By Pamela Whitlow
Friday afternoon the LaFayette High School Bulldogs varsity basketball team made their way to Jacksonville, AL for the first round of the 2024 AHSAA 2A Northeast Regional Semifinals against the Section Lions.
The Bulldogs punched their ticket to the Regional Semifinals with a big win over Fyffe a little over a week ago. LaFayette was slotted to play the 7:30 P.M. game against Section, which was the last game of the night.
From the tip off, the Dogs started slow with their offense not seeming to find any type of rhythm early on in the first half. Foul trouble haunted the Dogs early as well, with their leading rebounder Branaviyun Story picking up two fouls in the first quarter.
It was an uphill climb for the Bulldogs most of the first half, plagued by turnovers and missed opportunities. Senior Vedarrian Story was the only bright spot on offense for the Dogs in the first half scoring 12 of the Bulldogs 20 first half points.
LaFayette managed to stay in striking distance after a rough first half and only trailed the Lions by 8-points at halftime.
If the Bulldogs were going to make a comeback on this night, it was gonna have to be a Bulldog dominated second half. LaFayette came out in the third quarter and took control of the game. The Bulldogs came out in the second half pressing the ball, which led to Section committing some crucial and costly turnovers.
Section continued to battle the Dogs and every time the Dogs made a run, Section would answer with their own run. But the battle tested Bulldogs displayed a bend but not break mentally and never succumbed to the tenacious attack by the Lions.
The LaFayette Bulldogs took control of the game midway through the fourth quarter and closed the doors on any hope of Section advancing to the Regional finals.
The Bulldogs advanced to the AHSAA Class 2A Northeast Regional Championship game defeating the Section Lions 53-44.
Vedarrian Story led the way for the Dogs with 25-points. Dra Vines dropped in 11-points, with 3 steals and 4 boards.Jordan Johnson added 7-points and 5 rebounds.
Branaviyun Story finished the night with 5-points and 9 rebounds.
LaFayette will play Wednesday afternoon at 2:00 P.M. CST. back at Jacksonville State University gymnasium in Jacksonville, Alabama.