Cayuga vs. Martins Mill, Class A-Region III, Division I semifinal game

End Game
Cayuga falls 67-58 as MM closes game from the free throw line.

Fourth Quarter
29 sec. - Knox fouls out with eight points as MM at the line and makes 1 to take 64-58 lead.

Fourth Quarter
40 sec - missed shot by Cayuga and MM has ball with a called timeout. Cayuga must foul and hope MM misses from the free throw line. MM will be shooting two FTs on every foul.

Fourth Quarter
1:04 - Cayuga turnover and MM hits 2 FTs to lead 63-58.

Fourth Quarter
1:36 - Mack steal and layup to cut lead to 61-58. Martin's Mill goes to FT line and misses.

Fourth Quarter
2:16 - Martin's Mill leads 61-56 and Cayuga just turned the ball over. The Ladycats need to make something happen on defense to get over the hurdle. They have been close to Martin's Mill the whole half but just have not been able to get any closer than three points.

Fourth Quarter
3:54 Cayuga's Brown with a basket to make it 58-54 Martin's Mil.

Fourth Quarter
4:32 - Martin's Mill leads 56-50 after another jumper from the baseline. The Lady Mustangs look like they are going to start running some clock by working the ball around the perimeter. There has been a timeout called and would expect Cayuga to adjust their defense to try and put more pressure on Martin's Mill and try to make something happen.

Fourth Quarter
5:48 - Knox hits a jumper and cuts the lead to 54-50.

End of the Third
Martin's Mill heads into the final quarter with 50-45 lead. Cayuga has scored 15 points in each quarter and in the third they cut the lead from 10 to five points. Defense going to be big in the fourth quarter as Martin's Mill is going to try to run clock and go inside to their post. This is the time for the Cayuga seniors to play their best they have this season. They started playing well in the third quarter and just need to continue it.

Third Quarter
1:00 - Lexus Mack's layup and Chelsea Brown's steal and score cuts the Martin's Mill 50-44. Cayuga is staying in the game but can't seem to get over that hurdle. Lexus Mack starting to get going as she is getting the inbound pass and taking it the length of the court. Four times she has done that, twice she made the basket and the other two times she got fouled before taking a shot.

Third Quarter
3:17 - Cayuga gets it down to three points before Weatherford converts on a three-point play for a 44-38 lead.

Third Quarter
4:11 - Cayuga's Lexus Mack goes the distance for a layup and the lead is cut to 40-36.

Third Quarter
5:00 - A steal by Shawnta Knox goes to a Chelsea Brown layup and Cayuga has cut the lead to 40-34.

End of 1st Half
Martin's Mill leads 40-30 at halftime. The Lady Mustangs have gotten 17 points from their freshman post Meagan Weatherford. For the Ladycats, it has been their freshmen that have kept them in the game. Shawnta Knox, Molly Griffey and Taylor Wagner have combined for 14 points.

Second Quarter
1:18 - Martin's Mill playing a box and one, guarding Lexus Mack closely, taking her out of the offense. The Lady Mustangs lead 37-28.

Second Quarter
3:45 - Martin's Mill takes a 33-22 lead, its first double-digit lead of the game. Lady Mustangs outplaying Cayuga in every facet of the game right now. Cayuga is looking like the lack of experience at this level may have an effect on them as Martin's Mill is a step quicker to everything.

Second Quarter
6:47 - Molly Griffey is helping keep Cayuga in the game as she hits her second three. Martin's Mill leads 27-18.

End First Quarter
Martin's Mill leads 23-15 at the end of the first quarter as Weatherford has 15 points. Cayuga may have to start sagging its defense to help on Weatherford down low, which could open up the Lady Mustang shooters. But with how the post player for Martin's Mill is playing, Cayuga has to try something.


First Quarter
3:28 - Martin's Mill is dictating the tempo and has a 15-8 lead. Cayuga has to fin an to the pressure and trying to find a way to stop Weatherford down low.

First Quarter
5:03 - Martin's Mill's pressure has an early effect on Cayuga, who already has turned the ball over four times. Lady Mustangs' lead 8-6 with all their points coming from freshman post Meagan Weatherford.

First Quarter
6:22 - Early on and both teams are running up and down floor. Tied 4-4 as Cayuga gets baskets by Lexus Mack and Chantel Walker.


Pregame
Just over 10 minutes before game time between Cayuga and Martin's Mill in the regional semifinal game at Stephen F. Austin State University. Cayuga comes into Friday's game with a 22-10 record. Martin's Mill comes into the semifinal game with a 30-4 mark.

Neches vs. Midway - Class A-Region III, Division II Semifinals

Neches vs. Midway - Class A-Region III Division II semifinals.

End Game
Neches wins the regional semifinal game 72-19 over Midway. Roddricka Patton led Neches with 15 points and 11 steals and Raven McFarland had 13 points and nine rebounds. Check out the Herald-Press home page for a complete story.

Fourth Quarter
Midway scores its first points of the second half with three minutes left to play in the game. Neches leads 64-14.

End 3rd Quarter
Neches threw a shutout in the third quarter, not allowing a point to Midway. The Lady Tigers scored 19 answered in the third quarter and leads 58-14. Neches will play the winner of Slidell and Kennard, who play after this game, in the regional finals Saturday at 5:30 p.m. back in SFA.
Neches knows all about Kennard as both teams are in the same district. Neches beat Kennard (23-7) in both district games. Slidell (21-8) was the District 17-A champion - the same district as Midway.

3rd Quarter
3:26 - Four straight points by Kelcie Kinder, who say out most of the first half in foul trouble and Neches leads 52-14. Midway has not scored in this quarter as Neches is on a 13-0 run.

3rd Quarter - Roddricka Patton has started the third quarter with five straight points on a three pointer and then a steal and layup. Neches leads 46-14.


Halftime
Neches has dominated the first half of the regional semifinal game for a 39-14 lead over Midway. It has been all about the Lady Tiger pressure defense. Neches has 18 steals - Roddricka Patton has 11 of them - and forced 24 turnovers. Neches used a 16-2 run in the first quarter, including scoring 12 unanswered points and then had a 17-0 run in the second quarter to take complete control of the game.


2nd Quarter
1:34 - Neches finished off a 17-0 run and leads 37-14 and now are working ball around, trying to run some clock.

2nd Quarter
2:46 - Neches is in the midst of a 14-0 run for a 34-12 lead after another steal and basket by Roddricka Patton. Neches has 17 steals and has forced 23 turnovers.

2nd Quarter
401 - Neches increases its lead to 30-12 after a tip in by Kiandra Taylor. After Midway scored the first two points of the game, Neches has scored the last 10 points.

2nd Quarter
6:05 - Neches leads 26-12 as Midway uses its third timeout of the game as head coach Shane Coker tries to calm his team down. If the Lady Falcons do not get it turned around against Neches' pressure, this could be a long morning for Midway.

2nd Quarter
6:56 - Neches' Raven McFarland steal turns into basket by Cheyenne Haskins and Neches leads 24-12.


End 1st Quarter
Neches leads 20-10 after the first quarter. After a slow start with Midway leading 6-2, Neches has used their pressure defense to take control of this game. Neches went on a 16-2 run, scoring 12 unanswered points. The Lady Tigers already have 10 steals - six by Roddricka Patton - and have forced 13 Midway turnovers. Kristen Green leads Neches with eight points and Dianna Patton and Raven McFarland each have four points.

1st Quarter
1:20 - Dianna Patton gets a defensive rebound and goes length of floor for the layups and Neches has built an 18-8 lead. The Lady Tigers in the middle of 16-2 run.

1st Quarter
3:05 - Neches completes a 12-0 run as the Lady Tigers get three straight steals for easy baskets and have a 14-8 lead.

1st Quarter
3:53 - Another steal by Neches, this time by Dianna Patton who converts for a layup and Neches lead 10-6. Lady Tigers on a 6-0 run and Midway struggling against Neches' press. The Lady Falcons just called their second timeout of the game as they try to solve this Neches defense.

1st Quarter
4:43 - Two steals by Neches results in two baskets by Kristen Green to tie game at 6-6. Midway already has six turnovers.

1st Quarter
5:31 - Midway takes an early 6-2 lead as Neches Kelcie Kinder picks up two quick fouls. Neches using its press effectively but the Lady Tigers have started cold from the floor, hitting only one shot on a breakaway layup by Roddricka Patton.


PREGAME
Game starts in nearly 30 minutes. Neches comes into the game with a 33-2 record and ranked No. 1 in the TABC poll for the whole season. The Lady Tigers defeated Savoy 59-36 in the area round and defeated Saltillo, the No. 4 team in the state, 51-35 in the regional quarterfinals.
Midway comes into the semifinal game with a record of 21-11. The Lady Falcons defeated Dallas Peak Prep 60-5 in the bi-district round, Aquilla 45-42 in the area round and Coolidge 50-48 in the quarterfinals.
Keep it right here to get all the live updates of this semifinal game.

Slocum looks good in playoff debut

The Slocum Mustangs looked really sharp in their playoff debut Thursday night against Roxton in Tyler.
The Mustangs defeated Roxton 63-46 and it could have been much worse than that. Slocum had as much as a 37-point lead in the third quarter before going to the bench in the fourth quarter where many of the Mustang junior varsity players got their first taste of playoff experience.
The Slocum starters dominated on both sides of the court for the first three quarters. Not sure which was more impressive, the way they ran the offense flawlessly or the way they played defense, holding Roxton to 22 points in the first three quarters.
I have not seen Slocum since early in the season and I liked how they can spread out the offense production. Last year much of the offense went through Jared Lane, and that is how it should be with how good of a scorer he was. But this year, it is impressive to watch how Slocum has transitioned from relying on Lane to having several players who have the ability to score.
On defense, it was impressive to see how the Mustangs handled Roxton's leading scorer Alex Stephenson, who was held scoreless for the first three quarters and only had eight points for the game. Slocum swarmed Stephenson most of the night with double teams and traps and their tam defense was so good that they never seemed to leave a man open even when putting two players going at Stephenson.
If they continue to play like they did Thursday night, the Mustangs are strong contenders to defend their state title.

Cayuga's 100-point pileup

There has been a lot of talk and attention on Cayuga's 100-point game streak, which has reached 10 games. The Wildcats broke the state record, which was six games, and his four games from tying the national record, which is 14 games.
I talked to Cayuga's head coach Greg Jenkins Wednesday and part of our discussion was on this streak and record. And after talking to him, it was obvious that he really does not feel too comfortable with the streak.
"When it first started, we did not want anything to do with it," Jenkins told me. "When it got to game four or five, we were tying to keep it under wraps because we did not want it to get out."
It is understandable that Jenkins does not want to have the streak on the Wildcats' backs with the playoffs starting next week. The goal for Cayuga is to win a state tournament. The Wildcats have made it to the regional tournament three straight years, but came up short each of those times. For the seniors, they know it is their last chance and the focus has to be on getting back SFA finally. And the last thing Jenkins wants as any kind of distraction, which this streak is.
The Wildcats have seemed to handle the distraction well during the regular season but what is going to happen in the playoffs. As Jenkins put it, "I am worried what is going to happen when we don't score 100 points. How are our fans and players going to handle that?"
Maybe the best thing for Cayuga would be not to score 100 points in one of the next two warm up games against Clarksville or Bloomburg. Then once the playoffs starts, there will be no distractions, just one goal in mind — to win a state title.

Cayuga defense plays big against Ganado

The Cayuga defense was a big part of the 41-19 win over Ganado Saturday night in the Class A, Division II semifinals.
The Wildcats stopped Ganado on all four fourth-down attempts, with two of those coming when the Indians were inside Cayuga's 30-yard line.
- The first stop came on the opening drive when Ganado moved the ball to the Cayuga 29-yard line for a third and one. The Wildcats stopped a run for no gain setting up fourth and one. Ganado tried to pass for the first time, using play action, but Cayuga was there on defense as Maclome Kennedy tipped away the pass into the hands of Deon Hale for the interception.
- In the second quarter, Ganado moved the ball just inside the 50-yard line with over a minute left, facing a fourth and six. On another pass play, Ganado quarterback Donovan Foster rolled to the right but his pass feel incomplete because of the coverage by Kennedy. It was a critical stop because it halted extra momentum Ganado could have had going into the lockerroom.
- The next fourth-down stop came after Ganado intercepted a Cayuga pass on the first possession of the second half, trailing 20-7. The interception gave the Indians the ball on Cayuga's 3-yard line and the Indians moved it to the 20-yard line for a fourth and five. Ganado tried a trick play with a toss going to Josh Labay, who stepped back looking to throw. But Cayuga had the play well covered in the secondary and all Labay could do was try to run for the first down, but he only picked up 2 yards. What looked like a golden opportunity for Ganado to get within a score turned into a big time stop and Cayuga scored on their next possession.
- The final fourth down stop came in the fourth quarter when the Indians were desperate, down 34-13 with six minutes to play. After the defense had two sacks to put Ganado in a fourth and 18 from its own 29-yard line, Foster rolled to his right and was able to avoid a pair of defenders who were looking for a sack. Foster had a chance to find a receiver for the first down, but the pass was knocked away from behind by Kennedy. Cayuga scored in four plays to put the game away.

Traylon Shead to play in U.S. Army All-American Bowl

What a way to end your high school career — playing with the best of the best around the country.
That is what Cayuga's Traylon Shead gets to do as he accepted the invitation to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Tuesday. The game will be in San Antonio on January 9.
When you look at the names of past players, it is quite an impressive list — Vince Young, Ted Ginn, Jr., Reggie Bush, Marcus Spears, Desean Jackson and of course Palestine's own Adrian Peterson.
This is another interesting link between Shead and Peterson. Over the last couple of years there have been lots of comparisons between the two — both Anderson County products, both coached by Tommy Allison and now both having played in one of the top high school games in the country.
Sportlink, who produces the game, put on a nice presentation Tuesday morning at Cayuga High School. In front of the high school student body, Shead was offered the final invitation to the game, which of course he accepted.

Cayuga playoff game

Cayuga vs. Mart starting in 40 min. Cold as h
game time nears with temps in the high 30s