Nettes battle Lady War Eagles in 4A Final Four
PHS Basketball, Team FYN Sports March 5, 2022
Fort Valley, Ga — It was the year 2000. That was the last time the Pickens Dragonettes played in a Final Four game in the state basketball tournament. On Friday, March 4th, the Nettes made the nearly 3 hour trip south to Fort Valley State University to take on the Marist Lady War Eagles in the GHSA 4A Girls State Basketball Tournament. The Lady War Eagles came into the game with one of the better defenses in the state allowing 31.5 points per game. The Nettes defense, hadn’t been too shabby during the season either only allowing 34.9 points per game. This was expected to be a low scoring affair, and that is what it was. In the end, the Lady War Eagles were able to come away with a 38-35 win.
After a bit of a back and forth to start the first quarter, Amanda Nelson got the scoring started with a three pointer to give the Nettes an early 3-0 lead. After Marist made two layups and a free throw, Caroline Mullins went on a personal 4-0 run by making two free throws and a layup to make it 7-5 Pickens. Going blow for blow in this opening quarter, the Lady War Eagles tied it up at 7 with a bucket. Carmyn Mullins gave the Nettes the lead with a three pointer. Going to the second, Pickens led Marist 10-7.
Nettes with the ball in the first quarter
The Lady War Eagles opened the second quarter with a pair of free throws to cut the Nettes lead down to 10-9. Caroline Mullins answered with a three pointer to make it 13-9. After a layup by Marist, Caroline Mullins went on another 4-0 run with back to back buckets to make it 17-11. The Lady War Eagles ended the run with a bucket to cut it to 17-13. Bella Hopkins then split a pair of free throws to make it 18-13. Marist closed the first half with a bucket to make it 18-15 Nettes going to the break.
The Nettes on defense against the Lady War Eagles
The third quarter began with Marist getting a layup to cut the lead to 18-17. Caroline Mullins carried over her strong first half into the third as she made a bucket to make it 20-17. After a pair of free throws by the Lady War Eagles, Caroline Mullins made a layup to make it 22-19. Marist, then hit a three pointer to tie things up at 22. It would not be tied for long as Caroline Mullins made a layup to give the Nettes a 24-22 lead going to the fourth quarter.
Nettes on offense in the third quarter
In the fourth quarter, the Lady War Eagles split a pair of free throws to cut the Pickens lead down to 24-23. Emma Gleason made a layup to make it 26-23. Marist, then went on a 7-0 run to take a 30-26 lead. After Carmyn Mullins split a pair of free throws, the Lady War Eagles made a layup to extend their lead to 32-27. Nelson, then hit a pair of free throws to make it 32-29. With just over 3 minutes left in the game, Marist held the ball till there was under a minute left. The Nettes, nearly had several steals while the Lady War Eagles were holding the ball, but with the time running down, they had to start fouling. Marist, made a pair of free throws to make it 34-29.
We then had an odd incident where as Caroline Mullins was going in for a layup, the horn blew. After a lengthy discussion between officials and coaches, 27 seconds were placed on the clock, the layup from Caroline Mullins counted, and went to the free throw line where she hit two free throws to make it 34-33 Lady War Eagles. The Nettes, then went for the steal on the ensuing in-bounds. Marist, got the ball in and Pickens fouled. The Lady War Eagles, again made a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 36-33. Using that never say die mentality that they’ve come to be known for, the Nettes cut the lead down to 36-35 after a tough layup by Nelson. The Nettes quickly fouled and sent Marist to the line. The Lady War Eagles, made both free throws again to make it 38-35. With one final chance, a three point shot would not fall for the Nettes and Marist held on to win, 38-35.
Scorers for the Nettes:
Caroline Mullins: 21 points
Amanda Nelson: 7 points
Carmyn Mullins: 4 points
Emma Gleason: 2 points
Bella Hopkins: 1 point
The Nettes finish the 2021-22 season with a 26-4 overall record. The 26 wins are tied for the second most in a season. The 35 points per game the Nettes gave up on defense ranks as the best in the Pickens High School history. The 21-game win streak that the Nettes went on during the season tied for the second longest streak in team history. The Nettes, won their 900th game in program history during the season. The Nettes, won their second straight 7-AAAA regular season championship during the season. Congrats to the Pickens Dragonettes on an incredibly historic season.
Nettes open state tournament with big first round win
PHS Basketball, Team FYN Sports February 23, 2022
Jasper, Ga — It was state tournament time once again in Jasper as the Pickens Dragonettes welcomed the Riverdale Lady Raiders to the Dragons Den for the first round of the GHSA 4A Girls State Basketball Tournament. After a tough loss to Northwest Whitfield in the region championship, the Nettes came into the game as the #2 seed. The Riverdale Lady Raiders, came into the game as the #3 seed out of region 5. Using a big time team effort, the Nettes came away with an 83-44 win.
In the first quarter, the Nettes got off to a quick start as Madison Powell opened the scoring with a three pointer. Caroline Mullins then made a bucket and a free throw to make it 6-0 Pickens early. After a three by the Lady Raiders, the Nettes went on an 8-0 run as Caroline Mullins hit a pair of free throws, Emma Gleason made a layup, Caroline Mullins, Emmie Moore, and Amanda Nelson hit free throws to make it 14-3. Riverdale ended the run with a bucket and a free throw to make it 14-6. Then it was time for the Mullins sisters to takeover. After a three by older sister Carmyn, younger sister Caroline made a layup. Carmyn then followed it up with 4 consecutive free throws to make it 23-6 Nettes going to the second.
Nettes allowed just 6 first quarter points
The Lady Raiders got things going in the second quarter with a bucket to make it 23-8. Moore answered for Pickens with a three pointer making it 26-8. After a bucket by Riverdale, the Nettes went on an 8-0 run as Nelson split a pair of free throws, Carmyn Mullins made a layup and followed that up with a three pointer, then Gleason made a layup to make it 34-10. The two teams then traded buckets to end the first half as Pickens held a 40-15 advantage at the break.
Nettes on offense in the 2nd quarter
The third quarter began with a steal by the Nettes and a nice finish at the basket by Bella Hopkins to make it 42-15. After a three by the Lady Raiders, Nelson and Caroline Mullins responded with back to back three pointers to make it 48-18. The two teams then traded buckets for a couple minutes as the Nettes led it 54-28. Pickens then went on a 5-0 run getting a layup by Emery Bryant, a free throw make by Carmyn Mullins, and a bucket by Caroline Mullins to make it 59-28. The two teams traded and-1 opportunities as we’d head to the fourth with Pickens leading Riverdale, 62-31.
Nettes running an in-bounds play
Moore opened the shortened fourth quarter with a three pointer to make it 65-31. After a free throw make by the Lady Raiders, Gleason made a layup to make it 67-32. Riverdale then went on a 4-0 run to make it 67-36. Jazmine Chastain made a layup after a nice offensive rebound and Bryant hit a pair of free throws to stretch the lead out to 71-36. The Lady Raiders came back down and made a layup to make it 71-38. The Nettes came back down the floor and Emery Steinhauer made a wide open three to make it 74-38. Riverdale responded with back to back three pointers to make it 74-44. Pickens ended the game on a 9-0 run as Bryant scored 4 points, Ashaela Buchanan scored 3 points, and Adrienne Plumley scored two points during the run. Your final score from Jasper, Nettes 83 Riverdale 44.
Scoring For The Nettes:
Caroline Mullins: 19 points
Carmyn Mullins: 16 points
Emery Bryant: 10 points
Emmie Moore: 7 points
Amanda Nelson: 7 points
Emma Gleason: 6 points
Madison Powell: 6 points
Ashaela Buchanan: 3 points
Emery Steinhauer: 3 points
Bella Hopkins: 2 points
Adrienne Plumley: 2 points
With the win, the Nettes advance to the Sweet 16. They will have a quick turnaround as they will head down to Albany to take on the Dougherty Lady Trojans on Friday, February 25th. Dougherty, is the #1 seed out of region 1. They had a bye to the Sweet 16 as region 3 did not have a #4 seed for them to match up against in the first round. The Lady Trojans are 17-7 on the season. Their last game was on February 15th in the region 1 championship game against Bainbridge. Tip off for the Nettes and Lady Trojans is set for 6 pm.