Lady Admirals rally late to edge Oak Ridge in district play
Farragut High School’s girls basketball team rallied from an early deficit and closed strong Tuesday night to earn a 60-55 District 4-4A win at Oak Ridge, avenging last season’s regional tournament loss.
Farragut High School’s girls basketball team rallied from an early deficit and closed strong Tuesday night to earn a 60-55 District 4-4A win at Oak Ridge, avenging last season’s regional tournament loss.
The Lady Admirals (4-4, 2-0 District) regained the lead with 34 seconds remaining on a 3-pointer by Zoe Porter and held on to remain unbeaten in district play.
“You gotta win ugly,” Farragut coach Jason Mayfield said. “This is a tough place to play.”
Oak Ridge opened the game with an 11-3 run, but Farragut answered with an 8-2 surge to trail 13-11 after the first quarter. A 5-0 run to start the second gave the Lady Admirals their first lead, and the teams traded the advantage throughout the period.
Two free throws with 7.7 seconds left gave Oak Ridge a 28-26 lead before KJ McNealy banked in a long 3 at the buzzer to put Farragut ahead 29-28 at halftime.
Farragut extended its lead early in the third quarter with consecutive 3s from McNealy and Lily Mullins, but Oak Ridge responded to stay close. The Lady Admirals carried a 45-40 lead into the fourth after three straight 3-pointers by Porter late in the period.
Porter opened the fourth with another 3 to push the lead to eight, but Oak Ridge surged ahead 53-50 following an 11-2 run midway through the quarter.
Farragut responded with a 10-2 run over the final 3:30. Regain Sheridan’s three-point play tied the game, and Porter’s sixth 3-pointer with 34 seconds remaining gave the Lady Admirals the lead for good.
“Thank God for Zoe Porter,” Mayfield said. “She just needed some reps.”
Porter and McNealy led Farragut with 18 points each. Oak Ridge’s Evaiya Mitchell scored a game-high 26.
