The family 👪 tree 🌳 of Lady Cavaliers is shown above and while the Kris Richardson led Middle School team is already dreaming about next year, Hailey Cushman and her JV team opened the road doubleheader in Dublin Friday night with yet another ” W”.

The margin of victory was a wide one as the Lady Cavaliers finished up with a 56-33 score. The only damper to the effort was a fourth quarter ankle injury that we will pray 🙏 involves a speedy recovery.

The team has suffered just one setback this season and will look to continue to build for the future next week ( Monday night at 5:30 pm) when Cave Spring charges The Hill.

Next up : The thoughts of Coach Mayo and the effort he received from our Lady Cavaliers.

” During our game last night we show some signs if becoming the team we can be. We got off to a sluggish start with Pulaski jumping out to a early double figure lead..then we set into the game and had the lead cut to 8 points in the 2nd quarter with possession of the ball and miss a couple of shots and Pulaski scored, taking the lead back up to double figures by halftime. In the second half Pulaski jump back out to a big lead. We struggle to make some shots against the zone. We compete for the whole game. We have a big week with 3 games next week. “

Pulaski County stared the game fast, applying pressure on the Lady Cavaliers from the get-go and as Coach mentioned, CCHS trailed by double figures before scoring their first points of the game.

Wow, would it have been easy to just lower your heads but what this group lacks in Basketball experience, they make up for it in toughness.

For those who are new to the game of Girls Basketball at Carroll County High School, its the Family 👪 in many ways.

Coach Mayo and a handful of others, including Ron Cochran, poured the foundation and built the House that is Lady 👩 Cavaliers Basketball. The top level of success, highlightd by the Back 2 Back State Championships, was not a case of overnight success. Coach earned a spot in the Carroll County High School Hall of Fame before moving on to find success at a few other High Schools. The victory total sits in the vicinity of 500 now and we are fortunate that he has returned in hopes of rebuilding the program.

We mentioned Family, Ron Cochran had a daughter (one of five Kiddos ) named Brandi (Cochran – Mitchell now). You cannot make a list of people who have worked non-stop for the good of the program and not have this former Hoops 🌟in the Top 3. AAU leader and a lengthy run as Varsity Assistant Coach before adding possibly the most significant title, the one as Proud Mama of CC Mitchell.

Shelia Harris played for Coach Mayo back in the day and now supports her youngest daughter, Half Pint, from the bleachers.

Patti Goins is doing double duty as proud Mother 👩 of current Lady Cavalier, Raylee Goins and as Mom to another former star 🌟 ➕ Assistant Coach, Kayla Nester.

Ms Whitaker is still playing a large role with the team as she has been for what seems like decades now.

My own personal description of Coach is someone that I wish our paths could cross on a more frequent basis. Coach is a basketball purist and as I type this on my way to Maples 🍁 Pavillion, he knows what the building means to the game that we both Love.

The ✈️✈✈️ is about to land in Phoenix so I will wrap this up by typing this. Mayo didn’t win last night, might nor win on Monday night but don’t bet against him with folks like Cushman, Richardson and Cochran – Mitchell working with our youth !

In Mayo, We Trust….

The Hill – Carroll County and Pulaski County went back and forth throughout the night before the visiting Cougars delivered the knockout punch in their 79-68 non – district victory Friday night.

Carroll County (6-5) was playing for the third time this week and shorthanded to boot but Head Coach Anthony Barnes is the kind of leader that believes his team can win every time they take the floor.

” I’m slap wore out and my coaches are as well,” said Barnes. ” I know the guys are you could tell.(not making excuses though,  it was still winnable.”

Isaiah Easter added another 30 point performance, finishing the contest with a game high 33. The talented Senior scored from every spot possible, including drilling four of the Cavaliers six 3-pointers.

The two teams went back and forth the entire first half. Carroll County took the halftime lead at 38 – 36, leaving the team just 16 minutes away from sweeping the long week.

”  Not the ending of the week we wanted, but definitely was not from lack of effort,” Barnes added. “We fought hard was down , dug back in took the lead then the coal finally run out of the engine, not making excuses, but poor decision making , late slow passes for unforced turnovers, shots short and not finishing at the rim.( we were gased ) I know they gotta be slap wore out ,on the road last night back to back game with really athletic and well coached Pulaski group that we know all too well , we play all summer long which can be a two edged sword, we left free-throws on the line as well.”

Pulaski County raced out to a 13 – 6 but the Cavaliers answered back and pulled within two at 19 -17. But the next run belonged to the home team and it left the Cavaliers with a nine point lead at 53 -45. The Cougars went for the TKO with a 15-2 run across the end of the third quarter and early fourth.

Blake Reed (14 points) and Colton Gravley (13 points ) did everything they could to support Easter and cover for the ill, Hayden Jackson as the Junior missed his second straight game. The effort allowed the Cavaliers to pull within 62-59 but that is when the well oiled machine sputtered down the stretch.

”  All that combined was just way too much. Long week with sickness and playing, I thought early in the week I would be 2-1 this week with all considering, ” noted Barnes. We have a much needed 3 day back.”

Pulaski County Junior Varsity opened the twin bill with a 62 – 44 victory over Ryan Phillips and his squad.

Both Cavalier teams are slated to return to action 🎬 on Tuesday evening versus Floyd County.

Pulaski County   19  17 17. 26 – 79

Carroll County.   17  21 15  15 – 68

Cavaliers ( 68 ) – Easter 33, Reed 14, Gravley 13, Motley 4, Lark 2, Bunn 2, Reavis.

3-pointers : Easter 4, Reed, Gravley.

On the Girls 👧 side, Carroll County managed a split as the Junior Varsity won 56 – 33 and the Varsity couldn’t dig out of an early hole, falling 63 40.

The hope is to expand on the coverage from Dublin as the information becomes available.