Down by eight points (33-25) at halftime, Oak Ridge came out smoking in the second half and rallied past Mercer County 67-52.
The Lady Wildcats (4-8) overcame that deficit by the 2:38 mark of the third when they tied the score at 39-39, and the 20-11 scoring spurt in that period left them with a 45-44 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Oak Ridge never let up a bit down the stretch and began widening their lead with the play of Ayana Porter, who scored 22, and Ze’Yana Stewart, who pitched in 21. Jenna Johnson scored 15 and was a force on defense, especially in the second half.
The Titans of Mercer countered with 13 points from Teigh Yeast, 11 from Anna Drakeford and 10 from Skylar Webb.
Oak Ridge will now play Providence Day (NC) at 4:30 Friday, while Mercer will take on South Greene in the 10:30 a.m. affair.
MERCER COUNTY (52): Teigh Yeast 5-10 3-5 13, McGinnis 0-2 0-0 0, Anna Drakeford 5-9 0-0 11, Lanham 3-5 0-0 9, Dunn 1-6 0-0 2, Skylar Webb 4-5 2-2 10, Boyd 0-1 0-0 0, Jessie 3-3 1-2 7. TOTALS: 21-41 6-9 52.
OAK RIDGE (67): Strickland 2-10 1-2 5, Ze’Yana Stewart 8-10 3-6 21, Ayana Porter 8-13 5-5 22, Green 2-7 0-0 4, Jenna Johnson 7-13 1-3 15. TOTALS: 27-53 10-16 67.
3-Point Goals: MC—4 (Lanham 3, Drakeford). OR—3 (Stewart 2, Porter).
| Scores by Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer Co | 13 | 20 | 11 | 8 – 52 |
| Oak Ridge | 11 | 14 | 20 | 22 – 67 |
