In a matchup that went down to the wire, the Flowery Branch boys basketball team outlasted East Hall 66-64 on Saturday in South Hall.
The Falcons were paced by Jamaad Stephens’ 25 points in the game. They also got 14 points from James Hodges and nine from Kanler Coker. East Hall was led by J.C. Hampton (20 points) and Brian Edwards (11 points).
Flowery Branch will face West Hall next in the first round of the Lanierland tournament at 10:30 a.m. on Monday at East Hall High. East Hall will face Chestatee in the first round at 8 p.m. on Monday.
EAST HALL GIRLS 52, FLOWERY BRANCH 46: The Lady Vikings topped Flowery Branch in a close game on Saturday behind Morgan Jackson’s 24 points.
Cara Chilton led the Lady Falcons in the losing effort with 18 points. Jacy Ramey and Tavia Sykes each added 10.
Both teams play next in the Lanierland tournament, East Hall against Johnson at 6:30 p.m. on Monday and Flowery Branch against Gainesville at 9 a.m., also on Monday.
LAKEVIEW ACADEMY BOYS 77, COMMERCE 27: Lakeview (6-2, 3-0 Region 8-A) won easily on Saturday behind 16 points from Austin Pearson. Austin and Zach Montgomery also go into double-figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Trevor Price added 11 in the game.
Lakeview will face North Hall in the opening round of Lanierland at 5 p.m. on Monday.
LAKEVIEW ACADEMY GIRLS 41, COMMERCE 23: The Lakeview girls used a strong second quarter and 12 points from Kelsey Gilbert to top Commerce in Gainesville on Saturday. Taylor Handte added nine for Lakeview (6-5), and Commerce was led by Lily Mather (15 points).
Next, Lakeview will face Rabun Gap at 6 p.m. on Jan. 3 at home.
WHITE COUNTY BOYS 50, BANKS COUNTY 35: The Warriors (4-6) opened strong, jumping out to a 21-2 lead, and hung on to defeat Banks County in the consolation round of the Piedmont Holiday Classic on Saturday.
Andrew London led White County in scoring with 15 points, and Rand Rowland added 13. Banks County (4-6) was led by Gatlyn Boswell (14 points).
LANIER GIRLS 48, LUMPKIN COUNTY 38: Despite playing close for the first half, the Lady Indians couldn’t keep pace on Saturday in Sugar Hill.
Morgan Wood led Lumpkin County (3-8) with 18 points in the game.
The Lady Indians will play next at Gilmer on Jan. 3.
NORTH OCONEE BOYS 50, WHITE COUNTY 47 OT (Friday): Despite a strong performance on both sides of the ball, White County fell in overtime to North Oconee on Friday in the semifinals of the Piedmont Holiday Classic. Spencer Adams led the scoring for the Warriors with 16 points.
Wrestling
CHESTATEE TAKES SECOND AT RED RAIDER DUALS: The War Eagles picked up victories against Madison County (83-0), East Jackson (72-9) and Commerce (45-33) before taking a close loss to Chattahoochee (25-43) in the finals.
Dylan Brock, Austin Donaldson and Cody Etris led the way for Chestatee (14-5), notching four wins apiece.
The War Eagles host Franklin County at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
NORTH HALL NOTCHES TOP-THREE FINISH: The Trojans finished in the top three on Saturday at Cherokee Invitational. They were led by Tyler Kratzer, who took first in the 138-pound weight class. Taylor Marett notched a second-place finish in the 106.
EAST HALL PICKS UP A PAIR OF WINS: East Hall won a pair of duals over Towns County (45-27) and Murphy (N.C.) after losing a close dual to Lumpkin County (27-36) on Friday.
The Vikings (8-8) competed at the John Smith Mountain Classic on Saturday. Five wrestlers placed in their respective weight classes in the event: C.J. Gaudlock and Edward Vergara placed second, Carlos Negron and J.D. Holloway took third, and Tyler Thomas finished in fourth.
East Hall will face Johnson next on Jan. 3.
On Friday, East Hall won a pair of duals over Towns County (45-27) and Murphy (N.C.) after losing a close dual to Lumpkin County (27-36).
High school results may be reported by 10:30 p.m. by calling 770-718-3406, or emailing sports@gainesvilletimes.com. Results reported after deadline will appear in the following day’s paper.