All of those long winters of despair for the once-woebegone Fulton High School girls' basketball program finally got pushed way
back in the Lady Falcons' rearview mirror Monday night against Seymour in the District 3-AA championship game.
The host Lady Falcons battled past Seymour 42-36 as Fulton claimed its first 20-win season and first district tournament title in school history.
"There have been a lot of people wear the uniform - this has been a long-time coming," Fulton coach John Fisher said with a smile.
Fulton (20-7) outscored Seymour 16-6 in the fourth quarter as it beat the Lady Eagles (19-8) for the third time this season.
Tournament MVP Jasmine Lewis of Fulton scored six of her 11 points in the final 49 seconds as she provided clutch play in the waning moments.
Seymour had pulled within 35-34 on a layup by Tiffany Miles with 1 minute, 10 seconds to play.
Victoria Dailey led Fulton in scoring with 12 points and played a big hand in 15 costly Seymour turnovers.
"Victoria Dailey brought energy all night long, especially on defense," said Fisher.
"Our gameplan going in was to pressure them and it worked."
Seymour coach Andy Rines agreed that his team's inability to handle Fulton's full-court defensive pressure was a huge
key.
"We just had too many unforced turnovers," said Rines.
"We haven't done that all year. For whatever reason we couldn't throw it or catch it. If you can't do that you can't win basketball games."
That was particularly true in the second quarter as Fulton - which trailed 16-15 at the 6:20 mark - scored just two points the rest of the half.
The Lady Falcons, who hit just one of 11 field goals and missed all four of their free-throw tries during the last 6:20 of the half, weathered the storm thanks to Seymour floor miscues.
Call it a missed opportunity for Seymour as the Lady Eagles led just 21-18 at the half.
"Offensively, we just shot ourselves in the foot again and again," said Rines.
Morgan Rogers contributed seven points and five rebounds for Fulton. Bre Hall netted six points and was a defensive terror. Mariah Goss chipped in four points and six rebounds.
For Seymour, freshman post Christina Slay pulled down 14 rebounds and scored nine points. Ashleigh Elliott hit three 3-pointers for nine points while Monica Rogers scored eight.
Both teams advance to first-round Region 2 games Friday night.
Fulton plays host to Christian Academy of Knoxville at 7 o'clock while Seymour entertains Stone Memorial.
Stone Memorial edged CAK 59-53 Monday night in the District 4-AA consolation game.
"We get a home game in the first round of the region and the regional tournament is a whole new game," said Rines.
For Fulton, Fisher said the trick is to be focused heading into regional play after breaking new ground for the program.
The Lady Falcons have never won more than one game in regional play.
"We're going to enjoy this tonight and go back to work Tuesday," Fisher said.
"We've got other goals out there."
back in the Lady Falcons' rearview mirror Monday night against Seymour in the District 3-AA championship game.The host Lady Falcons battled past Seymour 42-36 as Fulton claimed its first 20-win season and first district tournament title in school history.
"There have been a lot of people wear the uniform - this has been a long-time coming," Fulton coach John Fisher said with a smile.
Fulton (20-7) outscored Seymour 16-6 in the fourth quarter as it beat the Lady Eagles (19-8) for the third time this season.
Tournament MVP Jasmine Lewis of Fulton scored six of her 11 points in the final 49 seconds as she provided clutch play in the waning moments.
Seymour had pulled within 35-34 on a layup by Tiffany Miles with 1 minute, 10 seconds to play.
Victoria Dailey led Fulton in scoring with 12 points and played a big hand in 15 costly Seymour turnovers.
"Victoria Dailey brought energy all night long, especially on defense," said Fisher.
"Our gameplan going in was to pressure them and it worked."
Seymour coach Andy Rines agreed that his team's inability to handle Fulton's full-court defensive pressure was a huge
key."We just had too many unforced turnovers," said Rines.
"We haven't done that all year. For whatever reason we couldn't throw it or catch it. If you can't do that you can't win basketball games."
That was particularly true in the second quarter as Fulton - which trailed 16-15 at the 6:20 mark - scored just two points the rest of the half.
The Lady Falcons, who hit just one of 11 field goals and missed all four of their free-throw tries during the last 6:20 of the half, weathered the storm thanks to Seymour floor miscues.
Call it a missed opportunity for Seymour as the Lady Eagles led just 21-18 at the half.
"Offensively, we just shot ourselves in the foot again and again," said Rines.
Morgan Rogers contributed seven points and five rebounds for Fulton. Bre Hall netted six points and was a defensive terror. Mariah Goss chipped in four points and six rebounds.
For Seymour, freshman post Christina Slay pulled down 14 rebounds and scored nine points. Ashleigh Elliott hit three 3-pointers for nine points while Monica Rogers scored eight.
Both teams advance to first-round Region 2 games Friday night.
Fulton plays host to Christian Academy of Knoxville at 7 o'clock while Seymour entertains Stone Memorial.
Stone Memorial edged CAK 59-53 Monday night in the District 4-AA consolation game.
"We get a home game in the first round of the region and the regional tournament is a whole new game," said Rines.
For Fulton, Fisher said the trick is to be focused heading into regional play after breaking new ground for the program.
The Lady Falcons have never won more than one game in regional play.
"We're going to enjoy this tonight and go back to work Tuesday," Fisher said.
"We've got other goals out there."
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