By Thomas Grant Jr.
Both Chapin basketball teams stayed active during the holiday break by participating in tournaments.
The Lady Eagles reached the final of the Bennie Bennett Holiday Classic at Newberry High School. They opened play with a 63-21 win over the host school.
Led by Reagan Haggard’s 17 points and 12 rebounds, Chapin defeated Mid-Carolina 53-36 to reach the final. It faced Clover on Monday at Rock Hill High School.
Meanwhile, the Chapin boys competed in the Cayce Roundball Classic at Brookland-Cayce High School. It opened play in the American Division against eventual champion J.F. Byrnes and lost 75-46.
Tyson Ray had a game-high 20 points and Carter Googins finished with 14 points.
The following night saw the Eagles pull over a hard-fought 70-67 overtime win over Lower Richland. Bradyn Francis had 21 points, Jayden Bradford scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds and Ray had 14 points and six rebounds.
It was Chapin’s lone win of the Classic. The Eagles fell 60-30 to Hammond in the final game.
“We’ve been playing a lot of basketball the last couple of days,” Chapin head coach Marquett Carr said. “I’m talking three nights back-to-back-to-back. So not a lot of practice time. But credit to these guys (Ray and Francis) for coming in locked in, knowing we needed a win. Our schedule’s been brutal, so we desperately needed a win. All credit to these guys for making plays down the stretch.”
Photo by Edward Walker – Chapin guard Bradyn Francis
