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About five minutes before their substate game with
Gleason, the Huntingdon girls' basketball team was
practicing their dance steps while shooting free throws.
It was sort of appropriate, given that the Fillies were
about to head to that big Dance in Murfreesboro.
Huntingdon defeated post-season perennial Gleason in
the sectional game Saturday night, 48-41, and earned
their second straight state appearance. They are 29-1,
ranked No. 1 in the state and on the precipice of
earning the second state title for the school in the
same academic year.
Knocking off Gleason was no small task, especially
when dealing with previously unbeaten-in-substate coach
Randy Frazier.
This just may be Huntingdon's time. I remember after
Gleason won its first state title in 1992 (it beat
Celina 52-44 in the finals), I called Bradford coach
David Russell, who was Frazier's mentor, about Gleason's
success.
He said something that has stuck with me. You see,
Russell was a frequent visitor to the state tournament
and was about to embark on an amazing run of state
success.
Russell said of Gleason: "They had that look. You
could see it in their eyes and they weren't going to go
home from Murfreesboro until they brought back that gold
ball."
Having covered three basketball state champions, one
finalist, and four semifinalists in 21 years of being on
press row at MTSU, I've seen that look quite a bit.
Huntingdon has it.
It has a senior-laden team that has gone about its
business with precision and purpose. It has handled all
comers and impressed enough AP voters to reach the
pinnacle of the state rankings.
Sure, rankings don't mean much, but it is a pretty
good respect indicator.
The Fillies have size, quickness and can turn their
defense into points with some rapidity. Huntingdon isn't
a classical great-shooting team, but it doesn't have to
be because it shoots so many high-percentage shots. But
sag back against the Fillies at your peril. Not known
for being great shooters, the Fillies can fill it up
when it's necessary.
Just ask Gleason.
They didn't bank on Huntingdon hitting from the
perimeter, but three big triples from Ashlee Lockhart
made it a long night for the Lady Bulldogs. Even Frazier
dipped his head in disbelief when Lockhart hit her third
threeball.
With the Fillies you pick your poison and hope you
have an antidote.
I know the Fillies will be anxious and perhaps a bit
nervous even though they've been there before. But if
they focus on defense and the game plan and not worry so
much about mistakes, they'll be fine.
Trenton is the defending state champion and has a
superb team. Tommy Colvin is a quality coach and has a
couple of gold bookends of his own from coaching
Humboldt's girls. As Frazier says, Trenton is the state
champ until someone knocks them off.
Frazier is right, but the Fillies just might have the
chops to do just that. They were close last year.
It's there for the taking; let's hope the trophy
stays in West Tennessee, but perhaps a little closer to
home this time. |
