THRICE AS NICE: Lady Cavs sew up CVAC regular-season three-peat

Simple math.

The East Burke girls basketball team’s 1-2 punch of Braelyn Stilwell and Kara Brinkley was good for three — as in three consecutive Catawba Valley 2A Conference regular-season championships.

The Lady Cavaliers sealed the feat with another blowout win, this one coming in 88-50 fashion at home over Lincolnton on Feb. 7.

Stilwell, a senior guard, nearly finished with a quadruple-double against the Lady Wolves, posting 30 points (23 in the first half) to go with team-highs of 11 rebounds, 14 assists, and nine steals.

Brinkley, a junior forward, added a career-high 33 points (21 after halftime) to go with 10 rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.

The Lady Cavs took the lead for good with consecutive Brinkley and Stilwell 3-pointers to make it 12-6, and the margin hit double figures at 18-8 on a trip downcourt in which Stilwell had two offensive rebounds and a three-point play.

Stilwell’s fourth 3 gave her 23 points with 3 minutes still left until halftime, seven more than Lincolnton had as a team with the margin having ballooned to 44-16. For the first half, Stilwell had nine made field goals compared to the Lady Wolves’ three.

Stilwell notched her 16th 20-plus point effort (and third in a row) and her third 30-point contest of the season on the night she was recognized in a pregame ceremony for recently eclipsing 2,000 career points, while it was Brinkley’s fifth 20-plus point effort since the start of the calendar year, part of 12 straight double-digit efforts.

Also highlighting EB’s 15th win by 19 or more points, Journi McDowell scored 10 points, Anna Coble scored seven, Kendall McFalls and Macy McNeil both added three, and Addison Sisk scored two.

“(The conference three-peat) is a testament to the players and their dedication to the program,” Lady Cavs 10th-year head coach Crystal Bartlett said after her 225th career win. EB has reached 20-plus wins in three straight seasons and eight total times under Bartlett.

“Our seniors have fought hard these four years. Some of them — Macy and Journi, some of the most unselfish kids you’ll ever meet — are just now getting to the point where they have major roles and have done a great job. But they waited their turn and were always great teammates, so I’m really happy for them that they get to be a big part of something great too. Arie (Williamson) and Addison (Sisk), it’s their first conference championship too. It’s fun to watch that too. I’m proud of all of them.”

The Lady Cavs (22-1, 13-0 CVAC) were also victorious against West Lincoln on Wednesday in Icard, winning by a 74-21 final behind 29 points, six rebounds, five assists, and nine steals from Stilwell and 16 points apiece from Brinkley (six rebounds, four steals) and McDowell (four rebounds). EB was up 21-8 after the opening quarter, 32-12 at the half, and 56-21 through three periods before holding the Lady Rebels scoreless in the final frame.

As for the EB boys (10-13, 4-9), they lost to Lincolnton by a 93-62 score before defeating West Lincoln by a 56-37 final. The win over the Rebels was the second in three games for the Cavs following a three-game losing streak.

Barger Shook had 16 points and seven rebounds against the Wolves, while Dautry Ragle (12 points, six assists, four rebounds, two blocks) and Carter Bennett (11 points) also reached double figures. And during Wednesday’s triumph, the Cavs were paced by 20 points, 14 boards, and two blocks from Shook to go with 10 points, four rebounds, and four assists from Jay Dixon.

Ragle added seven points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks during Wednesday’s game, while Owen Hartmann recorded six points, 12 boards, and seven assists. EB outscored West Lincoln in every quarter, including by a 14-8 margin in the third and a 12-3 margin in the fourth.

Freedom squads sweep Ashe; Zimmerman nabs 100th win

The Freedom boys (16-6, 6-3 Northwestern 3A/4A Conf.) handed Clint Zimmerman his 100th win as the team’s head coach courtesy of a 68-55 victory over Ashe County on Feb. 7 in West Jefferson, although the Patriots then dropped a close one, 72-69, at the hands of Watauga on Wednesday at home.

Freedom’s Amore Connelly led all scorers with 26 points against the Huskies, with teammates King Johnson and Kobe Johnson adding 14 and 11, respectively. Braxton King chipped in nine points for the Pats, who led 28-16 after the first quarter, 41-37 at halftime, and 53-50 entering the fourth period before extending their advantage back to double digits.

Additionally, the Pats put four players in double figures on Wednesday, getting 21 points from King Johnson, 18 from Kobe Johnson, 11 from King, and 10 from Connelly. However, despite leading 15-14 at the end of the opening quarter and making a valiant attempt at a comeback in the final frame — Freedom trailed 52-44 through three periods — Connelly’s last-second 3-pointer was off the mark as the Pioneers left Morganton with a three-point victory.

Nonetheless, the Pats’ Feb. 7 win clinched the NWC’s top 3A seed, something that was also accomplished by the Freedom girls (12-10, 5-4) thanks to a 64-62 victory over the Lady Huskies, although the Lady Pats were then unable to maintain a fourth-quarter lead as they lost to Watauga by a 58-53 final.

Peyton Caldwell scored 35 points for Freedom on Feb. 7 before tallying 36 points on Wednesday, when Haven Gladden was the Lady Pats’ second-leading scorer with five points. Meanwhile, Freedom received eight points from Jenaya Johnson, seven from Kaitlyn Hagmann, and six from Cynica Caldwell against Ashe.

Freedom was down 11-7 after the first quarter, 30-26 at the half, and 50-47 entering the fourth quarter before rallying past the Lady Huskies, while Wednesday’s contest saw the Lady Pats enjoy leads of 15-12 and 45-37 after the first and third quarters, respectively, before allowing the Lady Pioneers to outscore them 21-8 in the final period.

Draughn girls, boys knock off NCSSM-M

Draughn played host to intra-county foe NCSSM-Morganton on Feb. 7, with the Lady Wildcats (12-9, 7-5 Western Highlands 1A/2A Conf.) winning by a 66-2 score and the Wildcat boys (7-14, 6-6) collecting a 75-46 victory.

The Draughn girls were led by 16 points from Jacey Davis, with Taylor Holder adding 11 and Kenley Berry and Mati Kincaid each scoring 10. Furthermore, freshmen Bailey Winkler and Makenzie Powell finished with seven and six points, respectively.

On the other side, Ava Hiatt made a basket in the second quarter for the Lady Dragons (0-18, 0-13 WHC), who also fell by a 67-15 final against Mitchell on Feb. 6, by a 60-13 score against Avery County on Monday, and by a 40-22 final against Rosman on Tuesday, with all three of those games being played at North Carolina School for the Deaf. No further details were available from any of those contests.

In boys action on Feb. 7, Draughn held a 22-12 edge after the first quarter before leading 42-25 at halftime and 53-35 through three periods en route to a 29-point win. Cayden Lewis and Kayden Lytle each scored 23 points for the Wildcats, who also got 10 from Connor Houston, eight from Noah Chrisco, and seven from Blair Cooper.

As for NCSSM-M, it was led by 20 points from Ford Butner, nine from Nate Gutschall, and eight from Nash Taylor. And in other recent action, the Dragons (5-15, 2-11) lost by a 58-29 score against Mitchell and by a 71-51 final against Avery before topping Rosman, 52-31, to snap a six-game losing streak, although no further details were available from those games.

Patton teams top Chase

The Patton boys (9-14, 6-5 Mountain Foothills 7 1A/2A Conf.) easily dispatched Chase on the road Wednesday, collecting an 85-33 triumph by outscoring the Trojans in all four quarters, including by margins of 25-8, 23-15, and 28-5 in the first three periods.

Olando Norman finished with 19 points for the Panthers, who also got 17 from Nathan Waters, 11 from Kyle Taylor, nine from Landry Duvall, and eight apiece from Cohen Christian and Cayden Roscoe as they bounced back from a 68-53 home loss to Brevard on Feb. 7. In that game, Patton trailed 17-3 after the opening quarter and 30-11 at the half before outscoring the Blue Devils in each of the final two periods, with Waters and Roscoe scoring 17 points apiece and Norman adding 10.

In Wednesday’s early game, the Patton girls (5-18, 2-9) topped Chase by a 47-27 final. The Lady Panthers outscored the Lady Trojans in the first, second, and fourth quarters behind 13 points from Emma Rolland, 10 from Jaycee Mull, nine from Mia Chapman, and six from Melina Bernabe.

The win came after the Lady Panthers suffered a 37-18 defeat at the hands of Brevard in their previous contest. Rolland was also Patton’s leading scorer in that one with six points, while Bernabe finished with five.