Vikings drop EHS boys and girls

By Rebecca Pierson
STAR Correspondent

   Bristol -- The Tennessee High Vikings took down the Elizabethton Cyclones boys and girls last night at Viking Hall.
   The Cyclones went down 17-5 in the first quarter, and never could bounce back. Head coach Tony Hardin felt that his team did a good job against a team like the Vikings.
   "I thought they shot it off well early, and we kind of dug ourselves a hole in the first half," he said. "The second half we played with a lot more intensity. I give my kids a lot of credit. They played hard, and tried to get themselves back in it." The Vikings kept a 17 point lead from the third through the fourth quarter to finish the game 67-50.
   Elizabethton was also messing a key player in the match-up with Lester Bailey out after pulling a hamstring in the game against Hampton. "Bailey is out until after Christmas," Hardin said. "That hurts us. He is our leader. Without him, we are not as good. But we had some kids step up and try and do some things.
   "We are very young, and we are not going to be very good until the end," he said.
   One of those players to step up was Adam Turley. He earned 14 points for the Cyclones, and was 4-4 on free throws. "Adam has become our emotional leader," Hardin said. "He gives a lot of effort and plays with a lot of energy. I think he did the same thing tonight."
   What hurt the Cyclones the most was turnovers and fouls. The Vikings were 16-24 at the foul line. "When you're down double-figures, most of the time you have to go out and defend them and try and do some things, and that causes that stuff to happen," Hardin said. "Our energy was good in the second half. It is just that when you have a team that is as good as [Tennessee High] with 16 kids, when you get down, it is very hard to get back into the game. We did what did when we felt like there was a chance, and we just couldn't make shots. We missed a lot of shots that could have gotten us back in the game."
   Charles Peters and Chris Vaughn tied the team for second in points with nine. The Viking's Drew Porter scored 17 for the game, and Bryan Terrill and Matt Buchanan scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, in the game.
   The Cyclones have their next match-up at Happy Valley on Tuesday. The Lady Cyclones fell to the Lady Vikings, 68-50, in an equally disappointing game.
   Elizabethton gave Tennessee High 10 fouls in the first half alone. The Lady Cyclones tried to rally back in the third after a half-time score of 42-26, but could never close the gap any closer than 11 points. Valneesha Redd led the Cyclones in scoring at 13, with Michaela Pietrowski following with 12. Eden Treadway also added nine points on the board.
   The Lady Vikings top scorer was Megan Blevins with 20; two three-pointers, four field goals, and 6-6 at the foul line. Courtney Watkins put 16 points on the board with Mindy Carter following in points with 10.