A strong second-half performance led Cherokee Bluff to upset Baldwin’s girls in the Class 3A championship last week.
The Bears denied the Bravettes, who claimed the Class 4A state title last year, a chance to repeat with a 66-58 victory at the Macon Coliseum on March 5.
Baldwin head coach Kizzy Walker was disappointed in her team’s performance.
“I think we thought somebody was going to lay down and give it to us since we were here three years in a row. I told them that’s not going to happen,” Walker said. “[Cherokee Bluff] wanted to win. This was their first year here, and they wanted to be champions, but I don’t think it registered. I don't think the maturity level was there for them to understand that you’ve got to play hard each and every play.”
In the first half, the game was intense.
Baldwin jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead in the first quarter as Kassidy Neal buried two 3-pointers. Cherokee Bluff answered as Bristol Kersh kept her team in the game, but sophomore Suri Clark scored the final six points of the opening period for the Bravettes as they led 14-12 heading into the second.
Kersh and Claire Carlson briefly put the Bears back in front at 17-14 with 6:25 left in the half before Baldwin answered. The Bravettes went on a 9-2 run, powered by the dominance of Neal and fellow senior Janaye Walker in the post, as they led 26-17 at the 4:07 mark of the second quarter.
Baldwin then led Cherokee Bluff 36-27 at the break. Carlson kept the Bears in the game by scoring five of their final 10 points in the first half. Her valiant effort carried over into the second half as well.
Neal jacked up another shot from beyond the arc to begin the secondhalf scoring, but Carlson responded with a 3-pointer of her own. Kersh also hit a jumper on the next trip down the floor, pulling Cherokee Bluff to within four points at the 5:51 mark of the third quarter.
A minute-and-a-half later, Baldwin pushed the lead back to seven before the Bears completely took over. Kersh was pivotal on the next few possessions to make it a one-point game.
Kersh got help as Cherokee Bluff outscored the Bravettes 11-5 in the final four minutes of the third. The Bears clung to a 47-46 lead heading into the fourth quarter but held all the momentum.
Nothing went right for Baldwin in the final period. The Bravettes repeatedly turned the ball over and didn’t make shots.
Carlson took over, scoring eight of her 23 points in the fourth. Carlson and Kersh, who finished with 22 points, pushed the pace and set the tone for Cherokee Bluff. The Bears’ halfcourt defense forced the young Bravette guards to commit turnovers and allow several points in transition.
Baldwin made it close, trailing 60-55 with 2:44 left, but Cherokee Bluff put the game away with free throws. The Bears didn’t let the Bravettes overcome their mistakes in the game’s final minutes.
Cherokee Bluff played a relatively clean second half, which helped to secure its first state championship in program history. Meanwhile, Baldwin struggled with turnovers in the final two quarters, giving the ball away 20 times, 13 of which came in the second half. The Bears took advantage, building up their lead by scoring points off those key mistakes by the Bravettes.
Cherokee Bluff scored 23 points off turnovers, which was the difference in the end.
“We didn’t take care of the ball,” Walker said. “We started being lax with it and not doing the things that got us here. So, if you don’t do what you’re used to doing, you’re going to fail.”