The Silverdale Baptist Academy girls' basketball team has thrived as well as any in the late stages of games this season.
Thanks to a collective clutch gene, the Lady Seahawks booked the program's first trip to the state tournament Tuesday night by improving to 9-1 in games decided by six points or less.
Junior guard Tessa Gibson faked a handoff at the top of the key to recent district MVP winner Marley Montgomery, then crashed the paint with authority for the decisive blow in an exciting region quarterfinals showdown.
The streaking Gibson hit a game-winning left-handed layup with under two seconds left to beat Knoxville's Grace Christian, 56-54, which unleashed a storming of the court by the Silverdale student section.
"I have been coaching for nine years, and I have never had a team as unified as this group," SBA coach Victor Underwood said. "This team loves being around each other and just wants to win. They don't care who gets it done or who gets the credit."
Laney Bone provided a double-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks, while Montgomery also put 16 in the scoring column to help lock in a future trip to Lipscomb Academy for the Division II-A state tournament round of 12.
The Lady Rams (12-18) knocked down seven 3-pointers, including one to take the lead with 2:28 left to play.
In a fitting moment for Silverdale (20-7), its lone senior Audrey Canter hit two free throws to tie the game 51-all with 32 seconds left to play.
"I turned to my coaching staff when Audrey was shooting those and said there's no one else we want shooting them," Underwood said. "Audrey has worked so hard and is so deserving of that moment."
After leading by double digits in the first half and using an 8-0 run in the third quarter to go up nine points, the Lady Seahawks had to battle to the wire in a win-or-stay-home situation. But crunch time is their time.
Montgomery hit three vital free throws with 15.3 seconds left, but the Lady Rams tied the score at 54 with two freebies on the other end with 10 seconds to go.
With a teammate in mind, Gibson sealed the deal to advance the Lady Seahawks to the region semifinals this Friday against Christian Academy of Knoxville (22-4), which beat Chattanooga Christian 66-59 on Tuesday. The game will tip off at 6 p.m. at Knoxville Webb.
"Audrey's senior leadership has been amazing," said Gibson, who finished with 11 points and three steals. "She is the No. 1 person I look up to. Whenever I have a problem I know I can go right to her. We are playing for her. We want her final ride to be the best possible."
The Lady Seahawks hope to make a run to the region championship, which would help improve their seeding for the state tournament that begins March 1.
"Even though we have a young group, they have a lot of experience playing in tight games now," Underwood said. "We hope to get Becca Lamb back by this Friday, too. I am really proud of our team. They have made history."
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.