East Hamilton's girls were coming off not only a loss in their District 5-AAA final but a 31-point loss at that. But if any of their fans were worried about the team's mental state and how they would respond in their Region 3 quarterfinal, the Lady Hurricanes gave a resounding answer Friday night.
Playing what had to be one of - if not its best - quarters of the season in the opening eight minutes, East Hamilton built an early lead of more than 20 points and ended up defeating White County 61-43.
In the process, No. 9-ranked East Hamilton (25-5) set a school record for wins in a season. The Lady 'Canes have had some success in the past in Class AA, but this is the first Class AAA girls' basketball team at the high school to advance as far as a region semifinal.
"Hopefully we're not through," East Hamilton coach Hunter Gremore said.
The tournament continues with Monday's semifinals at Rhea County. The Lady 'Canes will take on Stone Memorial, which defeated Cleveland on Friday.
Although Madison Hayes made a 3-pointer from the right corner in East Hamilton's 7-0 start, it was the Lady 'Canes' inside presence that that was the biggest key in them getting out to a 22-point lead before White County's Hannah Leftwich made a free throw with 1.1 seconds on the clock to make the first-quarter score 24-3.
"When we're at our best, we're defending and rebounding," Gremore said. "Even though they had size, we were flying all over the court."
Sophomore post player Eliziah LaBoo scored six consecutive points in a stretch of 1:09 in the first quarter, starting with a shot in the lane set up by Hayes' baseline drive. LaBoo then banked in a high-post jumper before scoring in close after Carli Zeh created a turnover in the backcourt.
"They were no match," LaBoo said of the Warriorettes (21-9), who eliminated the Lady 'Canes from last year's postseason in this same game. "They got me last year because I was new. This year I knew what I was going against. It was physical. I wanted it to be physical."
And despite leading 32-13 at halftime, there was no letup by East Hamilton at the outset of the third quarter. The Lady 'Canes scored the first 11 points of the second half, a run that included two more 3s and 2-for-2 free-throw shooting by Hayes, who led the victory with 27 points.
"We stressed at halftime that we had to keep doing the same things," Gremore said. "We didn't want to give them any hope. We didn't want to let them creep back in it.
"We couldn't have asked for a better start. We got a little sloppy in the fourth quarter, so good thing we had a big enough lead."
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.