GRAY DEYOSports Writer

Anxiousness, caused by excitement and heartbreak, from nail-biting and back-breaking shots from both teams. The Tullahoma girls’ basketball team’s first appearance in the state tournament in 49 seasons had it all. And while the eventual result was a 48-44 loss to Alcoa High School in the opening round, the Lady Wildcats went out giving it all they had.

A seven-point Tullahoma lead at halftime vanished midway through the fourth quarter, as a layup from the opposing Tornadoes’ star player, Gwen Carroll, tied the game at 37-37 with just over four minutes left. The Lady Wildcats, with the rise in level of play from Alcoa in the second half, were able to prolong them from tying the game with the play from their two seniors, McLayne Bobo and Aubrey North.

 The two in the third quarter rained in three 3-pointers in a row, two coming from Bobo and one coming from North. These big shots helped give Tullahoma a 37-28 lead in the third. But with the flames from the two fourth-year ‘Cats and the Lady Wildcats team as a whole being cooled down some in the fourth quarter, Carroll and her teammates were able to swirl up a run that led to them eventually getting the lead.

Following Carroll’s make to knot the contest even at 37, the Lady Wildcats went empty again on the offensive end, and Carroll on the other end made another layup to give Alcoa a 39-37 advantage.

The stakes of the contest were clearly having an effect on both teams, and certainly on Tullahoma. Offensively, the ‘Cats were turning the ball over at a rapid rate and struggled to get into their offensive sets. And with their once lead now turned upside down, head coach for THS Chad Hibdon called a timeout.

Out of the break, the Lady Wildcats looked much like themselves from the first half. Patient and efficient. On offense, they were no longer turning the ball over but rather finding the cracks in the Tornadoes’ defense and attacking them.

It was the seniors who shined in the third for Tullahoma, but in the fourth, it was the sophomores.

The Lady Wildcats, out of Hibdon’s timeout, went on a 4-0 run. Off this, the ‘Cats got a 41-39 lead before Alcoa evened it back at 41-41. Sophomore forward for Tullahoma, Madison McCarl, with 1:01 left and all the pressure of Tullahoma’s season on her shoulders, worked on an isolation on the low block and generated a bucket. Alcoa responded again with a bucket, making the score 43-43.

Farrell then had an answer after an aggressive drive to the basket with less than 30 seconds remaining. This drive earned a trip to the free-throw line. As Farrell got up from the ground, she was consoled by her teammates, including Bobo, as she was about to shoot the biggest free throws of her high school basketball career.

Farrell split the pair of shots, making the first one and missing the second one off the back rim.

With the game now on the line for Alcoa and Carroll being the game-high scorer with 20 points, a different player stepped up for the Tornadoes.

Junior Brylee Flatt, with 11.2 seconds remaining, drilled a midrange jumper, giving Alcoa a 45-44 advantage. Flatt had six points before this make.

 Tullahoma, after Flatt’s jumper, called a timeout, but it did not have the same calming effect as their last one, as the turnover bug bit them again.

The Lady Wildcats launched an inbounds pass to half court, and it was intercepted by Alcoa. After losing the ball and little time left on the clock, THS was forced to foul. Carroll was the shooter who took the line for Alcoa, and she knocked down both FTs. With six seconds left, Tullahoma needed a 3-pointer to tie, and they got about as good a look as a team could ask for in that situation.

It was not by any means an open 3-pointer, or a lightly contested one, but Tullahoma got the ball to their star Bobo for the potential game-tying shot. For three-fourths of the way on Bobo’s shot to the basket, it almost looked like a given that it was going down. Upon reaching the rim, it started to fall in the basket, but unfortunately, it rolled off the rim and out.

The two leading scorers for Tullahoma in the state first round contest were Bobo and freshman Gena Hickerson. Bob had 16 points, and Hickerson had eight points.

The Lady Wildcats, in a season that ended in a heartbreaking loss, have no reason to be upset. They accomplished a feat that few people who have ever put on a basketball jersey at THS have. The culmination of their success brought countless memories. It also brought a packed fanbase to MTSU against Alcoa, full of fans who had cheered them on all the way back to their first game of the season against Oakland High School.

As years continue to roll on by, what the Lady Wildcats basketball program will go on to accomplish is unknown. But living in the moment of now, one thing is for certain. The 2025-2026 Lady Wildcats’ basketball team will forever be remembered in Tullahoma.

Congratulations to the coaches, players, managers, and anybody who played the smallest role in helping this historic run happen; it has truly been one for the books