JACKSON – Bogue Chitto’s Cinderella season came to a nightmarish end for the second year in a row Saturday as the powerful H.W. Byers Lady Lions thumped the young Lady Cats 75-39 in the semifinal round of the MHSAA State 1A Tournament in the Mississippi Coliseum.

     In other tournament action, the Belmont Lady Cardinals defeated Choctaw Central 63-50 in 3A. In boys action, the Kemper County Wildcats edged Aderdeen 62-58 in 3A and the Biggersville boys blasted Durant 64-44 in 1A.

     The Lady Cats finished their season with 20-14 worksheet. Bogue Chitto l only loses one senior to graduation and will have plenty of experience coming back for next year’s run.

     Byers (28-4) advances to the 1A State Girls Championship next Friday and  battles the winner of the Hinds AHS/Coldwater game.

H.W. Byers 75, Bogue Chitto 39

     The Lady Lions overpowered the Lady Cats from start to finish with their size and quickness as they rolled to a 31-5 lead in the first quarter and notdidn’t look back.

     In the second quarter, Byers continued to turn up the heat on the inexperienced Lady Cats as they went on a 15-8 run and took a comfortable 46-13 lead into halftime.

In the second half, the Lady Lions came out and pick up off where they started while increasing their lead to 66-22 over Bogue Chitto after three quarters of action.

     Junior guard Adrienne Wallace pumped in a team-high 16 points to lead the Lady Cats. Junior forward Earlineshia Dillon contributed 10 points and grabbed 5 rebounds.

“We had a great season,” said BC coach Christi Terrell. “We got beat by a team who is very athletic and shoots the ball well. Byers had two seniors step up and provide the leadership they needed to win the game.

     “Overall, I am very proud of my girls,” continued Terrell. “They went above and beyond everyone’s expectations. This was a great rebuilding year and I am looking forward to next year.”

     Senior center Kyra Gulledge directed the Lady Lion charge with a game-high double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Alexis Hardaway chipped in 16 points and Justice Martin had 10 points.

     “We are extremely proud to get the win,” said Byers coach Jason Thompson. “The girls played really hard today and we are excited to return to the championship.

     “Bogue Chitto has a talented and young team,” continued Thompson. “Coach Terrell has done a outstanding job with them to get back to this point after losing a bunch last year. We knew Bogue Chitto would be tough and hungry, but we wanted to step up our game and get back to the finals.”