Both boys and girls teams opened the season in the Coach Larry Chapman Foundation Tip Off Tournament during the week of Thanksgiving. Coach Jake Mitchell picked up his first win as the ACA head coach in a victory over Notasulga.
Boys tournament - JAG (Jeff Davis)
The boys team opened the season under new coach Jake Mitchell with a match up against JAG High School (more commonly known as Jeff Davis). The offense never got on track in the 33-62 loss to JAG. ACA committed 22 turnovers which led to 18 less shots attempted than their opponent. JAG dominated down low as they out rebounded ACA 36-21 and outscored them 26-10 in the paint.
Connor Mark led the team with seven points and three steals. A pair of Eagles, Sam Davidson and Christian Snipes, both contributed six points on the afternoon. Snipes and Jayden Jones led the team with four rebounds each.
PCA
Day two saw the Eagles play against PCA. ACA led 13-10 at the end of the first, but were outscored 14-4 in the second to trail 24-17 at the half. The game was relatively even in the second half and the Panthers won by ten, 54-44.
Tyree Saadiq led the team in scoring with 14 points with five rebounds, five steals, and four assists. Sam Davidson added 11 points with three rebounds. Jayden Jones and Mac Moorer each contributed six points. Darius Gardner led the team with seven rebounds and four blocks.
Notasulga
The final game of the week saw ACA win their first of the year with a 60-39 defeat of Notasulga. The Eagles started quick and built a 17-5 lead at the end of the first period. Jayden Jones led the way with six points as six different Eagles scored in the quarter. Notasulga scored the first five points of the second, but Alabama Christian rebounded with a 10-2 run to extend the lead to 27-12 and led by twelve at the break. The third period was even, but ACA used a 13-2 run in the fourth to extend the lead to twenty-one points.
Connor Mark led the team with 15 points with four rebounds and four steals. Jayden Jones was one rebound short of a double-double as he finished with 14 points, nine rebounds, and four steals. Mac Moorer got hot late and added 10 points with three rebounds.
Girls tournament - Brew Tech
ACA began the season against a tough Brew Tech squad that reached the Final Four in Class 5A last year. Alabama Christian took the Rams to overtime before dropping the contest, 40-44. The game was tight throughout as Brew Tech held a 24-18 lead at the break. The Eagles held their opponent to just two points in the third period to cut the lead to two heading into the fourth. ACA scored the final seven points of regulation to force the extra session despite losing Katelyn Sutton with 2:40 left due to five fouls. The Rams outscored ACA 7-3 in the OT period to secure the win.
Jaide Newkirk recorded the first double-doubles of the season with a team leading 12 points and 16 rebounds. Izzy Warrick also reached double figures with 11 points and five rebounds. Campbell Hammett finished with nine points and six boards while Katelyn Sutton added eight points, seven steals, four rebounds, and three assists.
MA
The Lady Eagles looked to rebound against the host school on Tuesday, but looked out of sync as MA built a 20-9 lead late in the second period. ACA scored the last five points of the half to cut the lead to six points at the break. Although the contest remained close through the second half, Alabama Christian dropped another four point decision, 38-42.
Izzy Warrick led all scorers with 19 points and five steals. Jaide Newkirk added 13 points with eight boards and four steals. Katelyn Sutton had a team best five assists.
Catholic
ACA finished the tournament with a match up against longtime opponent, Catholic. Both of the teams came out hot and combined for 46 points in the first period. The Knights led 26-20 heading into the second quarter. Catholic doubled the lead in the period and took a 41-29 lead into the halftime. The third quarter belonged to Catholic who used a 19-0 run to build a thirty point bulge. The game ended with a Catholic victory, 68-41.
A trio of players, Izzy Warrick, Campbell Hammett, and Katelyn Sutton, each scored nine points to lead the team. Right behind them was Jaide Newkirk with eight points. Newkirk lead the team with five rebounds.