GISA REGION 3-AAA TOURNAMENT: Westwood girls win region crown again

ALBANY — It wasn’t the prettiest win, but it was enough to get the job done.

The Westwood girls were able to sustain a late push by Tiftarea to beat them 44-37 in the Georgia Independent Schools Association Region 3-AAA Championship game Saturday night at Darton State College.

The Lady Wildcats built a big enough lead early in the game that being outscored 19-9 in the final quarter wasn’t enough for them to fall.

“It wasn’t our best performance,” Westwood coach Jenni Smith said. “But it was a win in a region championship. I’m just really proud of the girls for the season they have had and the consistency they have played with.”

Westwood opened the game on a 7-0 run, forcing Tiftarea to call a timeout. Just after the timeout, Tiftarea’s Abby Carswell finished a 3-point play to make the score 7-3. Those were the only points the Lady Panthers would score in the first quarter.

Westwood’s defense continued to dominate in the second quarter. It allowed just four points and led 22-7 at halftime.

Herald Super 6er Callie Smith hit two treys in the second to kick-start Westwood’s offense. Smith finished with 18 points.

Despite trailing double digits, Brookwood refused to go away. Smith hit two more threes in the third quarter to extend the Lady Wildcats’ lead to 35-15. A buzzer-beater 3-pointer by Shaunteria Taylor cut Westwood’s lead to 35-18.

Tiftarea was able to chip away at the lead in the fourth quarter when the Lady Wildcats came out ice cold.

The Lady Panthers cut the lead to 11 two separate times in the fourth. For the first seven minutes of the quarter, the only offense Westwood got was from back-to-back treys once again by Callie Smith.

“It was huge,” Jenni Smith said. “We needed someone to put a shot in the hole. We needed a basket. It didn’t matter who it was or what it was. We needed someone to score.”

The lack of offense allowed Tiftarea to get as close as nine points before finally falling.

It was the Lady Wildcats’ second GISA Region 3-AAA championship in a row and third in as many seasons. Westwood was a Class AA member two seasons ago. They beat Terrell Academy to capture last year’s title.

Carswell scored 15 for Tiftarea while Taylor added 10.

Westwood will host Holy Spirit Prep in the first round of the state playoffs on Tuesday night at 7 p.m.

Valwood girls 52, Deerfield-Windsor 46

Valwood used a big fourth quarter to put the Lady Knights away in the consolation game.

Deerfield-Windsor was outscored 23-11 in the final frame.

Emily Johnson exploded for 29 points for Valwood, including 17 in the final quarter.

Lila Lanier led Deerfield-Windsor with a 14-point performance.

The Lady Knights will travel to The Heritage School for a first-round matchup in the GISA state tournament on Tuesday.