An extraordinary game
Clinton girls beat Oak Ridge 57-56
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Clinton’s Allie York hit three of four free-throws in the final 58 seconds to tie the game at 54-54. - Tony Cox
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Josie Moody (10) hit a three-point shot in the final seconds of the game against the visit- ing Lady Wildcats to give the Lady Dragons the lead and eventual win. - Tony Cox
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Allie York scored a game- high 20 points for the Lady Dragons against in-county rival Oak Ridge. - Tony Cox
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Clinton’s Bailey Burroughs (4) and the rest of the Lady Dragons celebrate their Jan. 2 win over Oak Ridge. The last time the Lady Dragons beat Oak Ridge was 1990. - Tony Cox
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Lanee Carmichael (30) had 16 points in the Lady Dragons’ win over Oak Ridge. She has been a solid performer for the Lady Dragons in the 2023-24 season. - Tony Cox
For years, Oak Ridge dominated in its girls basketball rivalry with Clinton High School.
But that came to an end early last week as the Lady Dragons outlasted the Lady Wildcats 57-56 on Tuesday, Jan. 2, at the Don W. Lockard Gymnasium.
The win ended 34 years of futility for Clinton against its one-time District 3-AAA rival, as the Lady Dragons got the best of the Lady Wildcats for the first time since Dec. 7, 1990.
The game no longer matters in the district standings as Clinton is now in District 4-AAA and ORHS resides in District 3-4A.
But that didn’t mean the victory didn’t mean anything to the Lady Dragons, who went ahead for good when Josie Moody knocked down the eventual game-winning shot, a three-pointer in the final seconds.
But the Lady Dragons had some anxious moments when Oak Ridge’s Anaya Porter was fouled and went to the free throw line with 0.8 second remaining in the game. One successful shot would’ve sent the game to overtime. Had Porter, who scored a game-high 33 points in the contest, hit both shots, she could’ve propelled the Lady Wildcats to victory lane against Clinton for a 75th consecutive time.
But she missed both and time expired, and the Lady Dragons could celebrate a monumental victory in one of Anderson County’s longest basketball rivalries.
“I think the girls played really well against Oak Ridge,” said Clinton Coach Alicia Daugherty, who once played for the Lady Dragons. “We made some adjustments defensively and they just played
hard.
“This was a big win for us,” she said. “I think in the past we’ve kind of been intimidated by the name on the front of the jersey if it’s Oak Ridge. But we stepped up and the girls had zero fear, but we didn’t have our best game.”
The Lady Dragons boasted a balanced scoring attack against ORHS, which dropped to 8-7 with the loss.
Allie York led the way with 20 points. Lanee Carmichael added 16. Moody had 12 and Sydney Harrell finished with
five.
“Allie York and Lanee had a big game for us both inside and outside,” Daugherty said. “Bailey Burroughs came up with two big offensive rebounds late for us, and Josie played well.
The Lady Wildcats opened a 16-8 lead in the first quarter, but CHS had the upper hand at halftime (29-26) and had a 41-40 edge at the end of the third stanza.
Oak Ridge scored first seven points in the final frame before Clinton stormed back and ultimately claimed the victory.
The timing of the victory couldn’t have been better for Clinton, which improved to 13-4 on the season.
The Lady Dragons had a week off before they hit the hardwood again on Jan. 9 for a District 4-AAA tilt against the Scott Lady Highlanders. Results for the league game were not available at press time.
Clinton was able to take some time to savor its win over the Lady Wildcats.
“I gave them Wednesday off,” Daugherty said. “But we’ve been focused on Scott County since Thursday.
“They’re a good basketball team. They’re a lot better than they were last year.”