HAYDEN —
If anyone wonders why Wenonah is the fourth-ranked team in Class 5A, all they have to do is see Kaitlyn Rodgers in action.
The 6-foot-2 freshman moved around the Hayden defense with ease, scoring basket after basket as the Dragons scorched the Wildcats 61-31 in Thursday’s Class 5A girls basketball sub-regional playoff.
Rodgers scored 17 points in the first half — outscoring Hayden’s entire team by eight points — and finished with 25, plus 11 rebounds and five steals. She spent much of the second half on the bench.
Rodgers wasn’t the only big girl to give Wildcat coach John Simmons a headache, but she was by far the most dominant. The Dragons roster has three players six feet or taller, and all took their toll on Hayden.
On the defensive end, Wenonah’s pressure on the perimeter kept Cats center Katie Parr form getting the ball, and prevented guards Grayson Taylor and Evin Bibb from hitting from outside the 3-point arc. Parr only scored four points and Taylor just eight, finally hitting her first trey just after the start of the second half.
The smothering Dragon defense held Hayden scoreless in the second quarter, something rarely done to a Simmons-coached team — Hewitt-Trussville held the Ctas scoreless in the first quarter back in January, only to see Hayden come alive in the second to take a big halftime lead.
Parr had 11 rebounds on the night, and Bibb pulled down nine. She also had three steals. Brooke Meadows came off the bench to lead all Wildcat scorers with 10 points.
Jakema Holmes also scored 12 points for the Dragons.
Hayden finishes the season with a 25-6 record. Wenonah moves on to play Lawrence County in the first round of the Northwest Regional at Wallace State-Hanceville next Tuesday morning.
Local Sports
Related Photos
-
Wenonah center Kaitlyn Rodgers (40) goes up and over Hayden forward Lori Swann (23), as she scores her first of many baskets in the Dragons' 61-31 win over the Wildcats in Thursday's Class 5A sub-regional playoff. Robert Carter
Discussion
Girls basketball sub-regional: No. 4 Wenonah 61, Hayden 31
- Local Sports
-
-
Football: Glover to coach, three Pinson Valley players on North roster of All-Star teams
Three Pinson Valley seniors-to-be were named to the roster of the north team, and Indians coach Matt Glover will be an assistant for the north team at the AHSAA North-South All-Star Football Game in Montgomery.
-
Hayden wins AHSAA 5A state softball championship
Brooke Meadows' lead-off home run in the first inning held up as the only run of the game, as Hayden defeated Scottsboro 1-0 Saturday to win the AHSAA Class 5A state softball championship.
-
State softball tournament: Hayden advances to championship game with 2-0 win over Scottsboro
All it took was one big hit, and that came off the bat of Katie Parr.
-
State softball tournament: Hayden 3, Saraland 2 (10 innings)
Brooke Meadows hit a lead-off double, then scored the winning run when Meleah Hargett bunted her way on base as Hayden defeated Saraland 3-2 in 10 innings in the quarterfinal round of the AHSAA Class 5A state softball tournament.
-
State softball tournament: Hayden 12, Shelby County 0 (6 innings)
Hayden has advanced to the winner's bracket second round of the AHSAA Class 5A state softball tournament, thanks to a 12-0 beatdown of Shelby County that ended after six innings.
-
State softball tournament: Corner eliminated by Oak Grove
After breezing through their regional qualifying tournament without a loss, then dispensing with a top-10 opponent in the first round of the state tournament, Corner’s softball team showed all the appearances of a juggernaut headed for a big finish to the season.
-
Regional softball qualifiers: Corner, Hayden advance to state tournament
Corner took the express lane, while Hayden took the back roads with lots of twists and turns.
-
Baseball playoff semifinals: Hartselle 7-10, Pinson Valley 2-0
Pinson Valley’s pitching had no answer for Hartselle’s bats.
-
Boys soccer semifinals: St. Paul's Episcopal 2,Pinson Valley 1 (shootout)
Pinson Valley’s boys soccer team has seen this show before, and it wasn’t any better the second time.
-
Softball regionals: Tuscaloosa in rain delay
The opening of the AHSAA North Central Regional Softball Tournament will not get started on time, thanks to rain in the Tuscaloosa area.
- More Local Sports Headlines
-
Football: Glover to coach, three Pinson Valley players on North roster of All-Star teams
Raw: Trucker Bumps I-5 Bridge Before Collapse
Raw: Texas Deputy Shot by Colo. Suspect Honored
Major Detours Following Wash. Bridge Collapse
American Held in Grisly Czech Murders
Raw: Jersey Shore Reopens for Summer
UK-bound Pakistan Plane Diverted, 2 Men Arrested
Officials: Tsarnaev Friend Linked to Slaying
Obama:Sexual Assault Threatens Trust in Military
Bridge Collapse Survivor: 'Rough Day'
Jersey Shore Open for Business
Raw: Memorial Day Flags Placed at Arlington
New Wheelchair Lift Promises More Access
First Person: Mom Discusses Famous Tornado Photo
Raw Video: Washington State Bridge Collapse
Boy Scouts Approve Plan to Accept Gay Boys
