 40
Teays Valley 19 8 11 15 53
