The Alcoa Lady Tornadoes outscored Tullahoma 20-7 in the final 11 minutes to end the Lady Wildcats’ season with a 48-44 win in the TSSAA Girls Class 3A State Tournament quarterfinals at Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Wednesday.
Tullahoma (22-11) led for almost 25 of the 32 minutes played. Senior Aubrey North hit a 3-pointer with 3:21 to play in the third quarter, giving the Lady Wildcats a 37-28 lead. Alcoa hit a pair of 3-pointers to end the quarter, cutting Tullahoma’s lead to 37-34.
The Lady Cats were scoreless for the next eight minutes until Madison McCarl hit a jumper to tie the score at 39-39 with 3:03 left to play. Kenzie Farrell scored from short range, and Tullahoma led 41-39 with 1:56 remaining. After the Lady Tornadoes hit a pair of free throws, Mclayne Bob stole the ball, and McCarl scored to regain the lead at 43-41 with 1:02 remaining.
Alcoa tied the score at 43-43 before Farrell hit one of two free throws to give the Lady Wildcats a 44-43 lead with 23 seconds remaining. Alcoa hit a jump shot with 13 seconds to play to retake the lead, and Tullahoma turned the ball over as the final seconds ticked off the clock, ending one of the best seasons in Tullahoma girls’ basketball history.
Bobo, the Midtown Nutrition Player of the Game, led the Lady Wildcats with 16 points, six rebounds, and four steals. Gena Hickerson scored eight, along with five rebounds and two steals. North, Farrell, and McCarl scored six points each, while Lizzy Sharpton led the teams with seven rebounds and three assists.
Neither team shot well, especially in the first half, when Alcoa shot only 19%. Tullahoma ended up shooting 34% while Alcoa shot 26% and won the rebounding battle 40-35. Tullahoma won the District 12-3A regular-season title via a coin flip with Franklin County, and earned the number one seed for the district tournament and a chance to host the Region 6-3A Tournament.
But the Lady Cats lost in the opening round of the district tournament, finishing third to set up a trip to Battle Creek in the first round of the region tournament. It was win or go home, and the Lady Cats won big, 67-45. They returned home and beat Lawrence County, Giles County, and Portland to advance to the program’s first state tournament since 1977.
Tullahoma has now been to the state tournament five times: 1926, 1974, 1975, 1977, and 2025. The lone win remains a first-round victory over Memphis Frayser in 1975.
