“Defense! Defense! Defense!” chants from the Red Bank fans rang throughout the gym Friday evening after the Lady Lions took a 45-39 lead on junior Raijeria Bell’s left-corner jump shot with 4:08 to play.
On Signal Mountain’s home court, the two-time reigning District 6-AA champions would have none of it. The host Lady Eagles scored the last dozen points for a 51-45 victory in front of a lively crowd.
A day after her brother, Jay Hardy, used his defensive prowess on the football field to help McCallie win the Division II-AAA state title, Jaylah Hardy swiped a pass at midcourt and drove the left baseline, making her layup while drawing a foul to help jump-start the late comeback.
There was no second-half answer for Signal Mountain’s Olivia Koontz, who sank midrange jumpers sometimes over two defenders and fought her way to the free-throw line, where she was 9-of-12.
Koontz swished a shot from the right elbow and sank the go-ahead free throw with 1:37 left as the 6-foot-1 post scored 17 of her game-high 21 points in the second half.