ACA defeated its host, St James, by the exact score as their first match up ten days ago, 59-39. The Eagles vaulted to an early 12-2 lead in the first as the offense fed the hot hand of Christian Snipes, who had eight points during the stretch. The Trojans cut the lead in half, but a three-point play from Jayden Jones and an offensive put back by Sam Davidson gave ACA a 19-11 lead after one. ACA played uninspired in the second period and only scored two points in the first five-plus minutes of the quarter. Luckily, the St James wasn’t much better as Alabama Christian led 21-16 with 2:31 left in the half. ACA finished the second on a 7-1 run to take a 28-17 at the half.
The Trojans were unable to put a dent in the ACA lead in the third as they still trailed by eleven with 3:41 left in the period. Once again, ACA finished the quarter strong as they outscored the home team 12-4 to take a 46-27 lead into the fourth. Jayden Jones found AC Walters multiple times in the post to help Walters lead the team with nine points in the quarter. In the fourth both teams emptied the bench to allow the backups to gain experience on the floor. Bryson Dabney came out smoking as he hit 3 of 6 three-pointers in the period. ACA final margin of victory would be twenty points once again.
AC Walters led the team with 14 points and seven rebounds. Christian Snipes finished with 12 points followed by Sam Davidson with 10 points and five rebounds, and Jayden Jones with nine points and six assists.
Two years ago, nobody was happier than Trinity when PCA was moved up to 4A by the AHSAA after back to back state titles. Trinity took advantage and went back to back in PCA’s absence. This year, St James is the beneficiary of both PCA and Trinity being in 4A and has potentially opened the path for them to win a championship. On Friday night, St James handled ACA easily as the Eagles played timidly most of the night. The home team led by fifteen after one and built a 47-16 lead by halftime. There might be a few future Trojan coaches amongst the players as they have already learned how to cry about calls even when firmly in control of the game. St James emptied its bench and played its JV squad in the fourth quarter as ACA dropped the game 43-73.
Katelyn Sutton and Jaide Newkirk led the offense as both had nine points. Newkirk also added six rebounds. Evelyn Tankersley had eight points and a team high eight rebounds with three blocked shots.