MACON, Ga. — Fannin County girls coach Ryan Chastain has heard the noise for years.
“I have a (state title) ring, and you don’t,” his wife Amanda would remind him often. Amanda won a title while a member of the Lady Rebels’ 1999 Class 2A championship team.
Ryan will be able to take out the ear plugs after the current Lady Rebels rallied for a 51-42 win over Banks County on Saturday in the Class A Division 1 title game at the Macon Centreplex.
“My wife has been on me about that for years. Now I can finally be an equal with her,” Chastain said afterwards. “This feels great. I mean, there’s no other way to say it, our community lives and breathes women's basketball.”
However, Banks County girls coach Jason Gibson and his group were in the same position, looking for their first-ever state title in program history. The Lady Leopards came within one game of a title two years ago before falling to Mt. Paran in the Class 2A championship game.
This time, they were just 16 minutes away from hoisting a trophy, taking a 23-20 halftime lead. But a tenacious defensive effort by Fannin County, combined with a cold-shooting second half, doomed the Lady Leopards on Saturday.
Fannin County (29-2) held Banks County to 23.1 percent shooting and just 19 points after halftime. They also were able to break down the Lady Leopards’ vaunted press defense that had stifled their first four playoff opponents.
“Fannin did a good job of handling our pressure,” Gibson said. “They made some good reads, especially in the second half. We didn't do a very good job of taking away the middle, and they used that to break the press a lot.”
It took the Lady Leopards a few minutes to settle in while Fannin County ran out to a 9-4 lead to open the game, with Reese Lewis pouring in 5 points inside and Ledford draining a 3-pointer to cap the quick run in the opening 4:20 of the game.
But the Banks County press began to pay off, eventually forcing 5 turnovers over the final four minutes. The defense sparked what turned into an 11-2 spurt, with Ryleigh Murphy scoring all 8 of her first half points in the run.
Banks County led 17-14 after the smoke cleared on the first quarter and the two defenses took over in the second quarter as the two teams’ combined for seven turnovers and just 12 points. Banks County took a 23-20 advantage into the break on a pair of Cannon Collier free throws.
Fannin County opened the third quarter with a 12-2 run, capped by a pair of fastbreak baskets from Ledford. At the same time, Banks County (25-6) missed six straight shots as the Lady Rebels built a 32-25 lead.
Reese Murphy, who played just 7 minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, got Banks County back within 32-31 with five consecutive points to close out the period.
But Fannin County answered once again, using a 14-4 run to open the fourth quarter, fueled by 9 points from Ledford, including several more fastbreak baskets. The Lady Leopards managed just two field goals over the final 6:12 of the game.
Ledford led Fannin County with 22 points and 7 rebounds. Lewis finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Lady Rebels.
Ryleigh Murphy and Reese Murphy led Banks County with 9 points apiece. Ansley Moore and Janakate Gibson each added 6 points, and Marley Dale had 5 points and 11 rebounds for the Lady Leopards.
After a 3-5 start with a new coach, Banks County reeled off 22 straight wins on the way to the championship game. Gibson praised the four seniors -- Resse and Ryleigh Murphy, Emma Chitwood, and Maggie Irvin -- for being the catalyst over the last three months.
“It was still a fantastic season,” he said. “We told the girls all year long to enjoy the journey. This one game doesn't define what this team accomplished.
“Anytime you have coaching changes, you know change is hard sometimes, and I'm just really proud of those girls in there, especially those four seniors for believing in what we wanted to do and really doing a good job of helping us get here."
