Despite tough losses, Eagles, Lady Hornets have great year

Last season, the Oak Mountain High School boys basketball team won the Class 7A state championship and the Chelsea girls advanced to the state final four. Both were firsts for the programs.

Neither team reached those heights again this year, but both teams had terrific seasons.

In a game that could have gone either way, James Clemens knocked off the Oak Mountain High School boys basketball team 59-55 in the Class 7A Northwest Regional final.

Oak Mountain tied the game in the final minute and, instead of allowing James Clemens to hold the ball for the final shot, forced the issue. The play backfired on the Eagles, with the Jets running a play and converting an open layup.

The Eagles had a shot in the final seconds to tie that was missed.

“I’m just really proud of our kids and how we do things,” an emotional head coach Chris Love said following the game. “I hurt so bad for them right now, because they’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do.”

Brady Dunn was the story for most of the day for the Eagles. His 3-point shooting kept the offense afloat, as he buried 6-of-9 attempts from deep and finished with a game-high 25 points and 7 rebounds.

Oak Mountain put together a 25-6 record on the season, capping a three-year run in which the Eagles combined to win 71 games. This year, the Eagles won the Area 5 tournament and rolled past Austin in the regional semifinals.

“The last three years, we’ve been to two final fours, an elite eight and won a state championship,” Love said. “That’s pretty special stuff.”

The Chelsea girls also had a return trip to the state final four within its grasp. But Oxford made the most of a few breaks and outlasted the Lady Hornets in overtime, 53-52, in the Class 6A Northeast Regional final at Jacksonville State.

Chelsea nearly led wire-to-wire, but Oxford drained a game-tying three to force overtime. Chelsea went up early in overtime, but a three-point play from XaiOnna Whitfield with 15 seconds to play lifted the Jackets into the lead and they held on from there.

After facing a 30-15 deficit at halftime, Oxford came out in the third quarter and dominated the period, outscoring Chelsea 17-4 and trailed just 34-32 heading into the final quarter.

Mary Cartee led the Lady Hornets in the game with 16 points and 9 rebounds. Haley Trotter, a freshman, had a tremendous game with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Lexi Redd had 9 points and 6 rebounds but went down with a knee injury in the second half, hindering the Lady Hornets down the stretch.

Chelsea recorded 27 wins for the second straight year, with seniors like Sydney Schwallie, Cartee, Nia Cummings, Ashley Washington and Sydney Bridgeman leading the way.

“I don’t really have words to explain how much those five seniors in that locker room mean to me,” Chelsea head coach Jason Harlow said. “I can’t say enough about their character. It hurts so bad that I won’t get to coach, but I appreciate them and will never forget them.”

Schwallie spoke about the growth of the Chelsea program in Harlow’s four years at the helm. Many outstanding players have come through the program in recent years, but the level of play has remained the same.

“There’s a lot of good people in Chelsea and they’re going to continue to be good,” Schwallie said.