For 20 years SORSN has been traveling to the OSHS gym. Packed in a tight, poorly lit, heat box of a gym among toddlers with sticky hands, irate momma bears and bleacher coaches, we watched the Green Wave and Bobcats battle for 32 minutes in a gymnasium long past its prime. But just this week, Oliver Springs High…correction, Oliver Springs Academy has opened the doors to a brand-new gym. We are happy and excited for our neighbors and the community in purple and gold on this new chapter of Bobcat basketball.
That said, Midway rolled into town not knowing what to expect…and it showed. Any win is a good win but it was an ugly one for the Lady Wave as they held on for a 47-44 victory. The boys did not fair well at all against the Bobcats who controlled the game for 4 quarters. Midway boys would lose 38-58.
The Lady Wave had about as bad as a start to a game that you can have. 4 consecutive turnovers had Midway down 0-7 in 90 seconds of play. A much needed timeout by Coach Hayes, who aged 5 years in those 90 seconds, helped the Lady Wave to regroup. The girls came out of that timeout and Kali Kile hit back-to-back 3s to end the drought and get the Lady Wave right back into the game. Addie Armes and Kiersten Ruffner added 2 more deep bombs and the first quarter ended with OS holding a 1-point lead, 15-14.
Kyleigh Cawood, who was held scoreless in the first, knocked down a 3 and Kile connected on her 3rd triple of the game in the second quarter. The Lady Bobcats would maintain their 1-point advantage, 25-24, going into the half.
The third quarter saw Abbie Parks hit a trey and Cawood get rolling, scoring 9 of the teams 12 points in the quarter. The quarter ended with…you guessed it…OS holding a 1-point lead, 36-35.
But things quickly tilted in the favor of the Lady Wave in the fourth quarter thanks to a full court press. The Bobcats simply crumbled under the pressure and Midway looked to lock down a victory as they built out a 6-point lead with just a couple minutes remaining. But folks we are talking about high school basketball where no lead is ever safe and the unexpected happens. The Lady Cats made a last push and were nearly successful, forcing turnovers and knocking down shots. But big rebounds by Cloa Copeland and key free-throws from Cawood helped to secure the win, 47-44.
Cawood led the scoring with 24, Kile had 10 and Ruffner added 5.
Similar to the Lady Wave, the Green Wave boys came out flat offensively. Scoring just 7 points in the opening quarter, the Wave struggled to get anything going. Brennan Reed scored 5 with Evan Lemons getting the other 2 as the Waves found themselves down 15-7 after 1 quarter of play. Ethan Jones led the way for the Bobcats with 7 points followed by Javen Barger with 6 in the opening quarter.
The Waves offense got a little spark in the second quarter. Cooper Queener came in the game and immediately knocked down two 3’s from the corner pocket. Brady Arndts would add 2 for the only other points of the quarter. These two freshmen accounted for the only points for the Green Wave in the entire quarter. The Wave would trail 15-26 at the half.
The second half didn’t get any better for the Wave. OS would cruise to a 58-38 win.
Brennan Reed led with 12 points while Evan Lemons, Dalton Cowell and Cooper Queener each had 6.
Next game: Midway travels to Sunbright on Friday