Rock Hill girls, York boys open holiday tournaments with wins
The Rock Hill girls and York boys basketball teams were winners on the first day of the Y.C. Winborn and Lindberg Moody holiday basketball tournaments Wednesday at Rock Hill and Northwestern high schools.
At the Y.C. Winborn tournament, the Rock Hill girls moved into the semifinals with a 56-39 win over Sun Valley.
Rock Hill, 8-2 overall, struggled in the first half but led 23-18 when the teams headed for the locker rooms. The second half was different, with Rock Hill outscoring Sun Valley 33-21 to pick up the win.
Rikoya Anderson led Rock Hill with 18 points. Whitney Malone added nine points for Rock Hill, and Abrianna Green and Jasona Ballard tossed in eight and seven, respectively.
Amanda Cherry led Sun Valley with 12.
“We played flat in the first half,” said Rock Hill coach Kenny Orr. “We did not change anything at half, but I told them to work on cutting down the turnovers in the second half. That was the difference for us.”
Other first-round winners in the girls’ division were A.C. Flora, Butler, and Wilson.
In the boys’ division, York moved into the semifinals with a 62-48 victory over Chapin.
York led only 34-29 at halftime, but the Cougars stepped it up in the second half to pull away for the win.
York, 3-6 overall, was paced by Tabari Moore with a game-high 16 points. Malcolm Kennedy and Myles Prosser joined him in double figures with 11 points each.
Wes Huffstetler led Chapin with 15 points.
“We were missing two of our key players today,” said York coach Mike Gossett. “However, I thought our backups played exceptionally well. I credit this win to the whole team, as everyone who played contributed.”
Marvin Ridge also advanced to the semifinals with a 48-47 win over Lancaster.
Marvin Ridge pulled away in the third period, but Lancaster regrouped and came charging back down the stretch.
Riley Berry led Marvin Ridge with 14 points.
Lancaster was paced by Nehemiah McGriff with a game-high 21 points. Jalen Canty chipped in 14 for Lancaster.
“We battled back after we got down,” said Lancaster coach Ricardo Priester. “We picked up our intensity level, and McGriff led the charge for us down the stretch. Playing teams like the ones in this tournament will help us when we get to region play.”
The final game of the night saw Hunter Huss reach the semifinals with a 74-48 victory over the Rock Hill boys. Hunter Huss led 31-23 at halftime, but outscored Rock Hill 43-25 in the second half to pull away for the win.
Butler, the two-time defending tournament champion, also moved into the semifinals with a 55-31 victory over Orangeburg-Wilkinson.
At the Lindberg Moody tournament, only two games were complete by press time.
Charleston Collegiate topped Waccamaw 47-37, and North Mecklenburg routed Fairfield Central 89-47.
Northwestern was playing Battery Creek late Wednesday, with Hopewell and Idea Charter scheduled to follow.
Y.C. WINBORN FIRST ROUND
GIRLS DIVISION
A.C. Flora 62, Hunter Huss 37
Rock Hill 56, Sun Valley 39
Butler 52, Marvin Ridge 45
Wilson 67, Monroe 47
BOYS DIVISION
York 62, Chapin 48
Marvin Ridge 48, Lancaster 47
Butler 55, Orangeburg-Wilkinson 31
Hunter Huss 74, Rock Hill 48
LINDBERG MOODY FIRST ROUND
Charleston Collegiate 47, Waccamaw 37
North Mecklenburg 89, Fairfield Central 47
Y.C. WINBORN THURSDAY SCHEDULE
GIRLS DIVISION
9:30 a.m. - Hunter Huss vs. Sun Valley
2 p.m. Marvin Ridge vs. Monroe
3:30 p.m. - Butler vs. Wilson
6:30 p.m. - Rock Hill vs. A. C. Flora
BOYS DIVISION
11 a.m. - Chapin vs. Rock Hill
12:30 p.m. - Lancaster vs. Orangeburg-Wilkinson
5 p.m. - Marvin Ridge vs. Butler
8 p.m. - York vs. Hunter Huss
LINDBERG MOODY THURSDAY SCHEDULE
2:30 p.m. - Northwestern-Battery Creek loser vs. Idea-Hopewell loser
4 p.m. - Waccamaw vs. Fairfield Central
5:30 p.m. - Charleston Collegiate vs. North Mecklenburg
7 p.m. - Northwestern-Battery Creek winner vs. Idea-Hopewell winner
This story was originally published December 21, 2016 at 9:17 PM with the headline "Rock Hill girls, York boys open holiday tournaments with wins."