Game 1 (3rd & 4th Girls) – Italy 13 vs. Italy 14:

Italy 13 won 25-13 over Italy 14 in the 1st game on Thursday. Powered by Emily Cunningham’s 10-points including a 3-pointer, Italy 13 never trailed in the contest. Kirby Nelson put in 4-points while Haley Jones, Brycelen Richards and Jenna Holden scored 3-points each. Paige Henderson and Karley Nelson added 1-point each as Reagan Jones was tough on defense for coaches Derrick Cunningham and Allen Richards.

Chardonae Talton and Carlee Wafer battled hard on defense while Italy 14 relied on Hannah Haight’s 7-points and Annie Perry’s 4-points to keep the game close. Elisha McClendon scored 1-point as well and congratulations to Virginia Stephens who put in her first point of the season with a pre-game layup. Nice job, Virginia!

Game 2 (1st & 2nd Coed) – Italy 9 vs. Italy 10:

In a thriller, the second game of the day went undecided until the final buzzer sounded. Italy 9 coached by Deloris Harris held on for a 16-15 victory over Italy 10 “coached” by Dustie Jones and assisted by Mailen Davis.

Fueled by Destiny Harris’s 6-points and 3-points each from Zorian Burley and Reese Janek, Italy 9 just eked out a 1-point victory. Cornelius Jones, Bryce DeBorde, Xander Galvan and Jacee “Without the Y” Coffman also added 1-point apiece in the big game. Michael Gonzalez helped in the rebounding department and on defense for an ecstatic Coach Harris.

Italy 10 was lead in scoring by Lacy Mott and Gage Wafer who both put in 3-points. Catie South scored 2 huge points along with Courtney Riddle and Abby Evans. Jaylon Davis scored a 2-point basket and Evan Cunningham made a free throw. Alex Jones, Sydney Lowenthal and Mason Griffin played hard on defense for coaches Jones and Davis to finish their season strong.

Game 3 (5th & 6th Girls) – Italy 24 vs. Italy 25:

After the pre-game free throws, the game started out 10-9 in favor of Italy 24. Italy 25 lead 13-12 after the 1st quarter but Italy 24 reclaimed the lead in the 2nd quarter and went up 20-16 at haltime. Italy 25 continued to lead after the 3rd, 27-25, and eventually put the game away 33-28 in the final minutes.

Italy 25 coached by Olympia Williams and Vincent Anderson, was lead in scoring by Aarion Copeland with 12-points and Charisma Anderson’s 8-points. Quintera Washington put in 3-points while Lyric Brooks, Lizzie Garcia and Oleshia Anderson scored 2-points each. Jasmine Hernandez, Christi Murry, Taylor Henry, Moesha Griffin and Kimberly Mata added 1-point apiece in the victory.

For Italy 24, coached by Barry Byers, DeCorea Green matched her season high with 13-points. Lillie Perry put in 5-points while Cassidy Childers, Ashlyn Jacinto and Hannah Washington each scored 2-points. Janae Robertson, Halee Turner, Peyton Henderson and Raven Harper each scored 1-point. Jozie Perkins, Brooke DeBorde and Jennifer McDaniel worked hard on the defensive boards for Coach Byers as both teams wrap up their season.

Game 4 (5th & 6th Boys) – Italy 29 vs. Italy 30:

With just a 39-37 lead after the 3rd quarter, Italy 29, coached by Ken Norwood, kept their cool and pulled out a 49-39 win over Italy 30.

Leading the scoring effort for Italy 29 was Kenneth Norwood with 14-points including a 3-pointer in the opening minutes. Christian Gatlin put in 9-points while Cameroan Carter and Kendrick Norwood both scored 7-points. Kevin Johnson scored 6 including a 3-pointer in the 2nd. Jarvis Harris made 3-points, Chasston Wilson put in 2-points and Jarred Gatlin added 1-point. Hunter Ballard defended the paint for Coach Norwood as Italy 29 remains undefeated.

Italy 30 coached by Andrea Windham and assisted by Scott Roberts were lead in scoring by Caden Petrey with 16-points and Levi McBride with 11. James Walton scored 4-points and Ty Windham put in 3-points while Jorge Galvan, Thomas Crowley, Ryan Connor, Cole Falzerano and David De La Hoya each scored 1-point.

Next scheduled IYAA games:

Italy @ Hillsboro

Monday, March 8:

Games @ Italy

Tuesday, March 9:

IYAA Sports, “The winning tradition starts here.”