Ervinton Tops Haysi at Kiwanis Invitational

CLINCHCO, Va. – Ervinton has been one of the better teams in Region D the last three years, but it’s come up short come trophy time.

The Rebels hope Saturday is the start of a new and better trend.

Ervinton topped Dickenson County rival Haysi, 66-58, in the girls finals of the Kiwanis Invitational at Clinchco Elementary School.

In the boys finals, Council defended its crown with a 57-48 victory over Clintwood.

Juniors Kim Hill, Nicolette Mullins and Brett Newton led the way for Ervinton, picking up the slack for fourth-year standout Kelly Rasnick and third-year standout Chelsea Hill, who were in foul trouble most of the night.

Mullins and Newton each grabbed six rebounds in the decisive second quarter, when Ervinton built a 33-15 halftime lead with Rasnick and Chelsea Hill on the bench. Mullins and
Newton, meanwhile were among four double figure scorers for the Rebels with 12 points apiece.

“It was good for us to have those girls step up when we needed them,” Jason Edwards, Ervinton’s fourth head coach in three years, said. “We need that kind of balance if we hope to be successful.

“It was also good for us to bring a trophy back to Ervinton High School. I’m not sure we’ve ever won this tournament. Hopefully, we can get over the hump in the post-season and win some more.”

Rasnick and Chelsea Hill made most of their contributions early and late. Hill scored 12 of her 17 points in the fourth quarter. Rasnick got two key steals and layins in helping the
Rebels, who never trailed, protect their lead in the final period and finished with 12 points, six rebounds, five steals and four assists.

Julia Spangler scored 16 points and Monique Sutherland added 11 points and 10 rebounds for Haysi, which was plagued by turnovers, 23 in all, and poor shooting at the free throw line. The Lady Tigers (1-1) finished the night 15-of-32 at the line.

“Turnovers and free throw shooting, that’s what killed us,” Haysi coach Jessica Owens said. “We were a little sloppy, too. We’d look good in our press break one time, then a lot of times we didn’t take care of the ball.”

Haysi was just 2-of-16 from the floor in the pivotal second period. The Lady Tigers trimmed their 18-point halftime deficit to 65-54 after a 3-point play from Sutherland with 48 seconds remaining and got within single digits in the final 10 seconds.

“The girls played well defensively,” Edwards added. “They did an excellent job considering this tournament was our first two games.

Council 57, Clintwood 48
Council won its second straight Kiwanis title by shooting 50 percent from 3-point range in the first half and with a solid defensive effort in the second half.

Travis Viers was 4-of-5 from beind the 3-point arc and his Council teammates were 6-12 overall in building a modest 30-23 halftime lead. Shane Presley notched five of his seven blocks after the break and finished with 11 rebounds and nine points as well.

“I thought one of our strengths as a team would be our shooting,” Council coach Jeremy Ratliff said. “It took us three games to shoot the way we’re capable of shooting.

“In the second half Shane played well for us inside, and Jeff Gilbert did what we’ve been trying to get him to do, drive to the basket.”

Gilbert and Chris Tiller each added 11 points. Viers scored 13 of his game-high 20 points in the first half.

“Jeff and Chris have really helped us on offense, especially as far as attacking the basket,” Viers said. “We need them to play well and we need Shane inside.”

Trey Meade led Clintwood (1-1) with 14 points and 12 rebounds. J.T. Fleming (11 points) and Cameron Vanover (10) also scored in double figures for the Greenwave.

“Council gave us a lot of match-up problems,” Clintwood coach David Vanover said. “I liked our effort and I liked our hustle.”

Council led by as many as 15 points in the second half. The Greenwave got within 46-38 on a bucket by Vanover with 5:37 remaining, but the Cobras broke the Clintwood press and Gilbert converted a 3-point play to push the lead back to double digits.

Two free throws by Fleming got Clintwood within 55-48 with 39 seconds left. Tiller and Viers each hit free throws in the final 25 seconds.

Consolation games
Haysi made it worth the trip through the snow and ice Saturday by taking third place in the Kiwanis Invitational with a 73-37 win over Dickenson County rival Ervinton at Clinchco Elementary School.

In the girls consolation final of the boys-girls tournament Clintwood shut out Council in key stretches and took third place with a 44-32 win over the Lady Cobras.

Chris Fleming poured in 24 points and added seven rebounds and three assists to pace Haysi (1-1). Byron Bowman added 15 points and Jordan Childress scored 13 for the Tigers.

Logan McCowan tossed in 15 points and Robbie Rose added 10 for Ervinton (0-2).

A 6-2 at the end of a low-scoring first half and a 10-0 spurt lifted Clintwood to a 29-17 lead midway through the third period in the girls consolation contest. The Lady Greenwave (1-1) held the Lady Cobras (0-3) scoreless in the first four minutes of the second half.

Kelsey Geary had a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds for Council. Katie Scott scored 13 points off the bench to lead Clintwood (1-1).