Woodbury, Tenn. – The Cascade Lady Champions (8-9, 2-2) shot just 23% from the field as  a team at District 9-AA foe, the Cannon County Lionettes (14-4, 6-0), in a 12-point loss, 55-43, on Friday night.

Trailing, 31-14 at halftime, Cascade outscored Cannon County by five points, 29-24, in the second half, but the shooting woes and early deficit proved too much to overcome despite cutting the Lionettes’ lead to single-digits in the fourth quarter.

Caroline Parker led the Lady Champs with 14 points while Sophie Ray chipped in with 13 points on the night. Kaegan Young, held to just a single free throw in the first half, finished with eight points on 2/16 shooting from the field. 

For Cannon County, Abi Alexander led the way with a team-high 13 points, including nine in the second half. Liv Prater chipped in with 12 points of her own without missing a single shot. Jaylynn Taylor and Addie King finished with nine points and eight points, respectively, as Cannon County shot nearly 53% from the field as a team. 

Cascade struggled early on, scoring just six points in the opening frame to trail by nine, 15-6. 

In the second quarter, Cannon County extended their lead to 17 points, 31-14, after outscoring Cascade, 16-8. The Lionettes shot 10/14 from the field in the first half and connected on a trio of three-pointers. Cannon County did not miss a single two-point field goal in the first half, and if not for the eight first-half turnovers, the Lionettes could have been up by more than 20 points. 

Caroline Parker (2) scored a team-high 14 points at Cannon County.

David Smith

Instead, the Lady Champions began to find an offensive groove in the third quarter. Young began to attack the basket with some ferocity, and despite her layups rolling off the rim, she was able to earn trips to the free-throw line. Cascade shot 4/9 from the field in the period, outscoring Cannon County, 16-9, to miraculously cut the lead to 10 points, 40-30, at the end of the third quarter. Cascade swiped three steals in the period and held the Lionettes to just four made field goals as Janie Demonbreum implemented some full court pressure to try and speed up the hosts.

To start the final frame, Cascade carried their momentum over from the third period, cutting the lead to single-digits. Despite Parker connecting on a pair of three-pointers late, the Lady Champs shot just 4/18 from the field in the fourth quarter, failing to convert inside the arc as Cannon County slowly extended their lead in the final minutes. Despite corralling seven offensive rebounds in the period, Cascade just could not open the lid that seemed to cover their basket, shooting just 20% from two in the period. Cannon County held on in the end for a 12-point home win to sweep the season series, 55-43, and maintain their unbeaten district record. 

Cascade falls to 8-9 (2-2) and is scheduled to travel to Grundy County on Monday night before returning home against Fayetteville City on Tuesday night. Both games will be aired LIVE on The Zinger 100.9 & AM 1400, starting at 5:45 p.m.