Waldron Clinches Spot In District Tournament Championship

Pictured is Camdon Holcomb

The Waldron Bulldogs moved to 22-5 on the year, after a stellar win against the Booneville Bearcats in the Semi-Finals of the 3A-4 District Tournament Thursday night. The Bulldogs wasted little time getting on the board with a three-pointer from Jaden Hutchens on their first possession. Although the Bearcats responded by getting on the board with a Blake Jones lay-up, Waldron’s Gada Wagner was unrelentless as he went on to score the next 8 points jumping the Bulldogs to an early 11-2 lead. But Booneville’s Blake Jones stopped the run by delivering a three-point basket. 

Isaac “The Real” Villarreal was the next Bulldog showstopper to get in the scoring column with a basket inside the paint while then turning around and making two free throws. Waldron took control with a 15-5 lead before Blake Jones scored his sixth and seventh points of the night for the Bearcats. While the Bulldog’s defense was staying busy by keeping Booneville’s offense in their clutches, Waldron’s Braden Williams scored a putback basket to extend the Bulldog’s lead to 17-7. Gada Wagner added another bucket to make the score 19-7 but the Bearcats used a 6-0 run to end the first quarter and cut the lead in half, trailing 19-13. 

Braden Williams pulled the trigger and opened the second quarter with a made free throw but the Bearcats, Austin Hill, knocked down a three to make the score 20-16 early in the second quarter. Bryson Bailey shot out of the shadows dispensing a steal and score for the Bulldogs to extend their lead back to six, but Booneville’s Jacob Herrera and Mason Goers had other plans. Herrera knocked down a three while Goers scored a lay-up to get the Bearcats within one, 22-21. The Bulldogs then turned up the pressure, ignited the pilot, and blasted up and down the court using a 21-5 run to extend their lead to 16 at the end of the first half, 43-27.

Herrera got the show on the road to open the second half with a three-pointer for the Bearcats cutting the lead to 13 but the Bulldogs remained in control using a 19-5 run to extend the lead to 62-32. Blake Jones hit his second 3 of the game while Herrera also added a two-point basket for the Bearcats. Waldron’s Jaden Hutchens and Camdon Holcomb turned around and ate up the free-throw line combining for three giving the Bulldogs the 65-37 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Holcomb got right down to business opening the fourth quarter with a two-point basket but Blake Jones responded by hitting his third triple of the night. The Bulldogs finished the game on a 9-4 run earning a final score of 76-44 sending them on to the championship round of Districts.

Gada Wagner led all scorers with 26 points for the Bulldogs. Blake Jones led Bearcat scorers with 14. Jacob Herrera also scored in double figures for the Bearcats with 13. The Bulldogs will move on to face the Charleston Tigers in the District Tournament Finals at the Waldron Activity Center at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 27, 2021. The Tigers defeated the Cedarville Pirates to advance to the Championship game. Booneville will play in the Regional Tournament on Wednesday, March 3, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. against the winner of Bergman and Valley Springs. 

Box Score:

Waldron—Gada Wagner (26), Braden Williams (9), Jaden Hutchens (8), Caden Fuller (8), Camdon Holcomb (7), Bryson Bailey (4), Isaac Villarreal (4), Lidge Stinson (3) Jayden McConnell (3), Trenton Hunt (2), Peyton Lipham (2)- 76

Booneville—Blake Jones (14), Jacob Herrera (13), Austin Hill (5), CJ Johnson (5), Brooks Herrera (2), Mason Goers (2), Evan Escobedo (2), Raiden Ferguson (1)- 44

Photos courtesy of Sandy Tull