Bruins use late strategy to edge Cougars

By Cody Dalton
sports@southwesttimes.com

BLACKSBURG – In what was an extremely close game between the Pulaski and Blacksburg girl’s basketball teams, Blacksburg used some strategic fouls against the Lady Cougars during the closing moments of the game to hold on for the 39-38 victory.

The first quarter was a battle between Pulaski’s Daisy Ball and Blacksburg’s Lacey McMahan, as both teams jostled for the early lead It would be the Bruins (10-9, 5-4) that would take the early 13-10 lead after one.

Pulaski (9-11, 4-4) would eventually close though and take the lead, despite not having Daisy Ball or Raiven Patterson because of foul trouble. Elizabeth Thacker would drive after a Bruin turnover, hit a lay up, and be fouled. That three point play gave the Cougars a 17-15 lead.

Following Thacker’s play, the Bruins would be unsuccessful on yet another possession with the Cougars increasing their lead. Kasey Holcomb would drive and throw to ball to a wide open Marlena Morrison in the corner for three. That extended the Pulaski lead to 20-15. Blacksburg would only chop one point off that lead before halftime, as the Lady Cougars took a 22-18 lead heading into the break.

“I think we kind of got down in the first quarter,” said Cougars coach Jason Grubb. “We had to rotate who we were subbing and what positions we were playing. When you lose a couple of kids like Raiven and Daisy, you are used to them being big offensive threats. You have to rethink how you are going to attack a team. Those plays are big because those two kids stepped up to the call, scored some points for us, and gave us some stability going into the half.”

Pulaski would hold and maintain the lead in the early portion of the third quarter, thanks in part to Raiven Patterson. The junior would score two early lay ups, which actually extended the Cougar lead back to five, 28-23.

“I think she played great,” Grubb said. “She had focus and knew she had fouls on her. She knew that we still wanted to attack the rim even though they were their zone. We did some things to get the ball to the rim and she executed well. I was proud of her. She did a good job in that regard.”

That would mark a turning point in the game and quarter. Blacksburg would score on three straight possessions, as Katy Kipps would score twice. That gave the Bruins the lead, 29-28, leading into the final quarter of play.

Patterson once again helped the Cougars climb in the point column, as she would drive on three consecutive Pulaski possessions. That took the Cougar lead to 34-31. The Cougars would continue to dictate the pace with an aggressive zone defense as well.

“We normally played man to man defense, but we had to switch to a zone because they had two kids we couldn’t guard,” Grubb said. “We couldn’t stop Katy Kipps inside without fouling her and Lacey McMahan can shoot away from the basket. Those two kids are good players and played hard. We got into foul trouble, switched to zone, and it was really effective for us. The kids executed well.”

The lead would grow to five points after Kasey Holcomb hit a three pointer and Patterson went to the free throw line and connected on one of two attempts.

Just as Patterson had done for Pulaski though, McMahan and Kipps would come up big for their team. A McMahan jumper cut the lead to three heading down the final stretch of the game.

A Cougar turnover into the back court gave Blacksburg the ball back, as they called a timeout to avoid a traveling call. The Cougar zone defense created a long possession, but Jodeci Houston would score on a lay up. Blacksburg was down one, 38-37, with just over a minute to play.

Yet another turnover would plague the Cougars, as Kasey Holcomb lost the ball driving the lane. The Cougars finished the game with 12 turnovers Blacksburg would drive back down the court, as Houston looked to be the hero again. Her jump shot would miss though, but Kipps was there for the rebound and put back.

“We had too many turnovers,” Grubb said. “Blacksburg guarded us in a lazy zone and almost dared us to shoot outside or penetrate. We just turned it over on the perimeter. Late in the game, we were up by two points and all we had to do was hold on to the ball. Then we had a turnover. You can’t win ball games or championships by doing that. This team has to do better.”

As time dwindled down, the Lady Cougars needed just one score to take the lead in an extremely close contest. Coach Grubb would call a timeout with 14.5 seconds remaining to set up a game winning play.

The ball would go to Maddy Chitwood for a three pointer, which rimmed off the backboard. In the struggle for the rebound, McMahan would attempt to throw the ball of Marlena Morrison, only to have it land right back on her, as she lay out of bounds. It was Pulaski ball.

With just 8.1 seconds to go, Grubb took another timeout to set up a play. However, the Bruins denied Pulaski at several attempts at a shot or even to drive the lane for a score. With just two team fouls, Blacksburg had some leeway to foul and take time off the clock, while not allowing a Cougar shot.

Those fouls took the clock from 8.1 seconds to 6.2 to 4.9, but Pulaski continued to work the ball around to the baseline where they could get an easy lay up or foul for free throws. With just 1.3 seconds remaining, the Cougars had one last opportunity.

Grubb took a timeout to draw up one final play. It wasn’t meant to be though, as a Chitwood three point attempt would miss and Blacksburg took the one point victory on their “Senior Night”. Raiven Patterson led the Cougars with 13 points, while Daisy Ball scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds.

The Cougars now prepare to face a tough schedule in the next week. They will finish off the season against Salem and Hidden Valley, who both only have one district loss each. The good news for Pulaski is that they have both games at home.

“We have the top two teams in the district – Hidden Valley and Salem – left,” Grubb said. “Both teams are considerably better than the team we just lost to. One thing that Blacksburg does really well is that they know their own weaknesses and they play really patient to give themselves an edge or advantage. They capitalized on that. I don’t think Hidden Valley is as patient and Salem is definitely not as patient, but both of those teams are definitely better. We are going to have to play better basketball.”

Pattison leads Bobcats to “Senior Day” win over Auburn

By Cody Dalton
sports@southwesttimes.com



RADFORD – The Radford Bobcats just had a little more “Pip” in their step than Auburn during Wednesday’s girl’s basketball contest.

Cortney Pattison, known collectively as “Pip” for her close resemblance to storybook character “Pippi Longstocking”, scored a team-high 20 points in the final home game of her high school career, as the Bobcats notched their sixth district victory, 51-24, in Radford.

The game marked the final home contest for five seniors – Pattison, Jesslyn Mundy, Rachel Wright, Sarah Hale, and Ave Bell. Coach Kevin Conner was concerned about his team’s mentality going into such an emotional game.

“On ‘Senior Night’, I’m always kind of worried about what mindset we are going to have and whether we are worried about celebrating the seniors than the actual basketball game,” Conner said. “I thought we were focused. We came out with a lot of energy. That is our main thing. If we can come out with some energy, then we can put a lot pressure on some people like we did tonight. I was really proud with how we started.”

“It was a big moment for all five of us,” Pattison said. “I think we came out and stepped it up. It’s not really all about us. It is more our team and how we play.”

Radford (16-2, 6-2) would quickly break out to a 13-2 lead in the first quarter, as Pattison scored seven of those 13 points. The Eagles (11-7, 4-3) struggled during the opening moments of the game because of tough full and half court presses by Radford. Auburn stormed back towards the end of the quarter with three straight scores, but the Bobcats still held a 13-8 lead after the first.

The Bobcat’s strong performance continued in the second, as Maryah Sydnor would get in on the action. The junior scored six points in the quarter and Pattison added four points. Auburn would only scored five points in the quarter as Radford extended their lead, 26-13, at halftime.

“We are athletic,” Conner said. “We are pretty athletic up front with Pip [Pattison] and Elizabeth [Carter]. Then we are tall and long in the back. Those girls are also athletic too. We just move so fast. I think it wore Auburn down a little bit and they got tired. They are a young basketball team too, so I think some of those things got to them a little bit. Those are the types of things we want to do. It’s the energy level too. We have tried to do that before and didn’t have the energy level to do it. Our energy level was so high that I think that is what made it effective for us.”

That energy continued to pour out in the third quarter, as Radford once again held the Auburn offense in check and continued to pile on the points offensively. Pattison once again had a big quarter, scoring seven points. Junior Elizabeth Carter would add in five points during the quarter.

The final quarter of play saw all five seniors on the court at the same time, as Conner gave them one last moment together on the home court. He would call a timeout with 3:04 remaining in the game and give his players one final curtain call before subbing them out. The Bobcats were ahead and would stay that way, sealing the victory.

Conner took a moment after the game to reflect on this senior class and his final moments with them on the Radford home court.

“This bunch has been with me the last two years,” Conner said. “Anything I ask them to do, they will do it for us. They are a very together group. Sometimes you get seniors and they forget about the underclassmen and they will be all about themselves. Not this bunch. It has been about all 12 girls and not just the five seniors. That has got to start with them. They’ve been great leaders for us and I just love them.”

Pattison scored 20 points and had eight assists, while junior Maryah Sydnor scored 14 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the victory.

Radford must now quickly turn around from this touching win and travel to Glenvar tomorrow for another Three Rivers district game. They will look to avenge one of their two losses on the season, as the Highlanders won on Jan. 19 in Radford, 41-35. For the Bobcats, it is all about continuing their current run.

“We like to think we are trying to get ourselves into a momentum pattern here,” Conner said. “We are trying to build some momentum up for the postseason. Glenvar plays really tough. They were the better team when we played them that night. I like to think we have improved since then and they have too. It’s going to be a tough ball game for us, but it is a good test. Going on the road like that is like a postseason playoff game. We are really looking forward to the challenge.”

“I think we just have to go out there and play our hardest, just like we did tonight,” Pattison said. “We all just need to step it up from last time. I think our team didn’t play very well. I know that this time we are going to go out and just be ready to play.”

“Sister Act”: Lady Cougars bolster two sets of siblings

By Cody Dalton
sports@southwesttimes.com



When it comes to the old saying “birds of a feather flock together”, there couldn’t be a better example of that than on the Lady Cougars basketball team.

The squad bolsters two sets of sisters. Hannah and Samantha Chaffin are siblings, as well as junior guard Kasey Holcomb and junior varsity coach Tiffany Payne. For both sets, it began at a young age.

Hannah and Samantha have been playing sports together since they were in first grade. That continued even when they moved to Pulaski from Ohio in 2000.

“We started out playing all kinds of sports, but when I got to third grade, we had to choose one sport,” Hannah said. “We both chose basketball. So we’ve been playing basketball together since third grade together. Even if she wasn’t on my team, she would practice with my older rec. team and be our manager. She would also practice to get better.”

“When we’ve been growing up here since we moved here from Ohio, we have been playing on the same team. So it’s not really been that different. It is nice playing up here with her at the high school and being able to stay after school and spend more time with her.”

“We’ve been playing since we were little, probably about eight years,” said freshman Samantha Chaffin. “We were on the same team in middle school. It’s kind of weird being together with her in high school.”

As for Payne and Holcomb, their relationship is just a little bit different due to their difference in age.

“When I was three years old, my dad was coaching an AAU team and she was on it,” Holcomb said. “I’ve been in the gym ever since I was three, hanging out until I was old enough to play on my own team. We never got to play together, but I practiced with her the whole time.”

“She was usually at every basketball game,” Payne said. “When I was in college playing, she would come up and watch me play. Some nights, she would stay in the dorm and we would have a good time. She has been there for me and I try to be there for her. When I wasn’t playing, I would try to come home as much as I could.”

The Chaffin’s play on two different squads at the high school – Samantha is on the junior varsity team and Hannah is on the varsity roster. The two have used this to their advance in order to help each other learn on the court.

“We watch each other play all the time,” Samantha said. “If we see each other do something wrong, we will tell each other. We just try to improve each other and help one another out. We back each other up too.”

“I tell her to keep up her hard work,” Hannah said. “She does great at everything she tries. I tell her to work on her shots and take good shots. She is great on defense. I tell her to keep a good attitude.”

With Holcomb and Payne, the dynamic is a little different from player to coach, but the effort to help one another as sisters still holds the same.

“We’ve had conversations out on the floor and after and before the game,” Payne said. “We talk about what she can do against an opponent and what she can do better. We have a really close relationship. Sometimes she helps me with something she has seen with my team that helps me with certain players and that sort of thing. We really help each other as much as we can.”

“Since she’s a coach, I feel I have more pressure on me,” Holcomb said. “She pushes me harder than anyone else. She always gives me pointers on things to do. It’s the little things to do, like making the team work better and just improving my game and having more fun. She always tells me jokes to laugh when I get upset on the court.”

Hannah and Samantha have their sites set a few years down the road. The two of them hope to be playing on the varsity team together as Lady Cougars.

“When I’m a junior and she is a senior, hopefully we’ll be on varsity together,” Samantha said. “It’ll be fun. Because we have played together so much, it will make it easier because we know what each other does and can help one another out. I think it’s fun playing with her because she makes things easier.”

“I don’t think she is going to move up next year,” Hannah said. “I think she is going to try out for JV one more year before she moves up, but I’ve had fun playing on the same team with her. I think being sisters helps because we think alike. It would be a good thing. We could push each other and support one another.”

For Payne, having a sister close by near the field of play can not only serve as a support system, but a point of view that can be trusted and appreciated despite how harsh it may be.

“You have someone there who will flat out lay it on the line for you and will flat out say what needs to be said,” Payne said. “There is no holding back at all. We just flat out tell each other how it is. You need that blatant honesty sometimes. Sometimes it hurts a little bit, but when you think about it, it really is what you need to hear.”