The White Hall student section was broken up and multiple coaches were ejected from the Bert Honey Gymnasium in the final minutes of a critical girls basketball game Tuesday night.
Sheridan defeated White Hall 74-55 in a game between teams who entered the night tied for fourth place in the 5A-South Conference. The top four teams in the conference advance to the state playoffs, and each team has three games remaining.
White Hall Athletic Director Mark Cantwell said he did not receive any explanation from the officials for the ejections. Some of the students who normally sit behind the home team relocated to the other end of the home bleachers in the higher rows.
“It was sad, a little uncalled for,” Cantwell said. “There really wasn’t (a reason given), to be honest. … Just said they wanted them gone.”
Sheridan (13-13, 8-5 in 5A-South) led 68-49 with 2:27 remaining in the game when officials stopped play and ordered the White Hall student section removed, citing inappropriate language toward officials.
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During the discussions which followed while the students were being removed, the officials called two technical fouls against White Hall (12-10, 7-6). Head Coach Dustin Powell and assistant coach Mary-Catherine Qualls left the court, having apparently been ejected. Leslie Mitchell coached the remainder of the game.
These technical fouls were the second and third such fouls called against White Hall’s bench. One of the coaches previously received one with 3:42 remaining in the third quarter after protesting a foul call. The foul being protested was the sixth against White Hall in the third quarter, at which point two fouls had been called against Sheridan in the period.
The late controversies overshadowed an important game for both teams.
Sheridan’s win came despite trailing 13-4 after the first quarter. White Hall didn’t trail in the period after senior Kynnedi Barnett opened the scoring with a three-pointer. White Hall finished the quarter on a 6-0 run, including a steal and layup by senior Blair Weston with 3.8 seconds left.
Sheridan flipped the game in the second. After an early three-point play by freshman Ainsley Stevens, senior Lilly Reid contributed each of Sheridan’s points on a 10-2 run that gave Sheridan a 17-15 lead.
The Lady Jackets went on to lead 27-20 at halftime. Reid’s 12 points, all scored in the second, led all scorers at the break.
Sheridan Coach Andy Brakebill said the Lady Jackets knew White Hall would come out strong playing at home with a playoff spot potentially on the line.
“I told them, we’re going to have to weather the storm,” Brakebill said. “We got an early timeout. They got a pretty good lead, and I told our girls, ‘We gotta settle in.’ We settled for too many outside shots early, but we started driving, getting the ball in the paint, made some good reads. We were able to settle in and take the lead and cruise after that.”
Sheridan pulled away in the third quarter. Over the second and third quarters combined, the Lady Jackets outscored White Hall 47-22.
Reid led Sheridan with 24 points despite getting into foul trouble. Stevens, fellow freshman Addy Grimmett and senior Mason Wilson each added 11.
Weston led White Hall with 28 points. Fellow senior Jelayla Stith added 10.
BOYS: Sheridan 61, White Hall 53
The White Hall boys nearly pulled off a major upset, but Sheridan hung on to win a rivalry road game.
Sheridan (22-6, 11-2) led 41-36 entering the fourth quarter, but the Bulldogs fought back. White Hall sophomore Jaxson Turner hit two three-pointers to help close the gap before junior Korey Hope cut the deficit to 54-53 in the final 2 minutes.
White Hall (5-18, 3-10) didn’t score again. Sheridan senior Lane Bickford scored the next shot, the final one from the field, to make it 56-53. From there, Sheridan made 5 of 6 free throws over the final 34.1 seconds to see out its second win against the Bulldogs this season.
Sheridan sophomore Jace Gatlin scored 21 points to lead all scorers. Fellow sophomore Beckett Scott added 14 points after making four free throws in the final minute, and freshman Wilson Reid finished with 11.
Junior Tristen Dunlap led the Bulldogs with 14 points. Hope and senior Bobby Foster scored 12 apiece, while Turner finished with 10.
The game was close throughout. Sheridan led 15-11 after the first quarter but trailed 24-21 at halftime after the Bulldogs finished the half on a 7-0 run.
Sheridan Coach Joe Scott said his team showed toughness after a rough first half.
“I thought White Hall played a little tougher than we did (in the first half),” Scott said. “They had more energy than we did. We weren’t getting the quality shots. We’re getting beat on the boards. We’re getting beat on turnovers. We were so out of character that first half, especially the foul troubles. We were playing lineups we’ve never played before. It just wasn’t us.”
Reid hit a three-pointer to put Sheridan ahead 28-27 in the third quarter. Dunlap later tied the game at 29, but Sheridan retook the lead for good with a 6-0 run.
